Courtesy of longtime Contributor Karl Phillips, we now have a decent composite of a station that was top 40 for a time, Album Rock for a time and easy listening for a time, before becoming an FM Rock simulcast and then a Christian talker, which the station is today under the call letters WNIV.
Our Contributor writes:
“…(Here is) a cassette from 1972 from WIIN 970 Atlanta of Skinny Bobby Harper – Jim Randall, Bob Middleton and Robert Baughn – then some more of Jim Randall and Jim Rich from 1970. WIIN 97 was a peanut whistle 1000 watt daytimer here in Atlanta back then.”
And in steep competition with runaway Top 40 format leader WQXI. Its a wonder the station competed at all.
Skinny Bobby Harper was the host of a nationally TV program based out of Atlanta which was called the Now Explosion. It was not a dance program like Bandstand. Instead, local actors were hired to act out the hits of the day, kind of the forerunner of the music video.
Glad you brought this up Nick- Just google NOW EXPLOSION and you’ll see the beginnings of MTV that happened in 1970 right here in Atlanta, started by former WQXI dj’s Bobby Harper and Bob Todd.
Karl