It may seem odd, but growing up in the Harbor Area of Los Angeles County, I was enamored with San Diego radio. The first station I remember tuning in was LA’s own KGBS (now KTNQ, 1020 AM) — transistor radios didn’t have accurate tuning dials so I actually thought I was listening to KHJ (even at a young age, I knew how cool KHJ was), but I soon found “distant” KCBQ and I was hooked.
San Diego, in fact, like many similar cities, often served as a proving ground for on-air talent that would move up the coast to Los Angeles and San Francisco. But it was and is a large enough city to support its own, and many DJs developed their craft … and stayed. Indeed, many got to America’s Finest City and never left.
That feeling is the backdrop behind David Leonard’s 2003 book, “Aircheck: The Story of Top 40 Radio in San Diego.” Available on eBay (ebay.com/itm/325963175085) and a few independent sites, the book goes in-depth to tell the story of San Diego’s early AM hit stations: KCBQ, KGB, KDEO and The Mighty 690.
Why AM? It may seem implausible to anyone younger than 50, but the early days of top 40 were AM. In fact, it wasn’t until the mid-to-late 1970s that FM hit music stations became viable. And the competition between the stations, in an era when the programmers and personalities were making the rules, was fierce. Such as when KCBQ hired KGB’s programmer Buzz Bennett, who then brought over most of the air staff and created a station even more popular than KGB’s Boss Radio.
The book is a fascinating look back, with details about the stations, the programming philosophy, and of course the personalities. Leonard gives an overview of each station including brief histories (including pre-top 40) as well as ownership changes. He even details transmitter locations when appropriate.
After that, he focuses on the top 40 days and includes year-by-year recaps of the personalities heard on the stations as well as major events regarding the format and management. One such entry: “The staff (of KCBQ) was highly productive in other ways, too. Ralph James had a daughter born on October 13, Jerry Walker had a son born October 14, and Don Howard had a son on October 15.”
Included are names I remember well, including: Christopher Cane, Gene Knight, Big John Carter, Barry Kaye, Charlie Van Dyke, Rich “Brother” Robbin, Bill Moffett, Dave Conley, Danny Martinez, Bobby Ocean, Dean Goss, Neil Ross, and of course “Shotgun” Tom Kelly, who had one of the most memorable “name jingles” ever heard on the radio … a quickly sung “Shotgun Tom” followed by the sound of a shotgun being fired, then an upbeat “KCBQ!”
The book also includes photos of some of the personalities, copies of some of the weekly hit list surveys found in record stores, and coverage maps of the station signals showing that yes, indeed, they most certainly reached into the Los Angeles area.
It’s an interesting read in and of itself, but if you paid attention to the names, many of them made the migration to Los Angeles and the surrounding area, so it acts as a pre-history to our own top-40 legends. For a mere $20, I think it is definitely worth the investment. The included details are well-researched, and the book is well-organized, making it a fantastic read.
Tune-In to Holiday Music
If you thought Tune-In was just an app to play radio stations on your phone — as I did — think again. The company behind the service just announced that it has launched its own set of holiday-themed music stations that you can hear via the app or online at tunein.com.
TuneIn’s holiday lineup, available now through January 30th, includes:
• Holiday Hits: Favorites from artists like Mariah Carey, John Legend, Elton John, Wham!, and more.
• Holiday Standards: Sentimental songs performed by legends like Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Nat “King” Cole and Tony Bennett.
• Country Christmas: Songs from country music artists including Lainey Wilson, Blake Shelton, Carrie Underwood and more.
• Classical Holiday: Everything from ballet and operatic standbys, such as Tchaikovsky’s iconic “Nutcracker” and masterworks from all of the greats.
• Holiday Jazz: Soothing sounds sponsored by Amazon from the jazz legends of yesterday and today … Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald Vince Guaraldi and more
• Navidad Latina: Hits from stars like Ozuna and Víctor Manuelle, and Christmas classics from legends like José Feliciano, Yuri and Luis Miguel.
• Kids Christmas: A festive and family-friendly station featuring playful versions of Christmas classics.
• Rock Holiday: another station sponsored by Amazon, including artists such as Tom Petty, Paul McCartney, Coldplay and Elton John.
Richard Wagoner is a San Pedro freelance columnist covering radio in Southern California. Email [email protected]