I stayed there for about a year and a half, but I was hungry to do news in radio, so I needed to move on. In 2016, he was awarded a bronze plaque on Philadelphia Music Alliance's Walk of Fame on the Avenue of the Arts. Read More. Beginning in June, he will end the weekday program and continue with the Sunday broadcast on, Fans mourn death of legendary Philly radio host Sid Mark, Questlove, The Balvenie award first scholarship for PhD in Creativity at University of the Arts, Philadelphia Film Society to host series of family-friendly movie screenings, Eagles name Alex Tanney QB coach, plus other coaching staff updates, The food you eat impacts the health of your eyes, Construction of Penn's Landing park over I-95 finally approved to begin, PennDOT says, Joanna McClinton becomes first woman elected as speaker of Pa. House, Rocco's Italian Sausage, a cult favorite at Home Depot stores in Philly, to expand in Bucks County, Low-calorie sweetener tied to higher risk of heart attack and stroke, study finds. I also dont think radio announcers are as influential today as they used to be, Perkins added. PhillyVoice Staff, Monday through Thursday from 6-9 p.m. and from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on Sundays. Thats our savior, man.. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. And in 2007, he was honored with a proclamation for his outstanding contributions to Philadelphia's jazz community by Mayor John Street, Philadelphia City Council, and the House of Representatives in Harrisburg. I guess I couldnt help but love radio, because from the time I was a little boy, radio was very much a part of my day every day growing up in South Philadelphia.. "He is a gentleman, a kind soul, and every bit as nice in person as you hear on-air. [citation needed], Perkins started his radio career in Detroit over five years, from 1964 to 1969. He goes way back and he studied by listening to some of the great commentators and broadcasters over the years, he said. WRTI's legendary jazz host, Bob Perkins, is surrounded by his cd collection of jazz recordings in his home in Wyncote, PA on December 19, 2019. ", BP going one on one with the audience shows a very strong kinship, said Craig, himself a 40-year veteran of local radio. For the last 25 years, hes become known for his warm, personable on-air style, extensive knowledge of jazz, and thoughtful, wide-ranging music mix. I think because of them, thats where my love of jazz music was solidified.. When Bob Perkins was growing up at 19th and Gerritt Streets in South Philadelphia during the Great Depression, his father, Deforrest, was stricken by arthritis at age 39 and could no longer work at his job as a freight elevator operator. BP talks about Charlie Parker back in 2020 with WRTI's Susan Lewis: His presence is felt throughout the city. I know Ive been very blessed. He continued to grow, working as newsman and assistant director at WJLB-AM in Detroit, before his career path returned him to Philadelphia, where in 1969 he joined WDAS-AM/FM as a newsman and after two years became News Director there;[5] after another year he also became the Editorial Director. In addition to his job as jazz host, BP writes numerous columns and commentaries on jazz for local publications in Philadelphia. We all need that role model, that patriarch to keep it going. And you had to visualize this man who could make himself invisible. Detroit was wide open. Language: English Contact: WRTI-FM 1509 Cecil B. Moore Avenue, 3rd Floor Philadelphia, PA 19121 Website: http://www.wrti.org/ Email: [email protected] Episodes But I mimicked what I thought the great guys Id grown up with would do, and I got away with it for years., READ MORE: Talking all that jazz with WRTI legend Bob Perkins. Perkins was born and raised in South Philadelphia and currently lives in Glenside, Pennsylvania, with his wife Sheila. Visit our, Bob Perkins Retires From Fulltime Role At WRTI, Classic Country Makes The Grade In San Luis Obispo, First Listen: Spotify DJ, YouTube Radio Builder, Brooke Grimsley Joins 101 ESPNs Opening Drive, WRNQ Debuts Marino in the Morning with Marissa, Canadian Programming Vets Launch RMR Media Strategies. Its almost like were trying to do too much. Perkins sat and listened and learned his lessons and developed a calling. Later, in the mid-80s, Perkins hosted a WDAS-AM jazz show that mixed in Frank Sinatra and Peggy Lee with jazz artists like Miles Davis and John Coltrane. My father must have been listening to radio from the very start. He wanted to share his obsession. Twitter: @WRTImusic Language: English Contact: Thursday marks the end of an era at 90.1 WRTI-FM, with longtime jazz DJ Bob Perkins signing off from his final weeknight shift after 25 years at the station. He has been with the station since 1997. Listen to BP's last weeknight shift on Thursday, June 30th from 6 to 9 PM. I met saxophonist Sam Reed well before he became a legendary figure on the Philadelphia jazz scene. I leaned on them when I got into radio until I got my own sea legs and could navigate on my own.. The 88 year old Perkins has been on the air in Philadelphia since 1969 with stints as News Director at WDAS-FM and a Jazz host at WHYY before joining WRTI in 1997. Bob Perkins, a legendary DJ at the radio station WRTI, spun everything from Duke Ellington to Miles Davis. But I had some qualifications, too, because my dad got into radio back in the 1920s, when radio was in its infancy. Not only with his actual speaking voice, but also with the music he selects, Block said. And Ive been a newsman, editorial writer, disc jockeyI guess just about everything with the spoken word in radio. Bob Perkins has been instrumental in establishing WRTI as one of the premier jazz stations in the country since 1997. So when I came back I got these emails saying, Oh, were glad youre back. I save all my emails. He is genuine, a real original.. "[4] He is also an accomplished radio news journalist and a First Call Master of Ceremonies for regional jazz music events. BP's last WRTI weeknight shift is on Thursday, June 30th from 6 to 9 PM. In this new age of music streaming, where a service like Spotify uses neural networks, big data language analysis, and artificial intelligence machine learning techniques to winnow songs that are channeled down a high-tech digital assembly line to listeners, Perkins relies on a soft, squishy computer that he admits is a bit more unreliable since his stroke and which he refers to in his characteristic parlance as the old noggin. In other words, he plays what he knows and likes. Have Your Say - WRTI's Bob Perkins 97 views Aug 17, 2020 4 Dislike Share Save MLTV - Main Line Network 2.72K subscribers Hosts Anne Minicozzi and Diana Robertson welcome radio personality. July 1, 2022. I next made a move over to WRTI, which is Temple Universitys radio station, as a volunteer DJ playing jazz music. The host entered the Philadelphia radio world in 1967 with WDAM, where he served as a news and editorial director. And I listened to these magnificent voices not knowing that one day I would be doing what they were doing. Growing up in a two-bedroom rowhouse near 19th and Reed in South Philly during World War II, Bob Perkins received intimate and powerful instruction on the healing properties of radio. Looking back over his broadcast career, Perkins said he had dual passions one for anchoring the news, the other for playing jazz greats on the radio. I [then] looked up and I saw a sign that read WGPR-FM. Jazz host Bob Perkins in his office at WRTI. June is observed nationally as Black Music Month, and so it seems fitting that someone who has worked in radio for almost six decades the last 20+ years playing jazz music would close out their career in June. Mr. Perkins in 2006. Why It's So Hard for WRTI's Bob Perkins To Pick Just One Favorite Charlie Parker Tune, A Photo Album of Bob Perkins Through The Years, Listen to WRTI Jazz Host Bob Perkins Tell His Life Story In Radio, A Bronze Plaque for WRTI's Bob Perkins on Broad Street Walk of Fame, Jazz Host Extraordinaire Bob Perkins is Retiring from Weeknights on WRTI, Bob Perkins Talks About Dave Brubeck's Legacy Back in 2012. I went in and knocked on the door and they said, we listened to you on WJLB, and we liked your work there, but you dont know news. Robert "Bob" Perkins (born December 6, 1933) is an American radio personality. Especially jazz music. Jazz radio legend Bob Perkins, 88, will retire in June from his full-time role as a host at Philadelphia's WRTI-FM. From 1988 to 1997 he hosted a well-known jazz program on Saturday nights on WHYY-FM before moving to WRTI. Hes introduced thousands, if not millions, of listeners to this music over the course of his career, delighted young and old with his signature sound, and been a tireless advocate for jazz appreciation and education. Read more MICHAEL BRYANT / Staff Photographer BP: Theres a man named Paul Robeson, one of my heroes, and he said, Never forget the power of music. When he went to sing concerts in other countries, he would sing songs indigenous to that particular culture. His selections are like a familiar hug from Jazz Land featuring your favorite standards and vocalists such as Sarah, Ella, and Nat, some Big Band legends including the Duke and the Count . I always felt like they hired me because they wanted to get back at WDAS. Learn More about Joe Bob Perkins' net worth. TN: People staying at home have been listening more to the radio and less to streaming services. Music, said BP about the GM. I'm thrilled he'll continue to host Sunday Jazz Brunch after he retires, because we all need some GM (good music) with our toast and jam!". I became the news and editorial director after Jim Clash died at WDAS, Perkins said. BP brought the GM back for the first time in more than four months his longest absence from the Philadelphia airwaves in 50 years on a Thursday night in December, followed a few days later by his Sunday show at 9 a.m. What he will bring to the microphone in a neat control room on Cecil B. Moore Boulevard just west of Broad Street is something his colleague Bob Craig describes as a style that is very, very warm and very personal and very loose. Perkins had a five-year relationship with The Philadelphia Tribune, where he wrote commentary on government, society and public affairs. Anybody who wants to hear jazz on the radio, you have to tune to WRTI and theres Bob Perkins. He also champions local musicians and music. His salvation was radio, Perkins said. Jazz radio host and South. Previously, Bob was a Board Member at Jazz Bridge and also held positions at Data Site, Unisys, WDAS Fm. It gives you a feeling of a time gone by, a past era where jazz was the music of the day.. I enjoy it. I went downstairs at the same building, and told the insurance company, Im here to quit a job I never started. Leaving out the door of the insurance company, the man who had offered me a job selling insurance said, Do you know what theyre going to pay you up there? You can touch a button and get any answer to any question that you have. The radio station was owned by the Black Masons of Detroit. Maybe its one of the high points in their life, Perkins told The Inquirer in 2020. Perkins is currently engaged for the annual Cape May Jazz Festival Concert Series and the Tony Williams Jazz Festival Concert Series. My dad was my radio school, the 86-year-old remembered. But BP programs his own. He is a gentleman, a kind soul, and every bit as nice in person as you hear on-air. Eventually, Perkins moved to Detroit at the suggestion of his older brothers who already lived there, having moved from Philly after World War II, he said. My father just loved to have the radio on. How does it connect with them in a way other things dont? Thursday marks the end of an era at 90.1 WRTI-FM, with longtime jazz DJ Bob Perkins signing off from his final weeknight shift after 25 years at the station. I listened to all the magnificent voices that they had during the second world war: Edward R. Murrow and all those, Bob said in an interview in 2020. It was a small station. Its a rallying cry. Ive got high mileage on my odometer, Perkins wrote. Ive been in radio for about 55 years and in Philadelphia for 50 years. Dave and Bob share the same birthday! We had great announcers back then. But on the other side of the coin, technology can be very dangerous.. He began his career at WGPR Detroit. She was 81.Bob Perkins recalls how, Tommy Potters name wouldnt get much attention in jazz circles these daysunless the gathering were comprised of musicians and jazz fans with, WRTI Your Classical and Jazz Source | This job and that job until I really found my niche in radio and I just happened to walk into a radio station one day and they happened to need someone. TN: Why do you feel people respond so strongly to music? Music. Mr. Bob Perkins, WRTI's own "BP with the GM," is retiring from full-time broadcasting after 25 years at the station and 57 on the air. Temple Now:The official source for Temple news.Copyright 2015, Temple University. I did a good music program over there for twenty years. My mom would let me stay up on the weekends and sometimes we would pick up stations in other states. Targa Resources 20 years . Joseph V. Labolito. Please enter your username or email address to reset your password. And I would sit with him and we would listen. We love your GM("Good Music")and you! People say, You ought to give it up, man, go retire somewhere. Why? Domain Insight 2/27: The First Audacy Atlas Divestiture Will Go To. Perkins recalled that his father, at the age of about 40, had such severe arthritis that he could barely walk. The jazz hosts show offers a break from the stresses of COVID-19. If I was lucky enough to get a radio gig in the boonies without any experience, Id be lucky, I was told. Perkins will continue to host his Sunday show from 9am to 1pm. You trusted the newsperson you were listening to. ABOVE PHOTO: The Legendary BP with the GM (Photo courtesy of WRTI-FM). We would listen to radio from sun-up, through the night, and into the next morning.. Why might that be? I remember saying, I dont know how to write editorials. LeBaron Taylor said [to me], You take the job and if you mess up, well get somebody else. I did that for 13 years pretty good. Fifty-seven years after his voice first graced the airwaves, Perkins, best-known for his weeknight jazz show at WRTI, is entering semi-retirement after 25 years at the station. In 1969, WDAS offered him a news and editorial position and asked if he might be interested in moving back to Philadelphia. How is someone out there feeling? Please remove or replace such wording and instead of making proclamations about a subject's importance, use facts and attribution to demonstrate that importance. The South Philadelphia native has been one of the greatest voices of the citys airwaves since 1969, when he joined R&B station WDAS in an influential news and editorial position after working in Detroit radio for five years. His Sunday 'Jazz Brunch' show will continue. By, Classical Events Calendar Submission Form, Bob Perkins Talks About Dave Brubeck's Legacy Back in 2012, BP Remembers The Glorious Jazz Vocalist Gloria Lynne. After a longtime gig at WHYY, he joined WRTI in 1997. Im the only one thats doing this thing on regular radio, and I enjoy very much what Im doing, and the feedback that I get from people who enjoy it. When WHYY dropped its music programming to concentrate on news and information, Perkins moved uptown. BP: Well, I still like it. Perkins. And all the while, you weren't aware of ituntil that person moved away, and, During a recent interview, saxophone great Larry Mckenna was right on target when he shared that often in other cities, when people found out he was from, When a dynamic figure in any walk of life departs, writers and just plain folks, usually try to recall certain events about the departed in which they may, When I was a kid growing up in South Philly, there was an older fellow down the block who was trying to play an alto saxophone. [citation needed], Perkins is also a first-call jazz MC. I couldnt leave Mom Perkins to go chasing after radio, he said. Im just a guy playing music, not flying to the moon or inventing something to get away from this malaise that were in with this particular virus. And for 50 of those years he's been on the radio to the delight of thousands and thousands of listeners. He began his career at WGPR Detroit. I look to my dad and my older brother, Perkins said, and I guess I was just programmed to do what I do. Jazz host Bob Perkins in his office at WRTI. After 58 years of working in broadcast radio, Philadelphias Bob Perkins will lay down his microphone by the end of this month. He regularly serves as master of ceremonies for major annual and special concert events in the region, such as the previous and very popular Mellon Jazz Festival Concert Series. In 1969, his hometown of Philadelphia beckoned him back with a gig at rhythm-and-blues station WDAS, where he worked for the next 19 years. We have a father right now and that's Bob Perkins.. I said yes, he said. Thanks! Im the only one thats doing this thing on regular radio and I enjoy very much what Im doing, and the feedback that I get from people who enjoy it. Bob received a Master of Science degree degree from Nazareth College. Maybe were getting back to that today. He grew up in South Philadelphia and fell in love with radio as a child. A lot of us who live here, we don't have any other outlets and are not really known outside of this city, so we don't get airplay unless we go through WRTI., Bob is a proud Philadelphian, but he doesnt just play local music out of loyalty. People call me and tell me, I didnt like jazz till you played it, Perkins told The Inquirer in 2016. The thing I liked about what Bob did was that he didnt call it a jazz show. Perkins is the PM drive time jazz radio personality and host for WRTI-FM Temple University Radio in Philadelphia. But it seems like the longer I stayed out, [chuckles] the more positive response I got. I'm a general assignment breaking news reporter. He was known for his laid-back and mellow style. That when I first became aware of who he was, said Larry McKenna, the tenor saxophonist who is one of the deans of Phillys jazz scene. "You guys go home! [3] One of his well-known sayings is "This is BP with the GM!". Temple Public Radio 90.1 FM is amazing! And whats he talking about doing after that? WRTI. We would listen to WAR in Detroit, which is 500 miles away. Perkins's CEO profile on Targa Resources's website states that he has both an engineering and a business background when it comes to his education. Music they danced and romanced to when they were young people.. The mission of WRTI public radio is to broadcast the very best classical music and jazz recordings, and produce innovative, entertaining, and informative content that enriches the daily lives of our audience and the cultural life of Philadelphia and the tri-state region. And he knows the history of the music so well. As of 1997, Perkins landed at WRTI-FM. 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