Glenn Frey: R.I.P.

I am not generally "star-struck." During my 53 years in radio I have been afforded many opportunities to meet and talk with celebrities. And, especially as I get older the thought of  shaking hands and exchanging pleasantries with "stars," let alone going to a concert holds less and less appeal. But a year and a half ago when my daughter arranged for me to attend an Eagles concert in Grand Rapids and meet the band backstage, I jumped at the chance. You see, The Eagles may be one of my few claims to fame in broadcasting.

Back in 1974, when I was the Program Director and Music Director at WKMI, one of the top-rated radio stations in West Michigan, I "broke" the band's first Number 1 hit: "The Best Of My Love" from the "On The Border" album. The story of how that happened has been told a few times in the media so I won't repeat it here. But, apparently that is what got our group a backstage pass for the Grand Rapids show.

I didn't know what to expect from the band. Some famous musicians are known to be curt, or rude, or arrogant, or whatever. That was not the case with The Eagles. As we stood backstage before the concert the guys in the band came strolling down the hall and greeted us warmly, like we were old friends. We chit-chatted, talked about "The Best Of My Love" and my small part in its success, and had pictures taken. To make the evening even better, as we sat in the audience during the show, Eagles co-founder, Glenn Frey, took the time to tell the audience how that first Number 1 song became a hit and introduced me from the stage. I won't kid you. It was a thrill. And now, he's gone. Glenn Frey died yesterday in New York.

There are numerous stories in the news about his passing. Lots of folks are talking about his contributions to American music. He was a very talented musician and songwriter. But from my experience, Glenn Frey (and the rest of The Eagles) were just a bunch of really nice guys.

R.I.P.

  (L-R: Timothy B. Schmit, Glenn Frey, Jim Higgs, Joe Walsh, Don Henley)

137 E. Bridge St, Plainwell (Part 1)

I spent a lot of my younger years in this building at 137 E. Bridge Street in downtown Plainwell. It's the former home of the Rideau Workroom and more recently, a motorcycle repair shop. But its first use, and for nearly 20 years it was home to Ace Engravers, Inc., my family's business.

A flood of memories came rushing back to me when a man approached the Plainwell Planning Commission, of which I am a member, and presented a new request to use the building. As we discussed his application I realized that while I have a very large collection of old photos of Plainwell, I didn't have one of this building. But, thanks to local historian Sandy Stamm, I now have this one. The photo shows the new building at 137 E. Bridge St. between Agnes Jackson's Style shop to the west (left) and Gray Electric on the east. I did have one picture taken inside the business showing my grandfather, E.W. "Ted" Higgs etching a printing plate.

My grandfather had been involved in the graphic arts since his youth when he went to work for Gage Printing Company in Battle Creek. Later, he worked for photoengraving companies in Detroit and Kalamazoo. Both of his sons, Bill (who was killed in World War II) and my dad, Bob, worked with him at Crescent Engraving in Kalamazoo. He later became manager of Artcraft Engraving in Kalamazoo, and my mother went to work in the office there.

By the early '50's, my grandfather and my dad decided to start their own company, and Ace Engravers was born. At first it was located in a large, old building on the south side of E. Bridge St. in Plainwell... a building which was razed to make way for construction of a new bank building at the corner of E. Bridge and S. Anderson. I can almost remember the old building. Faced with the need to make way for new construction, Ace moved into a new building across the street, built for them by Bob Gray, owner of Gray Electric, who would remain their landlord for nearly two decades.

I'll have more about time I spent in this building in a later post.

I'm Back

So, it has been about five years since I posted anything on the old WAKV blog and I guess that exceeds Google's allowed time for dormancy... so here's a brand new blog. I will try to do better. While the title of the blog is "WAKV The Memory Station" I will be posting on a wide variety of subjects... not always connected to the station. In addition to radio and music it will reflect my interest in history, genealogy, politics, world affairs and any number of other things.

But, it seems appropriate in this first post to at least urge you to try WAKV, The Memory Station if you're within our coverage area. We're an AM station on 980 khz. And, no. To anticipate your question... we do not stream our programming on the internet. At least, not now. Maybe someday.

But, if you're within 20 or 30 miles of Plainwell, Michigan, you can probably listen to us... especially in the daytime . What you'll find is a very wide variety hits from many musical styles... from Big Bands to early Rock and Roll to great songs from the 70's and 80's to Broadway show tunes. And, for those who remember the glory days of WKMI in Kalamazoo, some familiar voices including Phil Britain, Tom Somers and myself. So, give us a try... and tell your friends.