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Shotgun Tom clip on YouTube

Garrett,

Thanks for sharing the clip. I might be off a year or two in my descriptions below.

San Diego's FM was only used starting in 1989 or 1990 or so. Tom left B-100 around 1980 or 1981 when they went to "Soft Rock with Less Talk" which ended sometime in late 1983 when Bobby Rich returned.

Here's a point of reference of the video clip, the board operator is none other than Dave Sniff.

Tom is a great guy and glad to hear he's getting his props.

Jeff Williams
 
Great video! Thanks, Garrett!

I actually found a video of him a couple of weeks ago that was more recent-- K-Earth. This one that you posted is terrific! He's fun to watch, too. What energy!

Shotgun Tom is definitely one of the best. I'm glad he got to be a part of Phoenix radio history in '72 on AM Top 40 station, KRIZ, (and wish I could have been on this earth to hear it!).
 
Thanks.
Just to be clear, I didn't post the clip on youtube, I just found it there and thought everyone woudl find it interesting. And indeed it is!

Jeff, I'm rather interested in the this 3 year period where they were "Soft Rock" that you speak of. Please, tell us about it!
Why did they go to "Soft Rock?" Were they called B100 during that period? Also, when Bobby Rich came back in 1983, why did they not flip back to Top 40 (or did they) which was on an upsurge around then with all the Hot-Hits and Hit Radio stations in other markets showing up?
 
Shots is one of a kind. I remember sitting in his van with him while he was playing the Overture of 1812 on his newly installed car blaster. As I was losing the rest of my hearing I recall seeing his windshield flexing outward with every bombastic bass note. I was ready for the explosion of LOF glass particles but fortuneately we all survived. I did have to get out to get him to stop it.

CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW SHOTS?
 
Garrett - Here's my take on the history. Since my time there didn't start until 1986, I'm far from an expert but was an avid listener through all of its incarnations.

From the time the station went from Top 40 to the return of Bobby Rich, the format became more adult and imaged itself as "B-100, Soft Rock with Less Talk". Artists like America, Little River Band, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Steely Dan, Journey, etc was played. Larry Himmel did mornings. This was done in a period where music coming out of the record companies were adult oriented and Top 40 was dead fad at the time.

The timing of Bobby coming back with music changing with new and fresh artists (the term Hot AC being created at this time) and morning Zoo shows popping up around the country was perfect for a rebirth of B-100. Bobby and his crew knew how to make the station sound San Diego with what they talked about, music they played and events they were part of (Padres/Beach Boy Concerts/Sticker Campaigns). The station knew how to relate to females, office listeners and families without having to go Top 40 or Soft. In the late 80s you could say the station got hotter with music when Tony Pepper did the San Diego Dance Party on Saturday nights.

Radioengineer - I've been victim of Tom's Alpine system in his minivan. In fact I still have the Alpine CD that contained the 1812 Overture he would blast people's ears out with. One time I stood outside his van when he took a load of victims and you couldn't believe how fast the doors open with everybody holding their ears in pain would pop out. I think my hearing was damaged. Headphones and oldies on AM did it's own set of damage.
 
syvjeff said:
Radioengineer - I've been victim of Tom's Alpine system in his minivan. In fact I still have the Alpine CD that contained the 1812 Overture he would blast people's ears out with.
Click to expand...

Destroy it! So that he may never bombast again!
 
Supposedly, coming soon will be a 136/KGB video of Shotgun from the early 70's...(originally done on Super8-sound film)....

And even more amazing, it allegedly cost many hundreds to have this clip transferred and processed and put on DVD to look its very best. There should have been a camera there to catch Shotgun actually pulling out the wallet and paying cash as that would have been a first and needed to be captured on film...LOL
 
Garrett said:
Thanks.
Just to be clear, I didn't post the clip on youtube, I just found it there and thought everyone woudl find it interesting. And indeed it is!

Jeff, I'm rather interested in the this 3 year period where they were "Soft Rock" that you speak of. Please, tell us about it!
Why did they go to "Soft Rock?" Were they called B100 during that period? Also, when Bobby Rich came back in 1983, why did they not flip back to Top 40 (or did they) which was on an upsurge around then with all the Hot-Hits and Hit Radio stations in other markets showing up?
Click to expand...

As i recall, when B-100 when to the soft AC stuff it was in about 1980..

And they were, at that time, playing Kenny Rogers, etc. It was very soft. Gene Knight later toughened it up so they were playing softer AOR album cuts too.

Yes, it still was called B-100 at that time. And all the way up to when they flipped to the Star 100.7 identity..
 
GeorgeJ. said:
Garrett said:
Thanks.
Just to be clear, I didn't post the clip on youtube, I just found it there and thought everyone woudl find it interesting. And indeed it is!

Jeff, I'm rather interested in the this 3 year period where they were "Soft Rock" that you speak of. Please, tell us about it!
Why did they go to "Soft Rock?" Were they called B100 during that period? Also, when Bobby Rich came back in 1983, why did they not flip back to Top 40 (or did they) which was on an upsurge around then with all the Hot-Hits and Hit Radio stations in other markets showing up?
Click to expand...

As i recall, when B-100 when to the soft AC stuff it was in about 1980..

And they were, at that time, playing Kenny Rogers, etc. It was very soft. Gene Knight later toughened it up so they were playing softer AOR album cuts too.

Yes, it still was called B-100 at that time. And all the way up to when they flipped to the Star 100.7 identity..
Click to expand...

Oh yes, I was listening the day B-100 ended and became "The Great Radio Experiment" and also 3 weeks later when they singed on Star with Prince's "1999."
 
I don't mean to be a wet blanket, but I'd like to give a perspective of a listener, and of the importance of being cool to "fans." Yes, fans. I'm old enough (47) to remember calling in to radio stations as a kid to win contests (guess the names of the songs, etc.) and the DJs were sort of local heroes when I was in 7/8th grade back then. Probably nobody remembers, but guys like Lou Richards and Michael W. Perry at KKUA in Honolulu, HI were favorites. As a kid, I wrote the station and got an autographed pic of Lou Richards that meant a lot to a 13 year old boy.

How this relates to Shotgun Tom is a story I've told more than a few friends. My folks moved to San Diego when I was entering the 11th grade. That year my high school journalism class took a field trip to B100's offices (I think that was the station Tom was at at the time). We had may be 12-14 kids in the class. We were taken on a tour of the station and Tom was on the air. We could see him in the studio through the window.

During a break, we were led in and we all crammed in the room... kids and teacher to watch. Tom had an engineer I guess and didn't do any button pushing himself and he spun some records I guess and the oddest thing I have never forgotten happened. A commercial break came up and probably news or something... so Tom wasn't on the air or doing anything and he just ignored us. We were right there in the room with him... a class of young high school kids and their teacher on this field trip and he didn't even acknowledge our presence or say a single word to us. It wasn't as if he actually was doing anything... he just sat there, wouldn't make eye contact. We all just stood there awkwardly for a few minutes that seemed to last forever, until we were led out of the studio.

To this day I never forgot that experience. As a kid, I was expecting some sort of "Hey kids, where you guys from? Been in a radio station before?" or something of that nature. My whole class walked out of there and thought he was a jerk. Keep in mind, I have never met the man personally-- he might be a swell guy. I do know that I saw him somewhere out in public not long ago-- WEARING THAT HAT-- and almost came up to him and told him that story. I don't know what personal issues he was dealing with that day, but I think there's a lesson in there that if you're in the public eye (and in 1977 there was perhaps more celebrity associated with being a being a DJ... kids admired them)... you might make an effort when a tour group comes through.
 
jlliv said:
I don't mean to be a wet blanket, but I'd like to give a perspective of a listener, and of the importance of being cool to "fans." Yes, fans. I'm old enough (47) to remember calling in to radio stations as a kid to win contests (guess the names of the songs, etc.) and the DJs were sort of local heroes when I was in 7/8th grade back then. Probably nobody remembers, but guys like Lou Richards and Michael W. Perry at KKUA in Honolulu, HI were favorites. As a kid, I wrote the station and got an autographed pic of Lou Richards that meant a lot to a 13 year old boy.

How this relates to Shotgun Tom is a story I've told more than a few friends. My folks moved to San Diego when I was entering the 11th grade. That year my high school journalism class took a field trip to B100's offices (I think that was the station Tom was at at the time). We had may be 12-14 kids in the class. We were taken on a tour of the station and Tom was on the air. We could see him in the studio through the window.

During a break, we were led in and we all crammed in the room... kids and teacher to watch. Tom had an engineer I guess and didn't do any button pushing himself and he spun some records I guess and the oddest thing I have never forgotten happened. A commercial break came up and probably news or something... so Tom wasn't on the air or doing anything and he just ignored us. We were right there in the room with him... a class of young high school kids and their teacher on this field trip and he didn't even acknowledge our presence or say a single word to us. It wasn't as if he actually was doing anything... he just sat there, wouldn't make eye contact. We all just stood there awkwardly for a few minutes that seemed to last forever, until we were led out of the studio.

To this day I never forgot that experience. As a kid, I was expecting some sort of "Hey kids, where you guys from? Been in a radio station before?" or something of that nature. My whole class walked out of there and thought he was a jerk. Keep in mind, I have never met the man personally-- he might be a swell guy. I do know that I saw him somewhere out in public not long ago-- WEARING THAT HAT-- and almost came up to him and told him that story. I don't know what personal issues he was dealing with that day, but I think there's a lesson in there that if you're in the public eye (and in 1977 there was perhaps more celebrity associated with being a being a DJ... kids admired them)... you might make an effort when a tour group comes through.
Click to expand...

You really should have called him on that when you saw him walking around recently - he probably wouldn't have remembered the incident, but he probably would have felt bad that he was a prick to your class that day..

He may have been having a bad day, as that doesn't sound like typical Shotgun. He can be embarassing because he'll tend to talk up any schmuck he meets on the street..

I, on the other hand, absolutely hated to have strangers in the studio when I was a jock.

Next time you meet him on the street, tell him about that day..
 
GeorgeJ. said:
You really should have called him on that when you saw him walking around recently - he probably wouldn't have remembered the incident, but he probably would have felt bad that he was a prick to your class that day..
Click to expand...

Thanks for the follow up. You know, I figured it was something like that now that I'm an adult-- as a 13 year old kid you don't think of things like that. I just didn't want to go up to him considering it would just seem petty to bring up something that happened 30 years ago.


He may have been having a bad day, as that doesn't sound like typical Shotgun. He can be embarassing because he'll tend to talk up any schmuck he meets on the street..

I, on the other hand, absolutely hated to have strangers in the studio when I was a jock.

Next time you meet him on the street, tell him about that day..
Click to expand...

Just as you say, I'm sure that's all it is. And I can understand the jocks hating to have visitors to the studio. I'm sure the station suits probably figure it's good PR to have tours, etc.. My real point is though that when you're in the public eye, it's unfair, but people need to try take a deep breath and try to be gracious, even when you don't want to be. Your bad day may be the only contact an impressionable young person may have with you and then that story will get circulated and passed around, etc.

As I said, I figured with the insight today of a mature adult that Tom may have gotten some bad news that day or was dealing with something personal and it was just bad timing. I'm glad to hear that he's a good guy and I suspected as much. Thanks.
 
I know Shots fairly well and worked with him for a couple of years. I know he was very friendly and accessable to the public out on remotes and just in general when approached. I only worked in the studio with him when I had to as an engineer, and I know it could be distracting to him. I guarantee if you ever get the chance to mention it to him again he'll be glad to talk to you and make it right.
 
jlliv, I don't know why he has not commented here, but Shotgun Tom has read this thread and I spoke to him this morning about it...

He does not recall the incident, and doesn't think it was him; he says that even if he was having a bad day, he would have talked you guys up to turn it around....As I mentioned before, he will talk up just about anyone on the street, so I believe him...

He seems to think that you may have walked-in on Mac Hudson of Hudson & Bauer on KFMB-AM, which was right across the hall from the B-100 studio...He said that was typical behavior for Mac (Joe Bauer was across the glass from him in another room)..

Whenever I see him on the air (because I'm usually videotaping) he's always wearing THE HAT; but he says that normally, when no ones around, he doesn't wear his Smokey The Bear hat on the air...Mac Hudson would have been almost twice his age, but they looked a little similar (beard and losing their hair; sorry Shotz if that's a secret)...

So if you stop him on the street now and ask....he'll say it wasn't him..."that wasn't me, man"
 
I worked with Tom at KBEST 95 for a couple of years and he's the nicest, most giving jock with strangers and fans I've ever known. He's a sweetheart. Back in the '70's I worked at KFMB-AM which shared a forever-shaking wall with B-100, and Tom was super then, too. Nope, it's my guess - or hope - that you must have met someone else. I won't name names...but heck, I'm sure if you email Shotz and identify yourself, he'll treat you right.

Ox in the Box
K-BEST 95, KFMB, KyXy...(don't get me started...)
 
Shotgun and Linda, are the two finest people in all of radio. They open their hearts and home each and every week to legendary broadcasters. Shotgun Tom and Linda both are the heart and soul of radio. When Tom retires turn off all of the transmitters, because radio is done. I have known Tom and Linda for a while and Tom has (since I've known him Tom has never snubbed a fan. In fact if a fan comes up to him in public he goes nuts for them and hugs them, takes his picture with them and signs autographs.)

It may have been that Tom had been treated badly by the PD for having guests in the studio...who knows we all have bad days!
 
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