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Post by John Quincy on May 10, 2009 2:49:08 GMT -5
Al Risen (Albert H. Risen, Jr.) has passed away. According to the online edition of the Daytona Beach News-Journal, he died in New Smyrna, Florida on April 18, 2009 at the age of 65.
Al was a DJ in Louisville and Lexington radio in the late '60s and early-to-mid '70s. He did stints at WAKY, WKLO, WINN, WKRX (now WVEZ) WXVW, and WLAP.
Former WAKY DJ and Production Director Mike Griffin remembers, "When Lee Gray worked the night shift at WKLO (68-69) Al Risen followed him. Al also did the first 'underground' show that I recall during one of the hours of the shift."
Tim Tyler, who worked at WAKY with Al, says "Al Risen was truly one of the nice guys!"
Al Risen left Louisville in the mid-70s to work at WKDA in Nashville, and later WSM, where he syndicated a country music show.
According to Jerry Kieffer, Al worked at country-formatted WELE in Ormond Beach, Florida in the '80s -- and spent the past 10 years or so working for the Post Office in Edgewater, Florida (which is just south of New Smyrna Beach).
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Post by John Quincy on May 15, 2009 6:19:39 GMT -5
Former WKLO newsman Byron Rohrig writes on May 14, 2009:
I was first a fan of Al Risen's airwork, then worked with him some at WKLO and saw him occasionally in the early '70s when he worked at WINN in Louisville. In those days, you'd often see Al walking along the street with a guitar case in hand. He'd often hole-up with his ax in the production room at WKLO on weekends, honing his craft and doubtless working on demos. He was a very good songwriter.
WKLO Kentuckiana Countdowns for the summer of 1970 list a record titled "Everyday" by a Louisville group called the Brothers Pride. Al wrote it, and a haunting song the group later recorded, "The Last Day of Your Life." Its refrain: "On the last day of your life/Would you dress in black or white/And would you still know you were right/On the last day..."
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Post by John Quincy on May 21, 2009 11:50:58 GMT -5
More on Al Risen from former WKLO newsman Byron Rohrig:
Another thing that might be of interest: Mark St. Matthews' WKLO jock profile and Dave Carson's letter from last year each mention WKLO's "Underground" program from 12-1 a.m. Risen launched that show in early 1969, when he was M.D. and working the 10 p.m.-1 a.m. airshift. There were a couple of cool promo photos on the back of the Kentuckiana Countdown, shot with Risen in a station stairwell that was being torn apart for remodeling.
Despite the format drawbacks Dave mentions, I believe the show was the market's only album rock until WLRS-FM converted from a "beautiful music" format in 1973.
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