KBLX Celebrates 30 Years
Anniversary Wishes The Year 1979 home

KBLX Celebrates 30 Years

Hello KBLX.com Visitors,

It is my pleasure to welcome you to our online celebration of KBLX's 30th Anniversary.  It has been an honor and privilege serving the San Francisco Bay Area, and as we celebrate this very special anniversary, I would like to thank you, our listeners, for your continued support.  Without you, we could not survive in this world of consolidation.

 

KBLX sprang from another legendary radio station, KRE, which was owned by Maxwell Electric Company.  It was a small radio store on Adeline Street in Berkeley and the station begin broadcasting March 11, 1922.  At the time, radio could only broadcast few hours a day and only the very wealthy could afford a radio.  The entertainment was programmed live.  The station began to flourish and after a few ownership changes and improvements to the station, in 1934, the FCC granted the station full-time operation status and KRE became the first 24-hour station in Northern California.

 

The station continued to make many changes and improvements over the years until in 1979, the Sutton Family of New York, already owners of the legendary WBLS, decided to purchase KRE and changed the call letters to KBLX.  The Bay Area is a diverse community and we are very proud to be the only commercial, African-American owned station.

 

Over the years, many of you have grown up with our unique blend of music.  We were the first station to mix vocals with instrumentals and the first station to embrace and program the Quiet Storm format 24 hours a day.  Many of you have celebrated with us, gotten married to our music, raised your children listening to 102.9FM in your car while driving them to school and we look forward to serving the next generation of KBLX listeners. 

 

We are passionate about what we do at KBLX.  We have the drive to work through difficult times, and we have survived because we are committed to giving you our very best.  We will continue to make improvements and changes as we look forward to our next milestone.

 

We could not have reached this achievement without you, so I am wishing you a very Happy 30th Anniversary!  Are you celebrating 30 years of something?  Share with us here.

 

Harvey Stone
President/General Manager
KBLX

 

KBLX MUSICAL JOURNEY

Beginning in 1979, KBLX perfectly exemplified the amalgamation of music styles routinely mixing artists from various backgrounds (R&B, Jazz and Pop) with a soft and warm presentation that continues to win over the hearts and minds of Bay area listeners today.

Radio stations use sound as a means of communication and the KBLX laid back vibe is emblematic of the Northern California lifestyle blending artists like Anita Baker, Grover Washington Jr., Larry Carlton, Steely Dan, Luther Vandross, Michael McDonald, Hiroshima, Herbie Hancock, Whispers, Jeff Lorber, and many others helped create a vibrant, colorful, music tapestry, teeming with life and ambition.
 
As anyone who lives in the San Francisco Bay Area will attest the residents here have a voracious appetite for many different kinds of music and KBLX is the best at blending a richly eclectic brew designed for broad based appeal.
 
With the emergence of KBLX in San Francisco, the path was cleared for other format imitators in the 80’s and 90’s featuring various blends of music but they failed to deliver the special blend of KBLX material and ultimately derailed, due to market forces and low ratings.
 
Today, through stellar community service and engaging personalities, KBLX has achieved a level of mainstream eminence and crossover popularity virtually unparalleled in the radio business. For legions of music lovers in the Bay Area and millions of fans on the web at KBLX.com, the KBLX Magic endures.
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