The Southern Ontario/WNY Radio-TV Forum / If You Could Bring Back One Toronto Radio Stn., Which One Would It Be?

**Posted by RadioActive** November 11, 2024 8:05 am

If you could summon your inner Cher and turn back time, resurrecting one Toronto radio station, which one would you pick? I'm guessing some would choose CHUM-FM from its early more experimental prog rock era or perhaps CFNY, when it was truly "The Spirit of Radio."

Some here may like the old CHUM-AM or even CFRB when it was ruling the roost in Toronto and actually had a decent and dependable newsroom.

My choice would be CKFH in its late 60s-early 70s days, the first real competitor to 1050 in the city. I remember being angry when the latter brought in the Drake format, losing the personalities that made the place legendary, and for the first time in my life, turned the dial to 1430. 'FH was a product of its time, was a wonderful, if all too-short lived station, had a wider playlist than CHUM and brought in some great jocks. I'd love to hear them again.

My runner-up might be CFTR in the days when it first went Top 40 and was feeling its way through the format. They took a lot chances, some that worked, others that didn't, but you could tell they were trying to be different. And it was great to listen to them forming what would eventually become the #1 Top 40 AM station in the city.

**Posted by Tq345** November 11, 2024 9:55 am

I'd have to go with two stations that were very important to me and a major inspiration to get into the business.

1050 CHUM in the mid 1970s.
I was pretty much glued to that station during my pre-teen and early teen years.

Q107 from the late 70s and early 80s.
As I got a bit older I migrated to the FM dial. I never found a connection with CHUM-FM or CFNY, but I really loved Q, especially Ted Woloshyn, then Scruff Connors in the morning and the Six O'clock Rock Report, which provided great rock music news when it was pretty hard to come by anywhere else.

**Posted by RadioActive** November 11, 2024 10:08 am

You probably missed Q's daily "High Witness News," one of the strangest features on radio, an update on illegal drugs available on Toronto's streets.

**Posted by mace** **Online!** November 11, 2024 10:22 am

In addition to a wider playlist than CHUM, the BIG143 also had CHICKENMAN!!

**Posted by Paul Jeffries** November 11, 2024 10:42 am

Although I was a regular CHUM and CFTR listener during their Top 40 heydays, I also enjoyed the short-lived "AM640 - The Hog" with their "Maximum Grunt" Rock 40 format that lasted about a year from 1990-91.

I didn't care too much for the incarnation that followed, "AM640 - The New Beat of Toronto". That format was the antithesis of what they originally set out to do, in my mind's eye.

PJ

**Posted by Radiowiz** November 11, 2024 11:14 am

The original Hog of 1990.
Yes I am serious, if first and foremost for the way they did news.
They had the best, most creative writing team when it came to their news department.
I REALLY loved how they would replace the word "Jail" with "Cell Hotel" or refer to the Prime Minister (of the time) as "BM THE PM"
They did news in a very special way that no one else (in the Toronto market) would.

I salute them also for knowing full well that Rock 40 would never work on AM, but they did it anyway.
A goal they set to get the kids to grow up going to Hog High, and graduate to Q. U.
Cable radio was a nice place to tune in, but it trapped you to where the stereo and cable radio was set up in the home.

Last edited by Radiowiz (November 11, 2024 11:14 am)

**Posted by Paul Jeffries** November 11, 2024 11:19 am

Radiowiz wrote:
The original Hog of 1990.
Yes I am serious, if first and foremost for the way they did news.
They had the best, most creative writing team when it came to their news department.
I REALLY loved how they would replace the word "Jail" with "Cell Hotel" or refer to the Prime Minister (of the time) as "BM THE PM"
They did news in a very special way that no one else (in the Toronto market) would.

I suspect that was probably somewhat inspired by CKLW's "20/20 News" from their Top 40 heyday.

PJ

**Posted by Radiowiz** November 11, 2024 11:32 am

Paul Jeffries wrote:
Radiowiz wrote:
The original Hog of 1990.
Yes I am serious, if first and foremost for the way they did news.
They had the best, most creative writing team when it came to their news department.
I REALLY loved how they would replace the word "Jail" with "Cell Hotel" or refer to the Prime Minister (of the time) as "BM THE PM"
They did news in a very special way that no one else (in the Toronto market) would.
I suspect that was probably somewhat inspired by CKLW's "20/20 News" from their Top 40 heyday.
PJ

Sure, but it can still be done today.

**Posted by Doug Thompson** November 11, 2024 12:03 pm

RA wrote: My choice would be CKFH in its late 60s-early 70s days, the first real competitor to 1050 in the city.

To be accurate, CKEY from 1959 until around '64 was CHUM's first real competitor with DJs such as Duff Roman, J.P Finnegan, Big G Walters, Bill Brady but especially Dave Mickie (David Marsden). In 1963, CKEY hired CHUM's morning man Al Boliska and Dave Mickie from CHLO St. Thomas.

That really scared CHUM.

Fortunately for 1050, Boliska's CHUM audience didn't follow him to CKEY and they hired Jungle Jay Nelson from WKBW Buffalo who built on Boliska's ratings. Plus Dave Mickie shortly moved to CBC Television's "Music Hop". CHUM also brought in the syndicated Dick Clark Radio Show.

As for 'The Hog's' news, CFTR in the late '70s and early '80s had their own CKLW style news writing with Larry Silver and others using phrases such as "There's a floater in the Don".

**Posted by RadioActive** November 11, 2024 12:14 pm

I'd completely forgotten CKEY's rock days, only because I never listened to it then, which I deeply regret today. I would love to hear more of what it sounded like.

Also worth mentioning: WGR-AM in Buffalo, which won Billboard's Station Of The Year Award several times. An absolutely wonderful radio station with great personalities, and the only one I've ever heard with a jingle in Polish, because of the large number of people from that heritage who lived in Western New York.

Creative, innovative and even a personality who was arrested for bank robbery! Hard to beat that!

**Posted by mace** **Online!** November 11, 2024 12:19 pm

Probably, one of the best CKLW 20/20 news items was the Louisville Slugger piece done by Grant Hudson.

**Posted by Radiowiz** November 11, 2024 12:24 pm

Doug Thompson wrote:
As for 'The Hog's' news, CFTR in the late '70s and early '80s had their own CKLW style news writing with Larry Silver and others using phrases such as "There's a floater in the Don".

The CFTR 68 second news break was also great, but nothing beats Hog News.

**Posted by RadioActive** November 11, 2024 12:27 pm

I worked with Larry Silver. Very talented, but one of the oddest men I've ever met in the business.

**Posted by Dale Patterson** November 11, 2024 7:27 pm

CKFH in 1967 and-or '68.

CHUM-FM late '60s-early '70s.

CHUM mid-'60s, up to 1968.

'GR 55 in Buffalo 1975-81

WKBW Buffalo during the Jeff Kaye era (1966-73)

**Posted by betaylored** November 11, 2024 7:47 pm

CHOM FM in the mid 70's with the jocks switching seamlessly from French to English and back to French again during breaks, lots of Genesis, Supertramp, Pink Floyd etc. and actually mixing the music from one song into another.

CBC during the pre television years of the original Royal Canadian Air Farce lineup as well as the charm of the Vinyl Cafe.

Newstalk 1010 during the time frame when Dave Agar and Robert Turner warmed up the listeners at 5am. and Christie Blatchford was a terrific and key part of many a Moore In The Morning roundtable discussion.

Last edited by betaylored (November 11, 2024 7:50 pm)

**Posted by Radiowiz** November 11, 2024 8:18 pm

CJEZ 97.3 (the original)
and
Oshawa's 94.9 FM CKQT.

**Posted by RadioActive** November 11, 2024 8:27 pm

I'm surprised no one has chosen Carl Banas or Fred Napoli (with his famous "stories") at CKFM.

**Posted by jughead jones** November 11, 2024 9:23 pm

While I loved mid-1980s CHUM-FM and "School of the Airhead," my vote would go to "All Hit Radio 680 CFTR" in the 1980s era of Rivers, Hayes, Cooper, and Gregory.

**Posted by andysradio** November 11, 2024 9:25 pm

“590 CKEY. Radio Toronto”

**Posted by jughead jones** November 11, 2024 9:26 pm

Good point, andysradio, Keith Rich was very good in the morning.

Last edited by jughead jones (November 11, 2024 9:26 pm)

**Posted by RadioActive** November 11, 2024 9:34 pm

jughead jones wrote:
Good point, andysradio, Keith Rich was very good in the morning.

Indeed he was. I was there in 1979, which is when this ad was published.

Rich was a wonderful morning man. I never got to see much of him since I generally worked the later shifts, but he was always a huge presence there.

I love how they promote "Time Checks" as being a great feature.

**Posted by turkeytop** November 11, 2024 9:47 pm

In the 60s and 70s, CFRB was probably the best station in Canada. I lived in a part of Ontario where there was no FM available. CFRB was my favourite music station.

Last edited by turkeytop (November 11, 2024 9:49 pm)

**Posted by RadioActive** November 13, 2024 6:07 pm

mace wrote:
In addition to a wider playlist than CHUM, the BIG143 also had CHICKENMAN!!

**Posted by Muffaraw Joe** **Online!** November 13, 2024 8:29 pm

I liked MOJO 640, I thought that was a cool niche. I remember Mike Stafford doing a bit on air then about who would you appoint to remove the porn on your computer when you pass. Sure made you take action and look for a very trusted friend.

CFNY from 1979-1987

CFTR when Tom Rivers and Mike Cooper were on air

and Chum FM in the early 80's when John Rode did mornings, Gord James was on air and Ingrid Schumaker was on as well as some credible news people back then.

**Posted by leafs67** November 14, 2024 7:28 am

Without a doubt, the my first favourite radio station: CKO.