RETRO RADIO

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JOE MADIGAN

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Joe Madigan is the guy spinning those great records from the 1960s every week on Retro Radio. Originally from Springfield, Ohio, Madigan grew up in St. Louis, Missouri where he graduated from DeSmet Jesuit High School in 2003. Madigan then headed to Cleveland, Ohio to attend John Carroll University where he joined WJCU-FM in September 2003 where he co-hosted a midnight record show called "Vinyl Venue." Madigan would venture out on his own to launch "Retro Radio" and did his first WIXY-Sixty Top 5 count down on January 18, 2004.

Despite airing from 4-7am weekly, Retro Radio slowly began to develop a following. After a brief hiatus during the summer of 2004, Retro Radio returned in August 2004, this time to Tuesday afternoons from 3:30-6:30. The summer of 2005 brought Madigan to Dayton-Springfield's True Oldies 1600 WULM where Madigan did the 10-2pm slot and eventually took over mornings. During this time Retro Radio moved to Friday afternoons where the show was pre-recorded each week from WULM. Madigan returned to Cleveland and to Tuesday afternoons where he stayed until August 29th 2006, when the show moved to the primetime slot of 6-9pm.

Since 2003, Madigan has served as News Director, Operations Manager, and Station Manager of WJCU. He has also won "Best Apprentice Of The Year" (2004), "Broadcaster of the Year" (2005) and Retro Radio has finished #1 three years in a row during the station's annual radio-thon as the student show to raise the most money. Retro Radio brought in over $1,400 thanks to the generous support of Clevelanders and helped fund WJCU's new transmitter in July 2006.

In 2007, Madigan graduated from John Carroll University with a degree in communications. He now works for the Cleveland Cavaliers Radio Network while doing production freelance work on the side.

IT'S FAQ TIME FRIENDS!

FAQ #1: How old are you?

Joe Madigan: "I get this one asked a lot! I usually tell people I am ageless but, in reality, I am in my 20s."

FAQ #2: Do you really love 60s music?

Joe Madigan: "YES! This is the stuff I grew up listening to. I was never a fan of the music my friends listened to in high school. There's a lot of new stuff though that is really good, but nothing beats the 60s."

FAQ #3: How does a "skinny little boy from St. Louis, Missouri" know so much about WIXY 1260. How did you discover WIXY?

Joe Madigan: "It's all thanks to a gift my Uncle David gave me after cleaning my Great-Grandfather's attic. My father grew up in University Heights (that's my Cleveland connection) and while cleaning out the attic we found a small record player with the WIXY bumper sticker on it. I was a kid at the time so I didn't know much about records or WIXY for that matter. I began to collect 45s so I could put the record player to use. It became a passion for me. When I came to Cleveland and joined WJCU I wanted to do an oldies show and I was looking for some ideas when I decided to do some research on WIXY. What I found amazed me.

First, I discoved an aircheck of WMJI's WIXY reunion from 1997 featuring Jack Armstrong. At first I didn't know what to think of Jack because he was unlike any DJ I have ever heard in my life. As I listened further to his stories and how he interacted with the audience and the records, I instantly became a fan. I found his airchecks from his days at WAYS, WIXY, WKYC, CHUM, WPOP and was blown away from what I heard. Jack Armstrong continues to inspire me everytime I listen in to an old aircheck of his.

Second, I discoved a web site that posted the WIXY-Sixty surveys. I e-mailed the guy and he was thrilled that someone my age was interested and sent me a ton of cool stuff that helped get Retro Radio launched. The rest is history.

FAQ #4: Do you actually play records?

Joe Madigan: "Yes I do. I own them and I play them."

FAQ #5: How do you get these records?

Joe Madigan: "When I visit St. Louis I go to the Record Exchange, the store with the largest record collection I have ever seen to this day. I am always amazed what I find. I also frequent the Lakewood record stores "My Minds Eye" and "Hodads." Believe it or not, record collectors and 60s fans are always happy to send me stuff in the mail, some even invite me over to their homes! I'm always searching for records."

FAQ #6: Who listens online?

Joe Madigan: "A lot of people. I have regulars listening to Retro Radio in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, Austin, Texas, Piqua, Ohio, Dayton, Ohio and all over. I have received e-mails as far west as Hawaii, as far north as Edmunton, Canada, and as far east as the United Kingdom! I actually had a Joe Madigan from Liverpool, England e-mail me once. That was a riot! I once received a telephone call from Wisconsin. Retro Radio has probably been heard in nearly 20 states (to my knowledge). Always happy to hear from you."

FAQ #7: What has been your most memorable moment hosting Retro Radio?

Joe Madigan: "I was asked to emcee the Beachland Ballroom's 6th anniversary show that featured the Choir's first public appearance since 1970! I got to introduce the first two acts, "The Es-Shades" and "The Alarm Clocks" in front of a two night total of 1,000 people and I got to meet a lot of great people. I met regular listeners of the show, all the band members, and even Eric Carmen from the Raspberries! The Beachland Ballroom/Tavern has always been my favorite place in Cleveland to see a show so I was thrilled to have the honor of introducing some great garage rock bands live on stage. It was a blast!"

FAQ #8: You've mentioned Cleveland stations WIXY 1260, WKYC, and WHK, what was CKLW?

Joe Madigan: "CKLW was epic! A legendary station from Windsor, Ontario that served Detriot by playing a variety of music and, of course, Motown. Because of their 50,000 watt signal, Clevelanders got to enjoy the Drake-Programmed station with the famous jingles and 20/20 news. At one point, "The Big 8" was the #2 station in Cleveland behind WIXY!"

Finally, if you were thrown on a small island with just a record player and 5 records, what 5 records would they be?

Joe Madigan: "Good question! I hope there would be a way to power that record player of course. The records would have to be:

1. Music Explosion: Little Bit O' Soul
2. Rolling Stones: Jumpin Jack Flash
3. Merry Go Round: Live
4. Kingsmen: Louie Louie
5. Bob Seger System: Ramblin Gamblin Man

So many great records out there, but I guess those would have to be my top 5... at the moment at least."

- LISTEN to Joe Madigan do his thing on Retro Radio.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN LIVE
[Tuesdays 6-8pm (eastern)]

Retro Radio airs weekly on
88.7 WJCU-FM in Cleveland, Ohio