Vinyl Voyage Radio

This month we have a great K-Tel album on the platter: High Energy from 1979. This album features hits from Blondie, the Pointer Sisters, Chic, Styx and Foreigner. Check out the commercial below: Episode 55 of Adventures in Vinyl Premieres at 12:30 pm (Central) on February 9.  Check it out throughout February at 12:30 pm Saturdays 4 pm Sundays 2 am Wednesdays

It's been a busy weekend, that's for sure. Not sure how much work I got done for my real job, but it sure was fun loading these albums in the Vinyl Voyage machine. It started off with The Monkees. A lot of the Monkees. Plus a lot of Styx: Suzanne Vega: The new Bruce Springsteen: And Supertramp: More coming!

This month on AiV, we are going back to 1976 for K-Tel's Disco Mania . As a kid, I loved this album.  And the main reason I loved this album were for two songs: "Rock and Roll All Nite" by Kiss and "Kung Fu Fighting" by Carl Douglas There are some bonafide disco hits on this album.  But there are many other decidely non-disco songs, too.  Along with Kiss, Styx also appears on this album.  As does Bachman Turner Overdrive. Listen to this entire album on Adventures in Vinyl , the only radio show dedicated to the lost art of the K-Tel record compilation. Saturday, 12:30 pm Sunday, 4 pm Tuesday, 1 pm Wednesday, 2 am Thursday, 10 am

This month on Adventures in Vinyl :   The Rock Album from 1980. This is an interesting K-Tel album.  The music spans about 7 years, so this album isn't a snapshot of a particular time, but more of a look at a genre.  The songs on this album are staples on classic rock stations to this day. The album features some pretty well-known hits from E.L.O. and Cheap Trick, Blue Oyster Cult and Boston, Styx and Journey...just to name a few. So join us on Adventures in Vinyl this April to take a musical time trip back to 1980 via the magic of K-Tel. Adventures in Vinyl :  The only radio station dedicated to the glory of the K-Tel record compilation. Adventures in Vinyl can be heard on Vinyl Voyage Radio at the following times (all times central): Saturday, 12 pm Sunday, 4 pm Tuesday, 1 pm Wednesday, 2 am Thursday, 10 am

As we glide into the last week of November, we will be taking a trip back to 1976 with K-Tel's Power House  on Adventures in Vinyl.  Silver Convention and Styx.  Hall and Oates and Seals and Crofts.  Roxy Music and Heart.  This is pure K-Tel eclecticism. Adventures in Vinyl can be heard: Saturday, 12 pm (central) Sunday, 4 pm Tuesday, 1 pm Wednesday 2 am Thursday, 10 am     Don't forget: Next month's K-Tel album will be determined by you.  Make sure you vote.  Voting closes on November 25.  Vote NOW!

1984 was the year I got my driver's license.  It was also the year of the Macintosh computer. Night Court premiered on NBC and a gallon of gas cost $1.10. Michael Jackson was severely burned while filming a Pepsi commercial and his album  Thriller was the best selling album for the second year in a row. It was a stellar year for movies as well:  Ghostbusters, Amadeus, Gremlins, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom ---just to name a few.  Entertainment Weekly recently argued that 1984 was the greatest year for films ever, even better than 1939. It was also the year K-Tel released Sound System , which features songs from Huey Lewis and the News, Pat Benatar, the Police, the Kinks and Styx. Take a trip with us to 1984 on Adventures in Vinyl.  Sound System is the featured album for July Plus, movie clips, trivia and music from 1984 as well.    Adventures in Vinyl is the only radio show dedicated to the magic of the K-Tel record comp...

You have voted and it's official:  K-Tel's Pure Rock is next on this month's Adventures in Vinyl . Pure Rock was released with little fanfare in 1981.  This is an interesting album and very different from K-Tel's earlier compilations.  Unlike other K-Tel albums, there are no tv or radio commercials associated with this record.  One of the hallmarks of K-Tel in the 70s was was their ubiquitous presence on tv.  In addition, the album is not overly edited.  There are only 14 songs on the album as opposed to the usual 20 or so on most K-Tel albums in the 1970s.  This was a change that K-Tel began implementing in the 1980s--less songs, but higher quality. And finally, this album has very little to do with 1981.  The more popular K-Tel albums capitalized on hit songs ("20 Original Hits! 20 Original songs!") and contained songs from the year in which the album was released.  On Pure Rock , only one song dates from 1981---Pat Benatar, "Hit Me W...

I am at a loss:  with so many K-Tel albums to choose for February's edition of Adventures in Vinyl, I am not sure what to pick. Therefore, I am leaving it up to you.  Vote below for the K-Tel album you would like to hear on February's edition of Adventures in Vinyl . (vote below) Super Bad (1973) : Isaac Hayes, Joe Tex, Millie Jackson, Staple Singers, James Brown Hit Machine (1976) :  KC & the Sunshine Band, Frankie Valli, Elton John, Kiss, War, Rick Springfield Hot Lights & City Nights (1979) : Jacksons, Village People, Sister Sledge, Blondie, Instant Funk Pure Rock (1981) : ZZ Top, Pat Benatar, Foreigner, Heart, Eddie Money, Styx, Foghat Online Surveys  &  Market Research

This month on Adventures in Vinyl , we are going back to 1976 for the K-Tel classic, Power House .  This is a great album, eclectic and odd---just as you would expect from K-Tel.   The variety on this album is pretty impressive.  From some early disco hits by Silver Convention and Andrea True Connection, to Heart and Styx, to Glen Campbell and Seals and Crofts, Roxy Music to Hall & Oates.  Actor Keith Carradine also makes an appearance with his hit song, " I'm Easy " from the film Nashville . As they say in the commercial:  "20 Original Hits, Original stars!"  Fifteen of the songs on this album made the Billboard Year End Chart for either 1976 or 1975.  Join us this month for K-Tel's Power House .  As usual, we'll play the album in its entirety.  Plus, visit some of the events of 1976, review the music and movies as well. Adventures in Vinyl , the only radio show dedicated to the lost art of the K-Tel record compilation. Tim...

This should really be called the "Rick Springfield Mix."  On a 1 hour mix tape, the Aussie/Soap Opera Star/Rock Star/Author appears some 7 times.  And most of the songs that my friend, Dena, placed of Rick Springfield's are those that you did not hear on the radio.  No "Jesse's Girl," for example. This will be very interesting broadcast, from a logistic point of view.  You see, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) has defined the standards for internet radio.  And you can only play 3 songs by a single artist in a 3 hour time period.  Ooops.  Playing Dena's Mix will, therefore, break copyright law.  And I can be fined upwards of $500,000 if caught. But what the hell.  Let's live life on the edge, shall we? This mix was made most likely in 1984.  Many of the songs come from that year.  And it was the year I began to drive and I distinctly remember playing this in the car--which happened to be a Ford Pinto station wagon....

I used to doodle the faces of all of the members of the band KISS. We’d debate among friends who was our favorite band member. Mine: the drummer, Peter Criss. He was the “cat,” in case you’re wondering. There was something magical about a band that wore bizarre costumes and make-up. I longed to go to a concert and imagined the fireworks, the spitting blood and the sound. Oh, that sound. I could only imagine how loud it actually was. The only thing I knew was that it would have been louder than my record player. I first became acquainted with KISS in 1976 with, believe or not, a K-Tel album called Disco Mania . That’s right---you read correctly: Disco Mania . The song “Rock and Roll All Nite” appeared late on the second side. And I loved it. I played it all the time. I got other KISS albums. I imagined what it would be like to see them in concert. In 1976, KISS played a concert at my soon-to-be junior high. River Trails Junior High in Mt. Prospect, Illinois, had...

I turned 8 years old in 1976. And that was the year I got K-Tel’s classic compilation, Disco Mania . I have fond memories of this album---not because I was a huge fan of disco.  Quite the opposite, actually.  This was the album that introduced me to Kiss. Yes, you read correctly. An album called Disco Mania introduced me to the make-up wearing, hard-rocking, blood-spitting band, Kiss. That is what makes this album pure K-Tel nuttiness. Sure, there are some early bona fide disco hits here: “The Hustle,” “Walkin’ in Rhythm,” “Never Can Say Goodbye” and “Disco Queen.” But then, there are some songs that are gloriously out of place: “Rock and Roll All Nite” by Kiss, “Lady” by Styx and “Hey You” by Bachman Turner Overdrive. There are 19 songs on this album and it begins with the classic disco song, “The Hustle.” This song was all over the place in 1976.  I remember dancing to it in my living room. Included are other Disco hits: “Kung Fu Fighting,” “Shame ...

Today, the Vinyl Voyage went live for a period of time, playing tracks from 1979-1982.  Those were the years of junior high for me.  Probably the worst years of my life; who ever liked junior high, anyway?  Even so, this period of time provided the foundation to my musical tastes and as my allowance increased, so did my record-buying. For about an hour and a half today, I spun tracks from that period of time in my life.  Currently, many of these songs can now be heard on the Vinyl Voyage: Cars---Gary Numan Loverboy---Turn Me Loose Billy Squier---My Kinda Lover Stevie Nicks---Edge of Seventeen Rush---Limelight Journey---Escape Pat Benatar---Fire and Ice Quarterflash---Harden My Heart Shooting Star---Flesh and Blood Styx---Babe Pete Townshend---Let My Love Open the Door John Cougar---Ain't Even Done With the Night John Lennon---Watching the Wheels Pretenders---Brass in Pocket Sniff 'n' the Tears---Driver's Seat Journey---Still They Ride I had a lit...