Symbolic Piece Of 60's BB's and Los Angeles History Torn Down

[guitarfool2002]

Link: http://ktla.com/2013/02/27/historic-radio-tower-demolished-2/#axzz2M8vjsAwp

This may not seem like much, yes it is more symbolic than anything at this point, but worth noting just the same.

This was the broadcast tower for radio station KHJ in Los Angeles. For those who either heard it back in the glory days of the mid to late 60's, or those who have heard what precious few hours of KHJ's recordings and airchecks exist from that time, KHJ was an incredibly good radio station, groundbreaking some would say, and I'd say without hesitation a big part of many people's experience growing up and loving music. The power of someone in their teens tuning in to those broadcasts and being inspired, influenced, or simply enjoying the music and the personalities playing those records cannot be underestimated.

It is a shared experience which barely exists today, even though the choices of outlets to find and hear music are infinite and the gratification of being able to navigate a few clicks of the mouse or a few taps of the screen has become almost instant. Something is lost in the modern process of delivering music to the public at large, even though the benefits of that instant gratification and unlimited choice would, some may say, outweigh the past.

The stories of people cruising the Sunset Strip on a warm night when all the car windows were rolled down, and you heard hundreds of cars tuned in and playing the bass-heavy KHJ, creating the swirling din and thump of all those speakers interacting with each other and filling the street with music, is the stuff that creates the mythology of that scene and that era. Naturally there is no way to relive that - AM top 40 radio is long-gone, as are the type of car radios and speakers that would bring it to life in that way and the way records were mixed to enhance and excite those cheap speakers. The closest approximation I can think of can be found in George Lucas' "American Graffitti", where in a smaller California town at night all of the kids cruising the main strip were tuned into Wolfman Jack spinning the hits, and creating that swirling, almost mystical sound of all the radios interacting.

KHJ and the Beach Boys, particularly Brian, were very much interconnected for a period of a few years. When KHJ first started their new format, around 1965 and under the helm of PD Ron Jacobs, Roger Christian had come on board as one of the featured DJ's, and through him Brian was approached about using his music for the station's first blast of promotions: Brian allowed the use of one of his songs to be rewritten and rerecorded (by Bruce and Terry) featuring all of the new "Boss Jocks" singing a verse to the track of Little Deuce Coupe, and it helped spread the word of the new station in town.

Soon KHJ would simply dominate the top 40 pop airwaves in LA, they had a fantastic bass-heavy sound, they had some of the best DJ's in the country, and their format was so well done that other stations would soon try to copy it nationwide, often by taping then studying KHJ's broadcast style for their own markets.

Brian himself, along with other notable producers and artists, would sometimes drop in to the KHJ studios with a new single literally "hot off the press", sometimes coming right after the mastering process, to give KHJ an exclusive preview of the record. They'd hand-deliver the disc, Jacobs would whisper "KHJ exclusive..." over it so no other stations could record then play it on their own airwaves, and the record would go out over the air through the likes of Don Steele, Robert W. Morgan, and the rest of the on-air personalities.

KHJ had an exclusive with Brian's "Good Vibrations", coming first as a premiere on KHJ's local televised dance program, then being spun with the Jacobs voiceover on the radio. Imagine the first time hearing a record like that - or any of Brian's new productions - as you're driving around at night, or waking up to go to school or work, or just hanging out with your close inanimate friend, that little transistor radio that fit in your pocket, tuned of course to 930 on the AM dial.

That's the power of radio, at least it was in older days: The connection, the sheer joy of listening, the feeling that the DJ was connected to his audience and spinning the records that *you* wanted to hear, and talking to you over the airwaves, no matter where or who you were. And the records, from 1965 to 1970, speak for themselves...In my opinion no music has ever captured and era and been so influential on popular culture in general as it was at that time. The perfect soundtrack for escapism, realism, or just pure fun...soon to be replaced by something else entirely.

"That's Why God Made The Radio" hints at that connection, as did "Magic Transistor Radio" decades before: There was something special about being a part of that, something - not to get overly sentimental - magical about the experience shared by millions. Even the great unknown of wondering what records would be played next added a mystique to the whole process.

A lot to say about an old radio tower some would consider an eyesore being torn down in favor of progress, or beautification, or whatever else...but imagine what kind of impact the radio signals which were broadcast from that tower had on so many people, and how important those broadcasts were as a source of joy and escapism, and the tower in a symbolic way meant more than it does as a giant metal structure that got torn down this past week.

The history of LA's pop culture explosion, along with that of the Beach Boys in the mid 60's, does owe a debt of gratitude to that old metal KHJ tower and the good vibes it helped to spread.

But, in 2013, Tina Delgado is still ALIVE! 

[Peter Reum]

All things must pass....

[Mikie]

KHJ - Kindness, Happiness, and Joy. 

From a technical perspective, why two towers? One for the AM and one for the FM transmitter? Twin transmission of power to make the signal stronger? One for the English and one for the Spanish station? Different transmitters sharing different radio stations?

[Ed Roach]

Jeez, how sad...  someone recently pointed out the several acres of undeveloped land that I guess the tower stood on.  He was involved in a development deal to build there, but some else got the property.  Hate to watch this city grow & change...

[guitarfool2002]

The date of this just hit me, one of my favorite pieces of audio is this KHJ aircheck of The Real Don Steele...Just imagine it was 46 years ago yesterday, Feb 27 1967, and this was just one hour or so of the kind of radio we'd be listening to in Los Angeles, on KHJ, being broadcast across Southern California via that tower which just got torn down:

REAL DON STEELE, KHJ LOS ANGELES, MON. FEBRUARY 27, 1967, 3 TO 6.
Shell spot
KHJ Jet-Set travel contest
- You Got To Me - Neil Diamond
Thom McAnn Monkee Boots spot
- Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye - The Casinos
Safeway spot
Funeral In Berlin movie spot
- Along Comes Mary - The Association
- It Takes Two - Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston
Chevrolet Camaro spot
- The Girl I Knew Somewhere (premiere broadcast) - The Monkees
Carnation Instant Breakfast spot
- Penny Lane (edit) - The Beatles
- Go Where You Want To Go (edit) - The Fifth Dimension
Pepsi Cola spot
- Happy Together - The Turtles
General Motors door lock spot
- This Is My Song - Petula Clark
- Can I Get A Witness - Marvin Gaye
- Happening Thing (edit) - Peanut Butter Conspiracy
Plymouth Barracuda spot
- Darling Be Home Soon - The Lovin Spoonful
Thrifty Drug spot
Chantilly Perfume spot
- Show Me - Joe Tex
Safeway spot
Volkswagen spot
- Ruby Tuesday - The Rolling Stones
- I Had Too Much To Dream (Last Night) - The Electric Prunes
Union Oil spot
KHJ Jet-Set travel contest
- Let’s Fall In Love (edit) - Peaches and Herb
Coca Cola spot with The Supremes
- She’s Looking Good (edit) - Rodger Collins
Thom McAnn Monkee Boots spot
- Woman (edit) - Peter And Gordon
- Ups And Downs - Paul Revere And The Raiders
Miller High Life spot
Von's Market spot
- Lady Day (edit)
- Dedicated To The One I Love (edit) - Mamas And Papas
- Epistle To Dippy (edit) - Donovan
Compoz sedative pill spot
KHJ Jet-Set travel contest
- Gimme Some Lovin (edit) - Spencer Davis Group
Coca Cola spot with The Supremes
- No Fair At All (edit) - The Association
Miller High Life spot
Volkswagen spot
- Do You Love Me (edit) - The Contours
- Happy Together - The Turtles

[Mikie]

Wasn't KHJ the radio station where Brian took Heroes & Villains to debut and the DJ Tom Maule said he couldn't play it 'cause it wasn't on the playlist?

[NHC]

Wasn't KHJ the radio station where Brian took Heroes & Villains to debut and the DJ Tom Maule said he couldn't play it 'cause it wasn't on the playlist?

If David Leaf and the others are correct, then yes, you are correct also.

[Ron]

I actually heard about this on Sirius earlier tonight.  A caller to the 60's channel mentioned it being torn down.  I'm not familiar with it, but I absolutely despise stuff like this.

One of my favorite radio stations is the mighty WSM AM channel out of Nashville, it's kind of like "THE" country channel, they started the grand ol' opry, etc.  I know that they really cherish their radio tower, it's 80 years old now.  They're very proud of it and actually have anniversary shows and things for the tower.

I work in a city, and own a 100 year old building in the downtown district.  In this city, they got the bright idea in the 70's that they had too many buildings around, so they tore down about 50 perecent of the buildings.  I mean things like movie theatres, historic hotels, they tore down almost the entire black side of downtown, all the historically black owned buildings destroyed, cool places like pool halls and things, all gone.  They replaced it all with parking lots and sh*t that nobody even uses.  It makes my blood boil.    They made stupid laws where any type of sign that's not a small square sign is outlawed, so all these neon signs that overhung the roads, and all these fashionable mid century metal signs were all removed.  Now everything looks plain as hell, it's a crime against nature.   People used to flock to downtown in the 50's, 60's, and 70's, but now the place is a ghost town.  

[Custom Machine]

Link: http://ktla.com/2013/02/27/historic-radio-tower-demolished-2/#axzz2M8vjsAwp

This may not seem like much, yes it is more symbolic than anything at this point, but worth noting just the same.

This was the broadcast tower for radio station KHJ in Los Angeles. For those who either heard it back in the glory days of the mid to late 60's, or those who have heard what precious few hours of KHJ's recordings and airchecks exist from that time, KHJ was an incredibly good radio station, groundbreaking some would say, and I'd say without hesitation a big part of many people's experience growing up and loving music. The power of someone in their teens tuning in to those broadcasts and being inspired, influenced, or simply enjoying the music and the personalities playing those records cannot be underestimated.

It is a shared experience which barely exists today, even though the choices of outlets to find and hear music are infinite and the gratification of being able to navigate a few clicks of the mouse or a few taps of the screen has become almost instant. Something is lost in the modern process of delivering music to the public at large, even though the benefits of that instant gratification and unlimited choice would, some may say, outweigh the past.

The stories of people cruising the Sunset Strip on a warm night when all the car windows were rolled down, and you heard hundreds of cars tuned in and playing the bass-heavy KHJ, creating the swirling din and thump of all those speakers interacting with each other and filling the street with music, is the stuff that creates the mythology of that scene and that era. Naturally there is no way to relive that - AM top 40 radio is long-gone, as are the type of car radios and speakers that would bring it to life in that way and the way records were mixed to enhance and excite those cheap speakers. The closest approximation I can think of can be found in George Lucas' "American Graffitti", where in a smaller California town at night all of the kids cruising the main strip were tuned into Wolfman Jack spinning the hits, and creating that swirling, almost mystical sound of all the radios interacting.

KHJ and the Beach Boys, particularly Brian, were very much interconnected for a period of a few years. When KHJ first started their new format, around 1965 and under the helm of PD Ron Jacobs, Roger Christian had come on board as one of the featured DJ's, and through him Brian was approached about using his music for the station's first blast of promotions: Brian allowed the use of one of his songs to be rewritten and rerecorded (by Bruce and Terry) featuring all of the new "Boss Jocks" singing a verse to the track of Little Deuce Coupe, and it helped spread the word of the new station in town.

Soon KHJ would simply dominate the top 40 pop airwaves in LA, they had a fantastic bass-heavy sound, they had some of the best DJ's in the country, and their format was so well done that other stations would soon try to copy it nationwide, often by taping then studying KHJ's broadcast style for their own markets.

Brian himself, along with other notable producers and artists, would sometimes drop in to the KHJ studios with a new single literally "hot off the press", sometimes coming right after the mastering process, to give KHJ an exclusive preview of the record. They'd hand-deliver the disc, Jacobs would whisper "KHJ exclusive..." over it so no other stations could record then play it on their own airwaves, and the record would go out over the air through the likes of Don Steele, Robert W. Morgan, and the rest of the on-air personalities.

KHJ had an exclusive with Brian's "Good Vibrations", coming first as a premiere on KHJ's local televised dance program, then being spun with the Jacobs voiceover on the radio. Imagine the first time hearing a record like that - or any of Brian's new productions - as you're driving around at night, or waking up to go to school or work, or just hanging out with your close inanimate friend, that little transistor radio that fit in your pocket, tuned of course to 930 on the AM dial.

That's the power of radio, at least it was in older days: The connection, the sheer joy of listening, the feeling that the DJ was connected to his audience and spinning the records that *you* wanted to hear, and talking to you over the airwaves, no matter where or who you were. And the records, from 1965 to 1970, speak for themselves...In my opinion no music has ever captured and era and been so influential on popular culture in general as it was at that time. The perfect soundtrack for escapism, realism, or just pure fun...soon to be replaced by something else entirely.

"That's Why God Made The Radio" hints at that connection, as did "Magic Transistor Radio" decades before: There was something special about being a part of that, something - not to get overly sentimental - magical about the experience shared by millions. Even the great unknown of wondering what records would be played next added a mystique to the whole process.

A lot to say about an old radio tower some would consider an eyesore being torn down in favor of progress, or beautification, or whatever else...but imagine what kind of impact the radio signals which were broadcast from that tower had on so many people, and how important those broadcasts were as a source of joy and escapism, and the tower in a symbolic way meant more than it does as a giant metal structure that got torn down this past week.

The history of LA's pop culture explosion, along with that of the Beach Boys in the mid 60's, does owe a debt of gratitude to that old metal KHJ tower and the good vibes it helped to spread.

But, in 2013, Tina Delgado is still ALIVE! 

Fabulous write up, Guitarfool!  You have totally captured the magic of listening to 93/KHJ in the mid to late sixties.

[Joshilyn Hoisington]

Jeez, how sad...  someone recently pointed out the several acres of undeveloped land that I guess the tower stood on.  He was involved in a development deal to build there, but some else got the property.  Hate to watch this city grow & change...

Isn't that just Los Angeles, though?  It's a city that has never had much respect for its own history.  That's not to say there's not a whole lot of great history left, but more than a lot of other places I've lived, the people seem to be oblivious to a lot of it.

[Custom Machine]

KHJ - Kindness, Happiness, and Joy. 

From a technical perspective, why two towers? One for the AM and one for the FM transmitter? Twin transmission of power to make the signal stronger? One for the English and one for the Spanish station? Different transmitters sharing different radio stations?

Only one of the two KHJ towers is used during the day (sunrise to sunset), broadcasting 5,000 watts in all directions.  At night AM signals can travel much father due to the the fact that in addition to the ground signal, the sky signal bounces off the nighttime ionosphere and returns to earth.  Many AM stations are thus required to either reduce power at night, go to a directional nighttime array, or both.  In KHJ's case, the nighttime power remains at 5,000 watts, but the second tower is used to direct the signal away from other stations in the US and Mexico on the same (930 KHz) or adjacent (920 and 940) frequencies in order to reduce nighttime interference.

For those senior members of this board, (and I am definitely one!), tuning the AM band at night provided many opportunities to pick up nighttime AM top 40 stations which could not be heard in a given location during the day.

[Iron Horse-Apples]

It is a shared experience which barely exists today, even though the choices of outlets to find and hear music are infinite and the gratification of being able to navigate a few clicks of the mouse or a few taps of the screen has become almost instant. Something is lost in the modern process of delivering music to the public at large, even though the benefits of that instant gratification and unlimited choice would, some may say, outweigh the past.

I quite agree, but can't help thinking exactly the same things were said when recorded sound began to replace the shared experience of buying sheet music for families  to stand round the piano singing. Just as in the not too distant future, when music is being pumped directly to the brain, bypassing the ear, people will mourn the simple pleasure of clicking a mouse and actually listening to music

Such practices have and will survive of course though, just as recorded sound will still reach out and influence people.

[LostArt]

Great post, GF2002!  I grew up in Wisconsin, so obviously I never heard KHJ back in the day, but I do remember my little blue transistor radio tuned in to WLS in Chicago, and hearing much of the same stuff as KHJ was playing.  I used to go out to my Dad's car at night, and listen to distant radio stations that could only be heard at night.  When the atmospheric conditions were just right, I could pick up KAAY from Little Rock, Ark.  Those were magical times for me.  Late at night, sitting in the dark except for the glow of the radio dial, listening to all this mind-blowing music mixed with the static and crackles and pops caused by some distant storm.  Great stuff.

The aircheck that you referenced sounds so good in my head.  I've found a site that has this and several other The Real Don Steele airchecks, and for $12 you can access them all (and many other stations) for a year.  Do you know of any sites that offer this type of thing for no fee?  Also, what does it mean when you list (edit) after a song?  

Thanks again.

[Custom Machine]

... I've found a site that has this and several other The Real Don Steele airchecks, and for $12 you can access them all (and many other stations) for a year.  Do you know of any sites that offer this type of thing for no fee?

Cool billboard!  Yes, free airchecks can be found on the net, but the site you are referencing, Reel Radio, http://www.reelradio.com, is totally worth $12 per year, as the airchecks are of far higher quality than most found on the net, they come complete with historical descriptions and comments, and new stuff is posted weekly.  Plus they are the only site of which I am aware that actually pays music royalty fees to the artists for streaming their content.

[Mikie]

KHJ - Kindness, Happiness, and Joy. 

From a technical perspective, why two towers? One for the AM and one for the FM transmitter? Twin transmission of power to make the signal stronger? One for the English and one for the Spanish station? Different transmitters sharing different radio stations?

Only one of the two KHJ towers is used during the day (sunrise to sunset), broadcasting 5,000 watts in all directions.  At night AM signals can travel much father due to the the fact that in addition to the ground signal, the sky signal bounces off the nighttime ionosphere and returns to earth.  Many AM stations are thus required to either reduce power at night, go to a directional nighttime array, or both.  In KHJ's case, the nighttime power remains at 5,000 watts, but the second tower is used to direct the signal away from other stations in the US and Mexico on the same (930 KHz) or adjacent (920 and 940) frequencies in order to reduce nighttime interference.

For those senior members of this board, (and I am definitely one!), tuning the AM band at night provided many opportunities to pick up nighttime AM top 40 stations which could not be heard in a given location during the day.

Thanks for that, CM!  Makes sense to me what the second tower was for.  And yes, at night, my Dad and I sometimes would listen to Dodger games on KFI in the 60's. Just like you guys down South may have listened to KGO in S.F. at night. There were a few......including XERB radio with Wolfman Jack, another strong one out Casper Wyoming, KSL, Salt Lake, WHO Des Moine, etc. KNX in L.A. is pretty strong too.
 
Are both KHJ towers gone now or did they leave one up?

[Custom Machine]

KHJ - Kindness, Happiness, and Joy. 

From a technical perspective, why two towers? One for the AM and one for the FM transmitter? Twin transmission of power to make the signal stronger? One for the English and one for the Spanish station? Different transmitters sharing different radio stations?

Only one of the two KHJ towers is used during the day (sunrise to sunset), broadcasting 5,000 watts in all directions.  At night AM signals can travel much father due to the the fact that in addition to the ground signal, the sky signal bounces off the nighttime ionosphere and returns to earth.  Many AM stations are thus required to either reduce power at night, go to a directional nighttime array, or both.  In KHJ's case, the nighttime power remains at 5,000 watts, but the second tower is used to direct the signal away from other stations in the US and Mexico on the same (930 KHz) or adjacent (920 and 940) frequencies in order to reduce nighttime interference.

For those senior members of this board, (and I am definitely one!), tuning the AM band at night provided many opportunities to pick up nighttime AM top 40 stations which could not be heard in a given location during the day.

Thanks for that, CM!  Makes sense to me what the second tower was for.  And yes, at night, my Dad and I sometimes would listen to Dodger games on KFI in the 60's. Just like you guys down South may have listened to KGO in S.F. at night. There were a few......including XERB radio with Wolfman Jack, another strong one out Casper Wyoming, KSL, Salt Lake, WHO Des Moine, etc. KNX in L.A. is pretty strong too.
 
Are both KHJ towers gone now or did they leave one up?

Both towers are gone.  KHJ, which has been broadcasting in Spanish for many years, now shares towers with KBLA (formerly KDAY), utilizing one tower of the six tower array for daytime broadcast and three for the night time (is the right time, it's starlight time ... oops, sorry, lost my head!) pattern.

Yeah, many of the SF Bay Area stations are heard well in So. Cal. at night, including KGO, which you mentioned, KNBR, and KCBS.  So we could easily hear Giants games with Russ Hodges, just as you were able to listen to the Dodgers from LA on KFI with Vin Scully.  Unfortunately, both of the main bay area top 40 AM stations, KFRC (a sister station to KHJ beginning in 1966) and KYA did not come in well in So. Cal.  But, as you mentioned, Wolfman Jack, on border blaster XERB 1090, was heard up and down the west coast at night.

[LostArt]

... I've found a site that has this and several other The Real Don Steele airchecks, and for $12 you can access them all (and many other stations) for a year.  Do you know of any sites that offer this type of thing for no fee?

Cool billboard!  Yes, free airchecks can be found on the net, but the site you are referencing, Reel Radio, http://www.reelradio.com, is totally worth $12 per year, as the airchecks are of far higher quality than most found on the net, they come complete with historical descriptions and comments, and new stuff is posted weekly.  Plus they are the only site of which I am aware that actually pays music royalty fees to the artists for streaming their content.

Thanks for that, Custom Machine!