In Memory of the TL Sound

Growing up in the Pittsburgh market, I was exposed to quite a few first-class radio stations and an even greater number of excellent radio personalities. Of those I remember from my youth, several names come to the forefront and include the following:

• WAMO’s Porky Chedwick
• KQV’s Chuck Brinkman
• WZUM’s “Mad” Mike Metro, and
• WMCK’s Terry Lee.

I got word today that Terry Lee had passed away on Tuesday at the age of 70 from a long fight with lung cancer. Terrance Trunzo (as he was legally known), got his start in radio at WESA in Charleroi at the age of 16. After stints at WESA, Carnegie’s WZUM, and Canonsburg’s WARO; Terry was hired by WMCK in McKeesport in 1964.

Located at 1360 on the AM dial, the station’s 5,000 watt signal was a contender in the Pittsburgh market with a strong daytime signal. At night, not so much, as WMCK operated with a reduced power of 1,000 watts with a four tower directional array – still enough power to cover the boroughs east of Pittsburgh.

When WMCK became WIXZ, they became serious about competing with their biggest rival KQV. This lasted until WJAS became 13-Q and the Top 40 wars on the AM dial were on with 13-Q taking the lead Top 40 spot in Pittsburgh. Decades later, Lee would host a weekend show on WJAS.

It was during Terry Lee’s years at WMCK/WIXZ that he became the quintessential local media star and music entrepreneur. His years in the business went far beyond turntables and cart machines. He was a mobile deejay and his dances attracted teens from all over the area. Soon he turned his talents to concert promoting and the managing and producing local bands.

He used his forum at WMCK/WIXZ to promote some of the bands that recorded for his own labels: Sherry Records and Stone Records. One of the local bands he promoted and produced was named The Larks who he rechristened as The Fantastic Dee-Jays. During 1965 and 1966, The Fantastic Dee-Jays recorded one album and five singles that were only distributed in the Pittsburgh region. The Fantastic Dee-Jays even opened for The Rolling Stones when they played locally in 1966.

Along with The Fantastic Dee-Jays, Terry managed and produced the Arondies, the Swamp Rats, and the Racket Squad. He also was a night club owner and hosted a music TV show, “Come Alive,” on Pittsburgh’s channel 11 – WIIC. He would also have TV shows on KDKA-TV and WPGH-TV. When he left Pittsburgh for Phoenix, Lee hosted a syndicated radio program bringing the “TL Sound” to a national audience.

Over the years, he also owned several radio stations but had divested his interest in these outlets a number of years ago. In 2008, he returned to Pittsburgh audiences where he hosted record hops and hosted several radio shows. Lee was still performing up to several months ago until his lung cancer forced him to retire from the music scene.

I remember listening to Terry Lee during his evening shift at WMCK/WIXZ and can honestly say he influenced me to try my hand at broadcasting – a career that I had for 20 years. To honor TL, we leave you with a song he produced for The Fantastic Dee-Jays: “Love is Tuff” from 1966. Rest in Peace Terry – old DJs never die, they’re just potted down.

By the way, I must give credit where credit is due.  While I have my memories of Terry, many of the specific facts for this post came from a web page about Terry Lee on the Pittsburgh Music History site at https://sites.google.com/site/pittsburghmusichistory/pittsburgh-music-story/radio/terry-lee. The author gives a great amount of detail concerning the life and career of TL. Check it out. 

Genesis: Watcher of the Skies

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While I’ve probably seen only fifty concerts or so over the years, people often ask me, “What was the best show?” Well, I’ve seen some pretty good ones such as Bruce Springsteen at Pittsburgh’s Three Rivers Stadium; Madonna at Madison Square Garden; Emerson, Lake, and Palmer at the Charleston, WV Civic Center; and Heart at the Huntington, WV Civic Center; however, the best show I’ve seen was on November 30, 1974.

I was on Thanksgiving break from college and my birthday present from my brother that year was a chance to accompany him to see Genesis live at the Syria Mosque in Pittsburgh. Sadly, this intimate and ornate hall is no more having been demolished to make room for something really important – a parking lot. Grrrr.

Every seat in the house was a great seat and I am not sure how many rows back from the stage we were situated, but we were in the last row at stage center – it was like being at the fifty yard line. It couldn’t have been more than 20 rows back. This was still very close to see all of the action and Peter Gabriel’s Genesis had plenty of action.

“The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway” tour was not just a musical event; it was a theatrical event. This was the best concert, bar none, that I’ve attended. Apologies are extended to ZZ Top, Van Halen, Rod Stewart, Tina Turner, Robert Plant, Jefferson Starship, and a host of others that I’ve attended over the years.

I became a fan of Genesis when I heard selections from the “Nursery Cryme” LP played over Carnegie, PA’s WZUM – Sweet 16 on your AM dial. Being that Carnegie was some distance from my home (17 miles) and that this 1,000 watt daytime station was at the second worst dial position (1590) on the AM dial, it was difficult to pick it up always. (By the way, the worst position was 1600 kHz; however, since the medium wave spectrum was extended in the Western Hemisphere during 1993, 1700 is now the worst position on the dial.)

The station had a split format – ethnic (read Slovak, Polish, Ukrainian, etc.) music until sometime in the afternoon (4 PM perhaps) and then album rock until signoff. I could not wait until the ethnic music went off the air. Whoever was programming the selections in the late afternoon did a great job. I shortly purchased my first Genesis album – “Nursery Cryme.” “Foxtrot” and “Genesis Live” followed shortly.

During the concert, I was hoping to hear some of their older material, but alas, only one older Genesis number was featured in the encore. It was “The Musical Box” from “Nursery Cryme.” While I like this particular song, I was hoping that at some point the song they used to begin shows would be used. This was the opening cut from their 1973 album “Foxtrot.”

“Watcher of the Skies” started out with keyboardist Tony Banks playing this surreal string intro on his Mark II Mellotron. The chords just sound fantastic. It is said that this particular string sound could was only available on the Mark II version. For the latest Mellotron emulator, the Manikin Electronics’ Memotron has samples from the Mark II Mellotron (recorded from the speakers no less) to get that true “Watcher of the Skies” sound.

When performed live, Peter Gabriel wore a headdress similar to bat wings. He also used fluorescent makeup that glowed under black lights on stage. I would have loved to have seen this, but I never got the opportunity.

The Single Mix

For a shortened version of the single, Genesis completely re-recorded “Watcher of the Skies” that cut the length down from the 7:52 version to 3:44. The guitar parts are very different on the single.

Also extricated from the song was its now famous Mellotron intro – which was too long of an intro for AM radio (excepting WZUM) and the newer breed of FM Contemporary Hit Radio stations. “Watcher” redux is good in its own right and worth a listen or two as it is a completely different mix. The single failed to chart in the Hot 100.

Cleveland Rocks with WMMS

A few weeks ago, Greg Rector, who has been a constant reader of this blog since its inception, asked if I would do a feature on the legendary rock radio station WMMS from Cleveland. I have done radio features before and one that I had done early on regarding WHAM’s Harry Abraham has garnered me some lifelong friends who also listened to this legendary jazz announcer from Rochester, NY. So, I have done some radio features – but usually I had listened to a station quite a bit that I knew it well.

With the case of WMMS, I had heard the station during my travels throughout Northern Ohio in the late 1970s; however, I could not claim to be an expert the station. WMMS, however, was the only station I listened to while driving through that region and I remember hearing bands like The Pretenders first on WMMS. During my brief stint in Album Oriented Rock (AOR) radio, I got to know the station better, as WMMS was considered one top AOR outlets in the US. If a cut was played on WMMS, dozens of others would add the song.

Ohio was a hotbed of AOR stations with excellent examples found in Youngstown, Columbus, Dayton, Cincinnati, Toledo, and elsewhere; however, Cleveland – the home of rock ‘n roll – had one of the better known AOR stations in the country.

The outlet began as the FM compliment to 5,000 watt WHK. When FCC rules enacted in 1967 required that AM and FM outlets (initially in the major markets) have unique programming, WHK-FM switched to the new progressive/underground format that in the 1970s morphed into AOR.

Metro Media, the owners of WHK-FM in 1968, rebranded the station as WMMS – for Metro Media Stereo – the call sign the station uses today even though ownership has changed several times since the Metro Media days. The progressive rock format did not initially perform well in Cleveland, and WMMS jockeyed a number of other formats during 1969 and 1970. It returned to the progressive/AOR format in 1970 and the rest, as they say, is history.

In the mid 1970s, WMMS adopted "The Buzzard" mascot – which simultaneously became the station’s alter ego. In 1981, Radio and Records (later R&R) declared that The Buzzard was the best known radio promotional emblem in the US. WMMS jocks simply referenced the station as "The Buzzard" as well.

While my listening to WMMS is limited, I got to know the station through my own work in radio. Even though most of the middle period of my radio career was in Contemporary Hit Radio, WMMS program director John Gorman was known nationally and across formats as one of the best program directors in the business.

Afternoon jock, Kid Leo, became a national celebrity appearing at conventions and later broadened his base in the music industry as the vice president for artist development at Columbia Records, a position he held from 1989 to 2002. While there were other well known personalities at WMMS, Gorman and Kid Leo are the only two with which I am familiar.

Ian Hunter: Cleveland Rocks

In 1979, former Mott the Hoople lead vocalist Ian Hunter released his best selling solo album, “You’re Never Alone with a Schizophrenic.” As a tribute to the birthplace of rock ‘n roll, Hunter recorded “Cleveland Rocks.” He felt that the Rust Belt city did not get the respect it was due.

The recording starts with a clip of legendary Cleveland disc jockey Alan Freed and his Moondog show (over WJW) that ties the perspective of Cleveland being rock ‘n roll’s birthplace with the voice of its father. The song became synonymous with Cleveland and is played often today. Every Friday, as Greg told me, WMMS would kick off the weekend by playing Hunter’s “Cleveland Rocks” followed by The Easybeats’ “Friday on My Mind.”

A cover by The Presidents of the United States gained national notoriety as the theme song to the Drew Carey Show which was set in Cleveland.

Ian Hunter: England Rocks

Two years previous to the release of the 1979 release of “You’re Never Alone with a Schizophrenic,” Hunter recorded the original version of “Cleveland Rocks.” At the request of CBS records to use another locale besides an American city, Hunter changed the lyrics to “England Rocks.”

“England Rocks” was released as a single in the United Kingdom by Hunter and his band the Overnight Angels. Hunter is clear on the subject of this version that “Cleveland” was the original and intended location for the song. I don’t know about you, but “England Rocks” just doesn’t have the punch that “Cleveland Rocks” has.

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Donnie Iris: Ah! Leah!

Yesterday, I talked about being on the air in Huntington, WV the night that John Lennon was killed. Within two months, I took a job in Beckley, WV as the evening jock for WCIR-FM. One of the songs that I heard for the first time in Beckley was Donnie Iris’ “Ah! Leah!”

During those first few months of 1981, the song was played in what was called a recurrent status. For you non-radio types, this was the song rotation for recent hits and these songs were typically played between one to three times daily.

Apparently, it received tons of airplay at CIR before I joined the staff in early 1981, but was a song that was overlooked by the stations in Huntington. Music director and later program director Ron Hill was responsible for getting this record its start in Southern West Virginia. I had totally missed this release.

By the summer of 1981, an Album Oriented Rock (AOR) station came on the air in the market - WOAY which replaced country formatted WRJL at 94.1. Charlie Jennings, WOAY's program director, made sure that Iris’ tune was played in a pretty significant rotation throughout their years in what they termed as the Adult Rock format.

I later worked at WOAY from 1983 to 1987 and helped transition the station from an AOR to a Contemporary Hit Radio station beginning in 1984. We still played “Ah! Leah!” in the new format as an oldie.

“Ah! Leah!” was also a colossal hit in my hometown of Pittsburgh. Domenic Ierace, as he was born, was something of a Greater Pittsburgh legend playing in the biggest local band during my high school years. The Jaggerz had one national hit – “The Rapper” which peaked at #2 in 1970. Donnie Iris wrote and sang lead on this hit.

Following the break-up of The Jaggerz, Iris later joined another Upper Ohio River Valley band, Wild Cherry – but it was after the band had reached the peak of their success. He contributed to their third and fourth albums, but not to any of their hit releases.

The year 1980 was primed for Donnie Iris and “Ah! Leah!” was originally released on Midwest National Records before being picked up by MCA. While its chart performance wasn’t outstanding (#29 on the singles chart and #19 on the rock charts), it is a timeless song that is still heard today. In fact, I heard it last week on an episode of Bones – thus qualifying it for inclusion as this week’s TV Thursday selection.

REO Speedwagon Before Hi Infidelity

Due to the success of REO Speedwagon’s 1980 LP “Hi Infidelity,” it was many individuals’ first taste of this band from Champaign, IL. “Hi Infidelity” was their first of three top 10 albums and the only one to go to number 1. In addition, the album was certified 10 times platinum and produced six single releases.

Two were top five singles “Keep on Lovin’ You” at number 1 and “Take it on the Run” peaking at #5. Two singles charted within the top 30: “Don’t Let Him Go” at 24 and “In Your Letter” at 20. The two remaining singles, “Tough Guys” and “Out of Season," failed to chart in the Hot 100; however, they did manage to make it onto the Rock chart.

To many, “Hi Infidelity” was their first album. Unfortunately, a number of great songs recorded by the band during the previous decade were being ignored due to their three album run of Top 40 success. Hence, I have decided to feature some of their better early music to fulfill the musical malnutrition of the mainstream with “REO Speedwagon before ‘Hi Infidelity.’”

I had an opportunity to see and meet the band in 1985 and 1987.  While it was after their classic period, many of the songs during their shows featured the songs that follow.

Ridin’ the Storm Out

It was during the fall of 1973 that I became familiar with REO Speedwagon. I can almost hear it now. It was a warm fall afternoon on the campus of Kentucky Christian. Someone had their dorm room windows open and the stereo’s speakers were blaring out the opening synthesizer of “Ridin’ the Storm Out.” At the song’s end, Jack O’Shea of KEE radio in Huntington, WV, back sold the song, “That was REO Speedwagon with ‘RIdin’ the Storm Out.’”

Great memories and a great tune; “Ridin’ the Storm Out” was the band’s third album and lead vocalist Kevin Cronin had left the band during its production. Michael Murphy was brought in to fill the role as the band’s front man.

The cover photo shoot in which Cronin was a part was altered and airbrushed over with a photo of Murphy in his place. In 1977, “Ridin’ the Storm Out” was re-released as a live cut with Cronin singing lead. The new version barely made the charts with a dismal showing at 94. The synth portemento that opens the song is a definite REO signature. Neil Doughty played an early Mini-Moog on this cut. Its three oscillators provided the unique textured sound that was used on this cut.

Golden Country

While “Golden Country” was from the second album “R.E.O. T .W.O,” I never heard this song until 1974 when WAMX began playing album rock music late at nights. Bob Lee, who worked nights in those days, would bring his albums into the studio then located at the tower site on Terrapin Ridge Road south of Ashland, KY.

 This social consciousness song shows off the talents of Gary Richrath who not only is a fantastic guitarist, but who is also an excellent songwriter as well. Kevin Cronin sings lead.

Keep Pushin’

In 1976, Kevin Cronin rejoined the band for their sixth LP “R.E.O.” or the one I refer to as the “Cow Album.” While this version of the Cronin composition isn’t from the “R.E.O.” album, it was recorded live on the tour to support the album and subsequently appeared on their 1977 live album “Live: You Get What You Play For.”

Roll With The Changes

From an album that I generally consider one of the best titles ever, “You Can Tune A Piano, But You Can’t Tuna Fish,” “Roll With Changes” was another single release for the band that failed to break the 50 mark into the top 40. Kevin Cronin wrote this tune and this live version comes from a 1978 edition of “Midnight Special.” It goes to show that you don’t have to be in church to have great interplay between a piano and organ.

Time for me to Fly

Another single from “You Can Tune a Piano, But You Can’t Tuna Fish,” “Time for me to Fly” is a hint of the ballad hits that REO would score with in the 1980s. Another Kevin Cronin composition, this song failed to break the Top 40; however, the album was their first to chart within that range. It also was their first multi-platinum LP and sold in excess of two million copies.

 Backstage pass signed by REO Speedwagon

Epic Records believed so much in this song that charted at 56 in 1978 to rerelease it as the single from their greatest hits album “A Decade of Rock and Roll: 1970 to 1980.” The second time around in 1980, the song only peaked at 77.

Genesis: Nursery Cryme

My first exposure to the band Genesis came in the summer 1973 when I discovered that suburban Pittsburgh radio station WZUM was then playing album rock selections from 4 PM until sign-off. The latest the station could stay on the air was during the month of June when sundown was 8:45 PM.

Earlier in the day. a variety of ethnic music was featured until the late afternoon formatting switch. While the term ethnic music may conjure up a variety of images, in Pittsburgh it meant anything from Eastern Europe – Slovak, Ukrainian, Hungarian, Russian, Polish, and other traditional music from what collectively became known as the Eastern Bloc.

I found WZUM's new format change by accident as it was near at the end of the dial at 1590 kHz and its 1000 watt signal from its location in the Pittsburgh suburb of Carnegie was difficult to receive in the East Boroughs where we lived. If I could hold my tongue just right while tuning my radio, I could hear their signal with as much clarity as one could expect from a station that had the power equivalent of 10 light bulbs.

During the summer of 1973 when I got my first car a 1964 Ford Fairlane 500, I was looking for something to break the monotony of Pittsburgh’s three top 40 stations: KQV, 13Q (WKTQ), and WIXZ. For some unfathomable reason, the program directors at these three outlets had the misconception that only three songs existed. Those three were the Edgar Winter Group’s “Frankenstein,” Focus’ “Hocus Pocus,” and Deep Purple’s “Smoke on the Water.” While those songs were all classics in their own right, one could not escape their pervasive influence on the Steel City’s airwaves and these songs grew a little thin after hearing them over and over and over.

Only having an AM radio in my car at the time, I searched for other alternatives when I stumbled upon WZUM’s abbreviated AOR format. I can remember hearing “Nursery Cryme,” Genesis’ third album, for the first time when I was washing my car one Saturday afternoon. Although the album was two years old at that point, It got enough airplay that summer. At some point, I went out and bought the album and for a while it was one of my favorite albums during my prog rock period.

Two songs from this LP got the majority of the airplay: “The Musical Box” and “The Return of the Giant Hogweed.” My feature choice from the LP is the later which was a semi-apocalyptic story of the giant hogweed plant that had been introduced from Russia during the Victorian Era and had nearly taken over the countryside. In the song, the hogweed reigns victorious of the human race.

During 1975, I saw Genesis for their “Lamb Lies Down on Broadway” tour. It remains the best concert performance I’d ever seen. The choice of venues, Pittsburgh’s Syria Mosque, added in the enjoyment of this spectacle of sight, sound, and the theatrics of lead singer Peter Gabriel. At the end of the evening, the band returned to the stage and finished off the evening with an encore presentation of “Return of the Giant Hogweed.”

Peter Gabriel in one of his many stage personas

Live Version

The following is a 1972 live recording of “Return of the Giant Hogweed” which shows how tight this band was live. The song begins with unison riffs played by guitarist Steve Hackett and keyboardist Tony Banks. Hackett uses two handed hammer-on techniques that would become a staple of metal guitarists in the 1980s. Banks begins the song with Hohner Pianet that is played through a fuzz tone. Later in the song, he switches the fuzz tone off for the electronic piano sound during the interlude. Banks primary instrument for “Hogweed” is the Hammond B-3 organ.

The rhythm is handled by bassist Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins (sporting hair). Collins , who would replace Gabriel as vocalist and take Genesis into new directions, provides backing vocals. Gabriel shows his vocal acumen and a showmanship ala the schools of Roger Daltry, Mick Jagger, and Robert Plant that rivals the best of front men anywhere.

The Entire Album

In its entirety, here's a YouTube playlist of “Nursery Cryme” in order and uninterrupted - as those DJ sorts used to say.

Nightnoise: Night In That Land

Back in 1987, I took a job with WWNR 620 AM in Beckley, WV as its operations manager. The station had been floundering for several years as numerous AM stations were and the station had one of the more unique programming combinations in our part of the state. From 12 midnight to 6:00 PM, the station ran an Adult Contemporary format; however, from 6:00 PM to midnight we were Urban Contemporary with Stew Wynne, a popular club disc-jockey hosting the night time format.

While Stew’s show was extremely popular, he could not fight against some of the inherent problems that plagued our signal. First of all, it was AM – and even though we were running AM Stereo – very few had AM Stereo receivers and electrical interference always degraded the audio. Add to this, the station had a four tower directional array that pointed the signal from a cow-patty laden field north of the city back to town.

The directional signal and the reduction in power at sundown from 1000 watts to 250 Watts made the signal difficult to receive even at the downtown studios - let alone to the thousands of homes in the area. Adding insult to injury, the copper in the antennae ground system was an occasional target of scrap metal thieves. When this occurred, it destroyed the ground wave signal that is necessary for a strong amplitude modulated radio signal.

While Stew did well at nights, it never translated into much income for the station. In addition, the bifurcation of formats caused the station to be unable to carry an audience from one format to the next – and hence overnight and mornings suffered the greatest in the ratings.

Shortly after I arrived, Stew’s tenure with the station was drawing to a close as he was on a kidney transplant list. Following one unsuccessful transplant, he needed a new kidney and he went back on the waiting list. Stew never came back to work and following his release from the hospital, he concentrated on his club DJ business. He lived nearly 19 years following the second transplant.

Since Stew had left the station, his audience followed suit. While others, notably Martin Staunton (yes – that Martin Staunton), kept the format alive for a while, it began to flounder as much as our AC format during the day. I made the suggestion that we fill a need in the market by switching the entire format to oldies. This was a successful move for the station as it filled a niche in the market. Gone was the station’s AC reporting status and we moved into another era.

During the brief time I was programming the AC portion of the station (Stew did his own programming), we got on the mailing list for Windham Hill Records – first with LPs and later with CDs. We never played any of these recordings anyway and since they were destined to the trash heap, I procured all that came into the station. At the time, I was getting into the music of George Winston, Michael Hedges, Mark Isham, Mike Marshall, Alex de Grassi, Shadowfax and others that were being funneled my way thanks to the record company.

One of the groups that was signed to the label was an eclectic new age band called Nightnoise. The band was heavily influenced by Celtic music and I loved their sound. I hadn’t thought about them in ages, but a couple of weekends ago, I heard one of their recordings on Fiona Ritchie’s NPR show, The Thistle and Shamrock. While I couldn’t secure the song she featured, our traditional Tuesday selection is a Celtic inspired tune entitled “Night in That Land.”

Ronnie Cook: Goo Goo Muck

As a kid, I was a radio junkie. It didn’t matter the format, I listened to most anything that was on the AM, FM, and Shortwave bands. At night, I DXed distant stations from New York, Chicago, Detroit, Fort Wayne, and places in-between. The term DX came from telegraphic shorthand for "distant" and "distance."

I kept up this hobby on an infrequent basis though 1980 and logged medium wave (AM) stations from across the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Cuba, and the Netherlands Antilles. Shortwave listening brought in broadcasts from across the globe. I found many of these on the crowded 31 meter shortwave band. My SW and AM listening distance listening increased exponentially when I moved the old AM/LW/SW radio from the garage into the basement.

The garage was extremely cold in the winter, but winter proved to be the best time to take in long distance stations, as the nights were longer and the cooled ionosphere increased the ability to hear bounced AM stations from far away places. The benefits of the basement were not only heat related; being proactive, my father had run a connection from our television antenna on the roof to basement when he installed it in the late 1950s. It was probably the only time this connection was ever used.

The radio in question was given to me by my future step-father about two months before marrying my mother. Built in 1940 and named the Presidential Model in honor of the election that year, it had one long wave band, two short wave bands, and the medium wave or AM band. The Music Trade Review for July 1940 describes it as follows:

The ten-tube Presidential, Model 110K, embodies full 12-inch, high efficiency, dynamic loudspeaker, magnetic core I-F transformers, shielded power transformer, rubber mounted chassis, push-pull audio system, six station electric tuning, air trimmer condensers, four point tone control, stage of radio frequency amplification, Victrola and television plug-in connections, built-in loop antenna for domestic broadcast reception and special built-in short wave antenna.

See a picture of this radio.

Although my step-father had also lent me his FM radio during the same period, my daytime listening primarily consisted of local AM stations, as most of the Pittsburgh FMs in 1966 were playing “beautiful music,” classical programming, or simulcasting their AM counterparts. I just realized that my eldest daughter's extensive computer experience is very similar to how I took to radio. I had no idea that all of this radio listening was preparing me for a 20-year interesting career in radio, six additional years of producing commercials and radio and television programs for my current employer, and my position as a board member of the Friends of West Virginia Public Broadcasting since 2004.

During most of this preparatory period, I listened to every AM station in the district from one end of the dial with Canonsburg’s 250 watt WARO at 540 (the lowest position on the US AM band) to Carnegie’s WZUM at the other end of the dial at 1590 (then the next to the last frequency on the AM Band).

WARO’s lower frequency allowed its signal to be carried far beyond what one would expect of a 250 watt station. In the 1970s, I remember taking this station’s signal from Pittsburgh to beyond Clarksburg, WV – about 100 miles with very little static.

During the late 70s, I was working for Mortenson Broadcasting’s WEMM in Huntington, WV. In 1978, Mortenson was negotiating a purchase of WARO – which I hoped would come to fruition as I had expressed interest in transferring to WARO if the deal was consummated. It never was because the sale was contingent upon Mortenson continuing the ethnic programming (in Pittsburgh this is Polish, Slovak, Ukrainian, and etc.) that was popular in the region. Mortenson has a chain of religious stations and continues to be very successful in this endeavor. When the deal fell through, the company purchased another AM in the Baltimore market.

Sandwiched in between, WARO and WZUM were dozens of stations that I would listen to on occasion. These included the following:

• Uniontown’s WMBS at 590 AM
• Greensburg’s WHBJ at 620 AM
• Pittsburgh’s WPIT at 730 (I believe they ran easy listening during this period).
• McKeesport’s WEDO (810) and whose tower is located in North Versailles (the only station I could pick up with a crystal radio that I had).
• Pittsburgh’s R & B WAMO at 860 AM.
• Pittsburgh’s WWSW at 970 AM.
• Pittsburgh’s KDKA at 1020 – the first licensed commercial radio station in the US.
• Pittsburgh’s WEEP at 1080 – the only country station in the area at the time.
• Pittsburgh’s WTAE at 1250 – adult contemporary.
• Pittsburgh’s WJAS (and later known as WKTQ – 13Q in the 70s) – adult contemporary and talk in the 60s.
• McKeesport’s WMCK (and later WIXZ) at 1360 AM.
• Pittsburgh’s Top-40 KQV at 1410.
• Braddock’s easy listening WLOA at 1510.
• Monroeville’s WPSL at 1550.

Of these stations, I primarily listened to KQV and WMCK/WIXZ. To a lesser extent, I also tuned into WTAE, WEDO, KDKA, WWSW, and WJAS on a semi-frequent basis. There were other suburban stations on the dial that I logged; however, I never listened to any of these on a regular basis.

There was no shortage of great radio talent either. Probably the best known air personality of the region was Porky Chedwick, the “Platter Pushing Papa,” who in his heyday gigged on WAMO 860. Over on the Top-40 giant KQV (1410), Chuck Brinkman was one of their better known jocks. Even in the suburbs, the airwaves were blessed to have some of the best talent around. In my home area of McKeesport, Terry Lee hosted shows called “The TL Sound” and “Music for Young Lovers” on WMCK, later renamed as WIXZ. At the dial’s end, Carnegie’s WZUM had one of the legends of AM radio Michael Metrovich – better known as Mad Mike Metro.

WZUM, because its higher frequency and 1,000 watts of power, was a daytimer that’s signal was at time difficult to receive in much of the region. The station also had a connection with the Pittsburgh based National Record Mart chain. For years, NRM's blue bags used in the Pittsburgh market had ads for “WZUM Sweet 16 on the AM Dial.” I wish I had one of these today, as I spent a lot of cash at NRMs all over Pittsburgh, but primarily at the now defunct Eastland Shopping Center in North Versailles.

The connection between Mad Mike and National Record Mart was further secured with the release of numerous albums pressed for the NRM label under the banner of Mad Mike’s Moldies. Mad Mike was among a number of record hop DJs that would go through the cutout bins of National Record Mart and the local 5 and dime record departments to find unusual songs to add to their shows. Some of these translated to local radio hits, and at least in two occasions, Pittsburgh radio influenced national releases of singles.

The first of these was the Shondells’ “Hanky Panky,” which was found by local DJ Bob Livorio and quickly picked up by Mad Mike Metro. The record had generated some regional interest in the Midwest when it was released in 1963, but never garnered any national attention. When Clark Race began playing it on 50,000 watt KDKA, National Record Mart and other retailers were flooded for requests for the single.

With the 45 long out of print and the Shondells disbanded, a local entrepreneur taped the song off the air and pressed a bootlegged version of the tune which sold approximately 80 thousand copies. Eventually, Roulette Records purchased the rights to the recording and used one of the original Snap label 45s as the master for the national release. The rest is history. According to Bob Shannon and John Javna in Behind the Hits, this accidental hit “went from trash to the turntable.” Mad Mike was also responsible for Tommy Jackson of Niles, Michigan coming to Pittsburgh, and with the help of a local band, the Raconteurs, both were rechristened as Tommy James and the Shondells and began a career in music with a string of hits.

Mad Mike’s Moldies were records like “Hanky Panky” that were bargain basement rejects that sometimes created a minor sensation in the Steel City. That brings me to today’s feature – being that it is Halloween, it is fitting that I chose a recording that appeared on Volume 5 of Mad Mike’s Moldies: Ronnie Cook and the Gaylads’ “Goo Goo Muck.” The Cramps later covered this tune in 1981.

It is also fitting that I feature a Mad Mike tune today, as on October 31, 2000, Mad Mike Metrovich went to that great control room in the sky. It was said that Halloween was his favorite holiday and he died of a heart attack a few hours after doing his annual Halloween show. Mike had only returned to WZUM in July 2000 after a 28 year hiatus from the station. He left “Sweet 16” when it changed to an album rock format in 1972 and worked at a variety of stations in the area until 2000.

Michael J. Metrovich, November 6, 1936 – October 31, 2000 – Rest in Peace.

Harry Abraham: The Best of All Possible Worlds

Recently on my Facebook page, I mentioned a disc jockey out of Rochester, NY that had a profound influence over my interest in jazz. His name was Harry Abraham and he worked the graveyard shift (Midnight to 5 am) on WHAM, a clear channel powerhouse on 1180 AM. The show was called “The Best of All Possible Worlds,” and although I haven’t heard his voice in 31 years, I still remember his friendly, dulcet tones.

ROUND MIDNIGHT

In the mid to late 70s, I was doing a quite a bit of overnight driving between Eastern Kentucky where I was attending college to my hometown in Western Pennsylvania. It was normally a six hour trip and became longer when the energy crisis forced the imposition of the 55 mph speed limit in the US.

Typically, I travelled Ohio State Route 7 along the Ohio River for a portion of this journey. One of the pleasantries of this route was the signal of WHAM that boomed down the Ohio River valley. During these trips, WHAM’s signal was clearer than other 50 KW stations that I frequented during that era such as Chicago's WLS & WCFL, New York's WABC, Ft. Wayne's WOWO, Pittsburgh's KDKA, Windsor/Detroit's CKLW, and Boston's WBZ.

THE SHAPE OF JAZZ TO COME

Abraham was a mastermind at finding the best jazz – usually, he played recently issued progressive jazz and fusion selections interspersed with an occasional recording from the previous decade. Harry Abraham introduced me to the likes of Chick Corea, Jean Luc Ponty, George Benson, Wes Montgomery, Weather Report, Jan Hammer, Jimmy Smith, Gary Burton, Mose Allison, Brian Auger, Theolonius Monk, Pat Matheny, Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, George Duke, and countless others.

Prior to this period, I had never listened to jazz.   I really liked the music I heard on “The Best of All Possible Worlds” and I frequently pulled off the highway and jotted down notes from Harry’s playlist. Back on campus, I began hosting a weekly hour long jazz show on WKCC. Much of the music I played from 1975 to 1978 was inspired by what I heard on these late night jaunts. Not being as creative as Harry, I named my show the “Surrealistic Nocturnal Experiment.” Oh well, I was young then.

WHAT IS THERE TO SAY?

Not only was Harry's musical choice inspiring, he also provided a wealth of information. His voice echoed beyond the confines of midnight to five and the phenomenon of a medium wave signal bouncing off the ionosphere. Dissatisfied with the direction of Downbeat, Harry started a competing publication in 1973 named Different Drummer and served as its editor. His deep convictions concerning the quality of jazz that was being produced resulted in these opinions being verbalized. As he was secured to provide numerous album liner notes, he was brutally honest with at least one release.

On Ronnie Foster's "Sweet Revival," Abraham admits, "Let me begin by saying that this is not the greatest jazz album you've ever heard." He additionally assessed the recording by opining that it was "a commercial album that could have just as easily been titled 'Ronnie Foster Plays the Top 40 hits of the Seventies With Horns, Strings and Voices.'"

Reacting to the ever present commercialization of the jazz industry, he kept the musical integrity of his show. Not even a decade old friendship could sway him otherwise. When Maynard Ferguson visited WHAM's studios on May 12, 1977, he was hoping that his old friend would play some tunes from the soundtrack to "Rocky."

When Harry refused, Ferguson began to hurl insults: "You've got terrible taste most of the time, Harry . . . In fact, you're one of the worst disc jockeys I've ever met in my life." Ferguson finished his tirade by calling Harry something obscene to which he followed by exiting the studio — all captured live. After several moments of dead air, Harry composed himself and replied, "Well, I guess I've been told."

Attempting to clear his reputation, Abraham filed a defamation of character lawsuit against Ferguson that was eventually thrown out of court. While there is an urban legend that the episode cost Harry his job at WHAM, his eventual dismissal had nothing to do with his conduct and convictions and everything to do with ratings and revenues.

SONNY SIDE UP

During my final undergrad year at Kentucky Christian, I was also worked the breakfast shift at McDonalds in South Point, Ohio. Being that the store was located an hour away, I needed to rise by 4 am to get ready for work. At the time, I awakened every morning to the final hour of Harry’s show as I readied myself for hawking Egg McMuffins, pancakes, and hash browns.

I awoke one morning in 1978 to the strains of an uncharacteristic country record. To my dismay, I learned that WHAM had switched formats. Gone was the jazz in the middle of the night that I had grown to love. While Waylon Jennings and Freddy Fender could be heard on numerous stations in the Tri-State area where I lived — jazz was not an option. WHAM’s programming alteration became “The Worst of All Possible Worlds.” As part of the fallout, Harry Abraham was out of work – a frequent occurrence in the broadcasting industry that accompanies format changes. Unfortunately, it proved to be Harry’s last radio gig.

SOMETHIN’ ELSE

Abraham tried a variety of careers, but none were successful. He was the general manager the defunct Rochester Lancers soccer franchise, sold insurance, worked as a clerk in a news store, sold advertising specialties to broadcast stations, and co-owned a submarine sandwich shop. Although his friends and family indicated there was no appearance of financial problems, Harry apparently believed there was reason to worry. He began to contemplate solutions for his financial condition. A conversation about a recent drug store robbery in Rochester sparked Abraham with the possibility of robbing a bank.

IDLE MOMENTS

On October 12, 1982, he drove to Syracuse where he could not be easily identified and entered the first bank he saw – the main branch of the Syracuse Savings Bank. Handing a note demanding money to a teller, Abraham indicated that he was accompanied by a friend armed with grenades. As he exited the bank with $2,400, the teller followed and recorded Abraham’s license plate number and vehicle description.

Within an hour, New York State Troopers arrested Abraham at a New York Thruway service area. He had no accomplice and no weapon, but was apprehended with the money from the robbery. During the time between his arrest and sentencing, his wife Lynne began divorce proceedings and ended their marriage. Although he made some interesting comments upon his arrest, he never denied the fact that he was guilty. Due to a plea bargain arrangement, his sentence was commuted from 15 years to four and one-half years to be served at the Auburn (NY) Correctional Facility.

SPIRITUAL UNITY

Prison provided Abraham the opportunity to reflect upon his life and he turned to spiritual matters. He embraced Judaism, the religion of his forebears. Apparently he was not reared in a religious environment, as he celebrated his Bar Mitzvah on September 28, 1984 at the age of 39 – three times the age when this rite of passage into manhood normally occurs.

TIME OUT

Following the payment of his debt to society, Harry settled in Philadelphia where he worked in a variety of professions and eventually honed his skill as a professional photographer. His talent is evident and it appears that he finally landed on a profession where he could explore his creative voice as much as he did at WHAM.

POINT OF DEPARTURE

Born on March 12, 1945, Harold Norman Abraham breathed his last on May 7, 2009. He was survived by a fiancé and two children. According to his wishes, his remains were cremated. Hopefully, Harry will be remembered for more than that one unfortunate, desperate act in Syracuse. In the jazz universe, Harry Abraham’s name should be among the brightest of stars. Long live the influence of Harry Abraham; “we have entered the era of silent radio.”

“Old broadcasters never die, they’re just potted down,” Jim Owston, August 1983.