Thursday Writers Prompt: Radio Memories

-


I grew up in the late 60's and early 70's, graduating in 1975 and back then, if you wanted to listen to music, you either bought records or listened to radio.
Then, radio was as vital as cellphones are today for staying in touch with news or music. Everyone had one or more at home, and, if out and about, they could carry hand-size portable radios. Of course, everyone had radio in their cars.
In was around 1972 that my Dad gave me a used radio he'd repaired. (Fixing electronics was his profession.) It had a boxy shape and played AM and FM. I was coming into my teenage years and started being more interested in listening to popular radio music. 

They're rock classics nowadays, but Top 40 Hits of 1972 I remember well include:
 Song Sung Blue by Neil Diamond
Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress by the Raspberries
Knights in White Satin by The Moody Blues
A Horse With No Name by America
If Lovin' You is Wrong, I Don't Wanna Be Right by Puttin' Game Down
American Pie I & II by Don McLean
The Candy Man by Sammy Davis, Jr.
Popcorn by At The Movies (an instrumental you have to look up to appreciate)

This was also the closing era of the Vietnam War and in 1973, Watergate happened.
A guy named Dickie Goodman, an American music & record producer came up with clever comedy radio pieces of "breaking news" where he conducted various types of interviews that had popular song lines for answers. For example, he asks Mr. Nixon about Watergate, "What will your position be from now on?" and the answer is the chorus from the song, "No more Mr. Nice guy."
These humorous bits were interspersed with the music all day. Really quite entertaining.
Dr. Demento bits were also played fairly often. I particularly remember, "They are Coming to Take Me Away," and "Shaving Cream."

As Mr. Nixon left office, another trend picked up on the top Top 40 play list and that was Trucker songs. "Convoy" was popular and full of C.B. lingo that was all the rage. Suddenly everyone wanted a C.B. radio in their car! "Breaker, breaker, you got your ears on?"
I think the Smoky & the Bandit movies helped incite that trend.

Nowadays, I don't listen to radio at all. What I listen to in my car when I drive around is theme music from Pirates of the Caribbean, Transformers and National Treasure recorded on a USB drive.

Comments

John Holton said…
I'm a year ahead of you, and it was a magical time in music. Radio itself was magic: turn it on any time of the day or night, and the songs were there, the DJ was there, the news was there, even the commercials were there. The only time I can remember having trouble finding music on the radio was late Sunday night and early Monday morning. That's when a lot of stations did thei transmitter maintenance...
Mar 29, 2024, 12:18:00 PM
John Holton said…
And I'm happy to see you again...
Mar 29, 2024, 12:20:00 PM

Post a Comment

Thanks for leaving a comment!

Popular posts from this blog

Garden Pic Wednesday: Amaryllis & Chinese Stonecrop

-
Image
I have 2 Amaryllis, each in a container out in my front beds: one is a dark, solid red and the other is this reddish-orange & white. Both have been faithful to bloom for like 15 years! Today's other picture is Chinese Stonecrop in one of my patio containers, which is just now starting to bloom. I'm not quite sure how it got there exactly, but it looks really good!
Read more

Writers Prompt Thursday: Cosplay Dress Up

-
Image
  A little known fact about me is I was once was an active member of an Official Star Trek Club.  It was around the spring of 1988. My husband and I were living in Eglin Air Force Base Housing at the time and we saw listed in the personal ads in the Base newspaper that someone was seeking people interested in participating in a Star Trek Club. So, we were immediately interested and called the provided phone number. Turned out it was a couple right there in Base Housing. who only lived a few streets away from us, named Chris & Tammy. We promptly met them and soon we and a few others became regular Club attendees. To become an "Official Chapter of Starfleet," we first had to choose a name for our club, which was considered our "ship," then we registered formally with whoever managed the Trek Club regional chapters in Florida at that time. It had to be a unique name not being used by any other club.  Then we members in order to become "official crew members,&q
Read more

Mama Kat Thursday: Worst Gift Ever

-
Image
The Mama Kat topic for today is:  "Share a story about the best or worst gift you ever received." You wouldn't think chocolate could be a  worst possible gift, but, in this case, it was. It wasn't even wrapped. It was just a Dark Lindt Chile Chocolate bar that a guy from our singles Bible study handed me. He was a regular at our Sunday night study, a Navy guy in the school for learning how to disarm explosive devices. He knew I fancied chocolate and he happened to fancy Lindt's spicy Chocolate Chile bar. So, one evening at our on base Tuesday Bible Study, he called me aside and handed me one of these Lindt Chocolate Chile bars.   "Here, this is for you, " he said. I said, "Thank you,"  accepted it and slipped it into my book bag to take home for later. " No, " he said, his face clearly displeased I'd dare keep it for myself. "I want you to share it with everyone else." What? You give me a gift, the
Read more

Good Eating Monday: Old Fashioned Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding!

-
Image
Welcome to the first week of February! It's supposed to be 31 degrees tonight, so after cleaning up the front walk beds, I went around covering various things that either are blooming, about to bloom or that have sensitive leaf buds, like my hydrangea's.  I picked all the yellow daffodils and brought them inside for a cheerful vase on my counter. For Garden Pic Wednesday this week I have an excellent photo of a pine tree flower! You didn't know pine trees flower?  Well, you'll have to stop back for a look! Today's Good Eating Recipe is a family favorite my Mother used to make often for us as kids: Old Fashioned Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding! What Old Fashioned Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding Looks Like This is just your basic wholesome old fashioned bread pudding made with just eggs, bread, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, sugar & raisins! No sauces to make. Just simple bread pudding. We'd eat it hot with a little evaporated milk poured over the top.
Read more

Mama Kat Thursday: Backwoods Indiana Memories: Laundry Day

-
Image
Wringer Washing Machine I remember while growing up in rural Indiana in the 60's and 70's, doing laundry was an all day event. My clearest memories of  "laundry day," come from summer time, when we were out of school.  Mother had a certain day of the week she did laundry usually. I liked to sleep in and I recall waking up around 9:30 to the chugging rhythm the wringer washer already at work.  I'd see all the dirty laundry sorted into piles around the utility room floor: whites, light colors,  medium colors, dark colors and heavy darks, like jeans. (The photo is one I found online of a Kenmore wringer washer quite similar to the last model I remember Mother having in the 70's.) You have to understand, wringer washers only do the washing part. S he'd start with whites, then once the washer finished it's wash cycle, it would stop. Then she'd, by hand, pull each item of clothing out of the washer and feed it through the wringer rollers
Read more