Without any fanfare, here's my uber-collection of Stars On 45.

WCFL was one of two great Top 40 Chicago radio stations that I listened to growing up 35 miles west of Milwaukee. From 1965 to March 15, 1976, Super CFL battled WLS for supremacy in the 18-to-35 male listenership group.

With the help of John Rook and a talented staff of disc jockeys led by Superjock Larry Lujack, The Voice of Labor toppled The Big 89 in 1974. However, the victory was short-lived as 'LS regained its throne a year later.

Here's the lineup at WCFL in 1974:
6-10 a.m. - TOM MURPHY
10 a.m.-2 p.m. - BOB DEARBORN
2-6 p.m. - LARRY LUJACK
6-10 p.m. - DOCTOR BROCK
10 p.m.-2 a.m. - BILL TAYLOR
Weekends: DICK SHANNON, DOUG BRACKETT, DICK SAINTE

Today's show consists of some of the tunes that were Super CFL Top 40 Hits of 1974, as compiled by Ron Smith, and to pay homage to a great radio station that is gone, but not forgotten.

(Note: "I Honestly Love You" by Olivia Newton-John is from a 1998 release because I didn't have a copy of the '74 original.)

Larry Lujack was the #1 DJ in Chicago in the 70s and 80s. If you didn't have the opportunity to listen to Superjock on WLS or Super CFL, you missed a treasure of the airwaves.

In his career, Uncle Lar made a record, "The Ballad of the Mad Streaker," wrote a book, "Superjock: The loud, frantic, nonstop world of a rock radio DJ," and released five volumes of "Animal Stories" with Lil Tommy, Tommy Edwards.

Lujack made two more returns to Chicago radio through the magic of ISDN from his home in Sante Fe, New Mexico, but it wasn't the same.

Here is My Tribute to Larry Lujack...Superjock!

Check out more airchecks of Larry Lujack at reelradio.

Check out Chicago Sun-Times columnist Robert Feder's memories of Summer of '87. Some really good tidbits about Larry Lujack and John Gehron, both leaving WLS that year.

Speaking of The Big 89, I just received my four books on Chicago's Top 40 Charts by Ron Smith. Three cover the periods of 1960-69, 1970-79, and 1980-90 on 'LS and the last one is Super CFL 1965-1976. I plan to use these charts for future shows.

I've also got a tribute to Uncle Lar in the works. Keep listening for that special production.

I'm feeling a little mellow today. With the start of the fall semester at school rapidly approaching, I thought I would break out a few of my Favorite Ballads. I welcome you with Open Arms, Diane Franklin...The Last American Virgin.

Without the music of the '70s and '80s, I might be a lost soul without a musical compass. While I enjoy the songs and groups from other time periods, those two decades really are it for me.

Wanting to expand my horizons musically, I decided to take an online class this fall from UW-Colleges entitled "Jazz History and Appreciation." I look forward to becoming more knowledgeable about a genre I'm not as schooled as I feel I should be.

In that same vain, I started looking at songs from the 1990s. Here are some of the Forgotten Hits of the '90s.

Thanks to a gentle reminder from jb at The Hits Just Keep On Comin' that we’re getting a bit long in the tooth, it made me think of one of my favorite performers…Elvis.

Elvis Presley was arguably the most influential performer of the 20th Century. His glory days ranged from the mid-1950s to the mid-1960s, when he was dethroned by a British invasion spearheaded by a juggernaut called The Beatles. Elvis did it all. He was a rock star, a movie star, and even got the girl next door, Priscilla.

In memory of the 30th anniversary of his passing on August 16, I decided to honor his life and music with a show dedicated to The King of Rock and Roll.

My love for VINYL is an affliction not even Dr. Phil can cure. Collecting 45s and LPs has been a hobby of mine since the late 1960s. Part of my collection is courtesy of my brother, Tom.

I owe a debt of gratitude to jb from "The Hits Just Keep On Comin'" for contacting me to join his blogswarm party. My response was a resounding, “YES!” and gave me a reason to more closely examine records I hadn’t looked at in years. I made some surprising discoveries that I am anxious to share.

My initial 33-1/3 was “The Super Record of Super Heroes Played by The Super Dupers.” I bought it with birthday money and it featured versions of theme songs from The Green Hornet, Batman and Robin, and The Mickey Mouse March. In the notes on the back of the LP cover, it stated that the album was “recorded on 3-track Ampex tape recorders” and “frequency response is from 20 to 20,000 cycles per second.” Talk about Old School! I guess the trusty 'ol Wollensack was out of commission. :)

One of my first 45s was “Big Yellow Taxi” by The Neighborhood. Although it gets little airplay today, even on oldies stations, it is by far the best version of Joni Mitchell’s hit song released simultaneously in 1970 and is front-and-center on this show.

Another 45 (and album) I’m proud to own, but didn’t feature in this show is Morris Albert’s 1975 hit “Feelings.” It reminds me of the girl who got away and inspired me to write a song about my love for her. I even sang it to her! Years later when we had the opportunity to be together, the timing just didn't work out for either of us. I'm happy to say we’re still good friends.

This is only a brief glimpse at the vinyl treasure trove of 45s I have collected over the years. During future shows, I'll be sure to feature more of my long-lost oldies. These tunes bring back some great memories.

Celebrate Vinyl Record Day...take a 45 for a spin!

For one of my favorite talk show hosts, there will be no more better tomorrows. Milwaukee native and Marquette University attendee Tom Snyder, host of NBC's "Tomorrow with Tom Snyder" and "The Late, Late Show with Tom Snyder" on CBS, died Sunday after a battle with leukemia.

Some of the highlights of Tom's career included John Lennon's final televised interview, "Weird Al" Yankovic's first TV appearance, and, my personal favorite, a 1980 appearance by The Plasmatics lead singer Wendy O. Williams, who blew up a TV in the studio and disrupted a live broadcast of NBC Nightly News two floors above. I videotaped the Wendy O. incident and spoke with Tom about it during his ABC Radio show. Thanks to a person who shall remain nameless, that videotape was erased.

Two years ago, Tom closed his website, www.colortini.com, but it is not forgotten. He was very gracious about answering e-mails and I appreciated his responses. I wish I would have printed and saved them.

Here's to you, Tom. "Fire up a colortini, sit back, relax, and watch the pictures, now, as they fly through the air."

Another voice out of the past resurfaces at WLS. Turi Ryder will be filling in this Friday from 9 to 11 a.m. (7 to 9 a.m. Arizona time) on WLS. Turi was a talk show host on 'LS-FM and a jock on The Big 89 about 20 years ago.

Currently, Turi has a home studio somewhere near Seattle where she does fill-in on talk stations around the country. Her company is called Shebops Productions.

Give someone an ISDN line and they're in radio. I want one, too! Maybe I can resurrect "The Sunrise Guys" from my home studio.

This latest podcast is filled with some of my favorite tunes from a couple of decades ago. Can it really be that many years have passed since some of these songs were on the charts? Oh well, rock on!

(Notice the reverb on this cast. I downloaded a new program to give me that 'LS sound. Now that I have the technology, it's conceivable Commodore Spencer might be making a guest appearance.)

Boots Randolph, whose spirited saxophone and biggest solo hit "Yakety Sax" made him one of Nashville's top musicians, passed away Tuesday at the age of 80. Randolph suffered a cerebral hemorrhage June 25 and had been hospitalized in a coma.

Randolph played regularly in Nashville nightclubs for 30 years, becoming a tourist draw for the city much like Wayne Newton in Las Vegas and Al Hirt and Pete Fountain in New Orleans. He recorded more than 40 albums and spent 15 years touring with the Festival of Music, teaming with fellow instrumentalists Chet Atkins and Floyd Cramer.

As a session musician, Randolph played on Elvis Presley's "Return To Sender", Roy Orbison's "Oh, Pretty Woman", Brenda Lee's "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" and "I'm Sorry", REO Speedwagon's "Little Queenie", Al Hirt's "Java" and other songs including ones by Buddy Holly and Johnny Cash.

Every time I hear "Yakety Sax," I think of "The Benny Hill Show." Hill used Randolph's signature tune as the theme to his show and throughout the show in place of dialogue. As the English would say, "Ripping good stuff!"

The 4th of July is a holiday that holds special memories for me. Two of my most vivd recollections are watching fireworks as a young boy at Lowell School in Waukesha and lighting sparklers with my dad on the front porch of our home.

In honor of that special time in my life, here's an Independence Day Spectacular filled with some of my favorite tunes.

LUJACK ALERT! Uncle Lar joins Roe Conn as guest co-host Friday from 4 to 7 p.m. (1 to 4 for us left-coasters) on TalkRadio WLS.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

The Top 10 Hits during your birth year were:

1. When You're Smiling - Louis Armstrong
2. Makin' Whoopee - Eddie Cantor
3. Singin' In The Rain - Cliff Edwards (Ukelele Ike)
4. College Medley Fox Trot - Guy Lombardo
5. Pagan Love Song - Copley Palza Orchestra (Bob Haring)
6. Louise - Maurice Chevalier
7. Honey - Rudy Vallee
8. Am I Blue? - Ethel Waters
9. Sweethearts On Parade - Guy Lombardo
10. Great Day - Paul Whiteman

Talk about Golden Oldies. Have a great day!

Good news for Ringo Starr fans. No, he's not being knighted.

Four of Ringo's EMI Music catalog albums, Sentimental Journey (1970), Beaucoups Of Blues (1970), the platinum-certified Ringo (1973) and gold-certified Goodnight Vienna (1974) will make their global digital release debuts across all of the world's major digital sales providers.

On the same date, six Ringo Starr ringtones will also debut, and Capitol/EMI Music Catalog Marketing will release the first-ever career and label-spanning collection of Starr's best solo recordings, PHOTOGRAPH: The Very Best Of Ringo Starr.

As for me, I don't ask for much, I only want your trust and a full-size poster of Ringo's wife, Barbara Bach.

A quick shout out to all the Dads, Fathers, and Papas. Happy Father's Day. This one's for you.

The show's last song refers to where I'll be at Christmas this year. Go UW-Platteville men's basketball!

You may be wondering what I did with my Ozzfest tickets. I gave them to the new receptionist at work free of charge without so much as a Lewinski even being mentioned. She and her boyfriend can go battle the heat and the crowds, not me.

The thought of scalping the ducats on e-Bay crossed my mind and wallet, but in the end, I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I guess I'm just an old softy at heart (but not in my pants).

Last night I secured my free Ozzfest tickets for Phoenix. The extravaganza is scheduled for Tuesday, July 24th at Cricket Pavilion starting at high noon.

The big question is, "Will Davewillie be in attendance?"

The answer is, "Are you f$&#ing nuts?"

Only a mental midget would go to ANY outdoor concert in The Valley of the Sun during the summer. The average high for that date is only 104 and the record is 114. (It's a dry heat. Yeah, right! Keep telling yourself that fairy tale.) The all-time record high of 122 in Phoenix was set the day my son flew here from Wisconsin on June 26, 1990. It was so hot the runways and tarmac at Sky Harbor started to melt!

No, you won't catch me at Ozzfest this year (or any other year, for that matter). Look for my tickets on eBay unless I give them away. I will be luxuriating in A/C and speculating on how many brainiacs will be overcome by the sweltering heat to be carted off to the nearest emergency room.

Unfortunately, if you're not an illegal in Arizona, California or any of the other 48 states, the odds of getting seen by a doctor before you stroke out are less than meeting Alice Cooper at Circle K.

"The Big 89 Rewind" will be rebroadcast in its entirety on the 4th of July on WLS.