A MOVING EXPERIENCE

When someone tells me they would like to pursue career in radio, my first response is to ask, “Are you out of your mind?” Next would be to let them know that part of the job description is to be prepared to pack up and move at a moments notice. You can go into work on a Tuesday morning and be actively pursuing another job by Tuesday afternoon. In between, you might as well pack up the car because the odds are pretty good that you'll be moving.......again. I've made some pretty substantial moves since deciding to venture forth into my chosen profession. I've moved from Connecticut to Puerto Rico to Northern New Jersey to Philadelphia to Chicago to Dallas to Miami. With each move came, not only the hassle of packing up and moving myself but, eventually, moving a family as well. As the family grew, the moves got tougher but we all seemed to turn out OK. I was more fortunate than most in that the last major job I had lasted for 25 years so a few of my kids got to “stay put” and grow up in one place – well, actually two places since the company moved from Chicago to Dallas but, at least, there was a semblance of stability. One of my earliest moves was also one of my most memorable because of some friends I had made in a local band and, ironically, it was between radio jobs. In 1970, I had come home from a little 18 month visit to South East Asia and, after a reception that included being spat upon for serving my country, I moved to Puerto Rico for a radio job. It only paid about $150 a week but, I was young, single and pretty limber when it came to negotiating the twists and turns of my 22 year old existence. While in San Juan, I met a young lady from New Jersey, married her and left the island. It all happened in about as much time as it took for me to type this sentence. What did we know? We thought it was a good idea at the time. We moved to New Jersey and I got a job selling clothes at Archie Jacobson Clothiers in the Menlo Park Mall. I didn't last very long at that job for any number of reasons, the main one being that when I sold someone a suit, I would send them to J.C. Penney's at the other end of the mall because the shirts and ties were cheaper. The boss kinda frowned on that since I was supposed to be selling Archie Jacobson shirts and ties at twice and thrice the price. While I was there, I also decided to go back to school and enrolled in Brookdale Community College. I had the GI Bill to pay for it and I took full advantage of that particular benefit......any number of times. Looking back on my career as a scholar there is nothing that would have distinguished me or that would have even justified my being there in the first place but it was at Brookdale that I met someone who made quite a difference in the avenue I decided to follow. It was during an English Lit. 101 class that I met a guy who became a good friend. I suppose I could lie and tell you I remember his name but I don't. It was 1971.....if you know what I mean. I know that we shared a common talent. We bonded over the fact that we both played percussion, in general – conga drums in particular, the major difference being that he was in a band and I wasn't. He invited me to one of the bands shows in a club at the Jersey Shore and, subsequently, to other shows. I became pretty friendly with a number of guys in the band, particularly the sax player. He had gone to high school in a small town in North Jersey with another friend named John who the sax player called “Abe.” John called him “Nick,” so, I did too. Nick had an apartment at Sandy Hook Beach where we could almost fish from his balcony and we were all hanging out there, one day in July, when my now ex wife was preparing a surprise birthday party for me. They kept me occupied and then we all went back to my apartment where the surprise was waiting. I was taken aback and everyone had their laugh. The party came off without a hitch. The band had a gig that night at a local Catholic School and I accompanied them into the school gym where I climbed a rope and enjoyed the concert from the rafters. It was a little dangerous but, I was still young, nimble and stupid and it was a fun evening. I didn't see the guys in the band much after that. We hung out a little but, unbeknownst to us, we were all heading for much brighter times and many better things. I went on to work for a radio station in Plainfield, New Jersey which led to a job in Philadelphia and then a fairly significant radio career. The band recorded an album and changed their name from Dr. Zoom and the Sonic Boom to Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. The album was “Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J.” Yes, moving is part of the job description when one decides on a career in radio. My move from Puerto Rico to New Jersey was one of the first ones I made and the one that set my career in motion. I'm retired now. I have finally unpacked the car.