Hi Everybody! Just wanted to share some exciting news with you. Soosie
and I are in the process of re-locating to San Diego. After 30
wonderful years in Arizona I have landed a job with Jefferson-Pilot
Communications as Director of Engineering for their cluster of stations
here. KBZT is radio without borders and of course KSON is the heritage
Country station here. Also there is KiFM smooth jazz to watch the sun
set over the ocean. J-P isn't corporate radio like most groups. I'm
really lucky to be able to contribute to the accomplishments of so many
fine folks here. And hey,no more hot summers! What a great bonus. Surf's
up...

Wow! Thanx for the memories! I was doing a search on NYC radio stations
and recalled when I first moved to Tucson back in 78 and started to
listen to KWFM. The only dj's I could immediately recall from that time
were Dave LaRussa and Karen Stern. Thankfully, I found the site and was
able to go through everything again. PS: I still have the KWFM On the
Air album in my collection!

What ever happened to Streeet Pajama.  They were the best Tucson band
ever!  I have not heard Screwed Again in ages.  I remember seeing them
at The Embers, Westward Look, and I think a place on 1st Avenue called
Noni's.  That was way back in '82.  Mikey King was great and Merle was
just too cool.  If anyone remembers this great band email me at
choicekten at aol dot com.

Man, what memories this site brings back. I started listening to KW when
I was about 15, in 1976. The many great times that I associate with
listening to this station all come flooding back, Choo Choos, the Gran
Faloon Salloon, and just hangin' out with my buds....and somebody
always had an FM radio so we could party while we listened. Thanks for
a fantastic site.

Hello!

I am the "little sister" that Christy Price referred to in here in the
guest book. 

I wanted to thank you for this very cool web site.  I have had such a
great time listening to the "tune in" portion.   I am just going nuts
over this one.  Takes me back listening to the lost and found animals
and all the great Audio Emporium commercials.  We truly were two of the
most loyal fans and we were so sad when it ended.  Tucson radio has
never been the same.

I just did want to share with you... I found the actual album "Meet
Mississippi Charles Bevel" through Craig Moerer Records By Mail.  I
just received it the other day.  Now, I am totally in heaven.

I also found the original (long) version of Little River Band "It's a
Long Way There" on that site.  Of course, these are not out on CD's --
only vinyl.  Which is totally cool.

All my findings were thanks to your web site.  Looking through the play
lists really helped jog my memory of tunes I had nearly forgotton.  When
I started this mission, I knew I wanted "overheard" by Mississippi
Charles Bevel, however, I had no idea what the name of the album was or
that it was made by A & M--- so, with thanks to your web site, and me
doing more digging...after many years... I FOUND IT.  

You may want to sometime check out that Craig Moerer Records By Mail
web site, they have some very hard to find vinyl.  They may even have
another copy of the "Bevel" :)
 
Just wanted to say "thanks" and share my findings.
 
Sincerely,
Teresa Peterman
Long time fan of KWFM and native Tucsonan

I grew up in Tucson and had just got out of the Navy when KWFM went on
the air. Just before I left the Navy I made a quick trip to the
Exchange in Yokosuka Japan and came home with what was then a nearly
unheard of FM Tuner / Amp and killer speakers.  KWFM went on the air
soon after I arrived home and sounded great on my system.  The station
was informal enough in those days that if you called ahead the DJ's
would usually let you in the studio which at first was about the size
of a large phone booth.

Hello All; what a welcome site to see the call letters KWFM. My little
sister and I grew up in Tucson, rockin' to KWFM during the 70's, This
was the best station going. My little sister found your site, then
shared with me where you were on the web. We were also able to find an
artist that we have not been able to find anywhere else, by searching
thru your archives. Lo and Behold, we found the album by Mississippi
Charles Bevel, song title "Overheard" in Portland, Oregon and it is on
the way to our hot little hands.

It was great seeing all the DJ's and some of the old local bands names,
Dusty Chaps, Street Pajama. The old Stumble Inn, Choo Choo's, Ox Bow.
Great Stuff. My sister and I will spend hours on your site remembering
days gone by and songs that will never leave the heart.

Thanks for all your hard work, Christy

Christy Price
Tucson, Arizona

Tucson really lost a great radio station when the KWFM as we knew it
left us.  Bob, we love and miss you......  Radio just ain't the same
without ya.  Can't read that from a liner card!

Robert (Foster) Napier

Howdy and thanks for doing such a great job on your web site!  Many
great memories came flooding back.  I was very fortunate to have worked
with folks like Brian Miller, Jim Brady, Alan Browning, Bob Cooke, Bob
Bish and many more beginning in 1976.  Oh, do we have some stories to
tell when we all get together around a pitcher of margaritas?!  

I'm even luckier to still be friends with most of them today.  Our hair
has some grey in it, there are fewer of us still around and we now all
have real jobs.  But it is a rich experience to relive the crazy days
of life at KWFM before the Empire of the Formats took over....  Before
the dark times.  We were considerably more carefree back then.  

Thanks a megawatt!

Blake Williams
VBW Productions, Inc.

I was looking for Margie Rye and found your website...  My sister Toni
Nichols worked in the offices of KWFM until her death nearly three
years ago... the names I saw here were familiar from hearing her talk
about you all like "family"... I love Tucson, and still hope to move
back there one day...

KWFM was the ONLY station my big brother and I ever listened to in the
'70's and early 80's.  It was the greatest, and this web site has
brought back great memories of the station.  I remember one of the DJ's
doing a special segment where a disco record would be "put on trial"
(played) and then destroyed.  Would LOVE to hear that again!

Thanks for the memories,

Eric.

Great work you guys. How I miss this kind of taste. I'll always remember
my friends on that station and that period. Thanks for giving us this
reminder.

Bob

This site is fantastic!  It's a great tribute to the staff, the
listeners and to the Old Pueblo. KWFM was the best and a great part of
broadcasting history.  What a time we had, growing up in Tucson and
listening to KWFM.  The station was my inspiration to go to UofA, major
in Radio/Television and become a DJ/Announcer in the 80's and 90's. 
Those days of creative FM programming are gone forever but never
forgotten.  Party On!

Mike Kraushar, AKA Pete Michaels
FORMER DJ AT KLPX & KSTM "The Storm" in Phoenix

I stumbled onto this site doing a Google search. What a great find. This
brings back great memories. I was born and raised in Tucson and remember
the only radio that really existed then was AM top 20. FM was in its
infancy and had little to offer except 92.9. I remember having a KWFM
bumper sticker on my ’70 Mustang. My favorite Djs were Karen Stern
and of course Bob Cooke. Anyone remember the "Disco Dystrophy Kangaroo
Court"? Bob would select a worthy current disco record and put it on
trial. The inevitable verdict was death and he'd proceed to carry out
the sentence by smashing it to pieces. Classic and original radio. They
don't make radio like this anymore. Thanks for a great tribute.

Ahh...Tucson.  I can still remember listening to the great tunes in
Sabino Canyon with the smell of the creosote bushes in full bloom, and
a beer.  Love those days.  Thanks for the walk down memory lane.  Are
there any stations taking the place of this cultural icon?

PS...oops that's Tucson...forgive me for the mispellin

searching google for Nina Joy and came up with this website. I was lucky
enough to grow up in Phoenix and listen to underground radio the way it
should be...KDKB 93.3 FM and 1510 if you AM..as the firesign theatre
used to say during station ID's. never got to listen to Tuscon
radio...but heard Nina and the rest...they definately shaped my
listening styles...and I thank them for that. Nina had the Lost Gonzo's
on one evening and I got to request a couple of songs...I still have
that night on tape...1977ish ....

Hey Cats and Kitties.  I love this site.  As a former radio personality
in town, I have fond memories of your station, including Sunday night
Jazz.  Tucson needs a full-time jazz station again.  Long live the
"Great American Art Form."!

Awesome Website! Thanks for a Historical tour of Radio here in Tucson.
Working with Margie and some of the others I am certain we've only
heard the tip of the iceberg when it comes to some of the stories out
there of "the ole days" Thanks again for the site.

Bill,
I had dinner with Nina Joy many years (10?) ago. She was out of the
radio biz and working for American Express at the time. Lost track of
her after that.
I gave her a tape of the Open Forum Program the day after Bill Compon
passed away. E-mail me if you want a copy.
Eric

P.S.
    I still have one of the famous (infamous?) classic KDKB "Howdy!"
T-shirts. Does anyone else besides me remember them?!
         Bill

Hi, everyone, 
     I found this site while trying to locate any information on the
DJ, Nina Joy. Besides this station, she also was on the FM station
"KDKB" (The early, really cool format KDKB, not the commercial-format
station it later turned into) in Phoenix in the early '
1970's. Does anyone know whatever happened to Nina Joy...???
            Regards,
              Bill

What a trip ... this site takes me back to the Naked Pueblo ... the
Stumble Inn ... halter tops ... the best rock and roll station in the
world right there at 92.9.

I remember getting into an argument with the program director - Guy
Zapoleon, who's now a certified radio genius - when they put KRQQ on
the air.


He said Tucson in 1978 had the lowest FM penetration in the country
because FM was so bad. I argued that it was low because the only rock
station - KWFM- was too good for the masses. 

He looked at me like the populist simpleton that I was.

Hearing the Beatles station ID took me to the back seat of a Datsun
210, waking up one morning in at Gates Pass and listening to the
Beatles during a Tucson sunrise....

Nicely done!

[I have several hours of reel-to-reel tape of the KWFM jazz show -
which I loved - from the late '70s. Pls e-mail me if you want a dub...]

Far out, truly wild. Hearing the Beatles ID again brought me back to 19.


Hey - I have HOURS of the Sunday night KWFM Jazz Show on fairly good
stereo 3-1/4 inch tape. How do we upload this analog stuff?

Hey, you folks got my name all wrong!  It all started back in 1976 at
KIKX 580, .........KWFM .....  KLPX ..... KKLD .....KUPD ..... KDKB
....  England .. Guam ... and the saga continues!

Hi, 
A great site. Thank You

I'm still a close friend of Jane Snyder and know Perk pretty well.  I
used to hang at KWFM with Janie in the good ole days and remember
several live interviews that took place at the board.  What great
memories.  (I'm not saying anything here Janie!)  It was a tribute to
Jane that years after, when she would visit Tucson and the station
would give her courtesy air time, guys would still send her roses and
chocolates.  We remember her airtime well.  What a good time we all had
in those years.  KWFM was the only radio station worth listening to
then.  I moved here in 1972 and met Janie that first month.  What good
fortune.  Thanks Lee and everyone else for putting this together.  I
look forward to more photos and some stories.

Helen Gaus

Dear Old Real Radio Hounds,

	Imagine my surprise….. KWFM certainly lives in my head and heart,
and I’m happy to see all the aged expatriates writing in to confirm
that they have not been swallowed-up by what now passes for commercial
radio. Since my mother was the first female newscaster in New Mexico
(in, I believe, 1938) I have a small bit of family investment in the
free airwaves.  Mom would like that New Times picture of me too… all
that hair….

	It is of course crucial to add some names to the employee list. Those
of us in the Public Affairs Department in 1974 (ok, that means me) were
busy recording news-maker and rocker interviews for the show entitled
“Love News Confusion,” an original creation by Dick Hermans whom I
replaced.  My personal favorite interview exists now as a CD: a killer
discussion with John McLaughlin, who presented a number of stunning
insights into his spiritual and musical paths.  Forgive me but the
interviews with Ravi Shankar, Howard Baker, John Mayall, and Cheech and
Chong (recorded at the still-standing El Minuto after their show) have
long disappeared into tape-dust.

	I am indebted to many of you for an era of very creative effort, and
my final hurrah in public media.  The experience drove me to become a
psychotherapist, where I still work with crazed individuals but now
make more than $40 a week.  

	*thanks to those guys in the next-door Spanish radio station for
calling me “Pescado” whenever they saw me
	*thanks to Matt Seigel for demonstrating that a music segue could
literally provoke an altered state of consciousness 
	*thanks to Lee Dombroski for selling advertising so that I could spend
eight hours generating thirty minutes of taped music and interviews
	*thanks to Janey Snyder for being the brilliant station on-air female
presence and for playing Allman Brother’s “Blue Sky” every time I
phoned in the request…

	Let’s quit our day jobs and start up again!  I’m ready!

Perk Clark

Where else in 1970 could anyone hear songs like "The Legend of the USS
Titanic" by Jaime Brockett but KWFM?  Or anything by King Crimson? Or
"Layla" coming from a cheap FM radio purchased at AMA? Or Hot Tuna's
"Water Song" played at sunset from a backyard patio on a steamy,
post-monsoon-rain summer day?

But I digress. My yellow Datsun wore the stripey KWFM bumper sticker
until the sun bleached it white. Were there any other stations then? Oh
yeah: KTKT. Pop. Shrimp.

Y'all have your memories, I have mine. KWFM was there for so many of
them. Thanks to all.

I came to town in 1980:  worked at KIKX, KCUB, and KCEE...listened to
KWFM.  When I heard that "we" (Behan Broadcasting) had purchased KWFM,
I was hoping for a shot at a shift.  I got one...AFTER the format had
changed.  Be careful what you wish for...