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Welcome Back!
To a time when rock and roll meant the Beatles, garage bands
and Motown, and a 5000 watt AM station in Dearborn, Michigan transformed Detroit
radio. Explore Keener13.com and celebrate the legend! |
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New 1970 Airchecks!
What's the ideal July 4th present for a Keenerfan? We got it when the red and green VU meter logo of Bob Green Productions graced our mailbox. The legendary WKNR production and progarmming ace found a box of cassettes in his vault that yielded these two 1970 Keener gems. There's this extended Bob Green aircheck that gives you a feel for the Keener vibe during it's second run for glory. The jingles are a mixture of Clyde and classic Keener jingles and an eclectic combination of current hits and WKNR gold. Bob's presentation is straight ahead, playin the hits personality. His encyclopedic knowledge of the hits is in evidence and he makes it look all too easy, even when a planned record doesn't want to play. Then we have Scott Regen, the night after R. Dean Taylor was his studio guest. Juxtapose this piece against his early Keener work and you'll instantly feel the evolution into a more mature, yet perfectly executed performance. This was radio that you could leave on all day. Even as the playlists tightened up, the personality kept us coming back for more.
The New Beach Boy Box Set
By Scott Westerman - Keener13.com Curator
 On June 10, Capitol released a box set with the Beach Boys US Singles from their 1962-1966 prime. This 66 track collection features both the A and B sides, the original mono mixes, stereo mixes and a ton of other goodies that we've come to expect with Beach Boy re-releases. It includes a 48 page hardbound book. Capitol has the new media marketing nailed too. The official Beach Boy website has a special section devoted to the box set that includes a flash player allowing you to listen to your favorite tune in it's original glorious mono format.
At Keener13.com, we have all the original Beach Boy singles on 45, every Beach Boy LP and just about every Capitol CD re-issue, including the first box set. Even though we haven't bought one music CD during the last year, we're headed to Borders to get this collection. The packaging and the aggregated content can't be duplicated on ITunes and the product is created with such attention to detail and class, that it will be well worth the investment.
I'm thinking about how carefully the Disney folks manage their brands. They study every possible marketing channel and have found ways to package their products in every conceivable format to maximize the customer value add and associated cash flow. As the RIAA and record companies lament mp3 sharing, packages like this are the way to regenerate interest and supercharge sales.
Laugh-In's Dick Martin Dies
From the AP: Dick Martin, the zany half of the comedy team whose "Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In" took television by storm in the 1960s, making stars of Goldie Hawn and Lily Tomlin and creating such national catch-phrases as "Sock it to me!" has died. He was 86.
The Originals
 Detroit had it's share. And if you were looking for rare records during the WKNR era, you looked for the so-called "used record stores" that were occasional fixtures in strip mall corners across the Motor City. As we evolve from LP to CD to MP3, most have faded into history. Across the way in East Lansing, Dick Rosemont had his own iteration, calling it "Flat, Black and Circular". Three decades later, he's still in business and his web presence is expanding to include a site that track down original recordings of popular and hit records. Here's keener13.com curator Scott Westerman's appreciation.
 More Keener13.com News
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Four Decades Later
The Keener Phenomenon Lives On
On Halloween night in 1963, Nellie Knorr changed the call
letters of her Dearborn radio station from WKMH to WKNR.. and made broadcasting
history. Over 40 years later the Keener Phenomenon lives on.
MORE
 The
Very First Keener Promo - Battle of the Giants
Pat
St. John's Tribute on Sirius
WKNR-FM The Roots of Underground Radio
Before WRIF put album cuts into a rotation, there was underground
radio. In Detroit, WABX and WKNR-FM helped pave the way for the next rock radio
revolution. During the summer of 1970, WKNR-FM's popularity was at it's peak.
Here's a trip back.
ALSO:
Keener Q&A
Keener LPs
Turn me on dead man
 Rolling
Stone Mag's 500 Greatest Songs
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