Jay Johnson, WVON Chicago | 1972

Contributor Leo Knott sends in this studio quality ‘check of a great Chicago Soul station…

One of my favorite jocks of all-time. I don’t know all the stations he worked at but he did work the San Antonio market at one time. I heard Jay on Chicago’s WGRT (Later to be WJPC)… he was Orange Juice Jay in the morning. He was wooed away to WVON – the urban music giant at the time.

WVON had great personalities from Joe Cobb (the voice of Soul Train… at least at the beginning, Herb Kent “The Cool Gent”, Bill “Butterball” Crane, E. Rodney Jones, Cecil Hale, Richard Pegue, Pervis Spahn and others.

After WVON, he ventured to WTLC in Indianapolis to serve as PD and on air duties. He was Super Jay in his twilight at WVON and carried over into the Indianapolis market

QuickCheck: John “Records” Landecker, WLS Chicago | August, 1975

Another too short listen to Landecker, finds him reading off the names of people who will be going to eat dinner with the Osmonds and then see them in concert. Hard to believe Donny & Marie were ever a big deal (if today’s oldies stations are any guage), but JRL sure talks it up.

Listen for a great promo for the WLS Monster Bonanza as Bob Sirott produces this piece that shows WLS giving away a Mazda!

We have a similar aircheck here most likely from the same night. How’d that happen?

Captain Whammo, WMET Chicago | April 1978

Jim Channel, aka “Capt. Whammo” is heard here on 95 1/2 WMET. Note the disco music and the WCFL-style jingle package in use at the time which kinda sounds out of place considering the year. They sound good at this point, but I’m at a loss as to why WMET had some of the worst jingles ever heard prior to ‘78… low budget, maybe? And, in your humble webmaster’s opinion, the imaging voice is and was horrible, but that’s made up for the fact that the format itself slams, and Whammo is in top form on this aircheck… lively and energetic.

This is a good quality recording, one you’ll enjoy as an alternative to samples of WLS around the same timeframe.

Smokin’ Joe Dawson on B-96 WBBM-FM Chicago | September 2, 1986

Labor Day weekend 1986… not particularly memorable except perhaps if you were lamenting the fact that Summer vacation was over. Smokin’ Joe Dawson sent this in himself and explains that at this period in time, B-96 had no jingles!

This was about a month before I left to go to Seattle to burn off a no compete before coming back to Chicago at WFYR. The powers that be had B96 sounding like a cross between ‘GCI and Q101 in their Hot AC days.

More original audio from the site that brings radio back to LIFE!

Fred Winston, Dick Saint & Doug Dahlgren on 89 WLS Chicago | March 12, 1976

…There’ll be no high today, sorry…. I’m high… no no no… I’m kidding. I wish I was high… no haha just kidding…

If we had a ratings system, this would get four stars! Wait! Actually, we do! Try it.

This aircheck comes to us from Ira Menacker via Matt Seinberg. Thanks to both of them.

Now, the story behind the story… so to speak on this bitterly cold March day, is that Dick & Doug had been fired from crosstown rival WCFL. Many of you who come to this site probably already know the story, but for the benefit of those who don’t, here it is in a nutshell. WCFL was changing formats from Top 40 to Beautiful Music (Elevator music, Easy Listening… whatever label fit at the time). D&D were being blown out along with most of the staff, EXCEPT, Larry Lujack who would continue doing afternoon jock playing Chicago’s most beautiful music.

Apparently, the morning team was given an opportunity to do a ‘last show’. Well, they spoke a little too much about the impending format changes, and about mid-way through the show, management arrived and took all the microphones, and politely escorted the two out of the station!

What you hear on this aircheck is a hilarious morning show. Fred Winston invites Dick & Doug to appear on his show and what follows is anarchy. The duo even lock Winston out of the studio at one point!

This is what radio used to be like. Spontaneous and enormously funny! 37 years ago. Seems like yesterday.