The Real Don Steele, KHJ, June 17 1970 (1:00:31)

… You got it, you may use it, at five oh one oh clock …
REELRADIO is honored to present another EXCLUSIVE studio-recorded aircheck of the incomparable Real Don Steele from The Real Don Steele Collection. This one is from June 17, 1970, the Wednesday before Fathers Day. Here’s another reason to upgrade to a broadband Internet connection: it’s encoded at 44.1Khz for frequency response that exceeds that of the original transmission system!
There’s much to hear on this sample of post-Ron Jacobs KHJ, which is mostly unscoped. Oldies include Del Shannon’s Runaway and Jackie Wilson’s I’ll Be Satisfied (what a GREAT record!) There are also some “what was THAT?” musical surprises, like Wilson Pickett doing Sugar Sugar and Clarence Carter with I Can’t Leave Your Love Alone. The orchestration for the Schlitz spot nearly overpowers the bold rum-pum KHJ logos, and the Lettermen-styled jingle for Arrid Extra Dry is a grand example of the first-rate radio production of the era. Is that Lou Rawls singing for Burgie beer?
Don’t be fooled, this is the REEL “Seventies Show”! Again, our thanks to Shaune Steele and Ray Randolph for allowing us to share this magical hour from Real Don’s personal collection.

Welcome to the new ReelRadio!

This site is now operated by the North Carolina Broadcast History Museum. 

We want to thank the board of ReelRadio, Inc. for their stewardship since the passing of the founder Richard Irwin in 2018.  It has not been easy and they have maintained the exhibits for future generations to enjoy.

I met Richard Irwin, aka Uncle Ricky, when we were freshmen at East Carolina University.  We both had worked at local stations in our hometowns.  No one was more passionate about radio, especially Top 40 radio, than my friend Richard. 

Our goals with this site are to preserve the exhibits and make them available free of charge for people to enjoy.  Over time, we hope to add some airchecks to the site.  This will not happen immediately.  Time and resources will determine the future of new exhibits. 

Many thanks to the web folks at the Beasley Media Group for countless hours of work.  Again thanks to the board members of ReelRadio, Inc. for their faith in us. 

Richard Irwin’s hope was that his site would live on long after his passing. He said, “I hope REELRADIO will survive as my contribution to the ‘radio business’. The business is allowed to forget me, but the business should never forget the great era of radio that we celebrate here”.

We remember Richard and we thank him. If you enjoy this new site, we would appreciate a contribution. We hope you enjoy the new ReelRadio!

Carl Davis
Trustee
North Carolina Broadcast History Museum