PHOTO: Years later, Cousin Brucie and I would have a conversation about radio at the NYS Broadcasters Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. He was chosen to introduce The Beatles at their historic Shea Stadium concert.
Part One of Four Parts
They say confession is good for the soul so here goes…
The increased popularity of FM radio in the 1960’s opened the doors for stereophonic sound and “free-form” radio disc jockey personalities. Living in the shadow of New York City, I grew up listening to the biggest names in this growing medium.
There was Alison Steele The Nightbird and Vince Scelsa and AM’s Cousin Brucie. I loved the way these jocks knew their music and were able to string “sets” of cuts together like a designer could string Christmas lights together at Macy’s in Manhattan.
Their sets might include complimentary lyrics and/or moods, similar rhythms, get-a-long genres, originals that became hits by bigger groups or even artists that played on each other’s albums. It was magic.
These giants of the airwaves were almost as famous as the musicians they played. Bands understood the power that these album-spinners wielded with their audiences. You could almost hear them kissing up to these jocks during interviews. It wasn’t unusual that DJ’s “discovered” a band or solo act for their audiences. In that regard, rock’s most famous groups often owed a share of their celebrity status to these craftsmen - especially those in New York City.
The jock’s informative and natural intros and outros to the sets of music transported us to some ethereal state and could tap into our hearts. They made you feel like they were in your bedroom and knew everything about you as they selected just the right vibe for your adolescent journey. It's no wonder that Alison Steele's audience was predominantly male.
It was within the context of this explosive art form that I would hope to find my “voice”…
TO BE CONTINUED…
PORTAL TO HEAVEN: When art meets art and meets your heart, it can open up portals to heaven. Creatives using the latest technology can soothe, inspire and usher us into the courts of heaven IF they use their gifts for God’s glory.
And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, to design artistic works… [Jesus said] ‘I am not seeking glory for myself’… let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven…For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?…A man's gift makes room for him and brings him before the great…
Exodus 31:3,4 NKJV, John 8:50 NIV, Matthew 5:16 ESV, Mark 8:36 ESV, Proverbs 18:16 ESV
COMMENTS:
We're all famous in God's eyes.
Antoinette Renzi, Guilderland, NY
Bob you are so right when you point out that worldly fame is fleeting! Yeah so many of us will trade eternity with the Son for 15 minutes in the sun! How sad
Frank Wray, Delmar, NY