QuickCheck: Margaret Jones, 97 WYNY New York | Autumn 1979

Contributor Ray Bozzanca was one of many fans of the late Margaret Jones, as evidenced by this letter sent by her in response to our contributor’s writing to her. Ray wrote:

Attached is the letter Margaret sent to me along with her signed photo from 1979.I spoke to Margaret on the phone while she was in the WYNY studio and was just as pleasant sounding on the phone as she was on the air.

Margaret Jones was one of those few unique (for 1979) women in radio who had both the perfect voice and an incredibly warm and inviting personality. In your webmaster’s humble opinion, she was a perfect fit for the gold-based AC format that WYNY featured at the time. She passed away on July 21, 2009. The Dover Post (Delaware) printed a beautiful obituary for her which you can read by clicking here.

You can also listen to a longer, 14 minute aircheck of Margaret Jones on WYNY, also from the Fall of 1979 and also contributed by Ray Bozzanca by clicking THIS LINK.

Radio Greats: WCBS-FM Remembers Murray The K | 1992

This only runs about 10 minutes long but you get a good idea about what Murray Kauffman’s show was all about. Son Peter Altchuler is interviewed about mid-way through this aircheck and comments briefly about his father’s career. Listen carefully to Ronnie Spector’s long comment’s about Kauffman’s career. Did you realize that a handful of these huge NYC DJs took their shows to the stage as an act? How many jocks today could be creative enough to create their own Broadway-type show? And one wonders what happened to radio? Listen to this. It’s truly a fascinating look at a man who really fashioned the early days of AM top 40 radio, and unfortunately we only get 10 minutes, cut off in the middle of Ronnie Spector’s comments.

Thanks Ray Bozzanca for the donation!

Dick Summer on 97.1 WYNY New York | 1979

Here’s Dick Summer (WBZ) featured on a pristine tape preserved by contributor Ray Bozzanca, who writes:

This Aircheck features Dick Summer on WYNY in 1979 doing his show
Love and Touch with his comic one liners and sexy bits. Along with his played love songs includes a scratchy record of Julie Londons “Cry Me A River”. A short interview with Eric Weber “How To Pick Up Girls” is included with this fun aircheck.

Recorded from Denmark Via Satellite: Tim Byrd & Sue O’Neal on WQHT “Hot 97″ New York | 1990

We get contributors from all over the world, it seems, and now thanks to Rene´ Bjorngaard, we get a superb recording of The Birdman and our site friend Sue O’Neal (WVBF / WXLO) from sometime in 1990.

Rene’ explains how he got this aircheck:

I am writing to you from Denmark in Europe (Yes, the European Union J ), and I have the last couple of month been digitalizing my collection of tapes, which most obviously contains Danish radioshows from the last 20 years or so. But However I felt over one special tape, which I almost forgot I had. It is an recording from N.Y radio WQHT from approximately 1990, which was
distributed over Europe by the astra satellite. Unfortunately I didn´t know what an special station I had access to, and therefore I only have this single tape L. The Dj´s on the tape is Tim Byrd, and Sue O’Neil. I have this session cut down to a regular aircheck, without music, but with
commercials with a total playtime of 23 min.

I find this totally amazing that American Radio was and still is very popular across much of Europe, and now with internet access, around remote areas of the globe. If you’re from anywhere outside of North America, we’d sure like to hear some of YOUR radio stations, especially if they broadcast in English.

Our special thanks to Rene’ Bjorngaard in Denmark for this really GREAT recording of Hot 97.

WHN Billboard Station Composite | May 30, 1977

Apparently released as a promotional tool to radio stations (seems to me Radio and Records and/or some other publications did these back in the day), Billboard Magazine made this composite of Country station 1050 WHN New York.

I originally guessed the date of this as Memorial Day 1976, but as visitor Joe Crain comments below, one reported news item specifically dates this as 1977. Read his comments (and others) below this post.

This starts out with Larry Kenny (whom we just featured doing his first morning show on WYNY “New York 97″ back when it was on 97.1 long before there was a WQHT, or a country version of WYNY) playing the Big Apple’s Country music, then moves on to Lee Arnold, Del Demontreau and Ed Baer. WHN would last well into the 80s as a Country station, before Emmis would flip the format and calls to Sportsradio 1050 WFAN, then move the whole thing to 660 when WNBC expired. The audio quality on this is superb and comes from the original source cassette, so enjoy this scoped 9 minutes of 1050 WHN.

Walt Baby Love on WXLO 99X New York | May 17, 1974

Always known for it’s high-energy jocks, 99X is featured here with Walt Baby Love, one of the station’s best remembered and most loved personalities. This is 1974 and RKO General has all of it’s stations wound up as tight as ever, but it’s in New York City where the big FM experiment is going full-tilt.

It’s hard to fathom why the one pioneering FM station in Gotham, the ONLY FM to really seriously challenge WABC for Top 40 ratings until about 1979 ended up a relic which changed to an Urban station in the early 80s, but one thing is certain… this slice of 99X will capture your attention for 3 of your precious quarter hours – and that’s better than most stations today can claim.

Dennis Elsas, 102.7 WNEW-FM New York | 1978

Dennis Elsas, who was an AOR jock at a few New York stations, spent most of his time at WNEW-FM. This MetroMedia station was, of course, the FM side to legendary standards station WNEW Eleven Three Oh, and over the course of 3 decades gained it’s own legendary status.

Interestingly, for our younger listeners who listen to Classic or Active Rock stations, you’ll be surprised to hear how subdued WNEW-FM is. This actually was the norm at most AOR stations up till the early 80s. Virtually no imaging, certainly no jingles, and jocks who KNEW the music & artists inside and out.

Notable on this recording: WNEW-FM Concert Happenings, and a lengthy Rock Report with Robin Sagon which described Rolling Stones member Keith Richards’ conviction in Canada on heroin charges. It’s worth mentioning that Richards was sentenced to a year’s probation and ordered to perform a benefit concert for the blind. Remember, this is 1978…