https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/ Copyright (c) 2006-2013 Web Wiz Forums - All Rights Reserved. Sun, 03 May 2026 20:45:54 +0000 Tue, 29 Apr 2008 16:29:23 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Web Wiz Forums 12.07 360 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/RSS_post_feed.asp?TID=3370 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum//images/Top-40-Music-on-CD-Forum-Logo.png https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/ https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15779&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15779 Author: Brian W.
Subject: 3370
Posted: 29 April 2008 at 4:29pm

The Hits Man wrote: BTW, are there any published Cashbox charts available?

Every Cash Box chart from 1950 until its demise in 1996 is on CashBox Magazine.com under "Archives."

Edited by Brian W.]]> Tue, 29 Apr 2008 16:29:23 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15779&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15779 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15778&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15778 Author: The Hits Man
Subject: 3370
Posted: 29 April 2008 at 2:20pm

Roscoe wrote: Sometimes a song's popularity, even national top 10 hits, varied greatly between regions. I can tell you that as a kid in southern Illinois, I heard the song on the radio frequently, and both myself and best friend bought the 45.

It was very popular out here in the southwest and in so. California.


BTW, are there any published Cashbox charts available?

Edited by The Hits Man]]> Tue, 29 Apr 2008 14:20:14 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15778&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15778 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15777&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15777 Author: sriv94
Subject: 3370
Posted: 29 April 2008 at 1:17pm

jrjr wrote: even chuck woolery or pat sajak could have supplied the vocals, and the "mac" would have put it over the top!

At least Woolery could sing. It's his voice you hear in the 1968 Avant Garde #40 hit "Naturally Stoned."

ETA: And getting back to 3/5 of Fleetwood Mac being on "Magnet And Steel," make it 4/5. Stevie Nicks is one of the female harmonizers.

Edited by sriv94]]> Tue, 29 Apr 2008 13:17:36 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15777&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15777 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15776&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15776 Author: edtop40
Subject: 3370
Posted: 29 April 2008 at 12:59pm

as always, jim's stories are the best......always makes me think i should have gotten into radio instead of wall street in the early 80's.....thanks jim!!!]]> Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:59:18 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15776&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15776 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15774&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15774 Author: jrjr
Subject: 3370
Posted: 29 April 2008 at 10:30am

when we were playing this on the radio in 1978, nobody had heard of walter egan, but "magnet and steel" was produced by lindsey buckingham, and featured the crack rhythm section of mick fleetwood and john mcvie... how could a record featuring 3/5 of fleetwood mac go wrong back in 1978??? even chuck woolery or pat sajak could have supplied the vocals, and the "mac" would have put it over the top! who remembers walter's first album, which got him in trouble for a suggestive back cover photo, or his 1983 "almost top 40" hit, "fool moon fire?" (my station in upstate NY gave "fool" some heavy airplay)...]]> Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:30:58 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15774&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15774 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15754&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15754 Author: Gary Mack
Subject: 3370
Posted: 28 April 2008 at 7:56pm

Jim's experience with Magnet and Steel shows the often dramatic difference between what active and passive radio listeners want and expect.

It was a myth that what sells in the stores and what gets a lot of requests on the phone is what most radio listeners want to hear. That's why callout research, when conducted properly, virtually guaranteed that the station using it would win the ratings battle.

We did callout in the late 70s in Dallas-Fort Worth at Z-97 when the Walter Egan tune was a hit. It did very well among radio listeners. I have no idea how well it sold, nor did I care.

Our station was programmed to attract the most radio listeners. If the music we played also boosted record sales, fine with me; but the moment a tune caused a significant number of listeners to tune out, it was gone.

GM]]> Mon, 28 Apr 2008 19:56:55 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15754&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15754 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15751&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15751 Author: sriv94
Subject: 3370
Posted: 28 April 2008 at 5:16pm

jimct wrote: Doug, my friend, last week my lady and I bought a new Scrabble dictionary, to bone up after a couple of narrow losses to two of my sisters, so I am a Scrabble fan. We now know that "phx" is a word, for example. But as for which show Egan appeared, I had never seen the game show "Scrabble" until last month, when I stumbled upon a Game Show Network rerun, with Woolery a shost. I now suspect that good ol' Walter may have been makin' the "Game Show Rounds," because I certainly would've remembered Charlie Tuna (an old DJ fave of mine) saving the day, and vouching for the song's hit status.

To be technical, Jim, GSN does not currently own the rights to air Scrabble--what you probably saw was a show called Lingo--which is a word game where people have five chances to guess a randomly generated five-letter word, then pull numbers in an effort to fill out a Bingo-styled card. Scrabble hasn't aired here since USA Network ran reruns in the mid-90s (although scattered bits and pieces are viewable on YouTube).

As for Yah Shure's question, I think Egan was only on for one or two days--so he didn't win a lot of money.

And of course, Wheel's visit was definitely a sweeps stunt, but one benefit I got was a nice conversation with long-time Wheel announcer (and also veteran DJ) Charlie O'Donnell (I had met him a couple of summers before in L.A. at an event called the Game Show Congress [I've gone the last three years, and I met Ian {torcan} at the event two years ago]). Charlie O. is one of the nicest guys you will ever meet.]]> Mon, 28 Apr 2008 17:16:48 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15751&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15751 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15750&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15750 Author: jimct
Subject: 3370
Posted: 28 April 2008 at 5:01pm

Doug, my friend, last week my lady and I happened to buy a new Scrabble dictionary, to bone up after a couple of narrow losses to two of my sisters, so I, too am a Scrabble fan. We now know that "phx" is a word, for example. But as for which show Egan appeared on, I had never seen the game show "Scrabble" until last month, when I stumbled upon a Game Show Network rerun, with Woolery as host. I now suspect that good ol' Walter may have been makin' the "Game Show Rounds," because I certainly would've remembered Charlie Tuna (an old DJ fave of mine) saving the day, and vouching for the song's hit status.   

Edited by jimct]]> Mon, 28 Apr 2008 17:01:30 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15750&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15750 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15748&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15748 Author: Yah Shure
Subject: 3370
Posted: 28 April 2008 at 4:13pm

Doug, your "shameless plug" happens to involve shows during the May sweeps... but I'm sure that's just a coincidence. (j/k :)

Interesting stories, Jim! "Magnet And Steel" is one of those songs that doesn't have an easy, convenient recall handle, as anyone who's ever put together callout hooks knows. The song's "ooooo-ooo-ooo-OOOOO-ooo" refrain might be more recognizable than the segment that Walter sang on the show. But he really would've needed the multipart harmony to pull that off, too. Maybe it would have worked out better for Walter if "Only The Lucky" had been his biggie. :)   So how did he fare on his Scrabble appearance?

In addition to regional variables, "Magnet" could have been one of those cases where positive callout research made up for what it might have lacked on the sales and requests sides of the aisle.

Edited by Yah Shure]]> Mon, 28 Apr 2008 16:13:11 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15748&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15748 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15746&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15746 Author: sriv94
Subject: 3370
Posted: 28 April 2008 at 3:02pm

/Putting my game show geek hat on.

Actually, the game show Egan appeared on was Scrabble. Chuck Woolery (who hosted Wheel many years earlier) was similarly clueless as Sajak would have been, however, announcer Charlie Tuna (recently retired well-known disc jockey in Los Angeles) knew of the song well (mentioning it was "Top 10").

Shameless plug--speaking of Wheel of Fortune, they were in Chicago in March to tape three weeks' worth of episodes that begin airing tonight. I was in the audience for two of the episodes (no, I was not a contestant)--those shows will air May 8 and May 9.

Edited by sriv94]]> Mon, 28 Apr 2008 15:02:49 +0000 https://top40musiconcd.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=3370&PID=15746&title=walter-eganmagnet-and-steel#15746