Thursday, March 30, 2023

Bill Stewart 1969

 


Bill Stewart swung and swung hard.  Record producer, DJ.  A great talent. AFRTS had Bill in the 1960s and 70s.



Kris Erik Stevens 1980

  


Kris Erik Stevens sent in a nice promo picture for the collection (pictured). Kris had been a legend in Chicago radio before Los Angeles. Thanks! 

Erik Stevens 1980

More Kris Erik Stevens

Mary Turner 1984

 


Time for another visit with Mary Turner, She started at the network in 1981 or so, bringing a new perspective.  It was rocking...

Mary checked in last time with good words about her AFRTS time. 


Wednesday, March 29, 2023

Johnny Bond 1961

 From when they called it "folk music" here's a 1961 visit with Johnny Bond



 He got his first break working for Jimmy Wakely in the late 1930s and went on to join Gene Autry's Melody Ranch in 1940. He also acted on occasion in films including Wilson and Duel in the Sun; and was later a regular on the 1950s Los Angeles country music television series Town Hall Party.
He is best known for his 1947 hit "Divorce Me C.O.D.", one of his seven top ten hits on the Billboard country charts. In 1965 at age 50 he scored the biggest hit of his career with the comic "Ten Little Bottles", which spent four weeks at No. 2. Bond's other hits include "So Round, So Firm, So Fully Packed" (1947), "Oklahoma Waltz" (1948), "Love Song in 32 Bars" (1950), "Sick Sober and Sorry" (1951) and "Hot Rod Lincoln" (1960).
He died of a stroke in 1978, at the age of 63. Bond was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1999, and to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. (wikipedia).



Don Tracy 1980

 

Don Tracy now

The weekend is always almost here!!  On a Friday in 1980 it began like this...



Paul A. Bottoms AFVN 1969

 



Paul enlisted in 1967, leaving his job at KEWI radio. A year later he was in Vietnam, where he stayed for two tours from July 1968 to June 1970. By volunteering for a second consecutive tour, Paul was able to cut five months off his service obligation.
He spent the first month at Chu Lai working in the information office, before being selected to visit the Saigon station in preparation for bringing television to AFVN's Detachment 7. Although on TDY, he did not leave Saigon again. He was assigned a six-hour night shift, including hosting the "Orient Express" show, which ran from 0100 to 0400 hours. Later, he did the "Dawnbuster" show, but with a pre-recorded version of the elongated "Good Morning, Vietnam" sign-on. For a time he was designated "Chief Announcer." He remained on TDY status for the entire two years, which meant that he had to return to Chu Lai for outprocessing when he rotated back home in June 1970.  (Biography from macoi.net, be sure to visit).




Monday, March 27, 2023

Jazz Festival 1967

 



This must have been quite the gig, Jazz Festival was an AFRTS production.  It was hosted by Marine Sgt Dan Doherty.  Would you have more information about him?


Sunday, March 26, 2023

Jim Pewter 1988

 

(Clip of the Skyliners on American Bandstand)
Jim Pewter is back with another program of songs from the malt shop.
Always a surprise, always great.

Tom Campbell 1980

 


Tom is still around.  Great guy who helped a lot with the Best Sounds stream.  And now from Torrejon..



Roger Carroll 1981

 



Thanks again Roger for sharing your shows with us.  There is some great listening.  Roger's history with AFRTS started with the Korean War.  Because he was an ABC staff announcer, he was assigned to AFRTS.  It was the start of decades of RC.