… Laura Nyro, Save The Country – please …
[Description by Uncle Ricky]
Brother John Rydgren graduated with a divinity degree from Pacific Lutheran University in Washington state, and is remembered as one of the first to use rock music in religious radio programs. He was the voice of ABC’s Love Format in 1968, and moved from New York to Los Angeles in 1972 where he worked at KRLA during their “progressive rock” phase.
This short, ‘scoped and noisy aircheck showcases mostly John, but there’s a bit of news, reminding us of a time when left-leaning politics were so unpopular they kept Charlie Chaplin off the Hollywood Walk Of Fame. Otherwise, period spots and small snips of music help to re-create the era.
Rydgren suffered a stroke in 1982, requiring him to re-learn how to speak. He died of a heart attack on December 26, 1988, and was 56 years of age.