story about Portland Maine Top 40 History

[SteveOrdinetz]

  A. Joseph Ross wrote:

>As I recall, they changed their emphasis to sound a bit more 
>hippie-oriented than Top 40.  I
>seem to remember  a slogan "the human thing" or something from that 
>period, longer album
>cuts, etc., at some point.
>Or maybe that just lasted one ratings book.


Lasted a little longer than that, but not much.  IIRC they used that slogan 
in mid-late 1969 when Dick Summer was PD.  By the spring of 1970 they were 
back to straight-ahead top 40, so it must have bombed.  They tried it again 
a couple years later (1971) with John Garabedian as PD.  This time around 
it did somewhat better...I believe they came close to WRKO ratings-wise one 
book.  Fate, however intervened.  Mac Richmond died and his replacement 
canned Garabedian and dumped all/most of his innovations.  Interestingly, 
WRKO carried on the torch for a year or so with a somewhat album-oriented 
approach to top 40.  Roger Kirk no doubt can elaborate on that.