Before punk rock, there was indeed a significant underground music scene. Alternative in the seventies was called Progressive. Groups with names like Atomic Rooster; String Driven Thing; Curved Air; Paris; Strawbs; Van Der Graaf Generator; Triumvirat; Barclay James Harvest and many others had a cult following -- and even a home on L.A. radio in the 1970s. That home was on AM 1500 -- KROQ, a station with quite an eventful history.

The station was originally on 1490 khz, a local channel limited to 1 kw day, 250 w nite. It used a self-supporting tower (no guy wires) located in a public park in Burbank. Then it applied for 1500 khz and an elaborate directional antenna array was constructed on a hilltop. Evidently this antenna design didn't work out.

The shift from 1490 to 1500 kHz. on the AM dial took place in 1964.

In the mid-sixties, the station was known as KBLA, a low-rated Top 40 that nonetheless attracted some fairly big jock talent. It just didn't stand a chance, signalwise, against KHJ, KFWB and KRLA.

The call letter change from KBLA to KBBQ (K-Bar-B-Q) was approved by the FCC on June 17, 1967 and the station changed format, going up against KLAC 570 for the Country & Western audience. KLAC, with its superior signal, had had a faithful audience for many years (and would have them for 27 more), so KBBQ languished in the ratings.

The resurrection came in 1972, when a GM named Gary Bookasta announced he was about to put the next big thing on the air.....the call change to KROQ was approved Sept. 2, 1972, and big-name jocks were hired.... with the idealistic (not realistic) practice of paying them all, regardless of airshift, the same salary...$100,000 a year. Charlie Tuna (just back from burning off his KHJ non-compete with six months at KCBQ, San Diego), Sam Riddle, Shadoe Stevens, Jimmy Rabbitt and Lee "Baby" Simms were the jocks. Steve Sands, fresh from KEZY in Anaheim, held down the Midnight-to-Dawn air shift.

Tuna played the Top 40 hits in the morning..."Tie A Yellow Ribbon", "Delta Dawn"....but at 9:00, with no separator save a live crossover between jocks, Sam Riddle would arrive with Deep Purple, the Who and other hard rock.

Didn't work. Certainly not well enough to pay half a million in salaries alone. Checks began bouncing within the first year....Tuna bolted to KKDJ, Riddle retired to television production...and then, the innovative format took hold at KROQ-AM.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?: KROQ-AM 1500 had a Spanish language format in the early-'80s, but the power seemed to be quite low (maybe 1,000 watts). The station was still on the air until October of 1984. It went dark for reasons which are still unclear.

The new license, a construction permit for 1500 licensed to Burbank was filed in 1986. In 1992, the applicant tried to get a tower site built in the Tujunga Wash area, but that plan was voted down by the Los Angeles City Council.

KROQ-AM, according to the FCC, still has an outstanding CP with the call letters KRCK, with the transmitter site near the Wentworth St. exit of the 210 freeway in Sunland. Possibly, the 1500 project remains alive, and whether it gets back on, we'll have to wait and see...