Saturday, December 31, 2005

Remembering New Year's Eve 1991

I worked at the radio station until midnight. We did our own local countdown of the top 94 country songs of 1991 and it was a challenge to get it to time out exactly at midnight. I ran a bit short so I padded with "countdown extras". Who listens to the radio on New Year's eve anyway? I suppose people who have to work like truck drivers and 7-11 clerks might listen. At 11:58 and 40 seconds I started a recorded cartridge with a really well-produced 80 second New Year's countdown. Mark McKay, our station image specialist and afternoon drive jock, brought it in from the San Francisco station where he'd been on staff previously. It featured the trippy part of Steve Miller's Fly Like an Eagle, where he's singing "Time keeps on slippin', slippin', into the future", and then every 20 seconds or so, an automated voice gave the time update. At the stroke of midnight, Auld Lang Syne faded in and the KFKF jocks gave recorded wishes for the coming year.
It was a weird feeling driving sober on the streets at midnight, dodging drunk drivers. I met my new girlfriend Sue at O'Leary's bar in Overland Park where we started the celebration a little late.

No comments: