Keener13.com http://www.keener13.com Great radio, great music, great memories http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Jitbit RSS Feed Creator Mon, 02 Mar 2009 13:34:48 -0700 Remembering Paul HarveyBy Scott Westerman

In the days before automation, a rite of passage for many a young disk jockey was running the local control board for Paul Harvey News and Comment.

My own experience came in 1971 at Ann Arbor's WPAG. As the agricultural station for southeastern Michigan and northern Ohio, our noon-time Farm and Home Hour was punctuated with Paul Harvey's "conversation across the back fence."

Like the best radio communicators, he understood that he was talking to one person. His writing juxtaposed the small town story with international events, reminding us that what happened in our back yard was just as important as what was happening half way around the world. He knew his listeners well put the events of the day into a perspective that they could understand. His delivery took us through the emotional highs and lows of the news, at times approaching the poetic.

We didn't always agree with Paul Harvey's point of view but we respected his professionalism and energy. He could be forgiven for singing the praises of Bose, Neutrogena and Banker's Life and Casualty with the vigor of a company spokesman. We all knew when he was switching personalities and the ad copywriters among us learned a thing or two about how to position a product after hearing his pitch.

At the peak of his powers, he augmented his newscasts with "The Rest of the Story", a regular television commentary and a personal appearance schedule that took "this traveling microphone" across the country. He was always in demand as a speaker and during the height of the motivational movement, many of us bought tickets to see him on the same dance card with Denis Waitley, Earl Nightingale and Mary Kay Ash.

A few of us had the opportunity for one-on-one interactions, including Keener13.com co-founder Steve Schram. His on-air encounters with Paul Harvey began during his freshman year at Detroit Catholic Central.

"Every day, in the car pool driven in rotation by the two or three Dads that took us to school, Paul Harvey was appointment radio at the half hour."

Steve's radio career took him to WTWR in the 1980s, where he engineered the broadcast when Mort Crim would sub from the Tower 92 studios during Paul's vacations.

"Later on, when I arrived as GM at WOWO in Fort Wayne, I asked Paul Harvey to cut some custom promos and liners, which was rarely allowed by ABC because they didn't want to set precedent for every affiliate. He generously cut everything we wrote and then left me a special personal greeting at the end of the reel. It was impressive that he even bothered to do the greeting. It is one of my favorite possessions."

Steve finally met Paul Harvey in person in 2004 at the Radio Hall of Fame annual inductions in Chicago. WKNR morning ace Dick Purtan, by then the long time star at WOMC, was being inducted and Paul Harvey and his late wife, Angel, were there.

"I introduced myself and my wife Laurie, and then mentioned my connection to Mort Crim as his Paul Harvey producer back in the 80's. He smiled and recalled that time. He then looked at Laurie, then at me, and said in his wry smile 'I see you married up!' We enjoyed that moment (and of course he was right about that, too)."

Paul Harvey was never heard on WKNR. The closest national celebrity we had was Van Patrick, who broadcast his daily sports program "speaking coast to coast.. on Mutual!" (Keener, by then had dropped it's Mutual affiliation and Patrick, a part owner of the station, used the studio to originate his show.) But the staccato baritone from Chicago earned the distinction of being the last man standing, morphing the styles of the great radio commentators of the 50s into a broadcasting legend that our generation will remember even a his broadcasts fade into history.

Aircheck: Paul Harvey on the Kennedy Assasination 11/22/63 (From the Jim Feliciano Collection.

]]>http://www.keener13.comMon, 02 Mar 2009 13:34:48 -0700Motown at 50On January 12, 1959, Berry Gordy, Jr. decided to try his hand at making records. He borrowed 800 dollars from his family and started a business that would change the face of American music. Motown's emergence was perfectly timed. Radio was evolving into a music-centered medium. Elvis Presley had opened the door to bring R&B into the mainstream. And in the industrial Midwest, where tens of thousands of African Americans had migrated to take advantage of auto industry jobs, there was a glut of talented young people with talent, dreams and tenacity.

When WKMH made the switch to WKNR on Halloween night in 1963, the first WKNR Music Guide featured Marvin Gaye's "Can I Get a Witness" at number 3. Even thought the station's playlist still contained more conservative middle of the road artists like Lloyd Price, Vickie Carroll and Lenny Welsh, the fact that the Kingsmen held the number 1 spot made a statement to the audience that things were changing. A year later, four of the top 31 songs of the year were from the Motown family of artists (The Four Tops were at number 1 with "I Can't Help Myself"). And by the time WKNR left the air in April of 1972, 258 Motown records had charted and nearly one out of every ten WKNR Music Guide artists were connected with the label.

Keener's Scott Regen had a special relationship with Motown. Berry Gordy knew that Scott's night time show was the place where new records could quickly break out into smash hits. The Tops, the Temptations, the Supremes and Stevie Wonder all made live appearances on Scott's show, Edwin Starr cut a special version of S.O.S - Stop Her on Sight, entitled Scott's On Swingers. Today the record is still a popular underground hit in Europe.

As the 60s came to a close and CKLW's 50,000 watt signal beamed Detroit's musical voice across the midwest, the station's heavier R&B rotation maximized Motown's visibility.

But Keener's contribution to Berry Gordy's success is un-deniable. Just about every Motown Artist from the late Levi Stubbs to Rare Earth credit WKNR as a key player chapter in the Motown story. And as Trella Hart sang, "Our world is empty without you. Keep hangin' on to WKNR, Keener 13" in the PAMS jingle studios the soulful sound of Detroit became forever associated with a 5,000 watt radio station in Dearborn, Michigan.

The Motown family of labels included: Black Forum - Chisa - Golden World - Gull - Ju-Par - M.C. - Manticore-  Motown - Rare Earth - Ric-Tic - Salvation - Soul - Tamla - Three Brothers - VIP - Wingate - Weed

LINKS:
Susan Whitall - Celebrating 50 Years of Motown
Motown 45 labels through the years
The Freep's 50 Motown Videos
The Freep's "where are they now" feature

The Keener13.com All Time Top 13 Motown Hits
13. War - Edwin Starr
12. My Guy - Mary Wells
11. Indiana Wants Me - R. Dean Taylor
10. Dancing in the Street - Martha and the Vandellas
9. I Want You Back - The Jackson 5
8. Reach Out - The Four Tops
7. I Heard It Through the Grapevine - Gladys Knight & The Pips / Marvin Gaye
6. Stop in the Name of Love - Supremes
5. I Can't Help Myself - Four Tops
4. Sign, Sealed, Delivered - Stevie Wonder
3. Ball of Confusion - Temptations
2. Tears of a Clown - Smokey Robinson & The Miracles
1. I Can't Get Next to You - Temptations
(Based on chart position and number of weeks on the WKNR Music Guide)

]]>http://www.keener13.comSun, 11 Jan 2009 16:10:43 -0700Jerry Martin 1916-2008Jerry Martin, the longtime chief engineer for WKMH/WKNR/WNIC passed away on New Year's Eve, two days after his 92nd birthday.Jerry began his career as a radio engineer in 1946, assisting in the construction of Keener's predecessor, WKMH and holds the distinction of being the second employee hired by Fred Knorr at the station. His many accomplishments through the years include supervising the installation and construction of the present day transmitting facilities of WNIC-FM. Since retiring in 1985, Jerry worked as a consultant and co-authored the operating information for what is now known as the Emergency Action System (EAS). He was a life member of the Society of Broadcast Engineers and Certified Senior Broadcast Engineer. Earlier this year, The Michigan Association of Broadcasters Honored Jerry with the Carl Lee Broadcast Engineering Excellence Award.

And.. He built that incredible reverb unit that gave WKNR it's distinctive sound.

"The heart of the system was a Hammond spring type reverb system," Jerry told us in December of 2005. "It was about four feet tall and about six to eight inches square. In it I believe there were four  pipes each of which encased a spring of various sizes and tensions. The unit had to stand erect since the pipes were filled with oil, which I presume provided a damping efect on the springs. I built an amplifier to drive the springs an then pick up spring output. The audio was fed straight thru and to the reverb system. The reverb audio was then recombined with the straight thru audio, The input and output of the reverb system was controlled to achieve a desired effect.. At the time we had engineers at the transmitter so it was placed there to keep curious fingers from messing with it."

Jerry was a friend and mentor to many, both inside and outside of broadcasting. The engineering fraternity in Detroit came to rely on his experience and judgement. "While the radio business in Detroit was extremely competitive," he once said, "we were always willing to help one another when there were technical issues."

He had a special place in his heart for the Boy Scouts and was an active Scouter throught his life, continuing to volunteer and add value to young lives long after his retirement.

Other Voices:

Bob Green: I'm glad I had the opportunity to see Jerry at Mrs. Knorr's funeral. He really looked incredible and hadn't changed that much since the days. He'd gone through a lot over the years though, with his son's illness and eventual death, and then the loss of his wife Bernice. Only memories in our relationship---engineer to DJ; Jerry. Like most chief engineers , wasn't too crazy about the air personel screwing up his equipment...but in that regard, Jerry & I got along fabulously. For whatever reason, my "tweaking" of the tape machines , eq's etc. yielded good results...I was"hi-tech" in 1965...certainly not now. Jerry was the jokester at the last Christmas party at WKNR in 1970, wearing a table cloth & doing some dance from an undetermined country. Last time we shared exclamatory remarks with no words was in 1971 when, for a brief period, Harry Walker became General Manager. He held a gung ho meeting for the staff at his home where (with his idea of esprit de corps & excitement) he announced that we were looking into putting the Keener tower (pattern and ground system be damned) on top of the Honeywell building on the Lodge fwy. Jerry & I chortled for the rest of the evening.

Steve Schram: My recall of Jerry was similar to that of Bob's. He was generally focused on his engineering matters, and of course, had seen hundreds of announcers at 15001 during his career. I did not have the technical production chops of Bob, but I too would EQ the WWKR cart machines ( while on the air...bringing in my own screwdriver and small wrenches) , adjust the azimuth when needed and see what could be done to "influence" the processing from time to time. If he noticed anything, he never got upset about it. Whenever I could find time, I'd wander down the hall to the engineering room and chat him up about the WKNR days. He had great perspective. He was an original force of the Keener era, and I recall him being very touched when I invited he and Dick Buller to a WNIC Christmas party event and honored them with acknowledgement of their lifetime achievement status for the stations. ]]>http://www.keener13.comWed, 31 Dec 2008 14:18:47 -0700A Bill Drake Retrospective
By now you have seen all of the salutes in the trades about Bill Drake and Boss Radio. But what did it sound like?  Why did it win in market after market? 

I asked our resident broadcast historian, Ed Brouder to assemble a little taste.  In addition to co-hosting the morning show on WZID, Manchester, Ed has his own production company.  Man From Mars has a  remarkable library of radio history- some 4800 airchecks all searchable at his website www.manfrommars.com and he was kind enough to share  the enclosed montage.  It is 6 minutes of radio heaven.  Enjoy.

Listen Here]]>http://keenerpodcast.com/Bill Drake Retrospective.mp3Tue, 09 Dec 2008 09:33:18 -0700Kennedy coverage 45 years laterIn 2004 we produced a podcast on radio's coverage of the Kennedy assassination, including air checks from KLIF in Dallas and Keener's documentary on the 1st anniversary of the event. By request, here's a link to that podcast.]]>http://www.keenerpodcast.com/podcasts/Keener13Podcast112004.mp3Mon, 01 Dec 2008 13:51:38 -0700Ken R's First Visit to PAMSKen R. Deutsch is THE jingle authority. We met back in 1970 when we were both trying our hand at being disk jockeys at Ann Arbor's WPAG. Even then, his jingle collection was mouth watering. He was kind enough to take pity on a kid with a passion and made me several 7" reels filled with nuggets from his treasure trove.

Later, Ken would single-handedly rescue the PAMS jingle masters from certain destruction, write two classic books about the jingle art, and contribute the defining piece on WKNR's jingles to our website. For many years, his company was licensed to re-sing the PAMS catalog, and he became the quintessential aggregator of classic jingles, selling CDs filled with pristine copies lifted from original masters.

But in the beginning, he was a wide-eyed jingle fan, who dreamed of having the famed PAMS singers cut a custom, just for him. Here's the tale of how it happened.

Link: Jingles from the USA, No longer a big export.]]>http://www.kendeutsch.com/wide-eyed%20in%20dallas.htmSun, 30 Nov 2008 20:16:39 -0700Remembering Bill DrakePhilip T. Yarbrough died on November 29, 2008 at age 71. When he worked as a DJ at Atlanta's WAKE, he chose the air-name Bill Drake since it rhymed with the station's call letters. From 1965 until 2006, he was a prominent radio programming consultant. As the 60s decade came to a close, his Drake formats dominated the airwaves and became the model for much of what radio has today become.

Those of us hard-core Keenerfans like to blame Bill Drake for WKNR's demise. It wasn't his fault.

From the start Keener had one and a half hands tied behind it's back. Part of our ongoing attraction is the romance associated with how a small owner group took a deficient signal in a marketplace filled with cutthroat competition to the top of the zigarut. It's still a case study on how success is possible in any environment. It was also only a matter of time before someone would clone enough of the Keener vibe to mount a serious challenge.

Bill Drake was in the right place at the right time to help shape CKLW into a top-40 powerhouse that put modified pieces of the Keener formatics onto a 50,000 watt platform. It was a formula that was born as "Boss Radio" on KHJ in Los Angeles. In modified form, it made The Big 8 the dominant rock radio flame thrower in the Midwest until the combination of FM and Canadian Content restrictions drove the station into anachronism.

Drake built on the brilliance of Todd Storz, Gordon MacLendon and hundreds of other practitioners, who studied the science of our radio listening habits and created a product to fit. He realized that there were few real personalities on the air, and even the best of them didn't always have something to say. So he worked to distill the essence of what worked for an increasingly mobile, attention deficient generation. He further tightened the rules of the game to create a reliable product that sounded the same whenever you tuned in.

Some will say that the Drake format strangled the concept of "intelligent flexibility" that quickly evolved Mike Joseph's initial guidelines for the new Keener brand into a home run that forever changed the landscape of Detroit radio. That it was the precursor to the homogenization that threatens radio's very existence as new generations turn to their IPods.

Others believe that it was inevitable that someone would take an objective look at the subjective nature of the art. Like any business, broadcasting is a stimulus / response thing. Identifying the common threads that attract and retain the largest market share of listener-customers made perfect sense. "Do this and you'll be more profitable," has long been the mantra that attracts proprietor attention. With the rise of FM and an ever more crowded field of competitors, looking for the secret sauce became a matter of survival.

Whatever your opinion about the efficacy of Bill Drake's formula, there's no argument that, in its time, the concept worked. We could all sing the two second Johnny Mann jingle hooks. The "much more music" slogan was backed up by as many as 14 records each hour. Jock talk was simplified and focused on drilling the brand into our brains. And everyone recognized that Bill's voice, intoning "And now ladies and gentlemen..." was the set-up for a well tested tune that every one of us knew by heart.

Those fundamentals still work. Colleen and I were on a scenic rail trip in the Colorado mountains this fall. At a stop along the way we picked up a crew of young zip-liners came aboard, still charged with the adrenalin rush of their ride across the top of the tree line. "Good times," shouted one. ".. and great oldies," reflexively answered a chorus of others. I admit to subconsciously thinking those same words, associating them with the Cool FM brand.

Scalable, low risk, high margin radio that attracts listeners and gets results for advertisers. Bill Drake helped to sharpen it's execution. And we still hear its descendants wherever modulated carriers exist.

Link: A Bill Drake Remembrance from Woody Goulart's Boss Radio Forever blog.
Link: Bill Drake 1937-2008 by Ken Levine
Link: Why Bill Drake Still Matters by Jerry Del Colliano

]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSun, 30 Nov 2008 19:08:25 -0700New in the Photo GalleryJust when we think we've totally mined all the existing WKNR memorabilia, more treasures appear. This picture of Keener's mellifluous Ted Clark came to us from  John Maher, WKNR's superlative newsman during the glory years. John discovered some photos he took the height of Keener's popularity. We took advantage of his generous contributions as an opportunity to migrate much of the Keener13.com photo gallery to Flickr. Head over to http://www.flickr.com/photos/keener13/ and you'll discover pictures from the WKNR best high school principal contest, along with shots of Erik Smith, Mike Wilton and Tom Ryan.]]>http://www.flickr.com/photos/keener13/Sun, 23 Nov 2008 15:38:20 -0700Mariam MakebaMiriam Makeba earned international notoriety more for her political involvement than for her music, but in 1967, her recording about "Pata Pata", a South African dance loosely translated as "Touch Touch" had a 5 week run on the WKNR Music Guide, peaking at number 9. Her husbands included trumpeter Hugh Masekela, and later black activist Stokely Carmichael, and she worked with a diverse cadre of artists from Harry Belafonte and Dizzy Gillespie to Paul Simon. Makeba died November 10th of a heart attack after collapsing on stage at the end of a benefit concert.]]>http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081110/ap_on_re_af/eu_obit_makeba;_ylt=Av7CNMCJoTfTme2Gf_zpch4EtbAFMon, 10 Nov 2008 08:02:00 -0700Bob Berry's This Week in Rock and RollNot only is Bob Berry a Contact News special correspondent, he's also a fellow Detroit radio, rock n roll and pop culture enthusiast. He knows of which he speaks with over three decades as a broadcaster, heard in Motown on CKLW and WDRQ. Great on-air talent is an endangered species in the era of voice tracking, but Bob is still at the top of his game on Orlando's Sunny 105.9 FM. He's also the host of This Week in Rock and Roll, taking Chuck Leonard's retro-rock feature from the 70s to a whole new level of sophistication and class. If you haven't added this podcast to your regular listening agenda, do it here. Its the most useful water-cooler rock n roll information you can cram into your brain in sixty seconds. ]]>http://sunny1059.com/pages/2049230.phpSun, 26 Oct 2008 20:37:29 -0600Authentic WKNR Swingster Stickers Not sure exactly where or when these things were part of Keenerania, but Tim Caldwell got his hands on a bunch of them and was kind enough to supply us with one to scan for the archives. Want your own? You can write to him at tmc313@att.net for pricing info. Click the image to see a larger scan of the sticker.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSun, 26 Oct 2008 20:29:47 -0600Yesterday and YouWKNR's Scott Regen had a unique relationship with Motown. Early on, Berry Gordy, Jr. recognized the power that Keener had to break new music and many of the Motown stars paid a visit to the Scott Regen show. As Levi Stubbs notes in this air check, the Four Tops were Burger Club members.

But few people knew that Scott also tried his hand at lyricism, penning a song that was ultimately recorded by The Four Tops. He touches on this in his recent conversation with Sunny 105.9's Bob Berry, mentioning a tune called "Yesterday And You".

Recorded at the height of Keener's popularity, it never really caught on and disappeared into R&B oblivion. Until a couple of years ago.

Retitled as "Magic Mary", the tune can be heard on the CD collection "Lost and Found: Lost Without You". But if you listen closely, the mix is different from the version that got limited airplay on Keener.

When Bob Green sent me this rarity, I could hear a tone superimposed on the audio at intervals throughout the record. I remembered that when Keener got a song first, they would often mark it up throughout with tones or jingles so that competing stations couldn't steal it. Bob explains, "It's so funny how, when we had a new 'exclusive', perhaps 10 minutes before WXYZ or CKLW or WJBK, we'd get it on the air IMMEDIATELY...with either a tone every 10 secs or a filtered "Keener-Exclusive' line under. At least WE  thought it was a big deal anyway."]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspWed, 22 Oct 2008 17:00:45 -0600Levi Stubbs - Tops at MotownBy Scott Westerman - Curator Keener13.com

When you think of the great Motown male voices, Levi Stubbs stood alone. Few could emulate the plaintive wail of Edwin Starr, and while both David Ruffin and Eddie Kendricks had solo careers, they are forever linked with the Temptations. Stubbs literally defined the Four Tops sound, so much so, that when he voiced the carnivorous venus fly trap in the film version of "Little Shop of Horrors", the faithful instantly recognized him.

I saw the Tops twice, once under the stars in concert with the Jacksonville, Florida Symphony Orchestra and once up close and personal when they headlined an intimate event at a cable TV convention. On both occasions, they could sustain a nearly two hour program of sing-a-long classics that inevitably had us all dancing along. Lawrence, Duke and Obie each contributed to the Tops magic, from choreography to harmony, but it was Levi who's unlikely baritone stamped the auditory brand on the Four Tops.

Keener personality Scott Regen had a special relationship with Motown and was a frequent visitor to the studios where the magic was made. When we were last together, he remembered running into Levi at the close of a particularly strenuous session. Stubbs was distraught. "I've just recorded the biggest flop of my career," he said. He was dissatisfied with the near scream he was asked to do near the end of the song. That turned out to be a million seller called "Bernadette".

Like the Temptations, the Tops were beneficiaries of the Berry Gordy formula, provided with quality material penned by the best of the Motown songwriters, backed by the inimitable Funk Brothers, and packaged on stage with a flash and elegance with roots in the likes of the Nicholas Brothers. But it was Levi's lead vocal that drove the Tops neck and neck with the Temps, the Beatles, the Four Seasons and the Rolling Stones.

Even after they left Motown, the class could be heard in tunes like "Are You Man Enough", and even second tier recordings like "I Just Can't Get You Out of My Life" had a special energy that found their way into a number personal Top-Ten lists.

Levi had health problems the last few years, curtailing his incessant tour schedule after a series of strokes sapped his strength. But all we have to do is queue up any of their 18 WKNR Music Guide hits and we'll again find him at the the top of his game.

The Four Tops on WKNR

TITLE - MONTH/YEAR - PEAKED AT..

WITHOUT THE ONE YOU LOVE LIFE'S NOT WORTH WHILE 11/1964 - 15
BABY I NEED YOUR LOVIN 08/64 - 4
ASK THE LONELY 01/1965 -3
I CAN'T HELP MYSELF 05/1965 - 1
IT'S THE SAME OLD SONG 07/1965 - 4
SOMETHING ABOUT YOU 11/1965 - 9
SHAKE ME. WAKE ME 02/1966 - 22
REACH OUT I'LL BE THERE 08/1966 - 1
STANDING IN THE SHADOWS OF LOVE 12/1966 - 4
BERNADETTE 02/1967 - 4
SEVEN ROOMS OF GLOOM 05/1967 - 14
YOU KEEP RUNNING AWAY 09/1967 - 17
WALK AWAY RENEE 01/1968 - 10
IF I WERE A CARPENTER 05/1968 - 18
YESTERDAY'S DREAMS 07/1968 - 20
DON'T LET HIM TAKE YOUR LOVE FROM ME 11/1969 - 24
IT'S ALL IN THE GAME 04/1970 - 7
STILL WATER 08/1970 - 4

Susan Whitall's Remembrance.
Bob Berry's Interview with Scott Regen on Sunny105.

]]>http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081017/ENT05/810170413Fri, 17 Oct 2008 21:52:50 -0600Don't Sell your LPs!
My first 45: Limbo Rock by Chubby Checker. My first LP: Shut Down Vol II by the Beach Boys. LPs who's grooves I wore out with repeated play: Crosby, Stills & Nash, Blood, Sweat & Tears and Earth, Wind & Fire.

Remember the sound of putting a needle to vinyl and waiting for the first track to vibrate out of the grooves, through the cartridge and the pre-amp, across the amplifier's power transistors (after adding appropriate bass and pressing the 'loudness' button) and along the two pairs of copper wires towards those expensive speakers that were the heartbeat of that stereo system that cost almost as much as your first automobile?

In the day, exploring an album often meant discovering a deep track, about three cuts in, that would never be selected as a single, but touched something at your emotional core (Quatermass - Good Lord Knows is one of my faves). If the LP was Abbey Road or Dark Side of the Moon, it meant 45 minutes of bliss, interrupted only by the amount of time it took to flip the disk to side two. If it was The Firesign Theater's "Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me the Pilers", it was something you replayed until the Adventures of Porgie and Mudhead were burned, line by line, into your long term memory.

Vinyl was an experience you shared. Listening to the Bridge Over Troubled Water LP while exploring the heights of passion with a half dozen other junior high couples in the dark corners of a friend's basement. Wondering what the heck the obscure band was that the guys at Discount Records always liked to play while you and your testosterone charged buddies were trying to sneak a peak at banned Jimi Hendrix "Electric Lady Land" album cover. Or running Funkadelic's "I Got A Thing" over and over so your band could learn the nuances of a bass line, a wah wah peddle, and some drum licks in a hopeless attempt at imitation.

Vinyl, when mixed with the 12AX7A vacuum tubes that powered your stereo created a warmth that added an indescribable something that the best digital Pro Tools plug-in could never recreate. The LP's cover became a work of art in itself. Sgt. Pepper's cover launched a hundred analytical dissertations, fed the Beatle rumor mill and became fodder for trivia buffs who memorized the names and faces of every image thereon.

Vinyl, in the hands of the right disc jockey became an instrument that could create a symphony where disparate artists came together in a seamless harmonic whole to take you on an emotional roller coaster ride.

Then came one turn of the evolutionary road, where it was thought that Vinyl was as anachronistic as a pterodactyl, technically deficient and ultimately too fragile to be a permanent part of the audio archive. CDs and their successor, the MP3 were pure digital storage devices that could be identically cloned without the generational losses inherent in the magnetically arranged iron filings on strips of Mylar or the vibratory bands encircling black plastic.

For three decades we've believed that digital perfection was the be all and end all. But now, it seems that everything old is new again. Even as CD sales continue to decline, vinyl is in a renaissance.

The Chicago Tribune quotes Ken Shipley, co-owner of the Numero Group, a Chicago label that specializes in reissues of underground soul music. "We're seeing the (vinyl) resurgence in all walks of life: from 50-year-old guys who want high-quality product to match their high-end stereos to 19-year-old kids who are sick of the minimalist Ikea design that has plagued dorm rooms for the last decade..Vinyl is the new books."

Pressing plants are being brought out of mothballs and limited edition vinyl box sets are selling out, at price points that would make CD manufacturers salivate. Bill Gagnon, senior vice president of catalog marketing at EMI Music told the Trib that he expects vinyl to eventually make up about 4% of EMI's revenue. As with everything else, it's the younger generation that is driving the demand.

Will the LP supplant digital? Nope. The pure ease of carrying your entire record library around in a cigarette box that renders it perfectly and pristine first time, every time ensures a digital future.

But like the Keener generation, new audiences are discovering the same magic we remember from that first time we put needle to groove.]]>http://freep.com/article/20081012/ENT04/810120372/1039/ENTMon, 13 Oct 2008 22:03:45 -0600WKNR and the "death" of Paul McCartneyOn October 12, 1969, Keener killed Paul McCartney. Russ Gibb, working on WKNR-FM heard from an Eastern Michigan University student about a series of clues that seemed to point to Paul's death. The story took on a life of its own, both on Keener and WKNR-FM and Russ received credit for elevating the tale to the international stage. It was a Sunday afternoon in Detroit when Uncle Russ took the call. He had just played some tracks from the Abby Road album and turned to the phone lines for his customary "rap" with his listeners. Eastern Michigan University student Tom Zarski was on the line. "I was going to rap with you about McCartney being dead and what is this all about?" MORE]]>http://keener13.com/history/keener_kills_paul.htmSun, 12 Oct 2008 09:39:27 -0600Jose's Historic National Anthem during the '68 World Series40 years ago, 23 year old Jose Feliciano sat before a public address microphone at Tiger Stadium. Detroit was playing in the World Series and Tiger broadcaster Ernie Harwell was assigned the job of selecting the talent to render The National Anthem. Jose followed Marvin Gaye, who sang a straight version after the Tigers directed Harwell to admonish the Motown superstar to keep things traditional. Today, Jose's rendition sounds tame in comparison to the diverse interpretations we hear at almost every sporting event. But in the day it generated a firestorm of controversy. Here's NPR's excellent remembrance of how it happened. (Special thanks to Keenerfan Jim Feliciano for the picture and recording of Jose's performance at Michigan and Trumbull.)]]>http://podcastdownload.npr.org/anon.npr-podcasts/podcast/330/510052/95593101/WBUR_95593101.mp3Sun, 12 Oct 2008 09:24:18 -0600The Soundtrack of Presidential ElectionsBob Berry, Sunny 105's exceptional afternoon guy, sent me this Starpulse article that wonders why the Republicans can't get any good bands in their tent this election cycle. That took us back to the 1960 election when Ole Blue Eyes donated his pipes to help elect John F. Kennedy with this tune. As a bonus, here's what a Kennedy TV commercial looked like, back before negative advertising dominated.]]>http://tinyurl.com/4ln8b2Fri, 10 Oct 2008 07:14:01 -0600Where You Gonna Go?

Detroit Garage Band enthusiasts will be interested in Cicadelic Records new "Where You Gonna Go" collection. Two of the best garage bands from Michigan, The Unrelated Segments whose "The Story Of My Life"has appeared on Rhino’s Nuggets box set and The Tidal Waves who scored a number one hit with "Farmer John" take center stage in this collection. All of The Unrelated Segments and The Tidal Waves material are included on this CD, re-mastered from original elements. Also featued are The Boys, The Quintette Plus, The Unknows, The District Six, The Couriers and The Lykes of Us.]]>http://www.cicadelic.com/segments.htmTue, 07 Oct 2008 06:44:02 -0600Bob Berry's 9-11 TributeListen Here 4:29 - 8.4MB MP3

]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspThu, 11 Sep 2008 08:07:41 -0600Buddy Harman - Music Row's Hal BlaineYou heard him on Keener playing the drums on Roy Orbison's "Pretty Woman" and Roger Miller's "King of the Road". But Buddy Harman, who died August 21 at age 79 is being remembered as the Father of modern country drumming. That's him on the skins on Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire," Elvis Presley's "Little Sister," Patsy Cline's "Crazy," Tammy Wynette's "Stand By Your Man," and Ray Price's "Crazy Arms." He became the first well known percussionist in the country genre, was the Grand Ole Opry's first staff drummer, and provided the back beat that made Country hot stuff during the rock era.]]>http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080822/TUNEIN02/808220413/1005/ENTERTAINMENTFri, 22 Aug 2008 19:25:09 -0600New 1970 Airchecks!Bob Green Productions graced our mailbox. The legendary WKNR production and progarmming ace found a box of cassettes in his vault that yielded these two 1970 Keener gems. There's this extended Bob Green aircheck that gives you a feel for the Keener vibe during it's second run for glory. The jingles are a mixture of Clyde and classic Keener jingles and an eclectic combination of current hits and WKNR gold. Bob's presentation is straight ahead, playin the hits personality. His encyclopedic knowledge of the hits is in evidence and he makes it look all too easy, even when a planned record doesn't want to play. Then we have Scott Regen, the night after R. Dean Taylor was his studio guest. Juxtapose this piece against his early Keener work and you'll instantly feel the evolution into a more mature, yet perfectly executed performance. This was radio that you could leave on all day. Even as the playlists tightened up, the personality kept us coming back for more.]]>http://www.keener13.com/airchex/Default.aspWed, 09 Jul 2008 22:17:39 -0600The New Beach Boy Box SetBy Scott Westerman - Keener13.com Curator

On June 10, Capitol released a box set with the Beach Boys US Singles from their 1962-1966 prime. This 66 track collection features both the A and B sides, the original mono mixes, stereo mixes and a ton of other goodies that we've come to expect with Beach Boy re-releases. It includes a 48 page hardbound book. Capitol has the new media marketing nailed too. The official Beach Boy website has a special section devoted to the box set that includes a flash player allowing you to listen to your favorite tune in it's original glorious mono format.

At Keener13.com, we have all the original Beach Boy singles on 45, every Beach Boy LP and just about every Capitol CD re-issue, including the first box set. Even though we haven't bought one music CD during the last year, we're headed to Borders to get this collection. The packaging and the aggregated content can't be duplicated on ITunes and the product is created with such attention to detail and class, that it will be well worth the investment.

I'm thinking about how carefully the Disney folks manage their brands. They study every possible marketing channel and have found ways to package their products in every conceivable format to maximize the customer value add and associated cash flow. As the RIAA and record companies lament mp3 sharing, packages like this are the way to regenerate interest and supercharge sales.

]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspWed, 11 Jun 2008 09:04:23 -0600Laugh-In's Dick Martin DiesDick Martin, the zany half of the comedy team whose "Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In" took television by storm in the 1960s, making stars of Goldie Hawn and Lily Tomlin and creating such national catch-phrases as "Sock it to me!" has died. He was 86.]]>http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5j99CR_xFNomdLxJhwGL5d5qvUdCQD90T15TG1Sun, 25 May 2008 20:46:20 -0600The OriginalsDetroit had it's share. And if you were looking for rare records during the WKNR era, you looked for the so-called "used record stores" that were occasional fixtures in strip mall corners across the Motor City. As we evolve from LP to CD to MP3, most have faded into history. Across the way in East Lansing, Dick Rosemont had his own iteration, calling it "Flat, Black and Circular". Three decades later, he's still in business and his web presence is expanding to include a site that track down original recordings of popular and hit records. Here's keener13.com curator Scott Westerman's appreciation.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSat, 10 May 2008 12:30:16 -0600Share your opinions on our new and improved Keener ForumHead right this way and you'll be able to discuss 60s pop culture, Motown, Michigan Rock, Detroit radio & TV and anything remotely Keener connected. Please avoid the flames as we're a friendly bunch, but have fun and make some new friends!]]>http://keener13.lefora.com/forum/Thu, 08 May 2008 17:31:51 -0600TreasuresWhat if someone called you one evening and offered a collection of thousands upon thousands of carefully preserved jingles from the golden age of Top-40 radio? Keener13.com curator Scott Westerman tells the tale of how he came to own over 300 hours of 60s rock radio jingles, including every cut that ever played on WKNR.]]>http://scottwesterman.com/?p=353Sun, 27 Apr 2008 17:44:36 -0600The Year-EndersThe morgue. In the radio news biz, that's the place where you save all the raw tape, the typed copy and the actualities that contributed to each daily newscast. At the end of each year, news departments would cull the highlights for a special broadcast retrospective of the year that was.

From 1965 through 1970, WKNR News went a step beyond putting the program on the air. At the station's expense hundreds of albums were pressed each year with a commercial-free 45 minute summary of the people, places, events and attitudes that contributed to our history as seen from the newsroom at 15001 Michigan Avenue in Dearborn.

Anchored by WKNR News Director Philip Nye, these LPs are now collectors items and have been utilized by current day broadcasters and historians to look back at what Detroit was like in the 60s.

WKNR Newsman John Maher (Meagher) collected most of them and sent us rips of the 1965 through 1968 LPs which can be heard here. If you have a copy of the 1969 or 1970 albums, we'd love to add them to the Contact News aircheck archives. 

]]>http://keener13.com/news/yearenders.aspSun, 27 Apr 2008 16:05:46 -0600Remembering Sounds OrchestralOf the instrumentals that populated the WKNR Music Guide, Sounds Orchestral was unique. They were the only British instrumental group to top the Keener charts. Unlike EMI's Sounds Incorporated, they never toured with the Beatles and worked primarily from the studio. Their line up in 1965 included a 40 year old keyboard guy and a 21 year old bassist. And it took a cover of American Vince Guaraldi's "Cast Your Fate to the Wind" to get them traction in the crowded field that was competing for ears in the third year of Keener's Detroit radio dominance. We remember Guaraldi as the music director for the Peanuts television specials. "Cast" made it to number three in Britain and went top ten on the national Billboard Chart. Although they released several additional albums and were recording into the 70s, they were a one hit wonder on WKNR with a seven week chart run peaking at number one for three weeks, ending on tax day in 1965.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspFri, 18 Apr 2008 10:24:05 -0600David Cassidy's Broken DateNear the end of the Keener ear, the Partridge Family program was hot on Television and David Cassidy's "I Think I Love You" and "It's One of Those Nights" were top ten hits on the WKNR Music Guide. In this 1990 segment from Kelly and Company, a 1972 Keener Date with David promotion comes back to haunt him. We meet the winner and David does the right thing. Keener Fans, look closely and you'll see a picture of Pat St. John in the clip. Pat remembers, "I emceed the show, then I went to the Edgewater Park office to get my fee. I almost walked out with a lot more than I bargained for, as the guy thought I was Cassidy! The photo would've been taken at the Hotel in Downtown Detroit...I'm thinking The Leland, but I could be wrong."]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspMon, 14 Apr 2008 10:36:19 -0600Jerry Martin Honored with Carl Lee Broadcast Engineering Excellence AwardLong time WKNR engieering ace Jerry Martin was one of two Michigan broadcasters to be honored with The Michigan Association of Broadcasters Carl Lee Broadcast Engineering Excellence Award. Jerry began his career as a radio engineer in 1946, assisting in the construction of Keener's predecessor, WKMH and holds the distinction of being the second employee hired by Fred Knorr at the station. His many accomplishments through the years include supervising the installation and construction of the present day transmitting facilities of WNIC-FM. Since retiring in 1985, Jerry has worked as a consultant and co-authored the operating information for what is now known as the Emergency Action System (EAS). He is a life member of the Society of Broadcast Engineers and Certified Senior Broadcast Engineer. And.. He built that incredible reverb unit that gave WKNR it's distinctive sound.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspMon, 31 Mar 2008 14:29:29 -0600Wally Phillips - Chicago's Radio SuperstarFor someone who grew up listening to J.P. McCarthy on WJR, tuning into Wally Phillips' shtick on Chicago's WGN probably felt like entering an alternate universe. Whereas J.P. Was always urbane and on the level, it was anybody's guess where Wally might take the listener. Whether it was breaking news or pranking Pavarotti, anything could happen when Walter Richard Aloysius Phillips was on the air. The Chicago radio legend was number one, almost from the moment he came to town and regularly pulled in a record share of the potential listening audience for the next two decades. He's credited by many as a pioneer who helped define talk radio. Listening to a montage of his air work may seem tame by today's standards, but his ability to tiptoe toward the edge of the envelope without going past it made his show a must-do for stars like Lucille Ball, Sophia Loren and hundreds of others. Phillips passed away on March 20. He was 82.]]>http://www.MyWebSite.com/item.htmlSun, 30 Mar 2008 20:31:10 -0600Gary Berko's New Oldies StationGary Berkowitz. Take a listen to Oldies 92.5 to see how he works his magic on the Florida Gulf Coast.]]>http://www.oldies925fm.com/Wed, 26 Mar 2008 21:11:17 -0600The Real 5th Beatle PassesMurray the K often got the moniker, but it was a former accountant turned road manager that truely became "the 5th Beatle". Niel Aspinall, who died on March 23rd, pre-dated Ringo in his relationship with the band became one of the Beatles' most powerful behind the scenes forces. He is credited with collating the celebrity pictures for the cover of the Sgt. Pepper album and even took a turn behind the microphone, helping sing the chorus of "Yellow Submarine". His biggest achievement: Pulling together the often fractious surviving Beatles for the production of the multi-media "Beatles Anthology." He was 66. ]]>http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/24/arts/music/24cnd-aspinall.html?em&ex=1206590400&en=114bf3c26c222fcf&ei=5087%0ATue, 25 Mar 2008 14:53:34 -0600Beatle Bootleg Stirs Lawsuithas the Beatles at odds with a Miami record company.]]>http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BEATLES_LAWSUIT?SITE=MIDTN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULTSat, 22 Mar 2008 21:36:49 -0600Hanoi, Hendrix and the National AnthemIn March of 1971, we were still in Vietnam. Radio Hanoi sought to tweak US public opinion by having Hanoi Hannah play The Star Spangled Banner as performed by Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock. Their hope of angering Amrerica backfired and Jimi's version became a hit on underground radio stations across the country including WKNR-FM. Down I-94 in Ann Arbor, WPAG-FM had just launched a nighttime progressive rock format to try and attract listeners to the stations struggling 3,000 watt monaural signal. The format itself was a bit of a stretch for conservative owner Ted Baughn and Program Director Charlie Bross thought he was definitely pushing the edge of the envelope when authorized a new sign-off, featuring the Hendrix version of the National Anthem.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSat, 08 Mar 2008 11:38:35 -0700Mickey turns 63. We must be getting old, too.Jack Benny stopped counting his birthdays at age 39 and seemed to remain locked in time at that magic number. When the Monkees' Mickey Dolenz turned 63 on March 8, it was another reminder that, while the music of the Keener era stays the same, time marches on. Mickey was the only one of the four with previous television experience, starring in the Circus Boy series from 1956-58 under the name Mickey Braddock. He auditioned for the part of the drummer and had to learn how to play the instrument before the Monkees debuted in September, 1966. That's his voice singing lead on many of the group's hits, starting with the "Last Train to Clarksville". Penned by Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart, the tune is purportedly an anti-war song about a draftee who is headed for his army base and fears he may die in Vietnam. Four decades later, it still resonates with a new generation of soldiers. In later years, Mickey found success behind the camera as a director for the BBC, Disney and ABC.]]>http://www.mickydolenz.com/bio_nonshocked.htmlSat, 08 Mar 2008 11:17:55 -0700Detroit voice on display6 icons of the airwaves are on display at the Detroit Historical Museum, including WKNR alum Dick Purtan. DP is honored, along with Bob Allison, Sonny Eliot, Ernie Harwell, JP McCarthy and Martha Jean "The Queen" Steinberg in a display of sight and sound entitled "Detroit's Classic Radio Voices". Here's more from Susan Whitall at DetNews.com]]>http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080308/ENT10/803080373/1404/ENT10Sat, 08 Mar 2008 10:59:32 -0700Remembering Hurricane SmithHe was a one hit wonder as a singer in 1973, but Norm "Hurricane" Smith had a subtle but powerful influence on the Keener sound as the guy who turned the dials for 180 Beatle recordings. As an engineer at EMI, he worked closely with George Martin to create the unique sound that launched Liverpool Lads on the international stage. After completing Rubber Soul in 1965, Smith was promoted to producer and crafted three Pink Floyd albums, "The Piper at the Gates of Dawn", "A Saucerful of Secrets", and "Ummagumma". 8 years later, he sang a demo of a self-penned song called "Oh Babe, What Would You Say" hoping to convince another artist to record it. As the story goes, fellow producer Mickie Most convinced Smith to release the track himself. 1973 was a year when unique voices like Dr. John, David Bowie and Al Green were first resonating with the public and Smith's scratchy tenor sold well enough to make it to number 58 on Billboards year end hot 100. His yet-to-be released autobiography is titled "John Lennon Called Me Normal" and a 2004 retrospective CD featured liner notes from Paul McCartney and members of Pink Floyd. Smith passed away on March 3rd at the age of 85.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspWed, 05 Mar 2008 22:01:39 -0700Keener Lives in OhioFrank Hartge is one of our most dedicated Keenerfans. He's my Ebay agent, with an eye out for anything on that site connected to WKNR. And he's probably the only person in the state of Ohio with his own personal Keener license plates. "The DMV wouldn't let me use the actual call letters, so I opted for this, which is probably better anyway," he says. "Not that anyone in central Ohio will know what it means!"

Update: Frank's not the only one to immortalize Keener with license plateage. The "Reel" Tom Ryan, legendary CKLW board-op and a major contributor of WKNR history to this site, has the Michigan version. "I also have (from the past) a non-vanity Michigan plate 'KLW 800' and also a non-vanity Ontario plate 'KLW 800'", he writes. " Both of those plates were regular issues. I had to wait in line in two different countries to obtain those plates in my name. That happened when I moved back to Michigan from Windsor in 1978." Now that's dedication!]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSun, 02 Mar 2008 10:03:12 -0700DC5's Mike Smith DiesMike Smith, the lead singer of the Dave Clark 5, passed away on February 28th, less than two weeks before the group was scheduled to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Smith's supercharged vocals were part of the mix that brought the DC5 to the front lines of the British Invasion. The band charted 18 times on Keener beginning with "Bits and Pieces", which peaked at number 2 on the WKNR Music Guide in April of 1964, and ending with "Everybody Knows" which had a two week run in November of 1967. After the DC5 broke up, Smith fronted his own band until a freak accident in 2003 left him paralyzed below the ribcage. He was 64. Smith was the second band member to pass, preceded by saxophone player Denis Payton, who succumbed to cancer in December of 2006.

More Links:
USA Today Appreciation - AP London - Rare Film Footage - Susan Whitall's Blog -  Pat St. John Remembers - Official Mike Smith Website - DC5 Discography - USA Today: Accolades finally arrive]]>http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080229/ap_en_mu/obit_mike_smith;_ylt=Agv0x.rIWY11bR9GXciqy3IEtbAFThu, 28 Feb 2008 20:17:38 -0700Keener Featured again on XMHere's how DetNews.com's Susan Whitall covers the story, including a shout-out to Keener13.com.]]>http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080221/OPINION03/802210411/1404/ENT10Thu, 21 Feb 2008 07:28:02 -0700Mike Austerman on the state of Detroit RadioMichiguide, shares the radio column beat with Art Vuolo over at the Oakland Press. He's always worth reading, but especially so with this candid assessment of the state of the art in the Motor City. Scroll down to the comment section for some succinct analysis from Keener's magic maker Bob Green.]]>http://www.michiguide.com/archives/2008/02/past_events_show_where_radio_b.html#moreThu, 21 Feb 2008 07:22:26 -0700Valentine Heartbreakas Susan Whitall writes in her Detroit News blog, some of the more interesting musical tomes of the last 40 years focus on love gone bad.]]>http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080214/ENT04/802140397/1032/ENTThu, 14 Feb 2008 07:48:41 -0700The "Motown Candidate"Susan Whitall blogs about it. ]]>http://info.detnews.com/redesign/blogs/musicblog/index.cfm?blogid=468Sun, 20 Jan 2008 15:11:03 -0700WKNR-FM becomes WNICplaying the last rock and roll records of the Keener era on WKNR-AM, Jim Cutler was at the controls in the control room on WKNR-FM. Keener-FM had pioneered a new approach to beautiful music when it launched Stereo Island in 1971. It required the DJs to put together seamless mixes of the most mellow popular tunes amongst a jingle package customized for the brand. It was a concept that was a step above the mind numbing elevator music that was an automated staple across town at WLDM. But the human capital it required to produce the Stero Island sound didn't throw off enough cash flow to satisfy the bean counters (sound familiar?), and as Keener AM backtimed to the top of the hour with "Turn Turn Turn" by the Byrds, Jim Cutler queued up his final Stereo Island set. Jim Nuznoff knew it weas coming and had his reel to reel rolling to document the first hour of the new WNIC. The resulting aircheck  gives a good feel for how tragically bland WNIC's initial programming concept was. Juxtaposed against what we hear today, you can see just how far "100.3" has come.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspThu, 17 Jan 2008 15:51:36 -0700Happy New YearHere's a 1968 New Year's Greeting. Four decades later the Keener Magic is still felt in Detroit, and around the world. All the best from your Keener13.com curators: Scott Westerman and Steve Schram.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSat, 22 Dec 2007 20:50:04 -0700An incomplete history of radiobest-ever post from Dan O'Day. If you have ever earned a pay check in the radio biz, this one will bring back a ton of memories, both good and bad, and remind you why broadcasting is a lifelong addiction from which we never fully recover.]]>http://tinyurl.com/yvxopsMon, 17 Dec 2007 15:46:56 -0700Dan Fogelberg 1951/2007Dan Fogelberg was a key voice in the soft rock revolution that helped WNIC return the WKNR-FM frequency to number one in Detroit. The Pekin, Illinois native had a dozen hits in the 70s and 80s with a story telling style that approached Harry Chapin and lyrical melodies that found their way into hundreds of back seats during romantic Michigan evenings.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspMon, 17 Dec 2007 10:25:54 -0700Madonna is Michigan's Hall of Fame ConnectionRock Hall of Fame stirs controversy with some oddball choices" hits the nail on the head. With people like Leonard Cohen and Grandmaster Flash getting in ahead of Gordon Lightfoot and Mitch Ryder, it makes you wonder what the voters have been smoking.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspMon, 17 Dec 2007 10:20:26 -0700Rodents and Rock n RollFew who lived through the 60s may remember the name Ross Bagdasarian, but his alter ego, David Seville, found a place in the rock n roll record books. It happened when he recorded his voice and sped up the tape to create Alvin, Simon and Theodore... The Chipmunks. While a number of novelty acts found their way onto the WKNR Music Guide, The Chipmunks never did. And yet, they spawned an empire that continues to provide cash flow for Bagdasarian's descendants. Here's Ryan Pearson's take on the latest resurgence of interest.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspMon, 17 Dec 2007 10:10:58 -0700Funk Brothers fetted in NashvilleDown in Nashville late last month, the Musicians Hall of Fame held its first ever induction and Motown's Funk Brothers backing band (drummer Uriel Jones, bassist Bob Babbitt and guitarist Eddie Willis) was among the honorees.

At the induction ceremony concert, Peter Frampton spoke of how he was inspired by the group and sang "Signed, Sealed, Delivered" with the inductees backing him. Former Supremes singer Mary Wilson then performed "Stop in the Name of Love."

Here's more from the MHOFM website.

NASHVILLE, TN (October 26, 2007) --- The Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum is happy to announce the first annual Musicians Hall of Fame Awards Show at Schermerhorn Symphony Center, November 26, 2007, 7:30 p.m.  This inaugural event celebrates the induction of some of the most esteemed and influential musicians in recording history. The inaugural inductees include the Nashville A-Team, The Blue Moon Boys, The Funk Brothers, The Memphis Boys, The Tennessee Two, and The Wrecking Crew. 

"These are the actual musicians who played on so many records that have become such a part of our everyday lives," says Joe Chambers, CEO and founder, Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum.  "There are so many more musicians to be recognized and every year we will add more names to those who will be honored.  This will be such an historic evening with all these talented inductees being paid tribute on the stage of Nashville’s incredible new Schermerhorn Symphony Center."

The event will showcase performances with some of the original members from the groups that being honored which include; The Nashville A-Team (Harold Bradley, Ray Edenton, Charlie McCoy, Bob Moore, Hargus "Pig" Robbins, and Jerry Kennedy), Funk Brothers (Uriel Jones, Joe Messina, Eddie Willis, and Bob Babbitt), Wrecking Crew  (Billy Strange, Don Randi, Larry Knechtel, Joe Osborn, Hal Blaine, Lyle Ritz, James Burton, Jim Horn, and Mike Deasy), Memphis Boys (Bobby Emmons, Bobby Wood, Gene Chrisman, Mike Leech, and Reggie Young), Tennessee Two (Marshall Grant and Bob Wooten, who replaced the late Luther Perkins); Blue Moon Boys (Scotty Moore and D.J. Fontana). These musicians played on mega-hits for such legendary superstars as the Beach Boys, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, George Harrison, Patsy Cline, Stevie Wonder, Bob Dylan, George Jones, the Supremes, and Frank Sinatra.  Along with this talented roster of performers, special guest vocalists will also be announced soon.

]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspFri, 07 Dec 2007 09:33:02 -0700When personality becomes the brandDuring rock radio's golden age, there were a few personalities who transcended the format to become a brand in their own right. Such was the case with Philly legend Hy Lit who passed away recently at age 73. He exuded charisma but couldn't follow formats, stepped all over the vocals and just plain did things his way. Here's Jerry Del Collano's appreciation along with a Ron Turner compilation of Hy Lit airchecks. ]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspMon, 19 Nov 2007 09:22:16 -0700Where the Oldies AreFor several years, we produced a podcast celebrating the music, the memories and the popular culture of Detroit. The Keener13 Podcast got hits from around the world and, depending on the topic, tens of thousands of listeners sampled our flavor of Michigan rock. Time and the complicated maze of regulations on streaming media made our show a memory, but the passion flame for Michigan music is far from extinguished. Tony Clark and Art Van, two Keener enthusiasts and audio artists in their own right produce The Michigan Oldies Podcast, a regular two hour venture into the radio wayback machine. It's a mixture of personality, trivia and tunes, much of which are rarely heard on the conventional airwaves these days. Find them at www.michiganoldiespodcast.com .]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSat, 17 Nov 2007 08:33:19 -0700Tops Win Name Rights in BritainViscount Oliver's American Dream the Legendary Four Tops" to promote his band's tribute act. He also ordered Miller to pay yet to be determined financial damages. The Tops British lawyer said that, "Today's ruling was important for the Four Tops because it permitted them to protect their legacy in the U.K." The Tops are in a six-way tie for the 10th most popular act to chart on Keener, with 18 different records making finding their way to the WKNR Music Guide. They share the spot with the Dave Clark Five, Neil Diamon, The Miracles, The Raiders and the Rolling Stones.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSat, 10 Nov 2007 09:00:27 -0700Sargent Sacto is between opportunitiesDetroit radio observers are noting another historical footnote this week, Tom Ryan's departure from WOMC. Some felt it was a decision that should have been made years ago, while others see it as another example of how big radio has lost touch with its audience.

For me, Tom was most enjoyable as Dick Purtan's sidekick, as Sargent Sacto and as the creative commercial voice of numerous ads (Remember Captain FFO?). Although he had a loyal following, I could never connect with him as a host. Think of the communications magic Bob Green, Tom Shannon and Scott Regen had. Tom Ryan never quite made it to that level.

If the past is any indication, Tom won't be off the air for long. Detroit loves its media people and there's already talk that he will resurface over at WMGC.

Perhaps what we are mourning is the death of true personality radio, from the days when we felt we had a relationship with the hosts. Personality today seems to be the demagoguery extremes, people who thrive on anger, conflict and exclusion, the opposite of what the best of the CK and Keener guys were: friendly, seeking common ground and inclusive.

Somewhere along the line, the drive to distill a winning formula and maximize profit made the non-broadcaster owners lost sight of what made great radio really work: The People.

]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSun, 04 Nov 2007 18:07:53 -0700Its about The BrandBeyond the haircuts, one of the distinctive visuals associated with the Beatles is the logo that adorned Ringo's Ludwig drum kit. Brian Epstein was an early believer in the holistic approach to rock n roll branding. The hair, the suits, the boots, the guitars, the drums and the logo all contributed to the total Beatle experience. As a recent Freep slide show details a band's logo is often instantly recognizable. Throughout the Keener era, you looked for The Brand when you flipped through albums at Harmony House, when you perused the newspaper concert pages and when you made those t-shirt purchases at the live shows. Dean Torrence, famously half of Jan & Dean, made a living in the imaging space crafting logos for the Turtles, Nillson and The Beach Boys. And today, The Brand is becoming more important that the records that were once it's foundation. Radiohead and Prince have virtually given away their music in support of concert dates and merchandising. And Madonna recently abandoned Warner for Live Nation, the world's largest concert promoter, who will try to maximize cash flows through multiple revenue streams, the records are almost secondary.. Frank Maruca had an innate understanding of The Brand in the run-up to Keener's Halloween night launch 44 years ago, printing matchbooks, bumper stickers and high school book covers and plastering the station's distinctive blue logo wherever he could. Even now, seeing it in it's various incarnations instantly brings back memories.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSun, 21 Oct 2007 10:01:57 -0600Gordy Blvd is GrandSusan Whitall covers the names and faces who attended.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSat, 20 Oct 2007 08:41:03 -0600Aretha's Atlantic "Rejects"Contact News reporter Bob Berry says: Even though she grew up in Detroit Aretha Franklin's most productive years happend during her association with Atlantic Records. Terry Lawson notes that even the rejects from those years are classics. Aretha Franklin: Rare & Unreleased Recordings from the Golden Reign of the Queen of Soul ($19.95) features 35 tracks from the Queen of Soul's years at Atlantic, 1966-1973.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspWed, 17 Oct 2007 12:40:33 -0600Susan Whitall: "Layla" writes her memoirsPattie Boyd, the woman every hardcore Beatle fan knows as the British model who married George Harrison, leaving him for Eric Clapton, is releasing a juicy autobiography. What was her connection to the film "Hard Day's Night"? Was Pattie the cause of Clapton's heroin addiction? Is she the woman Harrison was thinking about when he wrote the smash "Something"? Were there other affairs involving Beatle spouses? And why release the book now? Susan Whitall tells the tale along with sound bytes and music clips in the Detroit News. Here's Claptons take from the Times of London]]>http://tinyurl.com/34ltjlMon, 06 Aug 2007 14:04:29 -0600Classic Soupy Sales on YouTubeOne of the best things about Detroit television in the 60s was Soupy Sales. Loosely scripted and at least 80% ad libbed, Soupy's show was aimed at kids, but it connected just as effectively with adults. Every Keenerfan has his favorite Soupy skit. What's yours? To help jog your memory, here is a complete Soupy Sales show from 1965 as preserved on YouTube: Part One - Part Two - Part Three. For the more adventurous, Ed Golick recounts the day Soupy had an unexpected visitor.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspMon, 24 Sep 2007 16:12:47 -0600NYT: Frankie Valli is back In seasonTHE highlight of the recent Emmy Award broadcast was soundtrack from the Soprano's tribute. The cast of the smash Broadway musical "The Jersey Boys", performed some flawless interpretations of the music of The Four Seasons. My wife is the award show addict in our family, but I found myself pulled from the computer room, rewinding the DVR to listen again to the incredible Seasons magic. As this NYT article notes, the musical has been a catalyst for another Four Seasons rennaissance. And at the center, the singular talents of Franki Valli. The group charted 15 times on WKNR. Valli had 5 WKNR Music Guide appearances as a solo artist. At the dawn of the British Invasion, VeeJay actually put out a battle of the bands album pitting the Seasons against the Beatles. Here's how the Four Seasons looked and sounded during a Hullabalo appearance at the height of their fame.]]>http://tinyurl.com/2pf6ugMon, 24 Sep 2007 15:47:01 -0600Keener 1967 Flashback: The Turtles - Happy TogetherWhat do you remember about the winter of 1967? In New Orleans, District Attorney Jim Garrison said more than one person was involved in the Kennedy assassination. Teamsters President Jimmy Hoffa began an 8 year sentence for jury tempering. And Albert Desalvo received a life sentence for murders committed by The Boston Strangler. Zero in on the month of March. On NBC, Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock lose their inhibitions after being exposed to strange plant spores on Omicron Ceti III. Batman and the Monkees are at the height of their television fame. And on Keener, the airwaves are populated by a who's who of 60s rock n roll acts: Buffalo Springfield, the Beatles, Herman's Hermits, Martha & The Vandellas, the Four Tops, the Mama's & Papa's, the Royal Guardsmen, the Rolling Stones, Bob Seger, Harpers Bizarre, Leslie Gore, Peaches & Herb, Elvis Presley, Big Brother & The Holding Company, Frank & Nancy Sinatra, Stevie Wonder, the Platters and The Turtles. Look at the WKNR Music Guide for the week of March 6th and you'll see a songbook filled with hits that are still in heavy rotation on oldies stations today. Perhaps the most unlikely group on the survey was lead by Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan. The two Westchester high school buddies fronted a band called The Turtles, a group that was teetering on the edge of oblivion.. until a tune, offered to them by strangers, rejuvenated their career. Happy Together rocketed them back to the top of the charts and became a multi-million dollar franchise that is still tapping toes and throwing off revenue today.  Here's how the Turtles looked and sounded when they appeared on the Smothers Brothers show in 1967. But what's the story behind the story of the Turtles' biggest hit? Mix Magazine occasionally looks back to dissect the magical art that studio recording was in the day. Their classic tracks review of how Happy Together came to be paints a vivid picture of the combination of talent and luck that made hit records happen.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSun, 16 Sep 2007 21:55:07 -0600Otis Redding - 40 Years LaterHe defined the Stax Records sound. He brought down the house at the Monterey Pop festival. And 40 years after his death, at age 26, Otis Redding's energy is still being felt. Here's CNN's look at his life and legacy and a YouTube recording of his electrifying live version of Try a Little Tenderness]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSun, 16 Sep 2007 21:04:42 -0600Keener 1968 Flashback: Al Wilson - The SnakeRadio enthusiasts who grew up listening to the superb execution of 60s rock n rollers like WKNR have a particular affinity for Johnny Rivers' Soul City Records. The label was the first to sign Jimmy Webb and spawned the careers of Al Wilson and the Fifth Dimension. Part of Johnny Rivers' genius was his ability to bake good compositions, talented artists and electrifying arrangements into hit records. Listen to California Soul, Aquarius and Summer Rain and you get a feel for the hit making personality you could expect when you bought a 45 with the Soul City logo on it. One of my favorite Soul City smashes was the October, 1968 debut single from Al Wilson: The Snake. From the opening guitar riff and the Ludwig octoplex tom toms to the verses that build to a climax with key modulation and perfectly layered horns and background vocals, The Snake is a song you can listen to over and over again, finding another Rivers nuance each time. Add to the mix, Johnny's innate understanding of how to build a mix that sounded just as hot on your Fisher stereo system as it did on your 6 inch car radio speaker and you have an exquisite example of an artist at the peak of his creative powers. Here's a link to a good stereo rendition of The Snake.. Skip through the wannabe intro who over acts the part of a DJ.. turn your speakers up loud.. and enjoy!]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspThu, 13 Sep 2007 22:55:31 -0600Wonder at Meadowbrookcovers his return to Detroit and Mitch Albom shares an appreciation that approaches poetry.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspTue, 28 Aug 2007 06:42:20 -0600New in the Aircheck Archive - Steve Robbins, January, 1967this aircheck was recorded on Friday, January 6th. In the top ten that week was an eclectic mix including Snoopy vs The Red Barron, Georgy Girl, Words of Love, Tell It Like It Is, Karate, Good Thing, Love's gone Bad, I'm Gonna Miss You and Nashville Cats.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSun, 12 Aug 2007 22:12:06 -0600Elvis still sellsLike him or not, there's no question that Elvis Presley still is a phenomenon. New generations, born long after he "left the building" are fascinated with his life and career, his recordings still sell at a brisk pace, and Elvis impersonators represent a measurable showbiz segment, wherever gamblers congregate, from the pueblos of New Mexico to the glitter of Las Vegas. August 16th marks 30 years since the King's death. From the Freep, here is Terry Lawson's Essential Elvis.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSun, 12 Aug 2007 10:18:59 -0600Faygo at 100For those of us who grew up listening to WKNR in the 60s, Faygo was as much a part of the culture as Ballpark Franks, Strohs Beer and the Ernie Harwell. What you might not know is that it was Faygo that coined the term "pop" after the sound made when you open a Faygo bottle. Or that Faygo's national popularity happened after they started advertising on Detroit Tiger radio broadcasts. Or that Harold Peary, the frustrated store owner who repeated the long list of Faygo flavors only to have the kid select "Red Pop", was best known as radio's Great Gildersleeve. Faygo TV ads are some of the most memorable of the Keener era. Here's a link to the original Faygo Kid spot, along with a YouTube connection to the "remember when you were a kid" ad that was shot on the BobLo boat, celebrating some of the best of Detroit's cultural magic.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspWed, 08 Aug 2007 11:38:02 -0600Singer/Producer Hazlewood was a Keener faveHe was best known as the writer/producer of Nancy Sinatra's 1966 break through "These Boots Are Made For Walking", but Lee Hazlewood, who died this week at age 78, put his imprint on a number of Keener hits. The former Arizona disk jockey charted twice as a singer. A pair of duets with Sinatra, "Jackson" and "Some Velvet Morning", made their way to the WKNR Music Guide in 1967. But his work behind the scenes had a longer reach. He co-wrote Duane Eddy's smash "Rebel Rouser", worked as producer for Dean Martin, Dusty Springfield, Dino, Desi & Billy and Petula Clark and handled the controls when Sinatra Senior asked him to produce the Frank and Nancy top 5 classic "Something Stupid". The songs he wrote provided a lifetime of financial security that allowed Hazlewood to thumb his nose at the record company establishment. Yet he kept recording until the end. His final collection "Cake or Death" was released last year. Here's how NPR showcased his life and career.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspTue, 07 Aug 2007 06:38:39 -0600The story behind the Beach Boys' Little Deuce Coupe"I'm not braggin babe so don't put me down, but I've got the fastest set of wheels in town." With that sentence, Brian Wilson and Roger Christian kicked off one of the most popular car songs of all time. Little Deuce Coupe was actually a B-Side, released on the flip of Surfer Girl in July of 1963, three months before WKMH became WKNR. Along with the album of the same name, Little Deuce Coupe cemented the Beach Boys' reputation as THE hot rod band of the 60s. But none of this would have happened if Capitol Records had not tweaked Brian Wilson's ire. That same summer, the Beach Boys' label released a car compilation entitled "Shut Down" that featured the Boys' single of the same name along with 409 and a host of other non-Beach Boy material. It happend without Brian Wilson's involvement or approval and he immediately decided that the band should fire back with a hot rod album of their own. Brian, along with DJ Christian, polished the lyrics of a half dozen new car songs and the band rushed into the studio in September, recording 8 new automotive tinged tracks, tacking on the previously released Deuce Coupe, Our Car Club and Shut Down and topping off the production with Be True To Your School. The album was released in October, only 12 weeks after the Surfer Girl collection (with Little Deuce Coupe on board) hit the record stores. The single peaked nationally at number 4. Little Deuce Coupe, the LP, eventually went platinum and is still available today on CD, coupled with All Summer Long. The album is also notable as the last time we hear David Marks' rhythm guitar. Al Jardine had returned during the Deuce Coupe sessions becoming Marks' permanent replacement. It's one of those Keener anomalies that while the Beach Boys charted 21 times on the station, "Be True To Your School" was the only tune from Deuce Coupe that made it to the WKNR Music Guide. There's a Detroit connection to the iconic blue and white Deuce Coupe that's featured on the album cover. Read Susan Whitall's fascinating story for the details. ]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspWed, 01 Aug 2007 07:24:24 -0600Just Roll TapeIn April of 1968, Stephen Stills was fresh from the breakup of Buffalo Springfield and in the final throws of a romance with Judy Collins. After a late night session helping her record the sound track for "The Subject Was Roses", Stills paid the studio engineer to hang around and unpacked his guitar. Keener13.com curator Scott Westerman tells what happened next.]]>http://scottwesterman.com/?p=276Tue, 31 Jul 2007 13:34:20 -0600 Motown songster Ron Miller diesHere's the AP obit from the Detroit News. ]]>http://tinyurl.com/2oueos Tue, 24 Jul 2007 06:32:05 -0600WKNR Contact News featured on Michigan Radio documentaryIn the summer of 1967 chaos broke out in the streets of Detroit. After five days of violence 43 were dead, thousands were injured and over 4000 people had been arrested. WKNR Contact News covered it all and chronicled the events in an album of news highlights released early in 1968. This summer, forty years later, Michigan Radio takes an in-depth look at the deadliest riot of the 1960s. Why did the riots begin? What fueled them? And, have we ever really recovered? Ashes to Hope: Overcoming the Detroit Riots will explore how the riots affected people, neighborhoods and even music. And will address questions such as: Whether it was truly a riot? Or, a rebellion? Is the white-flight that we see today in Detroit a consequence of the riots? Did the riots cripple the relationship between the state of Michigan and Detroit? And, could rioting happen again? In addition to Michigan Radio reporters, WKNR's News Director Philip Nye contributes context to the story, along with Contact News air checks from the center of the storm. The program begins Tuesday evening, July 17th at 9:00 PM with an encore July 23rd at 3:00 PM. For more information, visit MichiganRadio.org]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSat, 14 Jul 2007 21:54:08 -0600Frost front man Dick Wagner's heart attackOn July 3rd, The Frost's Dick Wagner suffered what his website describes as a "massive heart attack". Here's more information, along with a blog post about his involvement with AliceCooper. The Frost Music LP spent seven weeks on the Keener album charts in May of 1969. Their superb single, Mystery Man, had a one week chart run on the AM side, but was an oft requested album cut on WKNR-FM. Hear it here.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspFri, 13 Jul 2007 10:38:15 -0600Keener's Secret SauceBy Steve Schram & Scott Westerman
There has been a lot of discussion on the blogs lately about what made 60s Top 40 radio rock. The buzz around the on-air reunions at WLS, WQXI, et al, attests to the continuing connection listeners have with the radio stations they grew up with. That's something that's clearly not the case today. Our kids' generation listens to music on their IPods and work through their adolescent adventures on Facebook and Instant Messenger. And, aside from the morning shifts, there is a distinct absence of power talent in other radio day-parts.

Being on the fringe of the biz, we at keener13.com get back-channeled on some of the memos that are coming out of the programming departments at the few companies that control our broadcast media. They are thoughtful, methodical, and take into account the latest research methodology. But something seems to be missing. Reading them prompted us to ask our Keener mentors, "what things contributed to the WKNR success formula on the air?"

Bob Green was there when the station struggled as WKMH. He was there at the height of the Keener phenomenon and witnessed the changes that lead to it's ultimate demise. He was a major contributor to WKNR's success. Here's his take:

"Taking into account the differences in the way we were 40 years ago and the faith I had in the professionalism of the on air staff, there are still a few universal truths that apply to good programming.

"It still comes down to putting content into: a. The Product, and b. The Presentation... The journey and the destination or whatever metaphor works for you. I always referred to the elements and their balance. All the elements, music, Jock talk, telephone bits, jingles, commercials, promos, contests/promotions, news...they were all programmed. That was all outlined and constantly referred to at jock meetings and was usually both understood and practiced.

"Only thing I recall having to point out to guys who got lazy, was not to play the same jingle 2 or 3 times in a row (as they left the cart in the machine) or to play a jingle that was inappropriate for the moment.

"The music rotation was fairly simple at Keener, with 31 songs- 3 lps and a Key song (and an oldie or 2 depending on when we made a few changes in the clock). The placement of "heavy" top 13s out of the news and at the top of the hour were never something that had to be brought up..it just happened.

"At the time, it was verboten to play 2 females in a row, or 2 instrumentals in a row, (those were the times). There were a few occasions where a jock determined that the Key Song was a stiff and didn't play it. (I think I can count myself in there in 1964).

"My criteria for determining music play back then was 'P.O.P'. Popularity (in terms of chart position and requests), Orientation (the demographic most served by a song) and Pace. We kind of undulated in that last area, with 2 slow songs in a row being avoided. Daypart pacing considerations were basically the obvious difference between 7-Midnight and all other dayparts.

"My main concern was always with the presentation. There were the creative elements of presentation, unique to each personality. And there were fundamental technical aspects like obviously sloppy segues, sloppy levels (beyond what the uni-level could handle) and, God forbid, dead air were absolutely not acceptable. But more importantly, it was all about flow. Flow that, if executed correctly, happened flawlessly without the listener being aware of it. For example, there was only ONE perfect moment to start talking out of a record; Not before the fade begins (or if a cold ending, the last remnants of the note or echo) and not after the fade has fully established. And of course backsell was plat du jour in 1966.

"Its interesting how some programmers today distill things down to the year. Having a different perspective on decades these days than in the 40s - 80s, I recall that years by themselves didn't define a particular decade. Music reflects cultural changes and it's the events, not the years that determine the start and end of an era. Giselle Mackensie & Patti Page reflected the polite adult (if not Stepford Wives) presentation, sans Glenn Miller, of the late 40s. The 50s didn't REALLY become "the 50s" until Bill Haley & The Comets. The Sixties didn't REALLY begin until the Death of John F. Kennedy...and so on. (Of course there are timeless anomalies like Tony Bennett - Allright Tone!) I can't say I'm really aware of 1989 being apart from 1990, but then I may not have been paying attention.

"In ALL areas of the content and its presentation, we always addressed the 'perception' card. The same elements differently ordered or concentrated on could easily alter the way the station was perceived. We did talk about CONNECTION, although the C word was not yet in vogue. But the concept certainly was. And the idea of 'being UP', the mantra of most top 40s back then, was something I altered and felt strongly about. I said..'Be APPROPRIATE'.

"If it's funny- laugh; if it's exciting- get excited; if it's sad or thoughtful- be warm. That part of how we were perceived made us both real and human. Sure, we stressed making people feel good, enjoying what we were doing and letting it be obvious, but doing a PSA for Cancer and treating it like a pile of frivolous fun was pretty silly . (I heard it often elsewhere).

"If I'd had my druthers (or my memory at the time) I'd have approached the idea that "formats" should be there to serve the air people, not the other way around. Boundaries and definition of a format should not be constraints. At Keener the boundaries were agreed upon common sense principals we really chose to live by, and we always found room within those boundaries to be creative. Even with the boundaries, there was always latitude to make Intelligent decisions that, under the stranglehold of programmers who make the air personality serve the format, aren't possible. The listener is the loser."

Bob Green's exceptional talent was not anomaly during Keener's glory days. People were always at the core of the WKNR programming philosophy. Keener hired pros who understood the vibe and intrinsically knew the definition of "appropriate". That definition often changed on the fly and the announcers were empowered to re-write it.

Gary Stevens says, "We threw out a lot of what Mike Joseph (the original Keener programming consultant) recommended almost immediately.. it was a group effort." Jim Sanders and Bill Bonds totally re-wrote the format the day of the Kennedy assassination and WKNR became a talk station. The late Mort Crowley said that his morning show was in a constant state of reinvention as Keener battled the competition daily, "like tigers fighting over red meat". J. Michael Wilson's Rodney the Rodent character was totally of his own creation, becoming part of the brand as he moved from nights to mornings and ultimately to CHUM in Toronto. Paul Cannon's sixth sense for hit records lead him to edit a 20 minute album track to 3:05 and In-a-gadda-da-vida became a national top ten single smash. Scott Regen's show was a study in continuous innovation. The Testifiers, The Burger Club, Stevie Wonder singing along in the Keener control room with the premiere of "Fingertips", and Scott's total awareness of what was happening on other Detroit stations co-opted the competition's notions almost before they happened. And the Paul McCartney death rumors might never have found international traction without Russ Gibb's snap decision to turn his Sunday program into an exploration of the supposed clues. Russ remembers that the FM PD called during the show to ask what was causing all the commotion with the only advice being, "whatever you're doing, keep doing it."

The radio experience at the height of WKNR's popularity was a sonic roller coaster, a Bob-Lo Island thrill ride that seemed to be constantly evolving daily with new twists and turns. The announcers conducted a symphony, where the formatic elements brought you up or down to the appropriate mood of the music, or in the case of the Kennedy coverage, the tone of the news story. It was a subtle yet visceral experience that anyone who ever listened to Joel Sebastian's top of the hour PAMS CLYDE ID jingle won't ever forget. The anticipation built from the moment you heard the tympani and by the time the singers cried "Motor City Music" you were ready for the hottest up-tempo record on the WKNR Music Guide.

The branding message we used to see on every Keener logo, "The Station that KNOWS Detroit", was another important dimension. While Keener contributed to the Beatles' international success, it was also the launching pad for Tim Tam, The Underdogs, ? and the Mysterians, Mitch Ryder, Bob Seger and an entire record label (Motown) that transformed the R&B niche into a mainstream hit machine. Could something like that happen in a Market today? Like Honey Baked Ham, Silvercup Bread and Stroh's Beer, Keener was customized specifically for Motor City tastes and the market responded with a loyalty that still resonates four decades after the "Spooktacular" heralded the station's debut. In a world where we often distill a product to the point that it loses all flavor, the secret sauce that made Keener great was a distinctly local recipe.

Some of today's programmers might argue that the considerable fragmentation of media choices in the Internet age makes it impossible to create an entity that can grab the audience shares Keener generated at it's height. Those same programmers who take the time to reflect on the impact that Keener made may also come to understand and admire the creativity generated by the its staff and the reciprocating passion of its young listeners that has lasted for decades.   It is an amazing accomplishment that was genuine and truly unique in retrospect.  Today, whether it be broadcast radio, satellite or even web streams, the absence of an intensely local focus and true collaborative culture that celebrates innovation, within the broad confines of the brand, makes it unlikely that we'll ever see anything remotely close to the Keener magic ever again.

Steve Schram is Director of Michigan Public Media and served as Market Broadcast Vice President with management responsibility for WNIC, Keener's successor. Scott Westerman is Area Vice President for Comcast's Southwestern cable properties and a former radio program director.  They were Michigan State University college roomates and long time radio co-workers,  founding keener13.com in 2002.

]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspTue, 19 Jun 2007 17:47:21 -0600Beatle B-SidesBy Scott Westerman - Keener13.com
After reading John Colapinto's fascinating New Yorker article, When I'm 64, Paul  McCartney Then and Now, I was inspired to look over my Beatle 45 collection to see what tunes were on the flip sides of their American singles during the Keener era.

1963: I Saw Her Standing There - 1964: You Can't Do That, I Should Have Known Better, I'm Happy Just to Dance with You, If I Fell, Slow Down, She's a Woman -1965: I Don't Want to Spoil the Party, Yes It Is, I'm Down, Act Naturally - 1966: What Goes On, Rain - 1967: Baby You're a Rich Man, I Am the Walrus - 1968: The Inner Light, Revolution - 1969: Old Brown Shoe - 1970: You Know My Name (Look up the Number), For You Blue

If you discount the stuff from 1969 on as being influenced by those outside of the Beatles' hit machine (Brian Epstein and George Martin), the 17 B sides are remarkable. With a couple of exceptions, each one was or could have been a smash hit in its own right.

Compare that to the bulk of the other acts of the decade and you'll find for the most part that B sides were populated with tunes that were meant to be abused by the turntable platter.  The Stones only had a couple of double sided hits: Ruby Tuesday / Lets Spend the Night Together and Honky Tonk Woman / You Can't Always Get What You Want. Only the Beach Boys come within striking distance. The partial list below doesn't include the hits with duds on the flip:

1962 Surfin' Safari/409  -1963 Surfin' U.S.A./Shut Down, Surfer Girl/Little Deuce Coupe, Be True to Your School/In My Room, Fun, Fun, Fun/Why Do Fools Fall in Love  - 1964 I Get Around/Don't Worry Baby, Wendy/Little Honda, Dance, Dance, Dance/The Warmth of the Sun  - 1966 Wouldn't It Be Nice/God Only Knows

I don't know about you, but I used to love to listen to B sides anyway. It was a way to see if the group was for real, or just a one-trick-pony. And sometimes they would yield a gem that never found it's way to the air, but became an underground personal favorite.

As the record industry slowly starts to embrace on-line distribution, singles are coming back as downloadable one-offs on Rhapsody and I-Tunes. We don't need B sides anymore. But I miss them.

]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSun, 10 Jun 2007 13:03:54 -0600Keener on Facebook, TwitterBack in the 60s, putting the Keener brand on multiple platforms included matchbooks, pens and music guides. Today, there are Keenerfans all across the Internet. People are viewing this site from cell phones. Bob Green has an aircheck collection over at ReelRadio.com that brings visitors our way. And now we've set up Keener sites on Facebook and Twitter. If you're members of those virtual communities, check us out!]]>http://tinyurl.com/ynw6muSat, 09 Jun 2007 10:22:02 -0600How did WKNR touch your life?Over 40 years after WKNR made it's debut, people still remember how Keener touched their lives. In the last week alone, we've received a dozen Keener inquiries and some fresh fodder for the Keener Memory Page. How did "The Station that Knows Detroit" effect you? What were you doing when you listened to WKNR? What was your favorite Keener hit? And who was your favorite Keener DJ? Send your Keener memories to curator@keener13.com, and we'll share them with the world.]]>http://tinyurl.com/yrfulkThu, 07 Jun 2007 15:14:50 -0600D-Day showcased network news at its best.It was a question of where and when. In 1944, the Germans knew that the allies had massed the greatest armada in modern times on the British isles and that it was only a matter of time until they made the jump to start a second front on the coast of France. But where and when? In the early hours of June 6th, all eyes focused on a small strip of beach along the Normandy coast and the direction of World War II was irrevocably changed. In those days, it was radio that interpreted events, and each of the four networks, CBS, NBC, ABC and Mutual, had agreed pool their resources to cover the landings. Here at home, one name has become associated with this event: Robert Trout. He helped define the term Anchorman with his marathon D-Day broadcast and set a standard that everyone who followed, including the award winning WKNR Contact News department, tried to emulate. MORE]]>http://tinyurl.com/2zaue8Wed, 06 Jun 2007 14:49:47 -0600Paul Christy Dies at 69Another Keener connection closed this week when Paul Christy passed away at age 69. Born Paul Christides, Christy was on air during Top 40 radio's prime, gaining notoriety at WCFL in Chicago before turning his attention to programming. He put his mark on WCAR, WABX and WMXD in Detroit. But Keenerfans will remember his collaboration with Ed Christian that brought the Keener brand briefly back to the air in the late 70s as WWKR. One of the announcers he hired to work at the reborn Keener 13 was keener13.com co-founder Steve Schram. On the FM side, Christy brought Alan Almond to Keener's FM successor, WNIC, and helped create the popular Pillow Talk program. He also discovered a young man named John Huzar who was working as Tom Michaels on WAAM in Ann Arbor. Today we know him as WMGC morning ace Jim Harper. Christy returned to the air, doing mornings at WKSG-FM 102.7 in 1984. He never lost his love for the business, continuing to make personal appearances until health issues started to slow him down.]]>http://tinyurl.com/3ysg5dMon, 04 Jun 2007 16:35:50 -0600What made WLS rock?On Memorial Day, 2007, many of the announcers and newsfolk who were part of the WLS dynasty in the late 60s and 70s returned to the Big 89 for a one-day rewind. It was enjoyable listening, ala Keener's rebirth during the Woodward Dream Cruises of 2002 and 2003, and it made us ponder our perennial questions: What made these legendary Top-40 flame throwers such unique radio stations in their prime and how has the radio vibe changed over the years? Here are two opinions, one from John Rook, who programmed the Big 89 in the late 60s. The second from Jeff Davis who worked there on the air. See if you notice anything that resonates with the Keener formula. ]]>http://tinyurl.com/2vcf8uSat, 02 Jun 2007 14:01:52 -0600Keener13.com Turns 5Five years ago, on the eve of the 35th anniversary of the release of the Sgt. Pepper LP, and three decades after WKNR faded into history, Steve Schram and Scott Westerman launched Keener13.com. Here's the story of how the site that celebrates Detroit's greatest rock and roll radio station came to be.]]>http://tinyurl.com/2bnfa5Thu, 31 May 2007 22:30:16 -0600Scott WestermanWKNR's Sgt. Pepper ConnectionTo paraphrase the Cannon, "It was 40 years ago today, Sgt. Pepper blew the world away.." On June 2, 1967 Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band was released in the United States. The collection ranks as number 1 on the Rolling Stone list of all-time great albums. It's spawned a thousand imitators up to and including the Simpsons, and four decades later, the Beatles classic is still a household word. So why didn't any of the album tracks ever make it to the WKNR Music Guide? What two Pepper session recordings weren't included in the LP, but made it to number 2 on Keener before being included in The Magical Mystery Tour? Who ARE all of those people on the album cover? Which Pepper track did Russ Gibb study during his quest to solve the Paul McCartney death mystery? And what role did a famous WKNR personality play in promoting Sgt. Pepper's release nationwide? We've got all the details right here.]]>http://tinyurl.com/yqdwagTue, 29 May 2007 21:29:00 -0600Scott WestermanMort Crowley / John Landecker / Art VuoloSome new and extended air check material from three guys who influenced or were influenced by WKNR. Mort Crowley was Keener's first morning man. Hot off the heels of a succesfull run in the AM drive slot at WLS and just prior to a long career in St. Louis, the Mortacular Morning Show had a short, memorable run on WKNR. It ended suddenly when Mort quit on the air in March of 1964, after Michigan Bell threatened to cut off Keener's phone service unless the station cut back on call volume. By today's standards, it feels like Mort was totally justified in his anger, and even as he edges toward the door, his work on the air during his last day in Detroit is stellar.
Hear it here.

In 1967, down the road in Ann Arbor, WOIA was the only commercial FM station in town that played popular music in stereo at night. Art Vuolo, who made a career out of creating radio guides for people who travel, and who is legendary in the industry as broadcasting's video archivist, earned an on air slot in the late evenings. He was fond of the "drop cart" sound effects that guys like Dick Biondi had perfected over at WCFL and made the most of the station's stereo signal by featuring an hour of the stuff during his shift. Even more instersting is the guy who reads the news in this ultra rare aircheck. It's a young John Landecker, practicing his craft as the WOIA news guy. We hear both at the dawn of their long and successful broadcasting careers (and listen closely for the Keener reference).
Hear it here. ]]>http://tinyurl.com/3ysg5dMon, 28 May 2007 21:14:25 -0600Scott WestermanInside Keener - 109 WKNR Newsletterswe bring it to you here.]]>http://tinyurl.com/2zzrwyTue, 29 May 2007 20:29:09 -0600McCartney Talks about his new label and the Beatles on ITunesSusan Whitall blogs about Sir Paul's switch from Capitol to Starbucks. According to Billboard, the King B is looking for "the old excitement". The new one, Memory Almost Full is due out June 5th. A tour is on the drawing board but won't be the full blown article due to his "well publicized personal issues." McCartney's stuff is already available on Rhapsody and is coming soon to ITunes. The Beatles' library is headed to digital, too. Mac says the deal is "virtually done".]]>http://tinyurl.com/34hx73Sun, 27 May 2007 08:09:51 -0600Where were you during the Summer of Love?It's hard to believe that it's been 40 years since Haight Asbury and Monteray Pop. Some who watched it from Detroit were envious, but in reality much of the scene in California was myth. SFGate posted the first installment of a series about the culture and the events of 1967. It's a terrific retrospective with many voices you'll remember. ]]>http://tinyurl.com/38e3fhSun, 20 May 2007 08:47:12 -0600Lujack, Landecker headline streamed / live WLS Memorial Day ReunionEveryone copies Keener. First it was WABC and now WLS has done it, too. The Big 89 brought back the music Memorial Day Weekend for a one day Special. In the spirit of Keener13.com's Dream Cruise Weekend broadcast, WLS was rockin from 5am to Midnight featuring famous Rock of Chicago names like LARRY LUJACK, FRED WINSTON, JOHN RECORDS LANDECKER, JEFF DAVIS, CHRIS SHEBEL and TOM KENT. Familiar WLS news voices LYLE DEAN, CATHERINE JOHNS and GIL GROSS and sportscaster LES GROBSTEIN were also on hand.]]>http://tinyurl.com/37k49nWed, 16 May 2007 07:08:43 -0600Scott WestermanBrian Wilson Podcasts / New Beach Boy Compillation ReleasedBrian's Blog notes that "The Warmth of the Sun" features 28 re-mixed, remastered tracks.. all in stereo. There are six tracks mixed in stereo for the first time, All Summer Long, You're So Good to Me, Then I Kissed Her, Please Let Me Wonder, Let Him Run Wild and Wendy. Most of us remember the so-called stereo LP versions which were "duophonic", music in one channel, vocals in the other. Here's a question. Brian is said to be hard of hearing in one ear. Who did the stereo mixes? It was probably Mark Linett, who talks extensively about his work with Brian in EQ Magazine.

Contact News Correspondent Bob Berry says: Linett, btw, has done exceptional work with the Beach Boys library. Also a guy named Bob Norberg, who has done some wonderful re-masters on Capitol's 50's & 60's "pop", notably the Capitol "Ultra Lounge" series. Here's more on how Capitol goes about remastering.

The album is up and available for listening / download now at Rhapsody.

]]>http://tinyurl.com/2mbaonSat, 12 May 2007 09:01:44 -0600Gary Reid on Radio - Today and TomorrowMichigan State University Professor Gary Reid discusses the beginnings of WDBM - Impact 89 FM, the award winning student FM station in East Lansing. Among MSU students, Impact 89 has become the Keener of the current generation, with Gary's particular brand of "Intelligent Flexibility". We learn how a decade after the first FCC application, the station nearly died at birth, how podcating is changing the way audio media is being consumed, and Gary's take on radio's future in a world of changing paradigms. Hear the Show]]>http://www.spartanpodcast.com/russ/reid.mp3Thu, 17 May 2007 21:17:16 -0600Susan Whitall: GM's Lutz to play NPR game showSusan writes that the auto exec will appear on "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me!," May 17, at Ann Arbor's Michigan Theater. Also, as Steve Allan exits the PD chair at WOMC, the "oldies" word is again heard as part of their branding message.]]>http://tinyurl.com/39tnn5Sat, 12 May 2007 08:58:11 -0600Cool Detroit Radio Flashback SiteMORE]]>http://www.detroitradioflashbacks.netFri, 11 May 2007 09:45:10 -0600Ad Age: Is Prime Time Past Its Prime?MORE]]>http://adage.com/upfront07/article?article_id=116578Fri, 11 May 2007 06:43:48 -0600Susan Whitall: Blackballing the Monkees from the Rock Hall of Fame?They sold records, but are they worthy? Who is the Rolling Stone editor who some say is behind it all? MORE]]>http://tinyurl.com/3bcdrq Thu, 10 May 2007 16:39:16 -0600The mother of all Radio Tribute sites misses Keener13.comThis site has lots of interesting links but,.. where's Keener13.com?]]>http://radiotributes.com/Thu, 10 May 2007 16:38:09 -0600 John Gorman's blog tells it like it is.speaks his mind. He's right on.]]>http://tinyurl.com/28tqte Thu, 10 May 2007 16:35:50 -0600AP: Data Says 2.5 Million Less Watching TVMORE]]>http://tinyurl.com/yp74f8Thu, 10 May 2007 16:31:40 -0600What's up with the Keener Podcast?After more than three years, the Keener Podcast has faded into history. Why? 1) The day jobs that Steve and Scott have are keeping us pretty busy and time has been at a premium. Both of us won't do anything Keener related unless we're certain it will live up to Keener standards. 2) It costs us around $1,000.00 per year in copyright fees to ASCAP, BMI and SESAC. While we heartily support the new podcast licensing structures that these visionary agencies have created, we do all of our Keener projects with our lunch money and the women who manage our finances are telling us to get underwriters or "cut it out". 3) While several groups of music podcasters continue to work with the RIAA on a mechanical license fee scenario and the association has been kind enough to allow our mentors at places like Coverville to continue to podcast while discussions continue, a mechanism does not currently exist to allow us to use the great Keener music effectively. Everything about Keener13.com is above board and legal and we intend to keep it that way. Our hope is that the RIAA will come to understand the value of podcasting as an effective vehicle for promoting and selling the great music of the Keener era. It's truly timeless and should be exposed to new generations. Thanks again to Jon Wolfert at Jingles.com for allowing us to use the great PAMS Keener jingles. What may become of the Keener Podcast library? Who knows, WKNR is the most featured radio station on XM's 60s on 6 channel. Maybe you'll hear them over there some day soon!]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSat, 12 May 2007 14:00:30 -0600Steve SchramThe co-founder of Keener13.com has a three decade love affair with broadcasting and was a key contributor to WNIC's (Keener's successor) return to glory in Detroit. He's now the Director of Michigan Public Media, the umbrella organization that guides the fortunes of University of Michigan WUOM, WVGR and WFUM. In a wide ranging Spartan Podcast interview, he talks about the increasing popularity of public broadcasting, how IPods satellite radio, HD broadcasting and streaming are impacting terrestrial broadcasting, and his formative years in Detroit radio and at Michigan State University.]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSun, 13 May 2007 09:24:46 -0600Dutch Documentarians Do Dearborn in search of Uncle RussAhh Socialism. Holland is one of those countries where all you have to do is petition the government and you may just get your documentary project funded. That's what Wouter van Opdorp did. Last fall Wouter wrote us in search of the Paul McCartney Death Hoax story, and the WKNR-FM jock who amplified the most famous Beatle urban legend to the international stage. Russ Gibb agreed to a rare interview on the subject and thanks to the largesse of the Dutch Government, Wouter and his team descended on Dearborn to get the scoop. ]]>http://www.keener13.com/recentnews.aspSun, 13 May 2007 09:46:25 -0600