I Was Shocked

I grew up in range of Los Angeles radio. It was such a huge market that it could support whole radio stations that catered to various fractions of that market. It had two major album oriented rock stations KLOS and KMET. There was at least one station each of oldies (50s), country, soft rock, jazz, soul, disco, more mainstream pop. In fact, at that time there were probably half a dozen stations that played some kind of mainstream pop and/or disco. By 1980 there was an entire station dedicated to new wave (KROQ). And then there was my local college station, AM at the time, where I would hear an amazing array of obscure music.

Late at night it got even less structured. Dr. Demento, where Weird Al got his start, started on a station in Pasadena. There were shows that played whole album sides or dug up the least known songs of popular bands. Although it was extremely unlikely you'd get your local band on a commercial station, it was still a big wide open world of music. And if you listened to rock radio all day like I did, you would hear Stairway once or twice and probably four or five other Zep songs.
 
I grew up in the Washington, D.C. - Maryland - Virginia area in the 60s-70s. We had two major radio stations which played all the top 40/100 (WPGC & WEAM). In that era you could expect to hear pretty much any style of music on either of those. As I recall, Led Zep's Whole Lotta Love got a lot of daily airplay.. then when Stairway arrived that seemed to play at least once every hour all day - and that song did not go away for a long time.

My personal tastes ran towards all the 'pop' rock (which included psychedelic) and anything Motown - Motown hits were huge.
 
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I grew up in range of Los Angeles radio. It was such a huge market that it could support whole radio stations that catered to various fractions of that market. It had two major album oriented rock stations KLOS and KMET. There was at least one station each of oldies (50s), country, soft rock, jazz, soul, disco, more mainstream pop. In fact, at that time there were probably half a dozen stations that played some kind of mainstream pop and/or disco. By 1980 there was an entire station dedicated to new wave (KROQ). And then there was my local college station, AM at the time, where I would hear an amazing array of obscure music.

Late at night it got even less structured. Dr. Demento, where Weird Al got his start, started on a station in Pasadena. There were shows that played whole album sides or dug up the least known songs of popular bands. Although it was extremely unlikely you'd get your local band on a commercial station, it was still a big wide open world of music. And if you listened to rock radio all day like I did, you would hear Stairway once or twice and probably four or five other Zep songs.

Yep like you I lived that LA experience...KPPC ( Pasadena city college radio back then) with Dr. John the night tripper....Where I first heard Black Ju Ju in 69 my first introduction to Alice Cooper. And KROQ was so cool in the early days mid 70's with the insane Daryl Wayne at the helm..Poorman , Jed the fish Once got to go down there and party with Daryl and Jed cause we bought some air time for our Hollywood Palladium concert. Dr. Dimento dead puppies aren't much fun.... Alan Watts getting to talk his talk....wild

Dems was crazy daze in LA...
 
The 70's-80's in Louisville, KY. WLRS 102. These guys would play complete albums comercial free at midnight, would have a time slot for "Deep Cuts'. You would hear Stevie Wonder, then Ted Nugent, Steve Winwood, Billie Preston, etc. I think the only criteria they had, the music had to be trying to raise the bar, trying to make great music. But their play list was all over the place.

Thanks to that radio station, I have a more open mind about music. Good is good and f' a bunch of genre labeling.
 
The 70's-80's in Louisville, KY. WLRS 102. These guys would play complete albums comercial free at midnight, would have a time slot for "Deep Cuts'. You would hear Stevie Wonder, then Ted Nugent, Steve Winwood, Billie Preston, etc. I think the only criteria they had, the music had to be trying to raise the bar, trying to make great music. But their play list was all over the place.

Thanks to that radio station, I have a more open mind about music. Good is good and f' a bunch of genre labeling.

Do you remember 105.5 FM WSAC Ft Knox? They would do the really low key "FM radio" thing in the evening after being top 40 during the day. Even WKLO AM did their "Underground" show at midnight on Fridays around 69-70.
 
Possibly but even when I was a teen we had zero interest in dinosaur's from the 60's. Music moves on. If it wasn't for another band releasing 'stairway to heaven' in 85 (very good version), most people would know nothing of it or them. To most people they were just 'another' 60's band' like Creme, The Move, Small Faces etc.

That's why I consider myself extremely lucky. My mom listened to swing to rock and roll, and my dad was straight up country. There's something worthwhile in all forms of music. I hated disco, can't stand hip hop, and find speed punk/metal awful. But, there's still songs that transcend the genres.

I listened to the version of Stairway you put up. It blows pretty bad. The only person I've heard that covered it and did something worthwhile is Dolly Parton. But, they released it for people to enjoy, just not me.

I have friends who find covers to be unlistenable. IMO an artist has to make the song their own. Martina McBride has a wonderful voice. She recorded an album of covers. All great choices, and not one that she made her own. All just karaoke copies. I'll listen to the originals.

The Braids did a rap/hip hop version of Bohemian Rhapsody, that Queen fans find blasphemous. I love it. It's a completely original take on a classic.

American Pie is in my top ten all time favorite songs. If it comes on CD in the car and I'm parking, I'll sit there for the 7+ minutes till it's over (there's a US commercial that shows that. It's true.) To show I'm completely unprejudiced against any artist. I HATE Madonna. I find her completely untalented. She made a career selling sex and not music. She can barely sing. She covered American Pie. It's a great dance number. She made it her own.

The problem with both The Braids and Madonna, and most covers (listen to the awful covers on IF I WERE A CARPENTER), if the original HIT didn't exist, these cover versions would be absolute garbage.
 
Not in my memory. Stairway was just the most played, but we heard lots of Zep songs on the radio back before "classic" got added to the description of rock stations. Rock and Roll, Black Dog, Kashmir, The Ocean, Nobody's Fault But Mine, Babe I'm Gonna Leave You, Bring It On Home, Communication Breakdown, Dancing Days, Heartbreaker and quite a few others were all over the radio. Even All My Love and Fool in the Rain got a ton of play.

Zeppelin became popular on FM. But, they weren't on AM which is where the hits were being played. On Long Island, there was really only one station that played some Zeppelin and that was WBAB. They still play them and everything from the 70s to 90s. But, if you speak to a Zep head, the really great songs were never played on radio. You wore out the records.

I had a group of great stations growing up. A few played oldies from Big Band to 60s. There was one that played all the HITS of the day. BAB played the rockers and I think it was WLIR (It changed after a time) that played the "modern" music of New Wave and Punk.
 
Do you remember 105.5 FM WSAC Ft Knox? They would do the really low key "FM radio" thing in the evening after being top 40 during the day. Even WKLO AM did their "Underground" show at midnight on Fridays around 69-70.

I was north of Louisville, I don't remember being able to receive anything from Knox. The only two stations I remember was WACKY and WLRS.
 
Here in my area, there are a couple of hit tunes from the 60's that get relatively frequent airplay (considering) : Mony Mony and Come Together. Trouble is.. they're both covers (Billy Idol & Aerosmith). The originals (Tommy James and the Shondells, and The Beatles) never get played in daytime radio. I say never because for many years I listened to daytime radio as I drove all over town each day in my job and that's what I heard.

Every time I hear one of these I think "Why don't they just play the friggin' original!? I mean, they're a radio station.. they must have access to them!"
 
I saw them in 1969 or early 1970, anyway it was my senior year in high school, at Roberts Stadium in Evansville Indiana. We had great floor seats and the tickets were only around $7.50 or so. It was a great and unforgettable concert, especially watching Bonzo playing "Moby Dick".
 
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