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| From Keene State College Equinox 1975 |
In the fall of 1974, the Keene, New Hampshire radio dial wasn't nearly as crowded as it is today. Keene State College Radio, WKNH, was only available at certain times of the year on campus on AM or local FM cable until the station got an FM "free air" license covering the town a year later. Even with this limited reach, I was impressed with reaction I'd get from college and community listeners from day one of my Friday shows. It was truly free-form, underground, eclectic, progressive rock. Some of it was very obscure; some of it became today's classic rock. When I'd go back home to Connecticut, I'd listen closely to what album rockers like WPLR and WHCN were saying and playing so I could help share a type of alternative radio otherwise unheard in southwestern New Hampshire. A lot of people I knew at school got involved with the station. My first roommate, Tony, not only shared his wealth of "prog rock" knowledge with me, but he was also a natural on the air. He first told me about some unknown from his home state of New Jersey named Bruce Springsteen. Few from the WKNH crew went on to radio careers. There was a level of politics I was totally unprepared for as I got more involved in WKNH, but I remember an extraordinary group of people whose names I recall to this day. I also enjoyed every opportunity to go on the air and put sets of music together that could start with some mellow Joni Mitchell and end with earsplitting Black Sabbath. Where's Quicksilver Messenger Service now when I need them? It must have been a labor of love, because when it came time to go in December 1976 I didn't want to leave.
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