Kiss Kobe - 4 Cuts for WLYF Miami

Perfect Music Holiday - 4 Cuts For WLYF Miami

If you've scrolled down this far, you deserve to hear the worst. All of 16 years old, this is from my first day on the air at Baltimore's thousand-watt daytime soul oldies station. (They actually asked me back for a second day.)

WSID • Baltimore, Md. • Afternoon Newscast • Aug 30 1979

The music was that weird 'new wave' stuff I had no desire to program -- so I moved quickly through the operations and technical hierarchy instead.  Every so often, they let me drive the bus.  Here's a sample of WNUR's annual retro 'Flashback Weekend' as well as a few breaks from a more mellow morning show.

WNUR • Evanston, Ill. • Flashback Weekend & Morning Aircheck • 1982

I've been fortunate to have worked for PD's who were either desperate or deaf. How else can you explain putting this kid on the radio? (Gotta love that 'Baltimore O', hon.)

From weekends at WLPL, WYCR and WYST ... to overnights at WYEN, I've spent my career being tossed in the deep end. But I kept treading water and slowly started to improve. Then somebody thought it would be a good idea to have me sub in morning drive in D.C. (The entire airstaff must have had the flu that week.)

WLPL • 98YCR • 92 Star • Y107 • WASH • Aircheck Composite • 1980-85

When I went back to Northwestern in 1986, I discovered that the Communications Residential College's little carrier-current AM station was alive and well. I rejoined the staff and set out to serve as a model of contemporary hit radio for the students of CRC. (Mostly they made fun of me.) Talk about 'narrowcasting'!

WXLO • Evanston, Ill. • Overnight Aircheck • May 1986

Working the 'Third-Shifter Show' finally allowed me to break free of the rigid liner-card formatics I'd been brought up on. It was a pretty cushy gig; if need be, I could stroll in about 1:30 in the morning and be out the door by 5:31. I had a blast!

WUSN US99 • Chicago, Ill. • Overnight Aircheck • Sep 1986

Just before I departed Chicago for Memphis, I spent a week filling in for news anchor Al Sellers on the Deano Day morning show.

WUSN US99 • Chicago, Ill. • Morning News • Feb 1987

This station doesn't exist. It was a demo created from voicetracks I did for Scott Studios in Dallas. They needed a hot AC presentation for their automation system at the fall NAB Radio Show; I decided to assemble it into an 'aircheck'.

Rob Sidney

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