A tribute to The Sound and a few short takes

 

Four (4) years ago, I wrote the following piece for LARadio.com about the upcoming demise of 100.3 The Sound (KSWD). I offer it as a tribute to the station many still remember. And mourn.

As The Sound prepares to hang up the headphones, I join the many mourning the loss of “Southern California’s Classic Rock.” There are many stations playing good tunes, yet The Sound was different. The music was the soundtrack of my formative years, which likely biases my affection for their playlist. But I found I could leave my radio on 100.3, even sitting through (the relatively short) commercial blocks, and it wasn’t just the records (wow, that word dates me) they played.

To many, the repeated lament about the “old days” of radio is likely tiresome. Millennials don’t have fan clubs for their favorite radio DJs – heck, besides morning talent (and even then) I wonder if a millennial can name a current DJ? Still, there are those of us still alive who grew up with our FM receivers (what a novelty it was to have an AM and FM radio in your car back then) and not only enjoyed the music, but the friends behind the microphones and turntables who entertained us.

When the late, lamented KMET disappeared from the L.A. airwaves in 1987, listeners mourned, really mourned its passing. It wasn’t just the eclectic mix of tunes, it was the DJs who did more than read liner cards. They shared stories, gave glimpses of their own life journeys, even offering words of comfort when the outside world was getting a bit crazy.

The Sound staff with Lindsey Buckingham

Then came The Sound. Our friends on the radio were back! Dave Beasing put together a ridiculously amazing lineup – Andy Chanley, Uncle Joe Benson, Cynthia Fox, Rita Wilde – heck, this was a station where Mimi (the Flower Child) Chen and Mary Price were weekenders. Add Gina Grad, Tony Scott, Tina Mica, and Steve Hoffman and you had a powerhouse of personalities all under one FM roof.

Cynthia Fox

It would be truly wonderful if The Sound – or something like it – could find another Los Angeles radio home. I’ve already mentioned I’ll miss the music. That being said, my bigger, personal void will be saying goodbye to the live and local veteran DJs – the people who made The Sound such a special place on the radio – on a station programmed exclusively for Southern California listeners. We’ll never hear this lineup of talent together again on L.A radio. The cold reality is the current direction of the business precludes this possibility. 

Since I’m not a psychic, I hope I’m wrong. I would truly be happy to offer a future retraction.

I mentioned many listeners still have great affection for KMET, even three decades later. The Sound now joins the “Mighty Met” as one of the best L.A. radio had to offer. Even so, it’s unfortunate I now have to refer to 100.3/The Sound in the past tense.

A quick round of short takes:

Ho ho ho: It's officially the holiday season, at least to iHeart's KOST 103.5. Last Friday (11/12), the home of "Love Songs on the KOST" flipped to their annual tradition of all Christmas selections. If you don't know already, the ratings for KOST doubles during this time of year, the all-Christmas format is so popular across the country Nielsen (the ratings service) actually provides a separate book from their monthly reports to accommodate the uniqueness of the holiday format. It's also one of the few times I get emails and texts from my non-radio acquaintances asking me when the all-Christmas music will be starting on KOST.

Power-ing up mornings: Letty Martinez is rejoining morning drive at POWER 106 (KPWR), joining current host Teddy Mora. Martinez was part of "Big Boy's Neighborhood" from 2011 - 2014 before doing nights at REAL 92.3 (KRRL) until four years ago. 

A native Southern Californian, Martinez also has an Instagram page with over 201,000 followers. She also hosts a podcast where she's described as a hip-hop journalist "who's small in size but big in talk." She got her start as an intern at Latino 96.3 (KXOL).

Remembering Brother T: It's been a year since Tom Nefeldt, aka T. Michael Jordan passed away at the age of 77. Here's our tribute to the former KMEN / KKDJ / KEZY personality, one of L.A. radio's truly unique voices.

40 years of The Pet Place: Warren Eckstein, the host of the Pet Place now heard on KRLA, is celebrating four decades of dispensing helpful info for one's domesticated buddies. We're working on an interview to be hopefully published soon.

Apologies once again for being late with the blog, it's been a busy few weeks. Please subscribe to know when we update the blog by sending your email to ayodaradio@gmail.com. Once again, your information will never be sold and is kept confidential.