Rockin' Down the Dial: The Detroit Sound of Radio (From Jack the Bellboy to the Big 8)
Carson, previously a radio disc jockey himself, provides a useful and entertaining historical account of the evolution of Detroit radio.  He chronicles the styles and antics of the most popular local radio personalities from the 1940s through the 1970s-several of whom eventually took their places in radio's hall of fame; Casey Kasem, Dick Purtan, and Ed (Jack the Bellboy) McKenzie were all once active in Detroit radio.  A handy list of Detroit radio alumni and their current exploits is presented at the end of this volume.  Carson also furnishes us with an intriguing insider's view of the Detroit radio payola scandal of 1959, the local promotional efforts that launched "The Motown Sound," the arrival of the Beatles and the subsequent British Invasion, and the genesis of FM rock radio in the early 1970s.  Recommended for academic libraries serving telecommunications departments and public libraries in the Detroit area.David M. Lisa, Mercyhurst Coll. Lib., Erie, PACopyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.