|
|
Post by blackbowl68 on Feb 20, 2014 23:48:15 GMT -5
AFAIK Watermark founded American top 40 in 1970, American Country Countdown in 1973, American top 20 & American top 10 sometime around in 1999 & American Hot Adult 40 version sometime in 2004. Many people reference all these charts and which ones would keep the show(s) afloat.
Here's my $64,000 question: How come at no given time in its existence Watermark has NEVER created a show built around the SOUL chart?
|
|
|
|
Post by mkarns on Feb 21, 2014 1:19:06 GMT -5
Good question; I have no idea. I've read that in late 1969 Casey Kasem and Don Bustany put forth proposals for pop, country, soul/R&B, and album countdowns. While of course the first two reached the air in 1970 and 1973, I wonder why a soul-oriented top 40 (or however many positions) never reached fruition, especially considering the great number of songs it would have had in common with AT40 and similar shows.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Feb 22, 2014 12:02:14 GMT -5
I wasn't around back then so I'll ask these questions. Were there a large number of soul music channels around and if there were was there a large amount of $$ to be made to the audience who'd be inclined to listen? I am not attempting to turn this into a race discussion or anything. But this music would primarily appeal to the African American audience. Coming out of the 60s and 70s the job market for them wasn't that great and a large percentage if not most didn't make a whole lot. So, advertising money to that market I would think might not have been as plentiful as to music channels that appealed to White Americans. . Soul Train was on the air and was reaching that audience. Perhaps they (Casey & Don) didn't think there was a large enough radio/advertising market for a show then.
|
|
|
|
Post by at40petebattistini on Feb 22, 2014 12:22:35 GMT -5
If you looked through the Radio-TV sections of Billboard in mid-1973, you'd find at least one advertisement for a new radio program called "Black 40". It was hosted by (Chicago radio station) WGRT-AM's Don St. John and, I believe, used the Billboard Soul chart. Unfortunately, I never heard it nor do I know how long it lasted.
My guess is Tom Rounds researched all genres -- including a soul countdown -- when looking to expand Watermark's programming options during the early 70s. Obviously he eventually realized that country was the way to go. Do you remember the National Album Countdown on AT40 in August 1972? A one and done deal. I do believe, however, if Watermark would've initiated an R&B Top 40 program, it would've been a success.
|
|
|
|
Post by rayshae3 on Feb 22, 2014 23:36:15 GMT -5
If you looked through the Radio-TV sections of Billboard in mid-1973, you'd find at least one advertisement for a new radio program called "Black 40". It was hosted by (Chicago radio station) WGRT-AM's Don St. John and, I believe, used the Billboard Soul chart. Unfortunately, I never heard it nor do I know how long it lasted. Yes, there’s no definite indication “Black 40” used Billboard’s soul survey.The other syndicated show in later part of the decade that used Billboard chart for sure was: “Billboard Soul Countdown USA” a Top 40 show.(See full page ad. on Billboard’s p. 21 of Aug-12-1978 issue thru GoogleBooks.) However, like "Black 40", it only survived for a short while, perhaps less than a couple of years. |
|
|
|
Post by at40petebattistini on Feb 23, 2014 7:23:01 GMT -5
The display ad (not full page) for "Black 40" appeared on June 30, 1973, pg. 28 in Billboard. And it's not stated if the Billboard chart was used.
|
|
|
|
Post by blackbowl68 on Feb 24, 2014 9:58:47 GMT -5
Well I'm glad there was an attempt to launch a soul countdown show. However, the idea should've been revisited during the period of top 40 fragmentation in the late 80s/ early 90s. There were some very important trends going on in R&B at the time that top 40 seem to deliberately ignore that such a show was necessary to detail these progressions in the genre as a whole.
|
|
|
|
Post by jmack19 on Apr 14, 2014 23:35:23 GMT -5
Billboard owned Nashville radio station WLAC in the 1970s. In about 1977, WLAC started doing a Top 40 Soul survey on Sunday nights. At night, the station could be picked up in 28 states & Canada. It ran until Billboard sold the radio station in 1980. Billboard tried to syndicate this show as rayshae 3 noted earlier, but apparently it never took off. Check page 25 for the promotion of this show: books.google.com/books?id=5SQEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT3&source=gbs_toc&cad=2#v=onepage&q&f=false |
|
