February 03 The Day The Music Died
Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and J.P. Richardson
Three Stars Tommy Dee
Paying Tribute to the Great Radio On Air Heros in OKC and Tulsa
Tribute to the OKC DJs of the 1960s
I still remember those days—being in high school, heading to the State Fair of Oklahoma with a group of friends. As soon as we arrived, everyone scattered: some ran straight for the Midway, but I had only one destination in mind.
I made my way to the WKY mobile studio, where radio and TV legend Danny Williams was on the air. The moment he spun those records, the whole crowd came alive. We danced right there in the open air, carried by the music and the magic only Danny could create.
Every so often he’d step outside during a break, smiling, shaking hands, and handing out records. And if you were lucky, he’d place one in your hands—signed, a little treasure from a man who shaped the soundtrack of our youth.
Thank you, Danny Williams, and all the DJs of 1960s Oklahoma City, for filling our lives with music, excitement, and memories that still shine.
DOT Records
DOT RECORDS — THE TRUE ORIGINS (1950–1953)
Dot Records didn’t start as a national pop label. It began as a tiny Gallatin, Tennessee operation founded by:
🎙️ Randy Wood
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A radio engineer and record-store owner
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Ran the “Record Shop” in Gallatin
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Took listener requests from WLAC’s 50,000‑watt nighttime R&B broadcasts
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Noticed that many of the songs listeners wanted were not available on records
So he did what any great early‑50s entrepreneur did: He started a label to fill the gaps.
THE EARLY DOT SOUND (1950–1953)
Dot’s first years were not Pat Boone, Gale Storm, or the big pop hits. The early catalog is a mix of:
1. Southern gospel
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The LeFevres
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The Statesmen Quartet
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The Oak Ridge Quartet (pre–Oak Ridge Boys)
2. Hillbilly & country boogie
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Billy Vaughn (before he became Dot’s arranger)
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Jimmie & Johnny
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The Willis Brothers
3. Regional R&B and teen novelties
This is the part you’ll appreciate most — Dot issued local Tennessee and Kentucky R&B that bigger labels ignored.
Broadcast Bulletin (Daily Updates)
Album Showcase
Birthdays
Segment Features
Vault Vinyl's
Beatles and Elvis
Legacy and Lore
Visual Archives
Gold Star Oldies Radio Steaming Directories
Legends Remembered & Celebrated — Sunrise Concerts and Tributes
The History of the new Gold Star Oldies Radio and it's Mission
Birthdays Singers and Song Writers
1942 - Graham Nash
British-American singer-songwriter Graham Nash, known for his light tenor voice and for his songwriting contributions as a member of The Hollies and supergroup Crosby, Stills & Nash. Nash initially met both David Crosby and Stephen Stills in 1966 during a Hollies US tour. CSN's scored the hit singles 'Marrakesh Express' (which had been rejected by the Hollies), 'Our House', 'Teach Your Children'.
Beatles and Elvis News
1962 - The Beatles
The Beatles played their first professionally organised gig outside of Liverpool at The Oasis Club, Manchester. The groups set started with their version of 'Hippy Hippy Shake'.
2013 - The Beatles
A 1960’s Beatles Record Player, produced for fans as a commercial Beatles memorabilia item, fetched $12,100 in an online auction. The Record Player, which was highly-sought by Beatles collectors worldwide, was manufactured in a limited quantity. Because of this, some believed there was still a strong possibility a few remaining players to be discovered.
Music News For The Week
.January 30, 1961 — The Shirelles become the first black female group to reach #1 in the USA with "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?"
1969 — The Beatles make their final public appearance, an unannounced performance on the roof of the five-story Apple Records headquarters in London. Police shut it down after 42 minutes when a large lunchtime crowd gathers and neighboring businesses complain about the clamor.
January 31, 1958 — Little Richard announces his retirement from music at the peak of his career to become an evangelist.
February 1, 1947 — Legendary blues musician and mouth harpist Sonny Boy Williamson appears on the precursor to Billboard magazine's R&B music chart with "Shake The Boogie," eventually reaching #4. It is a rollicking performance that foreshadows rock 'n' roll.
1949 — RCA introduces the 45 r.p.m. record, a lightweight, cheap-to-produce, unbreakable vinyl disc. It would outsell 78 r.p.m records by early 1955 and allow small independent labels to compete with major record companies, helping propel the rock 'n' roll revolution. Among RCA's first seven releases this day is a reissue of Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup's 1946 R&B disc "That's All Right Mama," a tune Elvis Presley would cover for the Sun label in Memphis, Tennessee, on his first record in 1954.
February 2, 1956 — The Coasters sign to Atco Records and have 19 hits in 15 years.
1963 — The Beatles begin their first British tour in Bradford, England, listed last on the bill.
February 3, 1959 — Known as "The Day the Music Died," Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper perish in a light airplane crash (right) near a cornfield north of Mason City, Iowa, during a snowstorm following their Winter Dance Party appearance at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa.
February 4, 1956 — James Brown records his first single, "Please, Please, Please," for King Records subsidiary Federal in Cincinnati, Ohio. Label owner Syd Nathan hates the song and blames his producer for hiring him, but the record launches Brown's career by selling one million copies and winds up #143 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time (2010 edition).
February 5, 1975 — Louis Jordan ("Caldonia," "Choo Choo Ch'Boogie"), the acknowledged father of rhythm and blues and grandfather of rock 'n' roll, dies of a heart attack at age 66 at his Los Angeles, California, home. A transition artist between the big band swing era and rock 'n' roll, he is among the first 1940s black performers to achieve crossover popularity with a white audience. An influence on Bill Haley, Chuck Berry, James Brown and others, his music inspires the long-running musical Five Guys Named Moe, named for a 1942 Jordan record.
Sources:
Eight Days a Week (Ron Smith)
On This Day in Black Music History (Jay Warner)
Chronology of American Popular Music, 1900-2000 (Frank Hoffman)
calendar.songfacts.com
onthisday.com/music
Segment Features
The History of Sunrise Radio (Gold Star Oldies)
As Told in the Tradition of Classic AM Broadcasting
In the early days of the station, before the sun rose on its true identity, the signal carried the call letters KVRA — Keep Vinyl Records Alive. It was a small station with a big idea: to preserve the sound, the spirit, and the craftsmanship of the records that built American radio.
KVRA operated with the same pride as the powerhouse AM stations of the era. Real call letters. Real curation. Real radio.
But as the station grew, something became clear. While other online broadcasters used simple titles and playlists, KVRA carried the weight of a heritage operation — a station with a mission, a memory, and a curator who understood the value of a 45 spinning under a warm stylus.
And so, in the finest tradition of AM evolution, the station stepped into a new identity. The call letters remained part of its foundation, but the broadcast name changed to reflect its purpose.
Today, that station is known as Sunrise Radio.
A place where forgotten singles, regional teeners, R&B promos, and rare artifacts are given a home once more. A station built on the belief that some music isn’t just entertainment — it’s history.
Sunrise Radio proudly carries the motto: “You Can’t Find This Anymore.”
But every sunrise has a beginning and the sun also set's. For this station, that beginning was KVRA — the call letters that lit the first spark and set the tone for everything that followed. The new branding has started we are now Gold Star Oldies Radio.
Spinning Those Records
Vault Vinyl and Stories behind the songs
Don and Phil Sign with Cadence Records
February 1 1957
20-year-old Don Everly and his 2-year-younger brother Phil sign a recording contract with Cadence Records. During their career, The Everly Brothers will have thirty-five Billboard Hot 100 singles
Visual Archive
