WRCO Blog

In the fall of 1978 I began my illustrious football career as a center on the football team.  I quickly learned that the center usually winds up on the bottom of the pile especially during extra point and field goal trys.  While I was face planted in the grass and waiting for 21 other players to get off of me, many songs were playing in my head.  Some of my faves from this weekend in 1978 were: Don't Look Back-Boston,  Hollywood Nights-Bob Seger,  Two Tickets To Paradise-Eddie Money,  Right Down the Line-Gerry Rafferty,  Fool (If You Think It's Over)-Chris Rea,  I Will Still Love You-Stonebolt,  Badlands-Bruce Springsteen,  Beast Of Burden-Rolling Stones,  Hot Blooded-Foreigner,  Hot Child In the City-Nick Gilder,  and Grease -Frankie Valli.  It was a great time to grow up.  Our parents and grandparents would tell us how fast life passes.  When you are young, you don't really think about it.  It does seem like only yesterday to me, however, it is has been 44 years since my dazzling debut as a freshman walking the hallowed halls of Ithaca High School.

During this Saturday nights' Those Were the Days radio show on WRCO FM 100.9 and wrco.com, we will go parking in the fall of 1978, and we will dig through the drawers for all kinds of fun records from the fifties through the eighties.  You can take a shot at our tough trivia questions between six and midnight.  Perhaps you will be able to join other Those Were the Days listeners at the Tommy James show at Crystal Grand Music Theatre on October 1st.  We will be giving away tickets and other fun prizes.  Thanks for another memorable night last Saturday night.  Our most far out long distance request came from the state of Virginia!  I hope that you will join the rock and roll radio party this Saturday night.

Phil

During Saturday nights  Those Were the Days radio show, I will be spinning a few of the number one hits from Labor Day weekends of the past.  While not officially the end of summer, it is the last hurrah for many campers and outdoor family gatherings. As the family met for a reunion in 1979, My Sharona by the Knack was playing in the background.  I remember  Labor Day weekend 1982.  As I drove to my post high school education, Abracadabra by the Steve Miller Band was playing on my AM radio.  The lovely future Mrs. Phil Nee and I went to the movie in 1985 and on the return tip we heard the number one song that had just played during the movie.  John Parr hit the top with St. Elmo's Fire (Man In Motion) that year over the three day holiday weekend.   Some of the biggest hits of all time topped the industry through the years over the Labor Day holiday.  Elvis dominated 1956 with the two sided hits Hound Dog/Don't Be Cruel.  Tommy Roe's hit that he wrote in study hall was called Sheila and it peaked in 1962 at number one.  The English Invasion was in full force in 1964 and the Animals hit of Summer, House Of The Rising Sun, was the top track of the weekend.

Those Were the Days can be heard between six and midnight this and every Saturday night between the hours of six and midnight on WRCO FM 100.9 and wrco.com.  We have fun every week and we still find new listeners after all of these years.  Some newbies were camping at Blackhawk Lake last weekend and stumbled upon the show.  They checked in with a request. There are not many chances anymore to be able to call a local radio station and talk to someone other than voice mail.  When we play trivia this Saturday night, you could win tickets to see Tommy James at the Crystal Grand Music Theatre!  The concert is coming up Saturday, October 1st. 

Phil

In the fall of 1980, I played center for the Ithaca Bulldogs.  It was a public service move on my part.  Our opponents had a good place to clean their cleats as they ran over me and got some tillage done using my face mask as a double bottom moldboard plow share.  As I was getting humbled, I had many popular songs of the day running through my helmeted head.  Some of my faves from this weekend in 1980 include:  Let My Love Open the Door-Pete Townsend,  Boulevard-Jackson Browne,  All Over the World-ELO,  It's Still Rock and Roll To Me-Billy Joel,  I'm Alright-Kenny Loggins (from Caddyshack!!!),  You Better Run-Pat Benatar,  and Xanadu-Olivia Newton-John and ELO.  We will park for a time in 1980 with the radio on during our time together.

I hope you will join the radio party this Saturday night between six and midnight for Those Were the Days.  Your favorites from the fifties through the early nineties will again hit the airwaves.  Last week we heard from new friends from around the state and country.  My favorite call was from a group of campers listening via their phones on a sandbar in the middle of the river!  It is still campfire and front porch sitting season and I hope you get a chance to enjoy the awesome weather.  Make sure that you remember to listen for Those Were the Days on WRCO FM 100.9 and wrco.com.

Phil

The movie Dirty Dancing was released on August 21st, 1987.  The film quickly became a favorite and was the first movie to sell more than a million copies for home video.  It seems like just last week that I was getting lots of Saturday night requests for music from the soundtrack.  Tunes such as: Be My Baby-The Ronettes,  Hey Baby-Bruce Channel,  Love Is Strange-Mickey and Sylvia,  Do You Love Me-Contours, and Love Man-Otis Redding suddenly became weekly dedications on WRCO in the Fall of 1987.  The two soundtrack albums from Dirty Dancing both were multi-platinum releases and there were singles that became hits including:  (I've Had) The Time Of My Life-Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes,  Hungry Eyes-Eric Carmen,  and She's Like the Wind-Patrick Swayze.  During our Those Were the Days Saturday night radio show, we will remember that movie and the music.  

It is amazing how the music of a movie or television show can bring us Saturday night requests.  Dirty Dancing did.  Movies such as Waynes World,  La Bamba, Forrest Gump,   Bohemian Rhapsody, and Guardians Of the Galaxy have brought back classic songs to new generations.  Recently 'Stranger Things' has been setting streaming records and resurrecting songs such as the number one record of summer Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) by Kate Busch.  I can count on one hand the number of times that song has been requested on Those Were the Days before this summer.  Lately it has been a regular dedication and one of the only times that I could play the number one Top 40 song during a classic rock and roll show!  

I hope you can tune in to FM 100.9 or wrco.com this Saturday night between six and midnight for the best of the fifties through the early 1990's.  Those Were the Days will feature your dedications and you could be the winner of a trivia game.  Some of the questions are difficult and ones that can not easily be searced for on your personal device!  Get ready for our rock and roll radio party Saturday night.

Phil

This weekend Those Were the Days on Saturday night will take you back to the Summer of 1966.  Along with our featured year, we will be spinning all of your requests from the fifties through the early 90's.  We will also pay tribute to Olivia Newton-John.  Many of us have fond memories of moments of her career.  I remember when her mid-70's albums were hard to find because they were selling so fast.  It was a memorable concert when we had the chance to see her in the 2000's.  She appeared to float across the stage and had a great interaction with the audience.  It seemed like she really enjoyed her time on stage that night.

The Summer of 1966 had many songs that still find the airwaves today across the world.  Some of my faves include:  Summer in the City-Lovin Spoonful,  Hungry-Paul Revere and the Raiders,  Land of 1,000 Dances-Wilson Pickett,  Pretty Flamingo-Manfred Mann,  Paperback Writer-Beatles,  Bus Stop-Hollies, and Sweet Pea-Tommy Roe.  It was one of the last glory years for AM Top Forty radio before the FM channels started to play more album oriented music.  

Thanks for a memorable summer.  Our Saturday nights together are great fun!  We are still speaking with new friends each week that catch us either on 100.9 FM or at wrco.com.  It is an honor for me to be a part of many bonfires, cookouts,  birthday parties, and front porch times.  I hope to hear from you between six and midnight this Saturday night.

Phil

The Saturday night radio party on WRCO FM 100.9 and wrco.com will be the place to be.  I will be in the studio to take your dedications.  Audience participation trivia games will be back and we will salute the Beach Boys.  They are such a part of American music history.  It was sixty years ago when the Boys signed with Capitol records in July of 1962.  They have gone on to sell well over 100 million records worldwide.  Rolling Stone magazine rates Pet Sounds number two on its list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time".  My first Beach Boys album was the 1974 greatest hits package called 'Endless Summer'.  Our bus driver Dennis installed an 8-track stereo system in our bus.  He had the tape of that album and it played continuously on the rides to and from school.  I used some of my hay making money to buy the double album record set at Saffells' in Richland Center.  The order of the songs became so familiar, that even today when I hear individual Beach Boys songs such as Be True To Your School, I expect to hear it followed by Little Deuce Coupe which is how they appeared on the album.  Surfer Girl followed by Catch A Wave or Shut Down leading in to Fun Fun Fun are also songs that should be back to back according to my overplayed vinyl records.

On WRCO Saturday night, Those Were the Days will salute the Beach Boys.  I will have the studio light on and will be happy to take your requests and dedications featuring all of your faves from the fifties through the eighties.  It is 'old school' radio and I am very proud of the show that we started back in 1986 when the old songs were much newer.  Thank you for being a part of it.  Hopefully you enjoyed our salute to 1982 last weekend.  I have been accused of showing to much love for the music of '82 since it was my high school graduation year.  Several agreed with me this week that could be one of the best Top Forty years of the first thirty years of rock n' roll.  It may not beat 1967 or 1971 in my book, however, it still has many highlights.  Join with us Saturday night between six and midnight for Those Were the Days.

Phil

In the summer of 1982, I was prepping to go to Trans American School of Broadcasting.  My old buddy Marty Richards and I loaded his Ford Courier pickup and moved to Wausau in August.  There were some wild times had by all and someday we can write a book about the pranks that were pulled.  It has been forty years and I am not sure that the statuate of limitations would allow us to proceed with that yet.  It was a great time to be a young rapscallion.  There was a new television channel that we did not get on the farmers 3 package back in Ithaca.  We suddenly went from 3 to 40 channels, however, most of the time we just watched one.  MTV was less than a year on the air and we watched videos 24/7 when we weren't  playing arcade games at the Schofield Shopko mall.  Some of my favorite songs while I was playing Donkey Kong included: Heat Of the Moment-Asia,  Let It Whip-Dazz Band,  Crimson and Clover-Joan Jett,  When It's Over-Loverboy,  Kids In America-Kim Wilde,  Juke Box Hero-Foreigner,  Fantasy-Aldo Nova,  Hurts So Good-John Cougar, 867-5309 (Jenny)-Tommy Tutone, Don't Talk to Strangers-Rick Springfield, (Oh) Pretty Woman-Van Halen  and The Other Woman-Ray Parker Jr.  

During Those Were the Days on WRCO Saturday night, I will be playing the biggest songs from the summer of 1982.  Hear the best of the fifties through the eighties between six and midnight.  I will delve into the cassette tape archives for interview highlights from some of our memorable guests through the years.  We will not be taking requests this time.  It has been since March since I have taken a family night and this weekend we will celebrate a wedding and my little grandaughter will get her first flower girl gig.  I hope you will save your requests for next Saturday night when we return.  Thanks for supporting the show since 1986.

Phil

During Saturday nights Those Were the Days radio show, I will stop for a while and check out some of the best records from 1977.  It was a fun time in my life.  We worked hard on the farm but we also had fun.  I was mediocre on my good nights while playing for the Ithaca Happy Hour 4-H softball team.  Several of my teamates have been life long friends.  I don't remember how we did that year, but I do remember the end of the year family get together which was August 16th.  It was the day we learned that Elvis had died and the shocking news was discussed. Some of our mothers had tears in their eyes as they talked about seeing him for the first time on the Ed Sullivan show a little over twenty years earlier.  

The Summer of 1977 had good moments on the radio.  Some of my favorite hits were playing in my head as opposing 4-H sluggers were having hits over my head in the outfield.  Tunes that I remember fondly include: Peace Of Mind-Boston,  Lido Shuffle-Boz Scaggs,  Couldn't Get It Right-Climax Blues Band,  Barracuda-Heart,  Feels Like the First Time-Foreigner,  Knowing Me, Knowing You-Abba,  Jet Airliner-Steve Miller Band,  Dreams-Fleetwood Mac,  and Heard It In A Love Song-Marshall Tucker Band.  Saturday night on Those Were the Days, I will be spinning from the forty-five Top 45's that were being played on MusicRadio 89 WLS in Chicago.  Even though I was starting to listen to Fm stations with clearer signals,  I still tuned over to the Am band especially late at night in 1977.

WRCO Fm 100.9 and wrco.com will be the place for music and fun from six until midnight Saturday night.  We will feature trivia games that the entire family can play.  You could be the winner of an awesome prize from our Those Were the Days sponsors.  We have been here since 1986 and I know many of you have as well.  Thank you very much for your loyalty.

Phil

Saturday night on WRCO I will be spinning more of the greatest vinyl hits of all time during Those Were The Days.  Our chart will come from the third week of July in 1981.  It was the Summer before my Senior year of high school and I consider it one of the great times of my life.  There was hay to make, softball to play,  friends to socialize with,  black cap pie to eat, and great tunes on the radio.  There were trips to Dog n' Suds, and Richland Center area stores in hopes of getting a date with the young ladies that worked there.  I am sure they were impressed with a 'high water' pants farm boy!  Some of the tunes that I was cranking in the '75 Ford Maverick included:  This Little Girl-Gary U.S. Bonds,  The Stroke-Billy Squier,  Don't Let Him Go-REO Speedwagon,  Urgent-Foreigner,  Tom Sawyer-Rush,  and Fire and Ice-Pat Benatar.  One of the best songs of the year was The Breakup Song (They Don't Write 'Em) by the Greg Kihn Band.  We blasted that tune every time it came on the radio.  Music has the power to transport you back to a time and place. When I hear some of the songs from that time, I am transported back to pulling loads of hay with the farm truck while the sweet Top 40 sounds crackled out of the AM radio speaker.  My dad was never pleased when I would not jump out of the truck right away so that I could hear the conclusion of a song! 

Those Were the Days will be here for you on Saturday night with the best of the fifties through the eighties on FM 100.9 and wrco.com.  The magic cow bell will ring before of our trivia questions and I guarantee that we will have some fun.  It is thrilling to know that people are listening outside of Wisconsin and it is rewarding to know that they are listening at the Starlite 14 Drive-In or at a milking barn in Hillsboro. Give me a call or send us a message Saturday night between six and midnight.

Phil

Saturday night will be here soon and I am fired up to feature this weeks chart from 1974 during my Those Were the Days radio show.  That summer I was right in the middle of collecting every record I could buy using my hard earned hay making money.  Some of those records I still play on WRCO FM 100.9 and dot com!  A few of my faves from this weeks chart include:  Rock Your Baby-George McCrae,  Rikki, Don't Lose That Number-Steely Dan,  Band On the Run-Wings,  Waterloo-Abba,  Taking Care of Business-B.T.O.,  Already Gone-Eagles,  I'm the Leader Of the Gang-Brownsville Station,  Sundown-Gordon Lightfoot,  Rock The Boat-Hues Corporation, and The Air That I Breathe-Hollies.  I had my first crush that summer.  It wasn't Marsha Brady,  Laurie Partridge,  Marie Osmond,  Ginger or Mary Ann,  it was a young lady that visited our farm with her family for a week.  My heart broke when she had to leave, and I  remember her when I play The Air That I Breathe!  

You can request a song from any of the decades that we play this Saturday night.  We have made so many new friends since our station began streaming all programs.  Last week we talked with listeners from other U.S. states.  Truck driver Chris wins the award for calling in from the greatest distance away from Richland Center.  He was in upstate New York and requested a song from REO Speedwagon.  The trivia games and the greatest records ever recorded make Saturday night a great deal of fun.  I hope you will join the 'cool kids' party between six and midnight.

Phil

During Independence weekend, I hope you will listen to WRCO FM 100.9 and wrco.com.  Our retro Saturday is a blast from the past with Saturdays' With Simo in the afternoon and Those Were the Days at night.  It is a great opportunity to hear songs you have not listened to in a while.  We get responses from all ages.

Saturday night I will be spinning the best of the fifties through the eighties during Those Were the Days.  Two of my favorite bands will be featured.  They both have patriotic names (Paul Revere and the Raiders and the New Colony Six).  The Raiders were on television many times in the 60's.  WRCO hosted Paul Revere and company a few years ago at Krouskop park.  It was one of the most entertaining shows during the 19 year run of  Star Spangled Celebration.  We also twice hosted the New Colony Six in Richland Center.  Saturday night hear from six members of that group from our interview archives.  They will all share memories of their days on the road and the radio.  

You will be able to request your fifties through the eighties favorites Saturday.  We will play trivia and have a blast.  I also hope you will join me on Court Street in Richland Center during the Summer Bash Saturday.  I will be the guest of Mastodon Records and owner Craig Woodhouse and we will be spinning vinyl records in the street leading up to the opening act, the Vilas Craig Band.  We will start the music around 1 pm and Vilas will take the stage at 2:30 p.

Phil

When my parents bought me a Panasonic cassette tape recorder in 1974, I suddenly began creating make believe radio shows.  We owned a small reel to reel machine before that, however, with only about 10 minutes available for recording, it made for short mix tapes.  The cassette opened up the possiblity of 30, 45, or even 60 minutes per side.  For a few years I had dreamed about one day being on the radio.  When I saw the movie American Graffitti and Wolfman Jack, it made me even more sure of what I wanted to do for a job.  I began doing pretend radio shows on tape.  With the help of several K-tel greatest hits records, I could recap the hits of the year for 1971 through 1974.   A few of these tapes have survived.  During a recent converstation with a listener of Those Were the Days, they suggested that I feature some of those tapes.  It may be a bit embarrassing, but I have decided to play back a few of those examples of 12 year old Phil Nee practicing to be a big time radio d.j.!  Had I known that someday those tapes would be on an actual radio station, I would have worked harder at sounding better.   It should be a great deal of fun and I hope you enjoy it.

This Saturday night young man Phil Nee will meet old man Phil Nee during Those Were the Days on WRCO FM 100.9 and wrco.com. We will be taking your phone calls if you have a request.  You could be the winner of a trivia prize if you solve our nostalgic puzzles.  Our stories behind the songs will focus on a couple of famous songs with girls names in their titles.  We will head to the interview archives and tell you how the song Suzie-Q came to be and one of the great hits from summertime 1972 (50 years ago!!) , Brandy (You're a Fine Girl).  It is suppose to be a nice weather weekend and Those Were the Days will provide you with a great soundtrack from beautiful southwest Wisconsin.

Phil

This Fathers Day weekend, Those Were the Days will be jumping in the 'Hot Tub Time Machine' and going back to 1984.  Feel free to request a favorite from the fifties through the eighties between six and midnight.  I was very busy last Saturday and could not get all of the requests played.  It was such a blessing to hear from so many folks.  The caller that checked in from the greatest distance was one of our truck driving friends that was long distance hauling in Massachesetts. 

When I hear the Summer hits of 1984, I am transported back to the days of spinning vinyl records and cassette tapes at various functions.  I remember a gig at St. John parking lot in Muscoda.  'When Doves Cry' by Prince had just been released and I had to play it a few times that night.  It would get to number one in July and the movie 'Purple Rain' would be number one at the box office.  Bruce Sprinsteen's 'Born In the USA' album was released in June of 1984.  'Dancing In the Dark' was a staple at all of the dances and the video (featuring Courtney Cox) was in regular rotation on MTV.  Some of my other faves from 1984 include:  Run, Runaway-Slade,  Magic-Cars,  The Longest Time-Billy Joel,  Rock You Like A Hurricane-Scorpions,  Round and Round-Ratt,  and Romancing The Stone-Eddy Grant.  I bought the 45's at the Music Shop in downtown Richland Center and than often I wound up purchasing the full album and the cassette version as well.  I spent all of my hard earned hay making and corn cultivating money when I invested in vinyl.  

Happy fathers day to all of daddy-o's out there.  My father influenced me a great deal.  His love of music and his collection of 78 r.p.m. records rubbed off on me and I have been picking up records for over 50 years!  It was not what he said, but his actions that taught me many life lessons.  I never heard him say a bad word about anyone.  He was my best audience.  My goal was to try to get him to laugh.  Sometimes I had to work pretty hard at it!   I feel that one of the problems that we have today is that there are not enough good fathers.  

Salute your dear old dad and request him a song during Saturday nights' Those Were The Days on WRCO FM 100.9 and WRCO.com.  Maybe you could win dad a prize by answering one of our trivia questions between six and midnight.

Phil

Richland Center has long been the host city for State Finals Rodeo each summer.  The 63rd edition will take place this weekend at the Richland County Fairgrounds.  It is great to welcome the cowboys and cowgirls and their family, friends, and fans.  We will see many fans at the annual Rodeo parade which steps off at 10:30 Saturday morning.  Join Ron Fruit and me at the downtown review station as we announce the names and recognize the floats.  Saturday night I will be in the studio to play some rock n' rodeo hits.  Here are some examples of our mix tape theme.....Long Tall Texan-Beach Boys,  Back In the Saddle-Aerosmith,  Wild Horses-Rolling Stones,  The Horse-Cliff Nobles & Co.,  Rhinestone Cowboy-Glen Campbell,  A Horse With No Name-America,  Wanted Dead Or Alive-Bon Jovi, and Wild Wild West-Escape Club.  We will lasso the hits of the fifties through the eighties during this Saturday nights' Those Were The Days radio show.

We will also pay tribute to Jim Seals of Seals & Crofts.  I have always enjoyed the music that they put out during their hit making years.  This is what the Associated Press sent out this week...

If you have listened to my Those Were the Days radio program, you know that I have a nostalgic craving for Dog N' Suds cuisine from time to time.  There was a franchise in Richland Center when I was growing up.  I became addicted to their coney dogs and occasionally a Texas burger.  There are not many Dog N' Suds restaurants left.  For my coney fix, I have to drive to Tomahawk, Wisconsin or Richmond, Illinois.  I have visited the Richmond site a few times over the years and I have to say that when I chew on a coney, I am magically back in 1979.  During those long ago summer days, we would spend time baling hay and doing all the chores on the farm and than cruising to the drive in for some nourishment before night time milking.  The radio was always blasting all the hits of the day as we flexed our muscles trying to impress the car hops (they were not). Some of the tunes from the Summer of '79 that remain favorites of mine include:  I Want You To Want Me-Cheap Trick,  Renegade-Styx,  Rock N' Roll Fantasy-Bad Company,  Heart Of Glass-Blondie,  Dance The Night Away-Van Halen,  Gold-John Stewart,  I Was Made For Lovin You-Kiss,  Blow Away-George Harrison,  and Love Takes Time-Orleans.  

I look forward to spinning your requests from the fifties through the eighties on Saturday night between six and midnight on WRCO FM 100.9 and wrco.com.  We will feature some fun trivia and memories of 1979.  You could win some cool prizes including tickets to the upcoming Wisconsin State Rodeo finals which will happen next weekend (June 10th, 11th, and 12th).  I hope to hear from you during Those Were The Days Saturday night.  I wont be able to have any coney dogs flown in, but the tunes will be tasty!

Phil

When I watch youtube videos of old variety shows from the 1960s',  I long for those days.  We did not have access to pictures and video 24/7 like we do now.  When a new singing group made its national t.v. debut, we would get our first look at them.  Shows like Petticoat Junction,  Beverly Hillbillies, Green Acres, Land Of The Giants,  Mannix,  Mission Impossible, and Love American Style were featuring brand new episodes.  Many of the songs that were on the charts in the spring of 1969 are still familiar and get regular play today.  Some of my faves from 1969 this weekend were from 'one hit wonder groups' .  They  include:  Gimme Gimme Good Lovin-Crazy Elephant,  More Today Than Yesterday-Spiral Staircase,  Morning Girl-Neon Philharmonic,    Love (Can Make You Happy)-Mercy, and  Black Pearl-Sonny Charles & the Checkmates.  The Beatles had one of the top songs with Get Back.  The Ventures were playing the theme from Hawaii Five-0,  Stand! by Sly and the Family Stone was a hit, and Glen Campbell was crossing over from Country with Where's The Playground Susie?  It seems like only yesterday when those songs were new on the radio and playing as I farmed the linoleum floor with my toy tractors.

This Saturday night on WRCO FM 100.9 I will be honored to play some of those 1969 gems along with your rock and roll requests.  We will be attempting to stump you with our favorite trivia questions.  Make sure during this holiday weekend that you remember to listen to 100.9 FM and wrco.com.  Perhaps request a song and enjoy radio like it used to be.

Our family had a huge loss this week when my mother Rose Mary Nee passed away.  I not only lost my dear mother, but WRCOs' best listener.  She never turned her radio off or changed the dial.  Even in her last days, the radio was playing by her bedside to comfort her.  Since a lot of my vinyl collection has been converted to digital to use on the radio, I still play a lot of songs that were purchased back in the day.  My mom gave me money which I used to support my vinyl record habit. She even bought me some for good behavior!   When you listen to my Those Were The Days radio show Saturday night, you may just hear a few that my mama bought me!  I miss her very much.  I hope she is in heaven dancing with dad to the radio.

Phil

During 2022 we will on occassion go back fifty years and remember the hits and stories of 1972.  Saturday night during our Those Were The Days radio show we will recall the hits during Spring of '72.  I was a child prodigy of the radio and could name most Top Forty hits after hearing just a few notes, and could tell you the frequencies of the AM stations that were playing the latest songs.  Public schools let students out for the Summer sooner than they do now.  By this time in the month of May, I was settling in for a Summer of farming and surfing (the radio dial). There was nothing better than a black cherry popsicle (with 2 sticks),  a swim in the Willow Creek,  a trip to Richland Center to check out the latest 45's,  a visit to Gus's Gas Station for a Mallow Cup and a Hillbilly brand grape pop, or a nice day at the old farm house as I played records on our portable record player on the porch.  Some of my favorite songs from the Spring of 1972 include:  Run, Run, Run- Jo Jo Gunne,  Family Of Man-Three Dog Night,  Doctor My Eyes-Jackson Browne,  Oh Girl-Chi-Lites, It's Going To Take Some Time-Carpenters,  I'll Take You There-Staple Singers,  Baby Blue-Badfinger,  Rocket Man-Elton John, Too Late To Turn Back Now-Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose,  and You Could Have Been A Lady-April Wine.

We continue to hear from listeners that listen to our Saturday night stream here at wrco.com.  Last week we had a request from Seattle, Washington!  We will be spinning all of the hits from the fifties through the eighties between six and midnight.  When you hear the 'Magic Cowbell' take the trivia challenge and win from our awesome sponsors.  Those Were The Days will be live and local again Saturday night between six and midnight.  I hope to hear from you.

Phil

Tommy Roe has been a long time friend of WRCO and Those Were The Days.  The station played his 60's songs when they were brand new.  Tommy was a featured performer at a show we hosted at Richland Center High School back in 2005 along with Bobby Vee and the Crickets (what a show it was). His song 'Sweet Pea' was the song my daughter and I used for the dad-daughter dance at her wedding.  It was her favorite song when she was a little girl and I used to play it on the radio for her.   He has been my phone guest several times and will join me again this Saturday night to talk about his new music project and a new major label record deal.  Tommy Roe turned eighty this past week and his new song is called '80'.  We will give his tunes the spotlight during our retro Saturday on FM 100.9 and wrco.com.

Back in the school days, we would get out of school for the Summer around the middle of May.  The fun would begin and music was always a big part of it when I was a 'wee Nee'.  The radio was always on and the songs of Spring and Summer still take me back to those care free days.  I bought a radio that bolted on my bike handlebars and it worked okay until you rode under a powerline or were near an electric fence.  We had an old tube radio in the barn that took about 2 minutes to warm up before it would come on blaring.  That is where I heard many songs that I still love.  It was only an AM radio so we had 1450 (WRCO AM) tuned in.  When my dad wasn't around or not paying attention, I would tune it slightly to 1400 (WISM) out of Madison.  They had a great playlist of top tunes and songs that were only big in the Badger State. The old truck radio could tune in far off signals at night and sometimes I would sit in the cab and try to find the station that was farthest from my home in rural Richland Center.  I used to dream about playing those same songs on my radio show.  That is what I have been doing since 1986!  Join me for trivia, 50's thru 80's music and special guest Tommy Roe Saturday night between six and midnight on WRCO FM 100.9 and wrco.com.

:Phil

During our Saturday night program on FM 100.9 and wrco.com, we will remember our moms.  I am very fortunate to still have my mom in my life.  She was a teacher in a one room school.   She was able to keep order for all 8 grades.  Years later when I was born, mom was already prepared to discipline me if she needed!  She realized my love of music and would use that to help my behavior.  Many of my 89 cent 45 records came from bribes to behave and get good grades,  take my bath, or get my hair cut with no fuss.  One time she even bought me the 3 record set 'Wings Over America'  by Paul McCartney and Wings when she realized that my allowance would not be able to afford such a purchase.  Mom has listened to the radio all her life and remembers the day that WRCO first signed on the air back in the fall of 1949 when she was a first year student at the Richland County Teachers College.  She still has the radio on 24/7 and even has listened to Those Were The Days for all of these years.  On the Saturday night show, I will play a few songs with mom or mama in the title including:  That's All Right Mama-Elvis,  Mama Told Me Not To Come-Three Dog Night,  Mamma Mia-ABBA,  Mama Can't Buy You Love-Elton John,  Mother In Law-Ernie K. Doe, Mothers Little Helper-Rolling Stones, and I'll Always Love My Mama-Intruders. 

You will be able to request anything that fits the format of fifties through the eighties rock and roll.  I still get new songs and new country requested every week.  Those Were The Days has been on the air since 1986 and we have never strayed from classic Top 40 and rock format.  Not that those other songs are not good, it is just that Saturday night is the time to shine a light on tunes that we can only play once a week.  Perhaps you will win one of our six trivia prizes Saturday night between six and midnight. Win one for your mama.  Happy Mothers Day weekend.

Phil                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

We will fly back to 1973 this Saturday night during Those Were The Days radio show on WRCO FM 100.9 and wrco.com.  This is still one of my favorite years for Top 40 music.  There were plenty of stinkers on the charts, however, the good tunes out weighed the bad.  Some of my faves from the Spring of '73 include:  Daniel-Elton John,  Stir It Up-Johnny Nash,  Stuck In The Middle With You-Stealers Wheel,  Drift Away-Dobie Gray,  Little Willy-The Sweet,  Back When My Hair Was Short-Gunhill Road,  The Cisco Kid-War,  Frankenstein-Edgar Winter Group,  Hocus Pocus-Focus,  and Reelin In The Years-Steely Dan.  What a great time it was to listen to the radio! Back than  I was scanning the dial every night before bed time to hear the latest songs. I would save up my 89 cents so that I could walk downtown in Richland Center and buy a 45.  It was my hope that I could get to Saffell's or Shultz Brothers (the dime store), find my record,  avoid getting  beat up by some Richland Center ruffians, and get back to Keegan Mill before my dad was ready to head home with freshly ground feed for the cattle.  The many obstacles were worth it.  When I would arrive home, I would put my new record on the turntable and listen to it several times.  Once in a while I would be sad when the record skipped.  It was than that I would pull out a couple of nickles for tone arm weight so that my new record would play like it did on the radio.  I will be taking your requests Saturday night for the best of the fiftes through the eighties tunes. My two nickles will be handy just in case the record skips!  Listen and win some fun prizes during our trivia excursions each hour between six and midnight.

April 30th would have been Bobby Vee's birthday.  He was a good friend of Those Were The Days and joined us by phone several times over the years.  We will remember him during our six hour rock and roll tribute show Saturday night.  We will also share memories on Kent Kotal's Forgottenhits.com.  Check that out Saturday and than join me for some old school radio on FM 100.9 and wrco.com.

Phil