One of the on-air personalities at that time was Ron Della Chiesa, who also served as the music host and program director. 60s. In the summer of 1968, Kopper was made the station's first program director. Jackson had a daughter and three grandchildren.[2]. #WBCN #wbcnfreeform. I took the late-night shift, from 12 to 7 in the morning. 0. PETER WOLFAt WBCN:DJ, 196869 Since then:Lead vocalist for the J. Geils Band; solo artist; rock n roll legend. Radio Ink. tried to bring back freeform rock radio spirit for 21st Century. You could play anything. Van Morrison would come by a lot. Now they can actually afford to put out a halfway decent independent record which gets noticed by the major label, and now they get signed by the major label and become stars. Literally. But I remember my parents changing the station. In time, WBCNs free-spirited beginnings would retrench as the station moved to the top of the Prudential Tower with its higher overhead (pun intended), and new owners with higher financial expectations arrived along with radio competition. King, Howlin' Wolf, John Lee Hooker and Buddy Guy. Della Chiesa is still active in classical music broadcasting on WCRB. The site features new music nearly every day, as well as information and insight on the music industry. He was called the unofficial sixth member of Aerosmith by virtue of his close friendships with the members of the Boston-based band. He was one of MTV's five original VJs (along with Nina Blackwood, Mark Goodman, Alan Hunter, and Martha Quinn). When I took over as program director, we were getting our ass kicked by WCOZ, Kickass Rock n Roll. We needed to turn it around, and we were able to turn it around. So we said, How about the car we give away, its suspended from a crane tied into the Strawberries Records on Memorial Drive and hanging over the Charles River? Parenteau is survived by a brother, Barry. Nam interdum orci ut nulla scelerisque euismod. In late 2009, the station begun to increase its DJ'd programming. There was a time when you could hear BCN without a radio. Nancy was with the station from when WMJX signed on in 1982. At this point, please allow compassion to trump judgement in your hearts. Since WBCN's change to digital-only, the station was known as "Free Form BCN" and then "WBCN Free Form Rock" by late September 2009. But we like you because youre intelligent and youre not afraid to take chances. Who says that today? Oedipus has his own foundation, The Oedipus Foundation, and is a member of the Board of Directors for The Technology Broadcasting Corporation of MIT, Stop Handgun Violence, and an original member of the Board of Directors for Mobius (an artist-run center for experimental work in all media). Except for Wolfs up-tempo shtick rockin the wee hours, a laid-back, stoner style prevailed with a free-form attitude toward the music no restrictions and no playlist. WBCN Free Form Rock was formatted essentially the same as WBCN's 104.1 FM's 1968-88 incarnation (a great deal of rock, rock's related genres, and new music), different from the modern rock format that was carried on 98.5-HD2. But now radio is more of a specialized thing. We're Back!!!! The station survived and prospered through generations in spite of tumultuous turnover, not to mention a 1979 strike by its DJs and staff. It was a friendly rivalry, but it was definitely a rivalry. Known as ' The Rock Of Boston ', its two main Boston - area competitors are Album Oriented Rock / Active rock WAAF and alternative music WFNX. But that changed the Marc Miller 1978-83 MUSE,Brooklyn NY Patrick Murray 1991-Present News Director,Air Talent Harold "Mississippi Fats" Wilson 1968-77 Restaurant equip. It was like I was one of them. [1] [2] He then spent four years doing The Charles Laquidara Radio Hour on WZLX. There isnt a museum yet, but Boston archivist David Bieberwho, as a grad student, profiled the nascent WBCN for this magazine in 1970, and later worked at the stationhas leased key artifacts to the Verb Hotel, a boutique hotel opening this month next door to WBCNs former studios. For a brief period during that transition, Charles Laquidara, who was acting program director hired Robert "Bo" Burlingham as news director. In the early 1990s, the station began airing the nationally syndicated Howard Stern Show, but aired it in the evenings on tape delay instead of during morning drive. A bunch of us were sitting around, possibly experimenting with drugs. While the existence of the promotional album is apocryphal, the truth behind the broadcast, though less dramatic, is equally as fascinating. Get The Big To-Do Your guide to staying entertained, from live shows and outdoor fun to the newest in museums, movies, TV, books, dining, and more. Between late 1968 and early 1971, as program director, Kopper sought out and hired Norm Winer, recently graduated from Brandeis; Andy Beaubien, recently graduated from URI; and Maxanne Sartori, who came in from her DJ position at KOL-FM in Seattle. There was the Rock n Roll Rumble. Boston radio station WBCN revolutionized rock radio in the late 1960s and 1970s. On Saturday, October 5, 2013 RadioBDC (now Indie617) posted on their Facebook page that Oedipus would be hosting "The Oedipus Project" on Saturday mornings from 10AM local to noon featuring all new alternative/indie sounds. While earning this degree, Martinie was first introduced to astrology when he attended a meeting of the school's astrology club. If there was a skirmish with police, people could call and say, I was there and this is what happened. There was an immediacy to it. I was there at the end of the heyday in some ways. The station served as a kind of conduit between the station and its listeners. Jack O'Brien remained as the drive-time host until the following January. "Indie 104.1" on 104.1 HD-3 ceased operations. When I say local, I dont mean Aerosmith, I dont mean the Cars, I mean local. Navigate our website or try searching instead. There were other conspiring factors, too: The alt-rock format was souring. The women at WBCN, we had to carve out a place for ourselves. People really related to that. There wasnt bitterness; there was just sadness at the end. By the 80s, after winning a union strike, the station went on to achieve its greatest success, which placed The Rock of Boston on top of the Boston ratings heap through the entire decade. But we were also out in public. I quit radio in 76 because it was getting in the way of my cocaine habit. He was 10 to 12 years older than I. I was like his kid brother. It was like the old BCN, and it was remarkably brave radio. WBZ NewsRadio 1030 - News Audio The Jimmy Tingle Show Sports Decision Made On Leonard Fournette's Future With Buccaneers: Report Feb 28, 2023 Blackhawks Trade Patrick Kane: Report Feb 28, 2023 Update On Justin Jefferson's Future With Vikings Feb 28, 2023 Bears' GM Ryan Poles Addresses 'Plan' For Fields' Future, No. Mar 2020 - Present3 years. That, for me, was the best thing about working at WBCN: He took a liking to me. At BCNs peak, its top DJ raked in more than a million bucks a year. Hes got a 13, the highest rating ever in the history of ratings. We didnt think of our listeners as being fans. That just doesnt exist anymore. WBCN began supporting non-mainstream investigative reporting and alternative news coverage, including reports from demonstrations and highly produced montage news reports. Although WBCN was not the only radio station, or even the first station, to air material from the Get Back sessions WKBW in Buffalo was the first, and the tapes also aired on WEBN in Cincinnati, WBAI in New York City, and KCOK in St. Louis WBCN's broadcast of the tapes has been immortalized because it was preserved on a high-quality reel, which spawned several widely circulated Beatles bootlegs. We all had our colors. In 1979, the station was purchased by Hemisphere Broadcasting, who let go several longtime employees who they determined "non-essential." From 1995-2004 he served as Executive Producer of the live Radio broadcast for the New England Patriots. In December 2017, owner Beasley Broadcast Group discontinued WBCN, switching the station's format to 'Hubcast', a replay of segments and podcasts from air . The station started to air the syndicated Opie & Anthony during the morning drive. Parenteau had one of the most successful radio careers in Boston history, with a 20-year run, first on the former WCOZ then spending 19 years as the afternoon-drive talent on WBCN. A formerly bulletproof radio property became riddled and CBS stemmed the bleeding by shuttering WBCN on August 12, 2009. Without that cornerstone, you would not have the direction that music took. Jackson first gained prominence while working at WBCN in Boston in the late 1960s, then at KLOS in Los Angeles for ten years. Be the first one to, 1982-05-17 WBCN FM 104.1 Boston MA Mark Parenteau & Lisa Carlin unscoped, 1982_05_17_WBCN_FM_104.1_Boston_MA_Mark_Parenteau_Lisa_Carlin, Advanced embedding details, examples, and help, 1982_05_17_WBCN_FM_104.1_Boston_MA_Part 1.mp3, 1982_05_17_WBCN_FM_104.1_Boston_MA_Part 2.mp3, 1982_05_17_WBCN_FM_104.1_Boston_MA_Part 3.mp3, 1982_05_17_WBCN_FM_104.1_Boston_MA_Part 4.mp3, Terms of Service (last updated 12/31/2014). Radios fate was sealed in 1996 when they signed the Telecommunications Act. Youve seen the movie Almost Famous. You have to be exceeding your success. When The Police were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003, they thanked him personally for their initial support in America. The idea of the radio, and crafting it, and being a person on the other end, that will never die. Bob Machsond 1977-79 Lawyer in NYC. Along the way, WBCN both pioneered and defined progressive rock radio, the dominant format for a generation of listeners. (#921058) WIVY Jacksonville, "Y103" AC Early 1991 35 min. Worcester personality and deejay LB Worm paid tribute on his . From February 26, 1991, to December 3, 2017, the "Mix" format in Boston used the callsign WBMX. Air Talent,WMYF Exeter,NHLeslie Patten 1977-80 Screenplay writer,Nova ScotiaAl Perry 1968-75 GM at WERZ and WMYS in Exter,NHCarla "Raz" Razwyck 1982-85 Air Talent,WEQX Manchester,VTTracy Roach 1976-80 Lawyer in MichiganTom Sandman 1982-90 Production Dir. The Cosmic Muffin (April 10, 1943 - July 26, 2006) was a Boston -based professional astrologer and radio personality . [25] WBMX, WODS, and WAAF were retained by Entercom, while sister stations WBZ and WZLX, as well as WKAF and WRKO, were spun off to iHeartMedia (WBZ-FM would be traded to Beasley Broadcast Group in exchange for WMJX, making WBMX and WMJX sister stations. [4] When same-sex marriage became legal in Massachusetts, Martinie and Boesel married. Oedipus was one of the first to play the Clash. Charles Laquidara played Superman by The Kinks back to back for an entire show in celebration. The call sign stood for the Boston Concert Network (along with Hartford's WHCN, New York City's WNCN, and Providence's WXCN). penny modesto. Twelve years later, JJ would become one of MTV's first VJs. The old DJs, station IDs, and classic rock were gutted, replaced by an alternative music format featuring new, younger jocks. The station slowly began to change to an "underground" progressive rock format on the night of March 15, 1968. One of the things that it pioneered is a style of production, those highly edited montages: Nixon with music and comedy. Please say a prayer for Mark.. But even after its run, BCN wont go away. WBCN switched to digital only on August 12, 2009, with two digital-only automated streams, one on the HD2 channel of WBZ-FM continuing the modern rock format, the other Free Form BCN, airing an eclectic mix of rock, related genres, and a lot of new music - essentially the WBCN of 1968 to 1988, brought into the 21st century. On March 15th the station celebrated 25 years on the air. WBCN's programming on 104.1 ended after midnight on August 12, 2009, WBMX then moved to 104.1 two hours later (the WBCN call letters were then transferred to the Charlotte station), with WBZ-FM launching the next day. [8] During the following months, industry insiders, local media, and even WBCN's on air staff speculated that, in a matter of time, WBCN could see a format change, especially after the Boston Herald ran an article in the March 30, 2009, issue about WBCN's future, and the station airing a Top 40 format for a few hours the following day (April Fool's Day). Suddenly, you have two talk shows on in the morning and afternoon drive, so what is BCN? Includes announcement that the format will shift from 97.3 to 106.9 FM. He's been working morning radio all over the country with his partner Pete McKenzie for over 30 years now. 2. The J Show, Weekdays 5:30 a.m. - 10 a.m. [24], On February 2, 2017, CBS Radio announced it would merge with Entercom (which locally owned WEEI, WEEI-FM, WRKO, WKAF, and WAAF). We reflected the culture of the city. On December 4, 2017, the call letters changed to WWBX, after the call letters were transferred to a sister station in Chicago.[2]. The old Boylston Street studios were all beat up. Originally broadcasting on analog 104.1 MHz (now WWBX) from 1968 to 2009, and later broadcasting as a digital-only radio station, airing on WBZ-FM HD2 from 2009 to 2017. He held his final radio gig at the former XM satellite radio station in Washington, D.C. until his arrest. The station was named "Hot AC Station of The Year" 9 times from 1997 through 2009. High Profile Show & Ratings (was Re: Changes at WBCN-Boston), 5. Here is a list of over 90 former and current full-time WBCN personalities. They gave Mark Parenteau a 3, and they gave Charles Laquidara, that old guy, like a 3.6. However, there was always tension between the artistic expression of the DJs, and management's need to run a business, resulting in the unionization of the station with the United Electrical Workers in 1971. If you were taking some bad acid and needed somebody to talk you down, call us. I listened to BCN when I was little, because thats what my parents listened to. His father was a Catholic and a psychiatrist and his mother was Jewish and a psychologist. They started questioning decisions we made, because all they cared about was ratings and dollars. I made this tape, because in the early 80s I moved to the West Coast and I wanted to take a bit of Boston Radio with me. J.J. Jackson 1968-71 Radio Consultant,LA Bradley Jay 1984-Present Air Talent Madge Kaplan 1986-1988 News,WGBH-FM Boston . When these new people came in from New York, they just didnt get it. Howie Carr: The kinked grocery cart under Biden's America, Hire at Massachusetts U.S. Attorney's Office loses job after old racist, sexist tweets emerge, Patriots slammed in NFLPA survey about team facilities, player working conditions, Boston Police seize 37 dirt bikes and mopeds, recover fentanyl and guns, and arrest 4 after 'illegal drag racing' investigation, 98.5 employees had their sensitivity training after Tony Massarotti suspension, Mike Felger rants about people getting fired over a 'bad comment', Student loan debt cancellation could be on thin ice as Supreme Court takes up case, Massachusetts lawmakers push for relief, Milton asks governor to stop demolition of broken MBTA station staircase, Black WWII vets denied G.I. 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