Tom Donahue’s Sideline As a Record Producer

The pioneer of progressive rock on the radio was also a producer in sixties San Francisco, during his Top 40 days.

by Rich Watson 

Tom Donahue, the San Francisco deejay who created a revolution in rock and roll radio through the progressive, or freeform, format, also helped develop the local music scene during the sixties as a record producer.

The bands he signed paved the way for the musical explosion in the Bay Area during the Summer of Love and beyond.

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Scott Muni, Hostage Negotiator

In 1975, a gunman holding hostages called veteran FM disc jockey Scott Muni on the air. How did he handle the situation?

by Rich Watson 

Scott Muni was an institution in rock and roll radio. He was there when the Beatles arrived in America. He was one of the first “progressive rock” New York deejays, favoring long-form album tracks over singles. And he was the heart of one of the best-known “classic rock” radio stations in history.

One thing he isn’t as remembered for, though, is the time in 1975 when he was forced to negotiate on the air for the lives of hostages, held by a fan.

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The Link Between Murray the K and the Beatles Was the Ronettes

Swingin’ Murray the K might not have met the Fab Four when he did were it not for the Ronettes, a new vocal group who came along at the right time.

by Rich Watson 

New York deejay Murray Kaufman, AKA Murray the K, was one of the first to support the Beatles when they came to America in 1964. 

He had broadcast from the hotel they stayed in before their appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. He joined them at the start of their US concert tour and was on the set of their movie A Hard Day’s Night, among other things. George Harrison christened him “the fifth Beatle.”

A different pop group facilitated their meeting, one that in their way, went on to become almost as influential in music history: the vocal trio known as the Ronettes.

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