You forget how much fun it is. D.C. took a vacation day and I filled in on Rock 107. Funny, from the time I was 16 years old until just a couple years ago, I was on the radio all the time. I've been up and down half the eastern seaboard and all around the dial (both of 'em). It's easy to take it for granted. But I had a good time.
It got me to thinking about how far I'd come since I first made it on to the radio - back at 1260 WCDJ, a 1,000 watt daytime only AM station on Paradise Road (not aptly named) in Edenton, NC. I started there as the guy who mowed the lawn, hoping my proximity would somehow lead to my on-air debut. Inexplicably, this stupid plan worked, and the last two years of my high school career included getting out of school and dashing across town to the radio station, where I would play Barry Manilow and Ann Murray records until sunset.
I did some college radio, and spent six months working part-time at WKNS in Kinston, NC (home of Kings' Barbecue!). That was the voice of Kinston, a 5,000 AM that made me feel like I'd arrived until I landed a part-time job at the 100,000 watt FM blowtorch that was WSFL in New Bern, NC - the first station I worked at that I actually willingly listened to BEFORE becoming an employee. Worked with some great characters and jocks at 'SFL...Rick Stix, John Peace, Fast Eddie, Jim Starr, Smoke (who remains a cherished friend), Gary Lee.
Landed my first full time job when my friend, Steve Kirk, pitched the old Satellite Music Network service to a new class C FM that was about to sign on in Beaufort, NC. Ben Ball didn't want a satellite service, but asked Steve if he knew of any promising young radio people that would't cost much, but would bring some potential and Steve was kind enough to pitch me. That's how I became part of the original Z103 airstaff.
Three years later I was off to WHCN in Hartford, then WPLR in New Haven. After that, I went to Charlottesville, Virginia for my first programming job. Tom Evans from Harris & Associates gets the big assist for landing me at 3WV. An old competitor, Harve Alan, brought me back to Connecticut to handle operations and programming at I05 in Danbury. Then I returned to WHCN, where I had mixed feelings about flipping my old station to the River, although it was a most successful move. I tried getting out of the business after that, but "everytime I think I'm out they pull me back in". And here I sit, in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, programming Rock 107 and working with one of the finest teams I've ever had the pleasure to work with...and I've been blessed to work with good people most of my career! See what kind of memories five hours on the radio can dredge up?
Frequencies I have populated: 90.5, 95.1, 99.1, 103.3, 105.9 (twice-WHCN and Rock 107's Hazleton frequency), 106.5, 106.9; plus 960, 1260 and 1400 AM. Like the Kinks, I really have been "all around the dial".
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