WRCO Blog

Those Were The Days began on October 12th 1986.  We now currently play songs that were new when the show started!  The show is a Top 40 variety show which features music from 1954 through 1989.  I began collecting records in 1971.  My first 45 was 'Have You Seen Her?' by the Chi-Lites.  I love to share my collection each week and its really great when someone makes me dig out something that we have never played before.  It is amazing to say it still happens after all of these years!   We do play a few album cuts that may have not been released as singles to radio over the years.  A great number of local records have made our airwaves as well.  Richland Centers' own Vilas Craig and the Vicounts and the Madison based band Clicker are among the most requested.   We do get a few requests for Country songs from time to time.  Our rule of thumb is that the song had to have made the Top 40 or Pop charts for us to play it on Those Were the Days.  That is why  you might hear some early Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline, or a comedy record by Ray Stevens.  The request line number is 608 647-4155.  You can also email a request or dedication to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..  I hope that you will listen to Those Were The Days Saturday night from 6 p to Midnight.

Happy Trails.

Phil

One of my favorite themes of the program is when we give the history behind a song.  We will do that with a few classics this Saturday night on Those Were The Days.  Jim Ed Brown and the Browns were a very successful trio in the late 50's and early 60's on the Country and Western survey.  They did also have three big hits on Rock and Roll radio in those days.  Recently I talked with Jim Ed about the 'The Three Bells'.  That was a number one hit for the Browns.  It was only a big selling record because Chet Atkins at RCA  insisted they record it.  Hear the story behind the song this Saturday night on WRCO FM 100.9.   The request line will be available for all 6 hours of the program and get ready for trivia! 

Phil

Hey Rock n' Rollers!  This Saturday night we will remember the early days of television.  An appearance by a musical act would almost guarantee an even greater amount of record sales.  Hear snipits from previous Those Were The Days interviews with the likes of Dick Clark and Steve Allen and musical acts like the 5th Dimension and Tommy James and the Shondells about appearing on the Ed Sullivan show.  We will also feature great music and special features from the 1950s through the 1980s until Midnight on WRCO FM 100.9.   I have vivid memories of watching for my favorite artist or group on a tv show.  In the 70's The Midnight Special featured a wide array of talent live on stage. Saturday afternoons I would always try to catch American Bandstand.   From 1948 until early 1971 the Ed Sullivan show was a showcase for plate spinners,  dancing elephants, comedy acts,  and the top musical artists of the day.  My friend Kent Kotal has been featuring memories of the Ed Sullivan show on his site Forgottenhits.com. He has been collecting memories of the Sullivan show from all over the world.   This is what I wrote.

 
Kent,

Phil - WRCO

I hope you will listen to Those Were The Days this Saturday night.  I will talk with you soon.

Phil

This week Those Were The Days will be back to its regular format.  Between 6:00 p and Midnight hear your favorite 50's through 80's pop radio memories on WRCO FM 100.9.  We will take your rock and roll requests and you can win some fun prizes if you know the answer to our pop quiz.

This time we will also feature hits from this week in 1967.  Hear coments from Jay Proctor (of Jay and the Techniques),   Billy Jo Royal,  Carl Giammarese (of the Buckinghams), and Russ Giguere (of the Association).  All of those artists had big records on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart this week in '67.    The top movie in the land was To Sir With Love and the title song by Lulu was the number one song in the World!

Here is a 1967 piece of trivia.  The original list price for a standard, 1967 Fastback Ford  Mustang was approximately $2,700.  We may ask you about that on this weeks Those Were The Days and you could win a prize just for reading this!

I hope you enjoyed the Halloween party this past  Saturday night.  It was great fun putting that together. 

Hear a few haunting Halloween ditties on this Saturday nights Those Were The Days! There have been many songs with a Halloween theme over the years. Some of the most requested spooky classics will be featured this weekend. Plan your pumpkin carving, or costume construction around the seasonal classics that you will hear this weekend on WRCO FM 100.9. Here is a list of some of the most requested haunted tunes. 1. Monster Mash-Bobby Boris Pickett 2. Ghostbusters-Ray Parker Jr. 3. Witch Dr.-David Seville 4. Frankenstein-Edgar Winter Group 5. Haunted House-Jumpin Gene Simmons 6. Thriller-Michael Jackson 7. Werewolves of London-Warren Zevon 8. Purple People Eater-Sheb Wooley 9. Time Warp-Rocky Horror Picture Show 10. Twilite Zone-Golden Earring Did you know? Monster Mash by Bobby Boris Pickett made Billboards Hot 100 chart three times. It was number one for two weeks in 1962 when it was originally a hit. The original recording hit the chart in 1970 and again in 1973. The third time it made the charts it hit number 10 in the Summer of 1973. Win a prize just for reading this. On this weeks show we may ask you how many times Bobby Pickett's Monster Mash hit the charts. If you are the first to call us with the answer (three) you will win a prize from the grab bag of goodies!

This Saturday night we will flash back to a weekend in October 1977. Hear from Fleetwood Mac, Firefall, Peter Frampton, Steve Miller Band, and Andy Gibb. Those are just a few of the artists that will be featured. According to Joel Whitburn's book,' Pop Annual', these were the top artists of 1977. 1. Fleetwood Mac 2. Leo Sayer 3. Steve Miller Band 4. Stevie Wonder 5. Eagles 6. KC & The Sunshine Band 7. Bee Gees 8. Rose Royce 9. Linda Rondstadt 10. Barry Manilow. Artists that made their Top 40 debuts in 1977 included: Jennifer Warnes, Genesis, Foreigner, Andy Gibb, Peter Gabriel, REO Speedwagon, Kenny Loggins, Chic, and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. The request line will be open for you to request a song and we will be playing trivia. We will have a high school sports broadcast on Saturday for a time. Join us before and after the sporting event for more of your favorites of the 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s on WRCO FM 100.9. Here is something really cool! Just by reading this blog, you will already know the answer to one of Saturday nights trivia questions. During 1977 many people thought the Beatles had reunited. There was a group getting played on the radio known as Klaatu. The group sold a few records partly because of the suspicious Beatles fans. They were actually a trio from Canada. The two sided hit that was getting played was Sub-Rosa Subway and Calling Occupants (which was also recorded by the Carpenters in 1977). On Saturday night I will ask you this question. Where did the group Klaatu get its name? The answer--the movie The Day The Earth Stood Still. Klaatu was the central character of the 1951 science fiction film. Be ready to say The Day The Earth Stood Still on Saturday night and win a prize from the bag of goodies.l Call me on Saturday night at 647-4155. Leave a message or a suggestion for a show on this blog. Phil-WRCO

I have had the great opportunity to interview many of the legends of the first 35 years of rock and roll.  This week  I got the rare chance to talk with Clarence Carter.  It was a real treat and I look forward to featuring some of his comments on this Saturday nights program. 

Clarence was born in 1938 in Montgomery, Alabama.  He has been blind since the age of 11.  The loss of sight did not prevent him from becoming an accomplished musician.  His first major hit was 'Slip Away' in 1968 which hit number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100.  His biggest hit came two years later in 1970 when the song 'Patches' made it to number 4.  The song could have been Clarence Carter's life story, however, it was written by another one time Those Were The Days guest General Johnson.  Clarence Carter is still making music today and is looking for another hit.  Hear about his past hits and what he is doing now on this weeks show. 

We will also play trivia, feature song dedications,  and have another rock and roll party this Saturday night.  Request a song and try to stump the d.j. !  I love it when that happens.  You can win great prizes and impress your friends, family, and me.   The show starts shortly after 6:00 and runs until Midnight on WRCO FM 100.9 Saturday night.  We hope to hear from you this week and weekend.

Phil

It was a great night of music and fun. Thanks to WRCO alums Dave, Adam, Todd, and Chad. I hope they enjoyed the reunion of the Solid Gold dancers. It was a memorable night for me. Thanks to everyone who listened. Phil

This weeks show will start as soon as the Riverdale homecoming football game with Boscobel is done.  Ron Fruit will stop by to chat about my 25 wonderful seasons of fun hosting Those Were the Days.  I am normally not  the one who gets interviewed!  The rest of the night we will feature the usual blend of music and goofy stuff.

This is an example posting.

WRCO Tuesday Morning Sports at 8:10 AM

{audio}Morning Sports|0810tues.mp3{/audio}