top-40 in 1957

[Donna Halper]

On 5/31/2014 2:17 PM, Kevin Vahey wrote:
> I remember Bob Clayton from the early 60's when he hosted Boston 
> Ballroom on WHDH and also did a TV show on Channel 5.
>
> I would be shocked if Clayton could have played that as again in those 
> years WHDH was a strict MOR format except overnight when they let Norm 
> Nathan do as he pleased.

Clayton had a lot of freedom in the 1950s-- his show often featured pop 
and top-40 hits that he recommended and then reported to the newspapers. 
In fact, Newsweek magazine named him one of the five most influential 
DJs in the country and I believe he even made a guest appearance on 
American Bandstand.  I agree that WHDH had a Middle of the Road format, 
but my recollection of Clayton and "Boston Ballroom" is that while he 
personally did not like top-40, he liked being an influential DJ, so he 
played certain top-40 songs he believed in, as long as they weren't too 
raucous.