Everybody has those websites they check up on with their morning coffee (or pint) and the first cigarette (or fatty) of the day to see what they’ve missed overnight or to check and see if their comment/picture/threatening email has been published. Among my must-see sites is one that never fails to frustrate, amuse, and entertain me. It is called the Southern Ontario Western New York Radio-TV Forum. SOWNY for short, but most of us call it The Big Yellow Board.
SOWNY is populated by radio professionals both old and new, employed and not-so-much-so, radio fan boys, curmudgeons, crackpots, and shit disturbers. The threads range all the way from interesting and knowledgeable posts about radio and television, to anal spell-checkers and grammar Nazis, thread hijackers (an interesting thread about, say radio stations in and around Georgian Bay, will suddenly become turned around to be about making your own fishing lures out of marbles and My Little Pony tails).
Old war stories from the trenches are the most fun to read, but the most prevalent posts are the ones bitching and moaning about the state of radio today, which are mostly addressed by seasoned pro’s, who understand what has happened and can explain the reasons for it to those who haven’t a clue. Because of the interaction between radio types and those who love the medium but have never worked in it, the discourse can be riveting, even though a lot of it is sports driven (which broadcaster has his head further 
up his ass/what if the Leafs were on a better station) and some of it is so downright goofy, you wonder if a radio CEO somewhere is laughing into his Caramel Mocha Half Caff Latte with a gusting of Cinnamon, after posting it under an anonymous nickname, which is allowed here, but is a continuing source of debate.
A lot of radio folk have been told to avoid the Big Yellow Board, because it can be pretty brutal when it comes to discussing the ills of the current direction radio has taken, so in order to post anything, they give themselves nicknames so they can speak their mind, or not get in trouble at work. Others do it so they can spew and rant without finding Hairy Men Dating Invites, fetish porn, and adult diaper spam in their inboxes in retaliation.
Hiding behind an anonymous handle is also one more sign of the times when it comes to speaking your mind about the business you are in. There are a lot of thin skinned people running things these days, not like the days of yore, when nobody in charge gave a rat’s ass if someone didn’t like what they were doing. Nowadays, everyone wants to be popular…even if they’ve been vilified as worst thing to happen to radio since Dr. Ruth.  (Pictured here showing us how big it should be).
Among those responsible for the existence of SOWNY is its moderator, a wonderful man and huge fan of all things radio, especially the golden era of CHUM AM, Craig Smith. Craig has made the SOWNY board a must for most radio folk and fans of the medium, and his hard work is accomplished without income being generated by the site, and very little 
help from outside sources. I’m surprised radio stations don’t fund this great little town hall, but then again, maybe they are a little too thin skinned to listen to the criticism that finds its way into the threads here, as well as the kudos.
Craig is going through a rough patch right now, in hospital for a couple of reasons that are both serious and difficult to deal with, and we have all tried to encourage him to rally and recover, and to make sure he knows that there are many who love him and what he has done. You can add your well wishes to Craig by posting them at SOWNY, and if you love radio, you need to check in here, and peruse the threads that unfold between fans and foes of terrestrial radio, television, and the grammatical error police, and add your own insights and tales.
Macko Speaks from 1986…
Thanks to an anonymous poster on SOWNY who calls himself ITGeek (for reasons known only to himself), I read this wonderful interview piece written 24 years ago and which ran in the Toronto Star at a time when radio actually had so much interest from the public, that journalists wrote about it in the daily newspapers. When, I ask you, was the last time a local radio PD (Program Director), MD (Music Director), or On-Air host was featured in a local newspaper in your area?
The following is that interview.
I couldn’t help but comment on a few of Bob’s answers…and my comments appear in italics. I also hereby challenge the current PDs, MDs, and On-Air Hosts out there to answer these same questions as honestly as Bob did, and send them to me to post here in DBAWIS. The email addy is at the bottom of the column. I await your responses with great anticipation…
Ladies and Gentlemen, all the way from 1986, one of the great radiomen, scholars, music aficionados, and the most soulful and caring academic I have ever had the pleasure to know and to work with, Mr. Bob Mackowycz…
Music’s Got to be ‘Real’ for Q107 Man to Listen In
As told to Henry Mietkiewicz
Toronto Star June 7th, 1986
Bob Mackowycz: Assistant program director of hard rock radio station Q107 and co-host of Q’s Six O’ Clock Rock Report.
I’m not sure if there currently exists, a show similar in tone and content to the Six O’ Clock Rock Report. It was informative, previewed new releases, contained short interviews, the rock news, and a lot of laughs. One of the stand out show for me was Bob’s “Hunka Hunka Burnin’ Love Tribute Hour†with comments from every major rock star out there as part of the program, extolling the importance, and Universal love, the rock community had for the under-appreciated Elvis classic, “Hunka Hunka Burnin’ Loveâ€. Who knew Robert Plant and so many other rock legends loved HHBL? Another funny moment I remember was when Bob read the news that Freddy Mercury had grown a mustache. When he wondered out loud why Freddy would do that, I calmly told him that it might have been to hide the stretch marks. Bob fell off his chair laughing…(Pictured above: Bob (left) and Bob (right) in the Q107 broadcast booth 30 stories above Yonge and Bloor 1983)
Age: 37, but I look 36 and feel 35.
Birthplace: Metz, France, near the Luxembourg border. I came to Canada when I was 2 1/2.
Claims To Fame: The gold medal I won at the University of Toronto for the highest graduating mark in the class of ’74 in English literature. I have an M.A. from the U of T, but left partway through a doctorate on the influence of The Book Of Job on 19th-century English literature. That makes me living proof of the value of a liberal arts education, because when the door to opportunity opened, I knew how to open my mouth.
My First Radio Job: First and last — Q107.
Bob, of course, went on to do many things at other stations, but his love of Q107, and his firm belief that it would be his home forever and always, shows the kind of loyalty and dedication possible when a place is that much fun and provides such a creative environment.
Current Projects: Radio biographies of the Fixx and Kim Mitchell and a number of syndicated projects, including, for next year, a look back at the 1967 Summer of Love. There’s a novel in the works (Cabfare) about a baby-boomer’s mid-life crisis, and a book of poems (Bungalow Three). I’m also growing my hair and working for world peace.
My Most Memorable Performance: Dec. 8, 1980 — I anchored our coverage of the John Lennon assassination. Until that day, I really didn’t know why I was in radio. But during the broadcast, I felt for the first time that I was born to be there.
I think Macko was on the air for at least 12-24 hours when John was assassinated. I was in Ottawa and Bob tracked me down and we spoke live over the air about Lennon. Every artist Bob knew shared their memories and stories live on the air, either in the studio or on the phone, and we all got together to pay tribute to Lennon at the El Mocambo the next weekend. Would music radio stations be able to devote that kind of time and care to a similar thing happening today? As tearful and painful as it was, it was an amazing show of support and unity for one of our own. It was Macko’s sincere love of the music and admiration of Lennon’s rise from the ashes of heroin addiction and inactivity, that drew the rock community to the flame that was held on high by Q107’s participation and support of the local Toronto (and Canadian) music scene
Worst Experience In The Line Of Duty: Without a doubt, interviewing the rock group The Beastie Boys. Jerks with talent I can take, but jerks with no talent and bad attitude I don’t have time for. It was a live interview, but I threw them out of the studio anyway. They’re from New York city and that’s where they’re going to stay.
Is there an artist in existence these days that would behave so badly as to get themselves tossed out of a radio station? And is there a jock that wouldn’t be terminated for disparaging a hit act on the air or in the press?
Why I Haven’t Moved to New York or Los Angeles: That would mean moving to the U.S. and paying taxes to support Reagan. And besides, no one’s asked.
What I’ve Given Toronto: With Q107′s program director Gary Slaight, I’ve helped put together the Homegrown talent search, resulting in more than 100 music acts being recorded in the past nine years. I’m also proud of the work Gary and I have done on Q’s Rock Against Drunk Driving campaign.
Okay…I have to repeat that, “I’ve helped put together the Homegrown talent search, resulting in more than 100 music acts being recorded in the past nine years.†One hundred LOCAL music acts. Oh sure, some conglomerates have prizes for national writers, and some tertiary and secondary stations still seek out great local talent (Hi Trews!)…but Q107 and CFNY and others, PLAYED the local bands they helped discover, promoted their live shows, and involved their listeners in musical discovery. Why on Earth is this not still part of music radio’s mandate and reason to exist? WHY???
What Toronto Has Given Me: A decent environment to bring up my family. Also being on the air without having to change my name or sound like a disc jockey.
And here we are, decades later, when it seems that sounding just like the other on-air guys is paramount. Isn’t it funny that the most important and well known DJs sound like no one else? Isn’t it funny that sounding similar to the other on-air personalities is now a prerequisite to employment?
The Music I Like To Play On The Air: Anything with an edge, from Elvis to U2. It’s got to be real.
“It’s got to be real� Macko meant honest and from the heart. Now I’d have to ask, real what? Real manufactured? Real autotuned? Real popular? Real cute? Real-ly well financed? Real-ly well produced? Real-ly format friendly? I need a beer…
The Music I Like To Listen To At Home: The strange things is, I don’t listen to much music at home. My stereo was broken for seven years and I fixed it only recently. Now I listen to whatever my 17- year-old son is playing, from Wynton Marsalis to the Cult.
Is there a radio exec out there that lets his kids pick their own music and where they hear it, and then listen to what his kids and their friends listen to and talk about? Just curious.
Three Favorite Albums: Van Morrison’s Astral Weeks, the Rolling Stones’ Hot Rocks and Mink de Ville’s Cabaretta.
Mink DeVille? Bob, how positively honest of you! Macko was always on top of whatever was out there (I remember him extolling the virtues of Omar and the Howlers), but still knew the real shit that was street level awesome, whether Q played it or not…and would feature his personal faves on the Six O’Clock Rock Report or play them whenever he had the chance. Personality depends on personal taste and the ability to share it.
Three Favorite Movies: Grand Hotel for the heart, Seventh Seal for the mind and Cannonball Run II because the other two sound so pretentious.
Three Favorite Literary Works: King Lear, Snaps by Victor Hernandez Cruise, anything by e.e. cummings.
Favorite Eating Establishments: My kitchen at home and Kam Wah restaurant in Chinatown.
Favorite Hangouts: Reggie’s apartment on Spadina, because I don’t get around much any more. But when I do, there’s the U of T campus, because it reminds me of Matthew Arnold’s spires of Oxford and it keeps me in touch with what’s really important amid all this ratings nonsense. Also, the Diamond because of manager Jim Zeppa, the Copa because of Mike Elder and Heaven because of Gareth Brown.
Reggie, a fine poet and the doorman and soul of the El Mocambo when Elvis Costello, the Rolling Stones, and great local acts held sway there, is a muso of the first water and was another of Bob’s links to the street and the music of Toronto, and the clubs and show runners he mentions are proof of something
that is forgotten in most quarters: When the people who are in charge of a live music venueare there every night, their personalities are what make or break the venue. This is why Cherish and Glenn (pictured here) at Cherry Cola’s, Darryl at the Bovine Sex Club, Randy Charlton at Sound Academy, and Mark Holmes at the Mod Club, and others like them, run successful venues. Have you ever met the owner/manager of your favourite bar? Can you name a favourite disk jockey who shows up at your favourite band’s gigs, or at your favourite local watering holes?
My Local Heroes: Musicians Paul James, David Wilcox, Morgan Davis and Johnny Lovesin — in other words, the survivors. In the music industry, Bernie Finkelstein. In criticism, Peter Goddard. Also sportscaster Earl McRae and John Dickie of Mondo Combo. (Pictured here, Bob and Bernie)
Performers Or Artists Who Have Influenced Me: Shakespearean critic Jan Kott, Northrop Frye, Pierre Berton (the importance of research, research, research), Monty Python (say no more) and Joe Crysdale who was the original voice of Toronto’s Maple Leafs baseball club and made me fall in love with magic of radio. Also John Donabie and Murray Smith who taught me the radio ropes, and Lenny Bruce who taught me that words can be both powerful and entertaining.
How Things Could Be Improved In Toronto Radio: We need a good rhythm-and-blues station and a good, old-style, screaming, bells- and-whistles disc jockey on a Top 40 station. We could also use a truly great rock ‘n’ roll oldies station and more stations like Q107 and CFNY that support and develop local talent beyond just playing Canadian content.
…and more people like Bob Mackowycz.
As told to Henry Mietkiewicz
The Rock Files: Fixing the Mess We’re In:  UPDATE…
Some people are beginning to get it…
Keeping a close eye on this:
Evanov is teasing the TBA launch of Live 105 in Halifax. A beta site allows one to listen here, and advance hype tips an interactive website giving listeners the chance to have a say on what’s played at the Maritime’s 1st Modern Rock FM…
This is what television fans have been waiting for, for years. Imagine paying for just the stations you want and not being saddled with the Sleeping Bag Channel or The News Read By French Yoga Instructors Channel:
Shaw and other TV providers are negotiating with the CRTC to offer a la carte menu choices on the channels they wish to pay for, an obvious benefit to penny-stretched viewers but a real upset for channels now bundled in basic…
Watching this next one and hoping it is legit. Pricey, but 8 million tunes in one place? A muso’s dream site if it’s true. Sadly, it looks like this might be a credit card grab. If you search their location on Google, it is a manhole cover. Still, this is the kind of site the Majors need to construct themselves, but 25 bucks a month seems a little steep…
Digital Media – ZapTunes, a San Francisco-based music service boasting 8m tracks is temporarily waiving its $25 monthly all-you-can-eat download subscription fee in order to jump the queue and gain traction in a crowded virtual music space…
And some continue to miss the point…
First they sue the consumer, and now they’re going to sue the advertisers who are finally spending money on the internet? Hey Fellas!…why don’t you just negotiate a deal with the sites that spread the word about your music? JUST MONETIZE NOT TERRORIZE!
Copyright – Instead of suing copyright pirates, Warner Bros. and Disney are tackling piracy by suing companies advertising on sites offering infringing clips [MediaPost]
…and some still have inferior sound quality and high prices that drive users to shop elsewhere:
A fee-based iTunes report shows only 25% of users logged in to make a direct purchase, 45% made no purchase at all or used browser functions to find selections they liked but failed to purchase from the site…
Next: My Birthday in pictures, DBAWIS Quickies, and more…
That’s enough for now. Email me at segarini@fyimusic.ca with your comments, complaints, and thoughts…and remember…don’t believe a word I say.
Bob “The Iceman†Segarini was in the bands The Family Tree, Roxy, The Wackers, The Dudes, The Segarini Band, and Cats and Dogs, and nominated for a Juno for production in 1978. He also hosted “Late Great Movies†on CITY TV, was a producer of Much Music, and an on-air personality on CHUM FM, Q107, SIRIUS Sat/Rad’s Iceberg 95, (now 85), and now provides content for radiothatdoesntsuck.com with RadioZombie, The Iceage, and PsychShack. Along with the love of his life, Jade (Pie) Dunlop, (who hosts and writes “I’ve Heard That Song Before†on RTDS), continues to write, make music, and record.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Funny you should mention successful venues. I have been pumping musicians about venues in the various areas and have been handed a number of names which are basically listening rooms, barely attached to the venue itself. Musicians show up, provide their own door person, stage their own show (sometimes with sound help, but many times not) and, if they want an audience, do any promotion beyond a name on a reader board and a list in the local weekly or on their website. I wonder how much more successful the venue could be if they actually cared about/attended the shows? Or actually listened to the music? It is one tremendously weak link in the equation. I remember the days when a venue gave respect and reaped benefits when a band on the way up booked that venue again because of that respect. Perhaps it is there and I just don’t see it, but it at one time made one hell of a difference.
Great piece Bob. I was fortunate enough to meet and become friends with Macko in the early 80′s. Met him through a guy he went to Parkdale High with named Drago. Remember him Bob? Anyway Macko was and is a great guy, and Toronto and the mighty Q were lucky to have him.
@ SOWNY…and don’t forget the three hundred pound jackass (masquerading as an elephant) …sorry, i’ve been sitting on that one for a while…it’s K A S H U R!