The Eagles "Hotel California"

Can you think of a song not deserving of its "classic rock" status than "Hotel California"? Of course you can! In fact, I can do an entire month featuring songs that really shouldn't be hits, but somehow are. Your list undoubtedly will not match mine and that's what makes programming a radio station so challenging (among other reasons). If I'm going to invest nearly seven minutes to a song, it better be catchy, fun and/or elicit good memories. "Hotel California" does none of that for me. Upon its re-release in 1994, radio stations again gobbled up the song that had no business being a hit. (End rant)

Supertramp "The Logical Song"

Supertramp made use of video and board games to accompany the keyboards, castanets and various other instruments in "The Logical Song". Specifically, you'll hear the Pop-o-Matic Bubble from the board game Trouble! and a sound effect from the handheld Mattel football game. The song went on to become a Top 10 hit for the band in 1979 and remains a staple on Classic Rock radio stations today.

Peter Frampton "Baby, I Love Your Way"

Add Peter Frampton to the list of classic rockers calling it quits this year. Frampton recently announced his farewell tour which includes a stop in Chicago this summer. Blame Frampton's health for this as he also announced he's suffering from IBM (Inclusion-Body Myositis) -- a progressive muscle disorder.  He discovered he had the condition three years ago after suffering from an on-stage fall. While there's no cure for the disease, Frampton is taking part in a drug trial at Johns Hopkins University. Having played the guitar for 60 years, he's a realist and wants to go out on top. He told CBS This Morning this is his farewell tour -- if his drug treatment works, the next tour would be the miracle tour. One dollar from every ticket sold on his farewell tour will help fund research into his debilitating disease. 

Prince "Raspberry Beret"

"Did you ever hear the story of the lady who sent brownies laced with acid to the radio station?" A colleague from our Classic Rock station posed that question to me recently. Although he didn't partake in the brownies, one of his fellow DJ's did -- causing him to "trip balls" for a few hours. His story lends credence to the Golden Rule among radio DJs: never EVER eat food from a listener.

While producing a radio dating show that aired during the mid-2000s, listeners would come into our studio each night and question three eligible singles who were on the phone -- while we all listened. One night, a congenial bachelorette came to the studio bearing gifts: homemade chocolate-covered strawberries. While her gesture seemed innocent enough, the two hosts and I looked at one another with concern. We all knew the Golden Rule, but how do we not insult this person bearing these delicious hand-made strawberries? The male host finally broke the ice and bit into one of the strawberries. Our guest, however, wasn't satisfied. "You have to one!" she said to the other host and me. Throwing caution to the wind, we both popped the sweet treats into our mouths fulling expecting to bite into a razor blade or perhaps rat poison. Instead of tripping balls, slicing our mouths open or vomiting profusely, we both survived. In fact, during the course of the dating show's two-year run, several contestants came bearing gifts of homemade cannoli, pot roast and candy. Again, we survived.

Moody Blues "The Voice"

Before the internet, rarely did you know what a radio disc jockey looked like unless you went to a station event. Once all radio stations added websites, the curtain that most DJs hid behind finally lifted. Listeners finally got to match the voice to the face. With all due respect, people never look like how we envision. In one instance, a story floated around the radio station I worked in the early-2000s that station bosses refused to put photos of the DJs on the station's new website because one particular DJ had the proverbial "face for radio". To this day, I still don't know who this person is (or even if the story is true).

Incubus "Drive"

Chicago's volatile airwaves changed yet again on April 2, 2001 when, after weeks of stunting, 97.1FM became The Drive. Armed with a quarter of a million dollars in research, The Drive set out a new journey for Classic Rock in Chicago -- the station featured no contests, no morning show and no hype...just rock 'n roll. The station's playlist dug deeper than your standard "Hotel California" and "Layla"classic rock songs to bring back those deep cuts that disappeared from radio at the time. The voice of The Drive belonged to Nick Michaels--the ultimate storyteller who made the music and the listener the star. Given its no-hype persona, no voice but Michaels would do. His no-nonsense delivery when saying "this is the soundtrack of our lives" still resonates today. Sadly, Michaels passed away of a heart attack on May 26, 2018.

Doobie Brothers "What A Fool Believes"

BELIEVE IT OR NOT?

Michael Jackson once boasted to his pal Elizabeth Taylor that he provided backing vocals for the Doobie Brother's Minute By Minute album--specifically for the title track as well as the album's biggest hit: "What A Fool Believes". Members of the Doobie Brothers dispute this story.

Fleetwood Mac "Landslide"

STORY BEHIND THE LYRICS

A struggling Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham had just been dropped by their record company and the couple's personal relationship had also deteriorated in the early-1970s. Nicks contemplated her future and considered giving up on music and going back to school. She left like life was crashing down around her and while staying in Apsen, Colorado, she penned the lyrics to "Landslide".