Suzanne's Soundtrack Sunday

One of the things I've been enjoying about Facebook is how I've reconnected with many of my fellow on air staff from the college radio station, WHPC 90.3fm (Long Island's FM Alternative, if you must know). Many of my peers went on to careers in radio and television production. All of us grew up with a love for radio and living in the shadow of New York City, got to enjoy some of the best radio that can be found.

A guy whose time at 'HPC briefly overlapped mine has been posting You Tube videos one of his friends has made of top 40 45's spinning on a turntable. I am dying, because I want that Technics SLBD-2 soooo bad! Anyway, the songs are a walk down memory lane, one where the songs themselves are old friends, but the listening brings back some great memories of youth-and of the disc jockeys that spun them while they climbed the charts.

I've spoken of the Sunday morning ritual of my dad taking my sister and I down to Jones Beach in the pre dawn hours, and we'd set up Dad's sand chair, a blanket and my radio. Had to have my radio, and it would be tuned to WABC am, so that I wouldn't miss American Top 40.

So, many of the songs that I'm watching on that turntable remind me of laying on the beach when I'd hear Casey Kasem talk about them. And so it was for John Lennon's "Watching the Wheels" the summer after he passed.

Other songs that stick out for being heard on the beach over the years are gems like "Bohemian Rhapsody", "Dream Weaver", "Silly Love Songs", "Love Will Keep Us Together", "Love Will Find a Way" and "MacArthur Park".

Interwoven with all the beach memories, are the countless hours riding my bicycle with the radio clipped into the carrier on the back, hearing such notables as Dan Ingram, Harry Harrison, Ron Lundy and the other jocks of ABC spin songs and ask for the 100th caller to win some fantastic prize.

Those experiences made being a disc jockey seem like an incredible job and for years, I followed that path. At the time, I didn't realize that the variety of stations we had in the listening area of NYC is not the norm, that the radio of that time was very special and wouldn't be there forever.

Then again, someone can spin one song on a disc jockey's turntable and put it on You Tube and bring it all right back...


Comments

Dan Ingram..."roll your bod....roll your bod..."

Harry Harrison "Every brand new day should be opened like a precious gift".

and don't forget Cousin Brucie, everyone's favorite cousin.

they were just as important as the music the played.

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