12/06/2025
Steve Garland here- Next month will be the 46th anniversary of the launch of San Francisco’s CBS FM 97. Hard to believe it’s been that long since I was the young dj in these pics with all the hair, getting his first big radio break!
The first pic is from our launch party- January 1980 with PD Sean Conrad at top and the staff, minus John Mac Flanagan who left the party early since he was the morning man and had to get up at 4:30am!
Second photo is the airstaff and management with FOREIGNER, later in 1980 as they were on a press tour promoting their 79 album “Head Games” and concert tour. Lou Gramm, Mick Jones, and the CBS FM team. I was the 6-12m jock so I would drag myself out of bed and back into the station the next day for opportunities like this to meet the bands coming through the station, get a photo or a recorded promo freon the band for my show.
In the air the lineup and this time was:
6-10am
John Mac Flanagan
10-2p
Deirdre Gentry
2-6p
Jay Parker Antrim
6p-12m
Steve Garland
12n-6am
Steve Garland voice tracked
Yep- I was the radio kid who always said YES when asked if I would take on an extra job, like lear ing who to voice track on reel to reel and load the giant IGM automation system that took up an entire room full of cart machines and reel to reels!
Sometimes I slept in the production room after working till 3 or 4 am perfecting my production skills, voice tracking and having a blast doing radio!
If you weren’t there for it, we played a combo of rock and pop oldies and new pop/rock.
The hits of now….and Then!”
It was still the “wild wild west” in radio, where you could be creative, run your own board, and the phone lines were ringing with people requesting songs all the way till midnight !
