Very astute observations Michael. The term turntable hits was used for all those MOR songs that got a lot of airplay on those MOR stations, but very little in record sales. Middle of the Road AKA Easy Listening Music was my kind of music growing up as a teenager in the 1960s. Sure the Beatles and Beach Boys were great to listen to. But for me the easy listening artists such Sinatra, Peggy Lee, Tony Bennett, Steve Lawrence & Eydie Gorme etc. singing the great songs of the great composers of the 1960s such as Jobim, Bacharach, Legrand, Mancini, Van Heusen & Cahn was the pinnacle in pop music. Then with the arrival of groups such as the TJB, BMB, and Brasil 66, this was like icing on the cake. Alas, sadly by 1979 when Billboard Magazine's Easy Listening chart was changed to Adult Contemporary, most of the classic MOR artists had lost their record contracts and even turntable hits were but a memory. Fortunately for me here in San Diego in the 1970s, the huge collection of Brazilian music at the legendary Tower Records filled the void. What a joy it was to browse the record aisles and discover and purchase Brazilian albums which became for me the greatest pop music in the world. A music whose richness and sophistication in melody, harmony and rhythm was without equal.
Michael in addition to the KMPC and KFI stations in LA, do you recall KBIG AM Radio Catalina in the late 60s early 70s? The signal was weak so they had to sign off at night, but what great middle of the road music they played during the day, with a lot less talk. They had fabulous choral singers who with the amazing vocal acrobatics of Sally Stevens sang a variety of the station's jingles. And KBIG had the late, great DJ Ray Willes with his deep bass voice. He went on to become the announcer of the Barbara Walters Specials.
Michael in addition to the KMPC and KFI stations in LA, do you recall KBIG AM Radio Catalina in the late 60s early 70s? The signal was weak so they had to sign off at night, but what great middle of the road music they played during the day, with a lot less talk. They had fabulous choral singers who with the amazing vocal acrobatics of Sally Stevens sang a variety of the station's jingles. And KBIG had the late, great DJ Ray Willes with his deep bass voice. He went on to become the announcer of the Barbara Walters Specials.