Oral+History+Questions

1. **What was the most popular music of the time?** Other performers were Dee Dee Sharp, Chubby Checker, Elvis Presley, Nat King Cole, Ricky Nelson, Jimmy Dean, Bobby Darin and Brian Hyland. Brian had a song called “Sealed with a Kiss” and I must have played that terrible record 10 times a day. The early 60’s were the “happy days” era of music. Teenagers danced the twist, the stroll and the monkey.

2. **What was your favorite band in the 60’s?** My favorite band of the 60’s were the Rolling Stones. I was the master of ceremonies at one of their concerts in 1965. I also liked the McCoys who had a very big hit called “Hang on Sloopy”. I worked with them many times in Indiana. **3. How did the British Invasion affect music? ** By the time I moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana in 1964 The Beatles had been introduced and the British invasion began. They opened the doors to music from England and a good portion of the world.

4. **What was the most popular song when you were a Disk Jockey?** The top song in 1962 was the instrumental “Stranger on the Shore” by Acker Bilk.

5. **What was the most popular band when you were a Dick Jockey?** I think most people would name The Beatles as the most influential musicians of the 60’s. We listened to all kinds of music during that decade and to date, thousands have recorded tens of thousands of songs. However, the 60’s were the golden age of music and radio and The Beatles led the parade.

6. **What was different in the sound from music in the early 60’s to the late 60’s?** By 1965 music began to have a bit of an edge with musicians like The Byrds, James Brown, Bob Dylan, Rolling Stones, and Moody Blues.

7. **What was the biggest change in music from early to late 60’s?** The Viet Nam war began to influence the mood of music in 1966 with the number one song being “The Ballad of the Green Berets” by Sgt. Barry Sadler. My career continued in this year in Milwaukee at WOKY and the next years were quite turbulent with psychedelic and drug induced lyrics. It was Woodstock in 1969 and Kent State in 1970. The top song in 1970 was Simon and Garfunkel’s “Bridge over troubled waters”. It was also the year for the lyrics “War, what is it good for....absolutely nothin”. Through out history, music has reflected the mood and events of its people.