Kerry Lambert got his radio start in the mid 1970s at WKGN 1340. Working under PD Dr Al Adams, Kerry was Chris Lee on the air.

In 1976 WKGN had a format change from Top 40 to Album Rock and Kerry became Keith Lambert, manning the overnight show.

A few years later he became part of the new AOR format at WBIR-FM later rebranded as WIMZ. 

In the 80s Kerry's career grew enormously from PD to station manager at WIMZ.

Plucked away by WIVK owned Dick Broadcasting, Kerry headed to Birmingham, he's still there, and he was a key executive in that market with DBC, which was later purchased by Citadel.

National Radio Day (some groovy Ktown DJ fotos)...

 

 

Dan Bell hosted The Sunday Survey on WIVK for many years. Dan is still on the air weekday afternoons on Praise 96.3.

Dan is seen here with writer/singer Worley Max (McKinney) who took several songs to the top of the WIVK weekly survey.

"Coach McKinney" was a teacher and coach at Bearden Junior High and with his never-ending music passion he wrote, and recorded hit songs such as Don't Break Me Easy and How Long Will You Love Me This Time. In the late 80s the music city was calling so Worley packed up and planted his musical flag in Nashville. He's still writing and performing these days.

HBD to Mike Beach

Did you know...Mike was the teenage News Director at WIVK, and he was the one who hired Mike Hammond!

Check out his current radio world at Global Radio Daytona.

It's 1941 in Ktown...

 

WROL Knoxville

In 1930 Knoxville radio station WNBJ became WROL at 1310 on the AM dial.

Fast forward to early 1941 and the station moved down the left dial to 620.

The station became WATE 620 in the mid 1950s, and WROL calls vanished.

However, in 1960 Sam Thrower created a new station, WROL 1490.

Most are aware that WROL added the W-149 moniker and changed to an incredible album type format in 1971 led by Johnny Pirkle.

In 1976...15Q hit the airwaves for a one-year splash, and the calls were WKVQ.

WROL 950 Boston was hatched in 1978 as that group was unable to acquire their former WORL calls. 

Page 3...

Shout out to Monroe in the Morning, the Florida panhandle's #1 superjock! (aka Curtis Knight)

This was before CP and Walker who debuted on The New 62 WRJZ in late 1976!

Per our previous post CP noted that he spent some time in Birmingham at WAPI AM-FM.

Dick Broadcasting had a presence in B'ham in 1990s up until the family sold most of their stations to Citadel in April 2000. WZRR, WJOX, and WAPI were DBC owned and operated. 

Mooney was in B'ham too, in the early 70s with WERC AM-FM.

And I was there too, from 1987-1990 managing the Grady's Goodtimes at the Riverchase Galleria. I can attest; it's a great city. 

Did you work in Birmingham? Shoutout to Kerry Lambert who resides there to this day!

Where were you?

Trumpville recently celebrated year 250...so where were you 50 quick years ago?

George...I had exited WKGN in August of '70, spent a year at WKRC Cincinnati, then gone to WKIS Orlando before rejoining Mooney Broadcasting as news director of WMAK in Nashville.  I was there for the bicentennial. I celebrate the semiquincentennial in the woods of Chatham County. Funny, haven't heard anyone use that term. Had to look it up myself. Happy 4th! (Possum Riley)

In 1976, I had just moved back to Knoxville from Birmingham where I had been doing mornings at WAPI AM-FM. I had just started doing mornings again at WETE while awaiting the sale that would turn it into WRJZ. (Curtis Parham)

Page 3...

Condolences to Bob Thomas and family who lost Mom recently at the beautiful age of 97. May her memory be eternal.

Happy Birthday America

It's July 4, 1976, and I recorded this entry in my journal. I was also a brand new 18-year-old DJ cutting my radio teeth at WBLC 1360 Lenoir City. 

What was happening in Ktown radio at that time?

Scott Sams exited 15Q to become production director at WNOX. Fred Brown joined 15Q at Scott's exit.

Afternoon DJs on the radio dial included Walker Johnson at WETE 620, Dick Winstead WNOX 990, Mike Beach WKGN 1340, Mike Beverly WOKI-FM 100, and Bobby Denton on WIVK AM/FM.

Down the street in Nashville, Wayne Bernard as Charlie Chase was afternoon drive at WSM 650. 

On Friday June 18...it was my morning drive debut as George Michael and Michael O'Shea hosted on WBLC 1360 that day. (me and Scott Sams) 

Paul Oscar Anderson with his magnificent voice and personality was heard on WNOX 990.

The Brothers were heard nightly from 11p-2a on 15Q. The original twosome was Alan Douglas and Gary Adkins.

Dr Al, Steve West, Eddy Roy, Claude Tomlinson, Bob Kaghan, Frank Erwin, JL Myers, Your Dave Young, Jean Ash, Mike Hammond, Jim Humphries, Bob Thomas, Ed Brantley, etc. were all beaming through the dial positions in Knoxville at America's 200 year birthday!

Where were you?

Hi George...since it's summer I remembered a promotion...I believe Johnny did at WNOX. This is one of the BEST I have ever heard of. He asked listeners to TAN the most creative "99 WNOX" on their bodies. I think the prize was a grand. Listeners improvised tape or whatever they could stick on their bodies...before hitting the sun! Hundreds, if not thousands of walking billboards started appearing at pools all over east Tennessee. What a promotion. The DARKER you got...the more the images stood out. People were really into it and yet another fantastic idea that came out of Johnny and the BIG 99. Amazingly creative. (Mike Beach)

It's a 101 Reload...

 

"Hey George....Jut wanted to set a part of the record straight. My first job at WIVK was news director. I replaced the great Norman Majors. Jim Dick hired me at the ripe old age of 19 years old. I found myself sitting across the hall from one of the men/legends I had listened to throughout my youth...Claude The Cat! It was great working with and learning from one of the best...not to mention seeing him switch between 3 characters (live) without missing a conversational beat! As ND at WIVK, I hired a young weekend anchor who was going to UT at the time...his name...Mike Hammond. One of my worst career moves was leaving WIVK to do afternoons on W-149! Of course at that time I was a young hippie destined to play on one of the few real rock and roll stations in the U.S. As they say...you can't cure stupid!!  LOL. My best to all for the holiday." (Mike Beach)