WKNR DETROIT TOP 13 KEENER HITS: THIS WEEK IN 1967!


Frankie Valli * WKNR * No. 01



David Allen & The Arrows * WKNR * No. 02


The Music Explosion * WKNR * No. 03


Scott McKenzie * WKNR * No. 04


The Association * WKNR * No. 05


Dionne Warwick * WKNR * No. 06


The Jefferson Airplane * WKNR * No. 07


Spanky & Our Gang * WKNR * No. 08


J. J. Barnes * WKNR * No. 09


The Doors * WKNR * No. 10


The Intruders * WKNR * No. 11


Stevie Wonder * WKNR * No. 12


The Fantastic Four * WKNR * No. 13



WKNR KEENER TOP 13

JUNE 12, 1967


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The WKNR TOP 13 featured singles were selected in order (1-13) for your listening enjoyment here.



A SPECIAL THANK YOU

In Memory of George Griggs

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Above WKNR music chart courtesy of Mrs. Patty Griggs and the George L. Griggs estate.



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A 1965 DETROIT WKNR RADIO NEWSPAPER FLASHBACK

DetroitFreePressDetroit_Free_Press_Sun__May_30__1965_WKNR_Scott_Regen_(mcrfb)


Sunday, May 30, 1965

A DETROIT RADIO BACK-PAGE

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DETROIT FREE PRESS: WKNR-AM ‘Scott Regen, A Robbin No More’

Missed any of our previous ‘Detroit Radio Back-Pages‘ features on MCRFB.COM? GO HERE.

(Above WKNR article is courtesy freep.com newspaper archive. Copyright 2016. Newspapers.com).

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MCRFB.COM Detroit Radio Back Pages

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WKNR LOOKS TO A NEW LIFE . . . MAY 9, 1970

Motor City Radio Flashbacks logo (MCRFB)From the MCRFB NEWS archive: 1970

WKNR Sets News Sights on Like-minded Creative Personalities; Communicate ‘Newer’ Music Format, Regain Station Appeal,  Audience 

 

 


 

 

DETROIT — WKNR, once a powerhouse Top 40 station here, begins the long road back Monday (May 4) with a “personality” concept, a tight playlist, and a new set of jingles that PAMS intends to market under the name “The Sherwood Series,” after the new WKNR national program director.

WKNR May 19, 1970
WKNR May 19, 1970 (click on image 2x for largest detailed view)

The new image of the station is being guided by general manager Frank Maruca: Lee Sherwood, who has become national program director of the budding chain that recently purchased WKNR; and WKNR program director Skip Broussard.

WKNR was, several years ago, the No. 1 young adult station in the market, then lost out to CKLW, a Drake -consulted station. Now, however, CKLW is having to trend more toward a Canadian audience in spite of the fact its signal booms into several major U.S. cities. There had been rumors that WCAR might go rock, but these have failed to materialize and the station is still easy listening in nature.

To fill the gap being created, Lee Sherwood and Skip Broussard hope to develop “a new kind of Top 40 radio.”

The playlist will vary in length-sometimes as long as 38 records. “This is not a lot of records, as compared to the old days of Top 40 radio, but it’s a substantial list for a major market radio station of today,” Sherwood said. “WKNR will, however, be a little more favorable to new records than it has been in the past. In fact, by the second week we’ve been on the air with our new motif, we will have totally wiped out the bad image this station has had so long.

Ron Sherwood, music director, will be listening to all new product, along with Skip Broussard. Broussard has already installed the same research techniques he used in Knoxville and had initiated in Memphis – not just finding out what records are being sold in Detroit, but who’s buying them.

As for the deejays, WKNR will ask them “to use their brains,” Sherwood said. “The time has come . . when we’re in the business of communicating, but no one is. I’ve listened to many, many tapes in recent weeks, but none of the deejays have been able to say anything. Within the framework of the format, there will be times when the WKNR air personality will be encouraged to communicate with the audience.”

The key factor with creating the new image of the station, Sherwood felt, will be the new jingles. “The jingles hasn’t changed since it was introduced on radio -it’s featured a big band sound or a jazz -favored small band. Bill Drake came along and wanted to get more music on the air, so he exploited the acapella jingle; you never had to change them.

“But I got to looking around and I noticed what advertisers were doing. They create a ‘feeling’ for a product as well as selling it.” He referred to the “think young” concept of Pepsi and the “real thing” concept of Coke. “The jingles I’ve just cut at PAMS are similar . . . they’re a life-style. You’ll get a feeling of our station like no other station has ever tried to establish, a certain charisma, an instant emotion response,” he said.

One of the lyrics of the jingles reads: “You’ll never be lonely again – WKNR.”

“When has any radio station told that to a listener?” Sherwood asked. “I think these jingles will revolutionize the radio industry.”

WKNR has been tightening up the basics over the past weeks, he said. “May 4 just heralds the frosting on the cake.”

Select Records

Air personalities are being allowed to select their own records from a basic playlist. Guidelines prevent the playing of two records back-to-back by females,
two soul records, two bubblegum records.

The main drive at WKNR will be to establish something different and refreshing and good. Sherwood was pretty dejected with radio in general. “There are not more than a dozen good stations around the country. We’re one of the few industries who don’t have an art form … there should be art form in radio, but there’s not.

“I hope we can encourage young people to come along and create. This stealing from each other has got to stop. Every station sounds just like another radio station. It sure saves a lot of trouble stealing programming ideas and promotions from somewhere else . . .  but it doesn’t help our business. There must be a hundred Somebody W. Morgans in the nation…. I’ve heard more Don Steeles than you could believe. It’s crazy that stealing stations would even steal the names.” END

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Information and news source: Billboard; May 9, 1970

 


WKNR Ron Sherwood 1970

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SCOTT W. HOSTS THE WKNR KEENER13.COM PODCAST!

WKNR Keener 13 Scott W Podcast (MCRFB2) Obie Benson 4 TopsTHE KEENER PODCAST: OBIE BENSON CELEBRATED with the FOUR TOPS

Keener13.com website logo.(Click on above WKNR bumper sticker for largest detailed PC view)


THE KEENER PODCAST: JULY 4, 2005

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WE CELEBRATE THE LIFE OF RENALDO OBIE BENSON with a Four Tops tribute. From their first Chess Records release to the number one hit Obie penned that became one of Rolling Stones top recordings of the rock era, we’ll hear a ton of Tops and learn a bit of history about one of Motown’s greatest success stories. — c. SCOTT WESTERMAN, KEENER13.COM

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MCRFB.COM Logo (2)

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A 1963 DETROIT WKNR RADIO NEWSPAPER FLASHBACK

DetroitFreePressDetroit_Free_Press_Sun__Nov_3__1963_WKNR_All_Hits_Ad_(mcrfb)

Sunday, November 03, 1963

A DETROIT RADIO BACK-PAGE AD

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A NEW FEATURE ON MOTOR CITY RADIO FLASHBACKS!

DETROIT FREE PRESS: NEW RADIO WKNR KEENER 13

(Above ad courtesy freep.com newspapers archive. Copyright 2016; Newspapers.com).


Missed the previous ‘Detroit Radio Back-Pages’ features? GO HERE.


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KEENER 13! BOB GREEN RECALLS THE MOTOWN SOUND

WKNR Keener 13 Bumper Sticker (The Motown Sound)

BOB GREEN REMEMBERS * Detroit Motown Sound * BOB GREEN PRODUCTIONS 2010


A MCRFB NOTE

A special THANK YOU goes out to Bob Green for sharing this special WKNR Motown memory with Motor City Radio Flashbacks. WKNR’s Scott Regen reflects on his Motown recollections here as well.

Having never aired, this exclusive Bob Green production segment was intended for broadcast/airing during the ‘WOMC 104.3 Detroit Radio Reunion‘ in 2010. (Click on above image 2x for largest view)




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