Roy The Lawyer had "a voice like gravel" to "save you from the gavel". Campbell Smith does not. In this episode, he reveals why; and discusses how 95bFM was his entry into the music biz where he now heads RIANZ, brings the Big Day Out to Auckland, and has offices that nobody breaks the toilet or hits anybody with ironing boards. (Episode 22 Parts 1-2 of 2)
Simon Grigg was involved in Radio b from 1975 until 2002. During that time, he started NZ's first punk group the Suburban Reptiles, launched Propeller Records, was instrumental in this nation's club and DJ culture, took How Bizarre to the world - and even turned down opportunities to license both Factory Records and Stock Aitken & Waterman. He hosted the long-running BPM show, introducing hip-hop, house and techno to the b airwaves. Finally, he reveals the truth: between 1977 and 1980, b was so conservative that NO punk or post-punk was on the airwaves. (Episode 21 Simon Grigg Parts 1-2 of 2)
Stuart was the sales representative for the short-lived 95bFM magazine Monitor, which succeeded the mid-80s incarnation as The Book of Bifim. He went on to be the manager of such 90s bFM stalwarts as Supergroove, Semi Lemon Kola and Thorazine Shuffle, as well as founding the AK venue now kniown as the Dog's Bollix. (Episode 20, Parts 1-2 of 2)
Could somebody with a background in commercial radio make it in the murky world of 95bFM without being laughed out of the building? Bill did. After radio experience in Whangarei, Hamilton, and Belfast in Northern Ireland, Bill arrived at bFM as Production Engineer, moved across to being Program Director during the mid-90s boom time, and was the breathing news radio voice of Vas Deferens. (Episode 17, Parts 1-2 of 2)
Andrew Bishop arrived at 95bFM in 1981, around the same time as his friend Francis Hooper. They both went on to found fashion boutiques and labels, and their time at bFM coincided with a post-punk shift in sensibilities which affected not only music and fashion, but also the belief that bFM's kind of broadcasting could affect those outside of stereotypes. Also, he was in the band Sons In Jeopardy. (Episode 19 Parts 1-2 of 2)
At the age of 8, Rick built a fully-operational radio station that broadcasted from his treehouse to his family house. For the last 25 years, Rick has been in charge of every technical and sonic aspect of 95bFM, ensuring the quality of the sound which comes out of your speakers, sometimes even defying death by hanging upside-down from the 14th floor of city buildings holding a transmitter. He is also Rick Breeze, and did indeed build a scientific weather centre on the roof of his house. (Episode, 14 Part 1-2 of 2)
Jim Pinckney AKA STINKY JIM heard 95bFM when he first visited New Zealand in 1988, and upon his permanent return in 1990 began his long association with the station, helming such legendary radio shows as Tranquility Bass and Stinky Grooves. He has also been a member of acts like Unitone HiFi, Soundproof, and more; and Jim is the man behind the Round Trip Mars label, releasing SJD, Phelps and Munro, James Duncan, The Naked and Famous, and the lauded Sideways compilations. (Episode 13 Part 1-2 of 2)
Graeme Hill - aka Graeme Humphreys of the Able Tasmans - was the first regular breakfast host, a programme director, and a contributor to the school of "ït isn't bullying, it's the filter of talent". Here he discusses...oh dear. Perhaps you should just listen. (Episode 12 Part 1-2 of 2)
Continuing the 95bFM Historical Society 'NZ Music Month" theme, it's Paul Casserly of the Strawpeople. Paul was a programme director, Wire host, inventor of long-running shows and features, and - perhaps most importantly -- the voice of Dad in the legendary series "Dad's Tips". Included in this episode, there is the 'Dad Is Dead' instalment. (Episode 11, Part 1-2 of 2)
In the first of the bFM Historical Society's NZ Music Month shows, Peter McLennan of the hallelujah Picassos and Dub Asylum talks of his parallel music and broadcasting career. Pete selects tunes representative of his time as a run of station heavy-on-the-reggae DJ and as host of the Sunday arts programme, The Culture Bunker. (Episode 10, Parts 1-2 of 2)
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