BRINGING BACK THE MEMORIES OF CANADA'S FIRST ROCK AND ROLL AM RADIO STATION
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EULOGY Born: October 28, 1945, Toronto, Ontario, Canada After a few reincarnations 1050 CHUM quietly passed away on March 26, 2009 1050 CHUM was a legendary Top 40 powerhouse from the late 1950s through to the early 1980s. The station had a formula no other station has been able to duplicate.
Through the formative ‘50s, the unforgettable ‘60s and the interesting ‘70s, 1050 CHUM played a major role in shaping the radio landscape in Toronto. Recording acts from Elvis Presley, The Beach Boys, The Beatles, The Guess Who, Elton John, The Eagles, The Doobie Brothers and Bob Seger not only graced the airwaves but walked the halls of 1050 CHUM.
The radio station was famous for the CHUM Chart. From 1957 to 1986, 1,512 consecutive weekly charts were published, making it the longest-running chart of its kind in the world. Also, 1050 CHUM was noteworthy for hosting many famous rock concerts including, among others, visits to Maple Leaf Gardens by Elvis Presley (1957) and The Beatles (1964, '65, and '66).
Guy Mitchell, born Albert George Cernik, (February 27, 1927 – July 1, 1999) was an American pop singer, successful in his homeland, the U.K. and Australia. As an international recording star of the 1950s he achieved record sales in excess of 44 million units and this included six million-selling singles.
In the fall of 1957, Mitchell starred in his own ABC variety show, The Guy Mitchell Show. He also appeared as George Romack on the 1961 NBC western detective series Whispering Smith, with World War II hero Audie Murphy in the leading role. -Wikipedia
1 1 Mitchell, Guy Heartaches By The Number 6
2 3 Islanders, The Enchanted Sea, The 7
3 2 Fleetwoods, The Mr. Blue 9
4 5 Fields Orchestra, Ernie In The Mood 5
5 6 Price, Lloyd Come Into My Heart 5
5 0 Price, Lloyd Won'tcha Come Home 0
6 7 Rydell, Bobby We Got Love 5
7 11 Domino, Fats Be My Guest 4
7 11 Domino, Fats I've Been Around 1
8 4 Avalon, Frankie Just Ask Your Heart 11
9 9 Mathis, Johnny Misty 7
10 12 Rock-A-Teens, The Woo-Hoo 5
11 8 Evans, Paul Seven Little Girls Siting In The Back Seat 9
12 18 Drifters, The Dance With Me 4
12 0 Drifters, The (If You Cry) True Love, True Love 0
13 23 Browns, The Scarlet Ribbons (For Her Hair) 3
14 16 Sinatra, Frank Talk To Me 5
15 10 Sedaka, Neil Oh! Carol 7
16 17 Fireballs, The Torquay 6
17 14 Darin, Bobby Mack The Knife 13
18 22 Benton, Brook So Many Ways 5
19 20 Fuller, Bobby Tennessee Waltz 4
19 20 Comstock, Bobby Tennessee Waltz 4
20 13 Williams, Andy Lonely Street 10
21 32 Granata, Rocco Marina 3
22 43 Anka, Paul It's Time To Cry 1
23 27 Kallen, Kitty If I Give My Heart To You 4
24 15 Crests, The Angels Listened In, The 9
25 19 Beckham, Bob Just As Much As Ever 5
26 28 London, Joe It Might Have Been 3
27 36 Nutty Squirrels, The Uh! Oh! 2
28 31 Charles, Ray I'm Movin' On 2
29 44 Spacemen, The Clouds, The 2
30 21 Hall, Larry Sandy 10
31 33 Royal Teens, The Believe Me 3
32 35 Fabian Hound Dog Man 2
32 35 Fabian This Friendly World 2
33 30 Washington, Dinah Unforgettable 6
34 39 Peterson Quintet, Bobby Hunch, The 2
35 48 Francis, Connie Among My Souvenirs 1
36 29 Clovers, The Love Potion No. 9 7
37 31 Four Lads, The Happy Anniversary 3
37 41 Morgan, Jane Happy Anniversary 3
38 24 Anka, Paul Put Your Head On My Shoulder 12
39 45 Turner, Sammy Always 1
40 50 Nelson, Ricky I Wanna Be Loved 1
41 26 Nelson, Sandy Teen Beat 11
42 0 Avalon, Frankie Swingin' On A Rainbow 0
42 0 Avalon, Frankie Why 0
43 47 Johnny & The Hurricanes Reveille Rock 2
44 25 Martindale, Wink Deck Of Cards 8
45 0 Santo & Johnny Tear Drop 0
46 0 Johnson, Marv You Got What It Takes 0
47 34 Haley, Bill & His Comets Joey's Song 8
48 38 Keller, Jerry Loveable 8
49 0 Joyce, Shelley Heaven Knows I Love Him 0
50 0 Bell, Leigh & The Chimes Terry 0
"1050 CHUM" was a legendary Top 40 powerhouse during the late 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, and early 1980s.
Early history and Top 40 format
CHUM AM was launched as a dawn-to-dusk radio station on October 28, 1945 by Jack Q'Part, an entrepreneur in the business of patent medicines. The station, then operating from studios in the Mutual Street Arena, was taken over in December 1954 by Allan Waters, a salesman from Q'Parts' patent medicine business. Waters' first major move was to secure a license for 24-hour-a-day broadcasting for CHUM, along with a power increase to 5,000 watts. Less than three years after Waters acquired the station, and soon after bringing the new fulltime transmitter online, a major programming change was made. On May 27 1957, Waters switched to a "Top 50" format that had proven itself popular in some U.S. cities; Elvis Presley's "All Shook Up" was the first song played. "1050 CHUM" pioneered rock and roll radio in Toronto, and was noteworthy for hosting many noteworthy rock concerts including, among others, visits to Maple Leaf Gardens by Elvis Presley (1957) and The Beatles (1964, '65, and '66). While the station was rising to the top of the popularity ratings in Toronto in the early 1960s, it also built yet another new transmitter in Mississauga, Ontario (a few miles west of the current Toronto city line) along the Lake Ontario shoreline, and raised its power once again to its current 50,000 watts around the clock.
CHUM DJs of the 1960s were zany morning man Al Boliska, who quit in late 1963 to go 'across the street' to CKEY.He was replaced by WKBW, Buffalo radio & TV personality Jay Nelson, popularly known as "Jungle Jay" from his role as host of a children's show on Buffalo's Channel 7 which was also popular among Toronto youngsters. He would be followed by housewives' jock John Spragge; singer/DJ Mike Darow; Pete Nordheimer, replaced in 1961 by witty Bob McAdorey; teen DJ Dave Johnson; and all night maven Bob Laine. Later additions to the CHUM DJ lineup included Duff Roman and Brian Skinner, both of whom came over from CKEY (then owned by Jack Kent Cooke). In the late 1960s, early 1970s, CHUM DJ's included Duke Roberts (also known as Gary Duke for a time), Johnny Mitchell (better known today as Sonny Fox), J. Michael Wilson, Tom Rivers, Scott Carpenter, Jim Van Horne, John Rode, Don Reagan, Terry Steele and Roger Ashby. Among their later mighttime hosts was John D. Roberts, who joined CHUM in 1977 and would eventually become known across North America as White House correspondent for CBS-TV and host of CNN's morning program "American Morning."
CHUM was also well known for its contests, like the 1970s' "I Listen to CHUM" promotion, in which DJs would dial phone numbers at random and award $1,000 to anyone who answered the phone with that phrase.
From gold-based to oldies
By the mid-1980s, CHUM had lost ground in the Toronto ratings to competitor Top 40 station CFTR and FM-based music stations. On June 6, 1986, CHUM dropped its Top 40 format for a heavily gold-based adult contemporary format ("Favourites of Yesterday and Today"). By 1989, CHUM adopted an oldies format, drawing heavily on its previous Top 40 reputation to cater to the fans of that era's music.
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