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I mA Hounds has started to attack. Radio throughout the Midwest has picked up on the snarling rock & roll of Chicago's Hounds. The Hounds tour has Midwestern audiences foaming at the mouths. Now if rock & roll history has taught us anything, it's that today's Midwest favorites become tomorrow's national favorites. Or, to put it another way: Ton can’t pot a leash on a music whose time has come! Honnds.“Unleashed!’ On Columbia Records and Tapes. Hounds tour of major arenas: Appearing with REO Speedwagon. 4/19 Allendale, Mich. 4/21 Arena, Indianapolis, Ind. 4/23 Coliseum, Ft. Wayne, Ind. 4/25 Glacier Ice Arena, Traverse City, Mich. 4/27 Arena, Milwaukee, Wise. 4/28 Dane County Coliseum, Madison, Wise. 4/29 Civic Centre, St. Paul, Minn. 4/30 Duluth, Minn. Appearing with Alice Cooper. 5/2 Kiel Auditorium, St . Louis, Mo. 5/5 Public Hall, Cleveland, Ohio Appearing with Foghat. 5/9 Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Term. 5/10 Civic Centre, Ashville, N.C. 5/11 Coliseum, Charlotte, N.C. 5/12 Memorial Auditorium, Greenville, S.C. 5/13 Cumberland County Arena, Fayetteville, N.C. "Columbia/ U are trademarks of CBS Inc. © 1978 CBS Inc. 5/14 Coliseum, Columbia, S.C. 5/15 Civic Centre, Savannah, Ga. 5/17 Mosque, Richmond, Va. 5/18 Civic Centre, Roanoke, Va. 5/19 Coliseum, Greensboro, N.C. 5/20 Scope, Norfolk, Va. 5/21 Municipal Auditorium, Charleston, W.Va. 5/24 Broome Co. Arena, Binghamton, N.Y. 5/26 Riverfront Coliseum, Cincinnati, Ohio 5/27 Memorial Auditorium, Buffalo, N.Y. 5/28 Fairgrounds, Allentown, Pa. 5/29 Civic Centre, Springfield, Mass. VOLUME XXXIX — NUMBER 49 — April 22, 1978 THE INTERNATIONAL MUSIC RECORD WEEKLY G4SHBCX GEORGE ALBERT President and Publisher MEL ALBERT General Manager DAVE FULTON Editor In Chief EDITORIAL In Praise Of ‘Night Fever’ J.B. CARMICLE General Manager, East Coast East Coast Editorial KEN TERRY, East Coast Editor CHARLES PAIKERT MARK MEHLER LEO SACKS West Coast Editorial ALAN SUTTON, West Coast Editor RANDY LEWIS JEFF CROSSAN CARITA SPENCER PETER HARTZ JOEY BERLIN RAY TERRACE DALE KAWASHIMA Research MARK ALDERMAN KEN KIRKWOOD SCOTT ANDERSON BILL FEASTER LEN CHODOSH STEVE HULEN HARALD TAUBENREUTHER Coin Machine Chicago CAMILLE COMPASIO. Manager Art Director LINDSAY BOLYARD Circulation THERESA TORTOSA Manager PUBLICATION OFFICES NEW YORK 119 West 57th, N.Y.. N Y. 10019 Phone: (212) 586-2640 Cable Address: Cash Box N.Y. Telex 666123 CALIFORNIA 6363 Sunset Blvd. (Suite 930) Hollywood, Ca. 90028 Phone: (213) 464-8241 NASHVILLE JIM SHARP TIM WILLIAMS BOB CAMPBELL MELISSA ELLIOTT DONNA BARHAM 21 Music Circle East, Nashville, Tenn. 37203 Phone: (615) 244-2898 CHICAGO CAMILLE COMPASIO 29 E. Madison St.. Chicago. III. 60602 Phone: (312) 346-7272 WASHINGTON, D.C. JOANNE OSTROW 4201 Massachusetts Ave.. NW Washington. D C. 20016 ENGLAND — ROB THORNE. 97 Uxbridge Rd., London W.12 Phone: 01-749-6724 ARGENTINA - MIGUEL SMIRNOFF Belgrano 3252, Piso 4 "B" Buenos Aires. Argentina Phone: 89-6796 BRAZIL — H. GANDELMAN Av. Rio Branco. 156 Sala 627 Rio de Janeiro RJ Phone: 231-3231 CANADA - KIRK LaPOINTE 56 Brown's Line Toronto. Ontario. Canada M8W 359 Phone: (416) 251-1283 HOLLAND - PAUL ACKET P O Box 11621 (Prinsessegracht 3) The Hague Phone: (70) 624621, Telex: 33083 ITALY — GUIDO HARARI via Solari. 19 20144 Milan, Italy BELGIUM — ETIENNE SMET Postbus 56. B-2700 Sint-Niklaas Phone: (03) 76-54-39 AUSTRALIA - PETER SMITH 6 Murillo Crt.. Doncaster Victoria. Australia 3108 Phone 848-7878 JAPAN — Adv. Mgr., SACHIO SAITO 1-11-2-Chome Shinbashi, Minato-Ku. Tokyo Phone: 504-1651 Editorial Mgr., FUMIYO TACHIBANA 1-11-2-Chome Shinbashi, Minato-Ku, Tokyo Phone: 504-1651 FRANCE — CLAUDE EM MONNET 262 bis Rue des Pyrenees Paris. France 75020 Phone: 797-4261 WEST GERMANY - GERHARD AUGUSTIN Karolinenstr. 3 8000 Munich 22 Phone: 294761, 288203 SUBSCRIPTION RATES $70 per year anywhere in the U S A. Published weekly by CASH BOX, 1 19 West 57th St., New York, N.Y. 10019. Printed in the U S A Second class postage paid at New York, N.Y.. and ad- I ditionjjl mailing otlices. Copyright ©1978 by the Cash Box Publishing Co.. I Inc. All rights reserved Copyright under Universal I Copyright Convention. POSTMASTER: Send form 3579 to CASH BOX. | 119 West 57th St.. New York. N.Y. 10019. While we have acknowledged the incredible suc- cess of the Bee Gees/“Saturday Night Fever” phenomena in our charts and editorial coverage, it is past due that we salute the Bee Gees, Robert Stig- wood, Al Coury and the entire staffs of RSO and Polygram Distribution for their contribution to the record industry. Not only have they brought world- wide attention to the music business — they have re- kindled the interest of the sporadic record buyer. The ‘‘Saturday Night Fever” album has sold some 12 million units in its 21 weeks on the chart — a re- markable and unprecedented achievement. Three number one singles, “Stayin’ Alive,” “Flow Deep Is Your Love” and “Night Fever,” and “If I Can’t Have You,” which is currently approaching the number one spot at number four, have so dominated the singles chart that other successful product has been dwarfed in comparison. And the record continues to outsell its nearest competitor by a 3 to 1 ratio. Unfortunately, bad weather at the album’s peak probably discouraged a huge quantity of sales as did the fact that RSO was caught short-handed at their depot when the record took off. The soundtrack works so well in the context of the film that many movie-goers have stopped into stores to buy the album on their way home from the film. Still, RSO’s astute marketing plan has also played a major role in the LP’s phenomenal sales. We thank RSO for what they have done for the in- dustry and salute them for proving that $1 2.98 is not too much to pay for a great album. D.F. M EWS HIGHLIGHT • Ron Alexenburg leaves CBS to start new label distributed by MCA. • United Artists Records’ distributed labels assess status of deals following sale. • Retailers express uncertainty at increasing wholesale prices. • The elimination of unnecessary government regulation of broad- casters was the recurrent theme at 56th annual NAB convention. • CBS wholesale price changes draw mixed response from dealers. • Stan Monteiro joins Cash Box as marketing, sales represen- tative. TOP POP DEBUTS SINGLES 78 TAKE A CHANCE — Abba — Atlantic ALBUMS 88 MAGAZINE — Heart — Mushroom POP SINGLE NIGHT FEVER Bee Gees — RSO R&B SINGLE TOO MUCH, TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE Johnny Mathis/Deniece Williams Columbia COUNTRY SINGLE HEARTS ON FIRE Eddie Rabbitt — Elektra JAZZ WEEKEND IN L.A. George Benson — WB NUMBER ONES Eddie Rabbitt POP ALBUM SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER Bee Gees & Various Artists RSO R&B ALBUM WEEKEND IN L.A. George Benson — WB COUNTRY ALBUM WAYLON & WILLIE Waylon and Willie — RCA CLASSICAL RACHMANINOFF PIANO CONCERTO NO. 3 Horowitz; New York Philharmonic RCA April 22, 1978 1 NIGHT FEVER BEE GEES (RSO 889) WB 2 CAN’T SMILE WITHOUT YOU BARRY MANILOW (Arista 0305) WB 3 DUST IN THE WIND KANSAS (Kirshner ZS8-4274) WB 4 IF I CAN’T HAVE YOU YVONNE ELLIMAN (RSO 884) WB 5 THE CLOSER I GETTO YOU ROBERTA FLACK & DONNY HATHAWAY (Atlantic 3463) HAN 6 JACK AND JILL RAYDIO (Arista 0283) CPP 7 RUNNING ON EMPTY JACKSON BROWNE (Asyium E-45460) WB 8 LAY DOWN SALLY ERIC CLAPTON (RSO 886) WB 9 GOOD-BYE GIRL DAVID GATES (Elektra 45450) WB 10 STAYIN’ ALIVE BEE GEES (RSO 885) WB 11 THANK YOU FOR BEING A FRIEND ANDREW GOLD (Asylum E-45456) CPP 12 EBONY EYES BOB WELCH (Capitol 4543) CPP 13 WITH A LITTLE LUCK WINGS (Capitol 4559) WB 14 WE’LL NEVER HAVE TO SAY GOODBYE AGAIN ENGLAND DAN & JOHN FORD COLEY (Big Tree 16110) B-3 15 FLASHLIGHT PARLIAMENT (Casablanca NB 909) ALM 16 BEFORE MY HEART FINDS OUT GENE COTTON (Ariola 7675) CH 17 COUNT ON ME JEFFERSON STARSHIP (Grunt JH-1 1 196) CPP 18 SWEET TALKIN’ WOMAN ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA (UA/Jet XW-1145) B-3 19 YOU’RE THE ONE I WANT OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN/JOHN TRAVOLTA (RSO 891) WB 20 EMOTION SAMANTHA SANG (Private Stock 45-178) WB 21 FEELS SO GOOD CHUCK MANGIONE (A&M 2001) BB 22 IMAGINARY LOVER ATLANTA RHYTHM SECTION (Polydor 14459) CPP 23 FOOLING YOURSELF STYX (A&M 2007) ALM 24 DISCO INFERNO THE TRAMMPS (Atlantic 3389) CPP 25 BABY HOLD ON EDDIE MONEY (Columbia 3-10663) ALM 26 TOO MUCH, TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE JOHNNY MATHIS/DENIECE WILLIAMS (Columbia 3-10693) WB 27 OUR LOVE NATALIE COLE (Capitol 4059) CH 28 WEREWOLVES OF LONDON WARREN ZEVON (Elektra 45472) 29 LOVE IS LIKE OXYGEN SWEET (Capitol 4549) WB 30 MOVIN’ OUT (ANTHONY’S SONG) BILLY JOEL (Columbia 3-10708) AB/B 31 I’M GONNA TAKE CARE OF EVERYTHING RUBICON (20th TC-2362) CPP 32 TWO DOORS DOWN DOLLY PARTON (RCA JH-11240) CPP Weeks Weeks On On n 5 4/8 Chart 4/15 4/8 Chart 33 LET’S ALL CHANT 68 1 1 12 THE MICHAEL ZAGER BAND (Private Stock 184) CPP 38 44 10 34 ON BROADWAY 2 12 GEORGE BENSON (Warner Bros. 8542) CPP 41 49 6 69 35 THIS TIME I’M IN IT FOR 3 5 13 LOVE 70 PLAYER (RSO 890) CPP 40 45 7 5 8 12 36 THUNDER ISLAND JAY FERGUSON (Asylum 45444) WB 9 6 19 37 FANTASY 71 14 21 11 38 EARTH, WIND & FIRE (Columbia 3-10688) ALM IT’S A HEARTACHE 34 36 9 72 6 7 18 BONNIE TYLER (RCA PB-11249) CPP 47 56 5 39 EGO 73 8 10 11 ELTON JOHN (MCA 40892) BEL/MCA 49 — 2 40 MORE THAN A WOMAN 74 4 3 17 TAVARES (Capitol 4500) WB 43 48 10 41 SHADOW DANCING 75 ii 14 20 ANDY GIBB (RSO 893) WB 51 — 2 42 DANCE WITH ME 76 7 4 20 PETER BROWN (Drive/TK 6269) CPP 50 63 6 43 (LOVE IS) THICKER THAN WATER 77 13 15 11 ANDY GIBB (RSO RS 883) WB 23 22 25 78 44 ALWAYS AND FOREVER 12 13 13 HEATWAVE (Epic 8-50490) ALM 22 12 18 79 45 1 GO CRAZY 19 37 5 PAUL DAVIS (Bang B-733) WB 29 11 31 80 46 ROCKET RIDE KISS (Casablanca NB 915) ALM 46 47 8 47 DO YOU BELIEVEIN MAGIC 81 15 19 8 SHAUN CASSIDY (Warner Bros. 8533) CPP 56 69 5 17 17 11 48 DEACON BLUES STEELY DAN (ABC 12355) CPP 58 77 4 82 49 MAKE YOU FEEL LOVE AGAIN 16 18 15 WET WILLIE (Epic 8-50528) HAN 59 68 4 50 THE CIRCLE IS SMALL 83 21 24 7 GORDON LIGHTFOOT (WBS 8518) WB 31 32 11 51 LADY LOVE LOU RAWLS (Phila. intl./CBS 3634) AB/B 44 20 14 84 20 23 10 52 SWEET, SWEET SMILE THE CARPENTERS (A&M 2008) ALM 42 42 12 85 53 WHICH WAY IS UP 30 52 4 STARGARD (MCA 40825) WB 45 25 15 10 9 24 54 TWO OUT OF THREE AIN’T BAD 86 MEAT LOAF 87 26 31 13 (Cleve. Intl./Epic 8-50513) BEL/MCA 62 71 5 55 EVERY KINDA PEOPLE 88 ROBERT PALMER (Island 100) WB 63 72 5 25 30 3 56 BECAUSE THE NIGHT 89 PATTI SMITH GROUP (Arista 0318) 70 81 3 24 26 11 57 HOT LEGS ROD STEWART (Warner Bros. 8535) WB 48 27 11 28 33 ii 58 THAT’S YOUR SECRET 90 SEA LEVEL (Capricorn CPS-0287) WB 60 64 8 27 29 13 59 BOOGIE SHOES 91 KC & THE SUNSHINE BAND (TK 1025) CPP 52 41 12 60 AIN’T GONNA EAT MY HEART OUT ANYMORE 92 93 33 51 6 ANGEL (Casablanca NB914AS) CPP 71 79 3 61 (1 WILL BE YOUR) SHADOW IN THE STREET 94 18 16 14 ALLAN CLARKE (Atlantic 3459) ALM 68 75 5 62 HEARTLESS 95 39 50 5 HEART (Mushroom 7031) CPP 73 82 3 63 BOMBS AWAY 96 35 38 9 BOB WEIR (Arista 0315) WB 65 67 5 64 WHAT’S YOUR NAME 97 LYNYRD SKYNYRD (MCA 40819) BEL/MCA 53 39 26 65 YANK ME. CRANK ME TED NUGENT (Epic 8-50533) WB 98 37 46 6 69 76 3 66 WHEEL IN THE SKY 99 JOURNEY (Columbia 3-10700) CPP 72 73 4 32 34 10 I 67 READY FOR THE TIMES TO GET BETTER 100 36 43 9 CRYSTAL GAYLE (UA 1136) B-3 67 70 10 Weeks On 4/8 Chart NOTHING ASHFORD & SIMPSON (Warner Bros. 8519) CPP ABBA (Atlantic 3440) B-3/IMM (PART 1) (PARTY, PARTY, PARTY) BUNNY SIGLER (Gold Mind 4008) CPP CARLY SIMON (Elektra 45477) WB 66 66 54 40 55 58 88 — DOUCETTE (Mushroom 7030) CPP 76 80 LYNYRD SKYNYRD (MCA 40888) BEL/MCA 77 HOTEL (Mercury 73979) ALM SINCE YOU BEEN GONE HEAD EAST (A&M 2026) WB BAKER STREET GERRY RAFFERTY (UA 1192) CPP A LOVER’S QUESTION JACKY WARD (Mercury 55018) B-3 TAKE A CHANCE ON ME ABBA (Atlantic 3457) ALM/IMM I CAN’T STAND THE RAIN ERUPTION (Ariola 7686) CH MUSIC, HARMONY & RHYTHM BROOKLYN DREAMS (Millennium 610) ALM NEVER GET ENOUGH OF YOUR LOVE L T D. (A&M 2005) B-3 DANCE ACROSS THE FLOOR JIMMY "BO" HORNE (Sunshine Sound 1003) CPP TOUCH DAN HILL (20th Century 2355) WB DANCING BARRY WHITE (20th Century 2365) THE GROOVE LINE HEATWAVE (Epic 8-50524) ALM I WANT YOU TO BE MINE KAYAK (Janus 274) ALL THE WAY LOVER MILLIE JACKSON (Spring 179) CPP DREAMS DRAMATICS (ABC 12331) DETECTIVES/ALISON ELVIS COSTELLO (Columbia 3-10696) u ALPHABETIZED TOP 100 SINGLES (INCLUDING PUBLISHERS AND LICENSEES)- Ain't Gonna (White Angel/Hudson Bay — BMI) .... 60 All The Way (Sherlyn — BMI) 92 A Lover's (Eden Music/Progressive Music — BMI) 77 Always (Almo/Rondor — ASCAP) 44 Baby Hold On (GRA-Jonca — BMI) 25 Baker Street (Hudson Bay — BMI) 76 Because The Night (Ramrod Music) 56 Before My Heart (Sailmaker/Chappell — ASCAP) . 16 Bluer Than Blue (Springcreek/ Let There Be — ASCAP) 88 Bombs Away (Ice Nine — BMI) 63 Boogie Shoes (Shellyn BMI) 59 Can't Smile (Dick James — BMI) 2 Cheeseburger (Coral Reefer/Outer Banics — BMI) 85 Count On (Bright Moments/Diamond Back — BMI) 17 Dance Across (Sherlyn/Harrick — BMI) 82 Dance With (Sherlyn/Decibel — BMI) 42 Deacon Blues (ABC/Dunhil! — ASCAP) 46 Disco (Six Strings/Golden Fleece — BMI) 24 Don't Cost (Nick-O-Val — ASCAP) 68 Do You (Hudson Bay — BMI) 47 Do You Wanna (Clokus — BMI) 96 Dust In The Wind (Don Kirshner — BMI) 3 Ebony Eyes (Glenwood/CIgar — ASCAP) 12 Ego (Jodrell/Leeds — ASCAP) 39 Emotion (Barry Gibb/Flamm/Stigwood/ Unichappell — BMI) 20 AB/B - April Blickwcod/Bridliy - ALM - Alms AR -Acuff-Htus 86 78 83 79 88 87 — 83 87 85 93 84 89 81 85 86 91 LINDA RONSTADT (Asylum 45479) WB — CHEESEBURGER IN PARADISE JIMMY BUFFETT (ABC 12358) WB STAY RUFUS/CHAKA KHAN (ABC 12349) CPP — I WANT TO LIVE JOHN DENVER (RCA JH-1 1267) CL — BLUER THAN BLUE MICHAEL JOHNSON (EMI P-8001) CPP 74 28 20 — 1 — — 1 KARLA BONOFF (Columbia 3-10710) YOU’RE THE LOVE SEALS & CROFTS (Warner Bros. 8551) WB 30 YOU WANNA DANCE RAMONES (Sire 1017) COULD HAVE LOVED YOU MOMENTS (Stang 5075) CH -OLLOW YOU FOLLOW ME GENESIS (Atlantic 3474) CPP LeBLANC & CARR (Big Tree 16100) CPP 57 35 27 100 2 91 95 3 94 97 3 97 2 95 98 3 96 99 3 99 2 98 2 Every Kinda (Island/Restless — BMI) 55 Falling (Carrhern — BMI) 99 Fantasy (Saggifire Music — BMI) 37 Feels So Good (Gates — BMI) 21 Flashlight (Ricks/Maldiz — BMI) 15 Follow You (Gerling/Run It — BMI) 98 Fooling Yourself (Almo/Stygian Songs — ■ ASCAP) . 23 Good-bye Girl (WB-Kipa Hulu — ASCAP) 9 Heartless (Andorra — ASCAP) 62 Hot Legs (Riva Music — ASCAP) 57 I Can't (JEC — BMI) 79 I Could Have (Unichappell/Begonia/Fedora — BMI) 97 If I Can't (Stigwood/Unichappell — BMI) 4 I Go Crazy (Web IV — BMI) 45 I Want To (Cherry Lane — ASCAP) 87 I Want You (Heavy Music ■ BMI) 91 I Will Be (Intersong/Tintobe/Midsong/Intern Inc. — ASCAP) 61 Imaginary Lover (Low Sal — BMI) 22 I'm Gonna (Fox Fanfare/Mocidor — BMI) 31 Isn’t It Always Love (Sky Harbor — BMI) 94 It's A Heartache (Pi-Gem — BMI) 38 Jack And Jill (Radiola — ASCAP) 6 Lady Love (Mighty Three — BMI) 51 Lay Down Sally (Stigwood/Unichappell — BMI) .... 8 Let Me (Lucky Three/Henry Sucmay — BMI) 7Q Let's All Chant (Sumac Music — BMI) 33 BB - Rig Bills BEL/MCA- Bilwln/MCA B-3 Big Three CH Chappell CIM Love Is Like (Sweet/W.B. — ASCAP) 29 Love is (Stigwood/Gibb/Unichappell — BMI) 43 Make You (Muscle Shoals — BMI) 49 Mama Let Him (Andora Music — ASCAP) 72 More Than (Stigwood/Unichappell — BMI) 40 Movin' Out (Joelsongs — BMI) 30 Music, Harmony (Starrin Pub. /Rick's — BMI) 80 Never Get (Blendingwell — ASCAP) 81 Night Fever (Stigwood/Unichappell — BMI) 1 Ocean Of Thoughts (Groovesville — BMI/ Conquistador — ASCAP) 93 Oh What A Night (Sa-vette — BMI) 89 On Broadway (Screen Gems — BMI) 34 Our Love (Jay Enterprises/Chappeli — ASCAP) ... 27 Ready For The (Aunt Polly — BMI) 67 Rocket Ride (Kiss/Kick-A-Rock/Steady — ASCAP) 46 Running On (Swallow Turn — ASCAP) 7 Shadow Dancing (Stigwood/Unichappell — BMI) . . 41 Since You Been (Island Music — BMI) 75 Sometimes (Welbeck — ASCAP/ATV/ Mann & Weil — BMI) 83 Stay (American Broadcast — ASCAP/High Seas — BMI) 86 Stayin' Alive (Stigwood/Unichappell — BMI) 10 Sweet, Sweet (Sterling/Ardison Street — ASCAP) . 52 Sweet Talkin' (UA/Jet — BMI) 18 Take A Chance (Artwork/Polar — ASCAP) 78 - Clmno CL - Cherry Lam CPP - Columbia Plcturas Pub IMM Han Thank You (Luckyu/Special Songs — BMI) 11 That's Your (Stoned Individual — BMI) 58 The Circle (Moose Music — CAPAC) 50 The Closer (Scarab/Ensign — BMI) 5 The Groove Line (Aimo/Tincabell — ASCAP) 90 The Name Of (Countless Songs — BMI) 69 This Time (House Of Gold/Windchime — BMI) .... 35 Thunder Island (Painless Music — BMI) 36 Too Much (Homewood House — BMI) 26 Tumblin’ Dice (Colgems-EMI) 84 Two Doors (Velvet Apple — BMI) 32 Two Out (Edward B. Marks/Neverland — BMI) 54 Watching The (Plangent Vision — BMI) 100 Well Never Have (Dawnbreaker Music — BMI) ... 14 Werewolves (Polite — ASCAP/Zevon — BMI) . . 28 What's Your Name (Duchess/Get Loose — BMI) 64 Wheel In The (Weed High Nightmare — BMI) 66 Which Way (Warner-Tamerlane/May Twelfth/ Dutchess — BMI) 53 With A Little Luck (MPL Comm./ATV — BMI) 13 Yank Me, Crank Me (Magicland — ASCAP) 65 You Belong To Me (Snug & C'est — ASCAP) 71 You Got That (Duchess/Get Loose — BMI) 73 You'll Love (Blair/Hotel — BMI) 74 You're The Love (Dawnbreaker/Oaktree — BMI) 95 You're The One (Stigwood/John Farrarensign — BMI) 19 Hanssn IMM Ivin Mogull PLY - Plymouth WB - Wirnir Brothers k CASH BOX NEWS Gov. Regulations Decried At NAB Annual Convention by Cookie Amerson LAS VEGAS — The elimination of needless government regulations which restrict broadcasters was a recurring theme at the recent 56th annual National Association of Broadcasters meeting here as new FCC chairman Charles D. Ferris and former California Gov. Ronald Reagan addressed luncheon crowds at the largest-ever NAB gathering. Ferris, in his first speech to U.S. broad- casters, vowed to stand behind FCC rules, but said that needless regulations should be eliminated. Ferris told broadcasters he prefers a “policy of zero-based regulation" and promised he would not overstep his authority by intervening in individual programming decisions. Ferris also said there would be a sim- plification of FCC regulations so that “you won’t have to be an attorney to understand them." Reagan was applauded several times by the Las Vegas Convention Center luncheon crowd when he broached the subject of over-regulation. Urging broadcasters to fight for the free enterprise system and against government intrusion into business, Reagan criticized the govern- ment for the amount of costly regulations leveled on broadcasters. Broadcasters should speak out against unnecessary regulations without fear that their voices will go unheard, Reagan said, “because I’m sure that you recall that one woman got prayer out of the public schools in the United States." Ferris’ speech also included his thoughts on minority ownership of stations. More needs to be done, he said, to include mi- norities and women in the broadcast in- dustry, not only as station employees, but also as owners and operations of stations (continued on page 22) Alexenburg Leaves CBS To Start MCA-Distributed Label GREASY GOLD — John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John received gold records re- cently when their single ‘‘You’re The One That I Want" from the soundtrack of "Grease" on RSO Records was certified gold by the RIAA. The single was certified gold within two weeks of its release. The complete "Grease" soundtrack will ship this month. Pictured (l-r) are: Olivia; Al Coury, RSO president, and Travolta. UA’s Distributed Labels Expecting Little Change LOS ANGELES — Following the an- nounced sale of United Artists Records to label president Artie Mogull and former ABC Records chairman Jerry Rubinstein, the state of UA’s distributed labels ranges from "unknown at present” to “status quo,” according to executives at those com- panies. While most said they had yet to sit down with Mogull and actually discuss their deals, they added that they expected little to change in spite of last week’s announce- ment (Cash Box, April 15). Before the intent to sell the record divi- sion was made official April 7 by United Art- ists Corp., Don Arden, president of Jet Records, said he had no intention of staying with UA and that he was negotiating with several major labels for distribution of Jet Records in the U.S. Nick Alberano, executive vice-president (continued on page 44) LOS ANGELES — Ron Alexenburg resigned his CBS Records post as senior vice president and general manager of Epic/Portrait/Associated Labels last week to form a new record company to be dis- tributed by MCA Distributing Company. The new label will be headquartered in New York City, will have its own complete staff and will function as an autonomous label separate from MCA Records, ac- cording to MCA's statement. Alexenburg will be president and chief executive officer of the, as yet, unnamed label. Sid Sheinberg, president and chief operating officer of MCA Inc., said MCA’s funding commitment to the new company guarantees Alexenburg the unlimited op- portunity to make the new company a ma- jor force in the record industry. This long- term commitment by MCA results in no art- ists being beyond the resources of Alexen- burg and the new company, MCA's state- ment said. Bruce Lundvall, president of CBS Records Division, said, “Ron Alexenburg has left an important mark on CBS Ron Alexenburg Records. We will miss Ron’s energy, enthusiasm, and leadership, and we wish him well in his new and exciting respon- sibilities." CBS has not named a replace- ment for Alexenburg. “There is no more talented a record ex- ecutive than Ron Alexenburg," Sheinberg said. “He has demonstrated, throughout a (continued on page 46) CBS Price Changes Eliciting Mixed Reaction From Dealers by Ken Terry NEW YORK — The nation’s racks, one- stops and retailers generally felt that the re- cent CBS wholesale price changes were equitable, but some dealers expressed resentment about the overall rise in in- dustry wholesale prices (see accompany- ing story). CBS announced last week that effective May 1, it will increase the selling prices to its accounts on all product (with the exception of singles, Masterworks, Odyssey and mid- price lines), and will at the same time in- stitute a new pricing policy. (Specific price Uncertainity Expressed By Chain Retailers In Wake Of Wholesale Price Increases by Mark Mehier NEW YORK — The nation’s major record retailers are taking varying approaches to the spate of recent wholesale pricing in- creases by the large manufacturers. In the wake of CBS’ long-awaited an- nouncement of a wholesale hike (see ac- companying story), Cash Box queried about 20 retail chain executives about the future of retail pricing. Their answers generally indicated some uncertainty, as well as the feeling that the major manufac- turers are making windfall profits at their expense. Some U.S. retailers have already raised their shelf and sale prices across the board, while most continue to study the ef- fects of higher unit costs before taking any action. Retail Prices Up At Disc An example of a retail chain that has reacted strongly to higher costs is Disc Records, which includes about 40 stores, mainly in the midwest and southwest. Chain president John Cohen noted that Disc’s PLATINUM FOR CRYSTAL — UA recording artist Crystal Gayle recently received a platinum award for her current LP, "You Must Believe In Magic. ” Pictured at a party in New York are (l-r): Allen Reynolds, her producer; Jerry Seabott, UA ’s directorof country promo- tion; Gayle; and Gene Armond, head of east coast promotion for the label. current shelf price on $7.98 list merchan- dise from WEA, Capitol and Polygram is $6.98, with a regular advertised sale price of $5.98. This is $1 above the chain’s prices prior to the recent WEA wholesale pricing increase (Cash Box, February 4). Disc has not yet raised its retail prices on CBS product, but Cohen indicated that would be accomplished shortly. “We have to do it to make a profit. Why should we be heroes? It takes 22-25% (margin) for us. As far as our competition, they operate under the same basic retail rules: heat, rent, utilities, wages. Either they raise prices too, or go bankrupt.” Cohen predicted that list prices would go to $9.98 sometime in 1979, foregoing $8.98 altogether. "The record companies are paying millions of dollars to artists today, and the price war escalation is causing all this. In the long run, I don’t think the higher retail prices will hurt the industry, because the consumers will go along. But there are still guys looking for that fountain of gold, and they’re giving away records. They make consumers think $5.98 for an album is a high price for something they could buy at $2.99. We have to educate our custom- ers." Inflationary Pressures Other large chains have similarly hiked their retail prices, in response to the wholesale hikes and to a slew of inflationary pressures, including higher energy costs, Social Security hikes, and minimum wage ( continued on page 23) changes are detailed in the accompanying chart.) Under the new CBS Records policy, qualifying accounts that cause the redistribution of its product to three or more physically separate retail locations will all be billed at the same base price, which is $4,08 for $7.98 list albums, tapes and cassettes. Dealer price will be $4.37. To subdistributors that redistribute product only to non-affiliated retailers (those in which they have no ownership or other financial interest, or those that are not under common ownership or control), CBS will offer a functional discount of two per- cent from the base price. To those accounts that sell to both af- (continued on page 58) Monteiro Named To Cash Box Marketing Post LOS ANGELES — Stan Monteiro has joined Cash Box as a marketing and sales representative, it has been announced by Mel Albert, Cash Box general manager. Monteiro most recently was vice president of promotion and artist relations at United Artists Records. Commenting on the appointment. Albert said, "We at Cash Box are extremely ex- cited about having Stan join our team He is an industry veteran with uncompromising principles that have gained him respect throughout the industry. His contribution to the futureof Cash Box will be far-reaching." Monteiro formerly served as vice presi- dent of national promotion for Columbia Records in New York before joining UA in April of 1977. He began his career in the music industry in 1956 at Records, Inc. in Boston where he was a salesman and promotion manager. In 1 960 Monteiro became a disc jockey at WILD and was later named music and program director at the station. He joined Mercury Records as a promotion manager in 1962 and later became national promo- tion administrator for RCA Records. In 1971 Monteiro left his job as director of promo- tion for Metromedia Records to become a co-founder and marketing executive at Grunt Records where he worked for a year before joining Epic Records as director of national promotion. Cash Box/April 22, 1978 Indies React With Dismay To Expected Departure Of UA by Peter Hartz LOS ANGELES — Although there has been no official announcement of domestic dis- tribution plans by United Artists Records in wake of the sale of the label by United Art- ists Corporation to Artie Mogull and Jerry Rubinstein, it is widely assumed that UA will leave the fold of independently distributed labels. The sale of UA was reportedly financed by Capitol Industries-EMI Inc. in exchange for foreign distribution rights, and Capitol is also expected to distribute UA domestical- ly. If so, the departure would represent the second major loss of the year for indepen- dents following A&M Records’ announce- ment in February that it intends to switch to branch distribution in the western U.S. Most of the independent distributors sur- veyed felt the departure of UA would be a significant blow to their operations because of the profitability of the UA line. Many also said that it is becoming increasingly difficult for pure distributors to remain financially solvent. Diversification and consolidation of operations are seen by many indies as protective measures in an eroding market. With size playing an important role in sur- vival, larger indies capable of representing many lines over wider territories are con- sidered the most stable. Although no major labels are expected to shift from branch distribution back to the indies in the near future to offset the loss of UA, many of the indies surveyed remain confident of their ability to offer unique ser- vices to independent manufacturers. Pickwick Records Readies New Jazz Line For Autumn MINNEAPOLIS — The Pickwick Records Division is planning to launch a new jazz line, similar to its successful Quintessence classical label. Bob Newmark, general manager of the records division, told Cash Box that the jazz line was still in the preliminary stages of development, but that it would hopefully be ready by this fall. "There is a wealth of jazz material available in the catalogs that we have access to,” Newmark noted. “We have not yet picked out the particular product, however.” Among the major label catalogs available for sub-licensing by Pickwick is RCA’s Camden Jazz line. Gene Norman is currently doing A&R work for the new Pickwick label. ‘Severe Loss’ “it is a severe loss,” said Milt Salstone of M.S. Distributing which handles the UA line in several major markets. “UA was a sub- stantial percentage of our business. I hope that somebody else gets very bright and goes independent.” George Port, secretary of Pickwick Inter- national, felt the departure of UA from in- dependent distribution would be regret- table and a mistake by the new owners. “We wish them godspeed and good luck because we have had a good relationship with them, but we wish they had not done it,” he said. “We think that everybody loses when we see this sort of thing occur. What has made this an exciting and viable in- dustry is that people with talent have been able to get their product to the market- place. As we see more and more concen- tration of labels affiliating with vertically in- tegrated distributors, that flexibility is being lost. That can hurt the product. “UA is a good line. We feel, if handled properly from a distribution point of view, that it is a profitable line. It was for us. Given the good current stuff and the strong catalog material, we think that independent distribution is in a position to foster and nurture the line. ‘Positive About Future’ “We are positive about the future of in- dependent distribution. There will always be companies that will recognize the kinds of things that independent distribution can give.” George Souvall, general manager of Alta Distributing, stressed that there had been no official announcement of the distribution changes by UA. However, assuming the departure of UA in light of the disclosure of the sale, Souvall called the decision a significant loss. “Coming on top of the departure of A&M, it has reduced our distribution capability by about 50 percent,” he said. “Fortunately, we are not a pure distributor. We also have LOS ANGELES — The Recording Industry Association of America in 1977 was heavily involved in several issues of central impor- tance to the industry including copyright revisions, battling record piracy, counter- feiting and copyright infringement as well as its most widely-known activity of gold and platinum record certifications. Gary Davis Davis Named To VP Post At ABC LOS ANGELES — Gary Davis has been ap- pointed vice president of marketing at ABC Records. Davis previously was vice presi- dent of sales and promotion at the label. Davis, who will be responsible for all areas of marketing and creative services, will also continue to direct ABC's promotion and sales divisions. Barry Grieff, former vice president of marketing and creative services for ABC, has left the label. Grieff has not yet an- nounced his plans for the future. Announcing Davis’ appointment, ABC president Steve Diener said, “This fusion of these departments under the clear heading of marketing is designed to emphasize the direction and effort ABC employs in the development of its artist roster from the release of its product ail the way through the marketing and career development phases.” Anger Still At Polydor NEW YORK — Contrary to recently published reports, Harry Anger will remain as vice president of marketing for Polydor Records. This information is outlined in its 1977 annual report released last week by the Rl AA to show the industry what efforts it has made over the past year to benefit the record business. The largest section in the report sum- marizes the association’s involvement with copyright revisions in anticipation of the enactment of the new copyright law which went into effect Jan. 1, 1978. Included in this segment of the report were the steps taken by the RIAA in its long-standing sup- port of performance copyright legislation and its views on compulsory license reporting requirements. Another major portion described efforts to combat unauthorized duplication of sound recordings. “Although great strides were made legislatively and judicially,” the report said, “it felt at times like putting one’s finger in the dike to stem a flow. "For example,” RIAA stated, “while the piracy of records seemed on the decline, there was a noticeable rise in counter- feiting.” The report lists many of the problems faced by the industry in trying to fight such practices and states, “Added to these woes were increasing reports of inac- tion among some federal prosecutors in bringing to trial numerous cases of alleged infringement.” It noted that during 1977, Montana and Missouri became the 47th and 48th states to enact anti-piracy laws and cited some important cases involving pirates. (continued on page 51) Martinez Tapped As RCA’s V.P. Of Finance, Int’l NEW YORK — Arthur Martinez has been appointed to the newly-created position of division vice president of finance and inter- national for RCA Records. In his new job, Martinez will assume full responsibility for supervising and directing RCA Records’ international operations, and will continue heading the finance department for the record division. Martinez was appointed division vice president of finance forthe label in 1973. He came to RCA Records from RCA Corp., where he was director of financial analysis for the corporate financial staff that provided analysis for the record operation, as well as for RCA Global Communications, NBC, and Random House. (continued on page 51) C4SHBOX Columbia recording artist Billy Joel has soared to worldwide prominence with the release of his double-platinum LP, “The Stranger.” The album, produced by Phil Ramone, holds a firm number four on the Cash Box Top 200 Albums chart, and has been in the Top 10 for 12 consecutive weeks. “Just The Way You Are" became the album’s first gold-certified single, and “Movin' Out” currently occupies the num- ber 30 position on the Cash Box Singles chart. The development of Joel’s career as a songwriter and musician can be traced through his four albums for the label, “Piano Man” (his first gold album), “Streetlife Serenade,” "Turnstiles,” and “The Stranger.” Last month Joel completed a 56-date tour of the United States and Canada, and is now in the midst of an ex- tensive tour of Europe, Australia, and Japan. After years of persevering creative in- spiration, Billy Joel has become an artist of multi-faceted global success. Index Album Reviews 36 Classical 57 Classified 56 Coin Machine News 53 Country Album Chart 38 Country Singles Chart 40 East Coastings/Points West 18 FM Analysis 26 International Section 59 Jazz 35 Jukebox Singles Chart 53 Latin 45 Looking Ahead 25 New Faces To Watch 14 Pop Album Chart 61 Pop Radio Analysis 30 Pop Singles Chart 4 Radio News 25 Regional Album Action 34 Regional Programming Guide 28 R&B Album Chart 47 R&B Singles Chart 48 Singles Reviews 52 Top Tens 34 FOREIGNER WELCOME ~~ Atlantic recording group Foreigner recently arrived in Japan, the initial overseas stop in its “Around The World In 42 Days” tour. Upcoming stops in- clude Hong Kong, Australia, Holland, Germany and England. The worldwide tour marks Foreigner’s first performances outside the U.S. Pictured )l-r) in Japan are: Ian McDonald and Mick Jones of Foreigner; Tetsu Aoyagi, executive director of Warner Pioneer Corp.; Bob Greenberg, vice president/west coast general manager, Atlantic Records; Bud Prager, manager of the group; Lou Gramm, Ed Gagliardi and At Greenwood of Foreigner; Jghn David Kalodner, west coast A&R director, Atlantic; and Denniss Elliott of Foreigner. (continued on page 23) RIAA Report Cites 1977 Work In Areas Affecting Industry 10 Cash Box/April 22, 1978 What Yog~W.a.nJLa ABC DELIVERS “The most prestigious lineup of rock talent ever to assemble for a single event.” ROBERT HILBl'RN. LOS ANGELES TIMES ‘The Last Waltz is always a bittersweet affair; there is the joy of completion and the poignancy of the coda.” — LKS LKDBHTTKR. NEW YORK TIMKS “It was in many ways a swan song for an entire generation of rock. The Last Waltz was the last of the sixties events, one that will eventually Seem as important as the Beatles’ first appearance on the Ed Sullivan show or Woodstock. . .” — PETER GODDARD. TORONTO STAR Warner Bros. Records is proud to present The Band, on record, in their final concert appearance at San Franciscos Winterland on Thanksgiving Day, 1976, accompanied by a majestic group of musicians. Joining The Band — Rick Danko, Levon Helm, Garth Hudson, Richard Manuel and Robbie Robertson— in concert and On this special album are these distinguished guest ■performers: Eric Clapton Ringo Starr Emmylou Harris Neil Diamond Neil Young Rorinie Hawkins Bob Dylan Paul Butterfield The Staples Joni Mitchell Bobby Charles Muddy Waters Van Morrison Dr. John Ron Wood A deluxe three-record set on Warner Bros. Records, The Last Waltz, featuring the live concert and five additional songs — “The East Waltz Suite " IE BAND United Artists New Faces To Watch Joe Sample Joe Sample, keyboard player for the Crusaders, is hardly a new name to a large and devoted jazz audience. But after 25 years with the group, Sample has finally released his debut solo album, “Rainbow Seeker,” making his name not only new, but widely appreciated, among a whole new generation of listeners. Why did Sample wait 25 years to make his own record? “One of my main goals has always been to make the group suc- cessful,” he explains, “and if there was ever mention of a solo project, then everybody would say, ‘See, they’re not going to stay together.’ And that’s precisely what I didn’t want to happen. Also, I didn’t feel the market was ready. But then about a year ago, I got the fever, and I knew it was time.” One of the factors that encouraged Sam- ple to go ahead with the project, he says, was the heavy radio airplay given to "It Hap- pens Every Day," one of his own composi- tions from the Crusaders’ last album, “Free As The Wind.” In addition, Sample says, he was encouraged by the chart successes of such melodic jazz composers as Chuck Mangione, Noel Pointer and Al DiMeola. When he was ready to record, Sample had a definite idea of the album’s musical direction. “I knew that the piano had to be right up there in the forefront,” Sample says, “because a lot of horns, for instance, would have tended to dominate it. I also knew I wanted to include an acoustical sound where the listener could get into the music just as it was played, with no over- dubs.” While stepping out on his own has been an “exciting” experience for Sample, he believes he couldn’t have perfected his vir- tuosity without his years in the group. “When you’re one-fifth of a musical output,” Sample asserts, "you have to listen more closely to what the others are doing. That means you have to interpret more, be more accustomed to different styles, and be more versatile.” Besides his work with the Crusaders, Sample has distinguished himself on numerous session dates, including Steely Dan’s “Aja” album, Joni Mitchell’s “Court And Spark” and recent albums by Marvin Gaye and Michael Franks. The session work was invaluable, Sample says, because “it taught me how to put together an album. It taught me about the politics of the business, and how to get financially es- tablished on an independent basis.” One result has been Crusaders Produc- tions. Located in Hollywood, the company has produced Ray Barretto’s album, “In The Eye Of The Beholder,” and Sample’s “Rainbow Seeker.” The firm’s most recent project is B.B. King’s forthcoming album, “Midnight Believer.” In addition, the Crusaders plan to have their next group album out and released by June. Sample’s own personal projects include some direct-to-disc solo albums, concen- trating on more “traditional things.” He will also be with the Crusaders when they go on tour in mid-May, adding, as he puts it, “a built-in second drawer act” to the group. KSHE & KSLQ Lead St. Louis Music Stations, Survey Finds Dara Sedaka What can one say about a girl in ninth grade who has toured internationally and appeared on television with her pop star father and has just released her first single as a solo artist? If she’s Dara Sedaka, one can say that she is one of the most poised, level-headed and talented 14-year-old per- formers ever to hit the music world. “I know show business from the inside," says the newest member of the RSO roster. “I’ve seen that it’s not all fun and games. But I’m taking my shot — if it happens, great. If not, I’ll do something else.” Dara first got serious about recording af- ter her father Neil's 1976 television special. Dara sang on the program and the response was overwhelming. A short while later she went into the studio with producer David Foster and recorded “My Guy,” her new single. Since her father and Freddy Gershon, president of the Stigwood Group, are old friends, it was a natural for the single to be taken to RSO for consideration. Itwas taken in to RSO Records president Al Coury, who liked it enough to sign Dara to her first record contract. It is no surprise that Dara turned to music at such an early age. Her mother/manager says she was “brought up thinking music instead of dolls. “I think it’s wonderful that Dara has chosen to follow in her father’s footsteps,” says Leba Sedaka. “But, knowing the dis- appointments that come up, I’m also terrified.” Dara says she always enjoyed having a famous father. “His fame never hurt me and I never resented it. In fact, it’s always been exciting. I love his music and I’ve certainly learned a lot about drive and perseverance from him. I wouldn’t change places with anybody.” Despite the time her new career takes up, Dara remains a good student. She ex- plained that she was able to do the publicity tour only because she did a term paper early so she would be free during spring break. “She works hard in school,” echoes her mother. Surveying the current music scene, Dara says the success of Leif Garrett, Debby Boone and Shaun Cassidy influenced her decision to try a recording career. But her favorite artists to listen to include Stevie Wonder, Frank Zappa and the Babys. The young singer, who also writes songs, has an exciting future ahead of her, but only two things are certain at this point. She is going to stay in school, and at some point she will collaborate on a project with her father. Pressed further on her plans, Dara replies, “I want to take things one step at a time.” Tribute Benefits Kids NEW YORK — The proceeds of a special broadcast tribute to Lynyrd Skynyrd have been donated by the King Biscuit Flower Hour to the Van Zant-Gaines Memorium Trust. Thus far, the trust fund has raised more than $50,000 for the education of the three children involved. by Joey Berlin LOS ANGELES — Major St. Louis AM and FM stations comprise a highly competitive, active radio marketplace that serves record manufacturers as an important test market, according to a recent Cash Box survey. While all sources felt that KMOX-AM, owned by CBS, is the dominant force in the local ratings, they also agree that its non- musical format attracts older listeners who buy fewer records — leaving most of the record buying audience wide open to sta- tions like KSHE and KSLQ. “KMOX has monster numbers, but it’s a station that really has a 50-plus appeal," says Ed Newsome, general manager at KSD-AM. “There are 35 to 40 other stations here in town that are fighting it out for the 12 to 49 age group.” AORs The leading AOR station in St. Louis is KSHE-FM. “They’re the ones who can break a hard-rock band like Styx or REO Speedwagon in St. Louis," reports J.D. Mandelker, manager of Streetside Records. In the fail ARBs, KSHE scored a 7.9 metro share, just behind the top 40 leader, KSLQ-FM. In the March Media Trends, KSHE was the top music station, with a 9.9 share. Springsteen Talks At NARAS Lunch NEW YORK — Bruce Springsteen, who has been busy in the studio for several months, made a rare public appearance last week at a membership luncheon of the New York chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, at Manhat- tan’s Storytown club. Springsteen, who was introduced by John Hammond, the man who signed him to Columbia Records, recalled the first time he met Hammond. At the time, he said, he had thought his then-manager, MikeAppel, was kidding when he told him he was going to audition for Hammond, who had signed so many great artists to Columbia. But the meeting took place as scheduled, and Hammond was immediately attracted to the young folksinger’s music. Paying tribute to his mentor, Springsteen added, "John has been in the music business so long that he never forgot what comes first — music.” According to CBS sources, Spring- steen’s new album should be out by the second week in May. A tour is planned for Springsteen and his band, starting in June and continuing through the summer. The other speaker at the luncheon was Hammond, who was introduced to the packed club by NARAS president George Simon. Hammond thanked Ben Selvin, who was present, for giving him his first job at CBS. He recounted the early development of the LP, and recalled that, back in the 1920s and '30s, classical artists used to command royalties of five to ten percent, while pop artists were usually paid aflatfee. In response to a question about whether or not bigness was limiting the oppor- tunities for new artists and favoring superstar acts, Hammond replied, "The record business is, for its size, probably the most competitive in the country.” Citing the number of thriving labels, Hammond add- ed, “Your real beef in the exposure of art- ists is not with the record labels, but with radio and TV, which do nothing on their own.” Hammond, who still serves CBS in a con- sultant capacity, is author of “John Ham- mond On Record.” Sinatra Concert Set LOS ANGELES — Frank Sinatra will per- form at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles this summer July 31-August 6. "The ratings services show us to be very I strong 18-34 and we’re second to KSLQ in I teens,” says KSHE general manager Shelley Grafman. “As a free-form progressive AOR station, we do very little research. We also do relatively little concert : promoting, with the exception being our : annual November anniversary concert.” KSHE is owned by Century Broadcasting in Chicago, which also owns other AORS KWST, KM EL and WABX. It is supported by a wide range of sponsors, from record companies to auto dealers to beer manu- facturers, and also does its own television advertising. The station is currently run- ning 30-second spots featuring rock music, local landmarks and its call letters, but overall it relies on traditional listeners who are loyal to the station. “It takes a bomb to move the listenership,” comments one observer familiar with the St. Louis radio market. “Listeners may switch around some, but over the long haul they return to their old stand-bys — and for rock ’n’ rollers that’s KSHE.” KADI-FM is the #2 AOR station in the St. Louis market. Owned by Communications Fund, Inc., KADI also has an AM outlet with the same format, and the two stations simulcast on weekends and weekday mor- nings. KADI consulted until recently with Lee Abrams, and program and music director Pete Parisi indicates the station profited from the association. “We are a soft AOR station,” notes Parisi, “and Lee Abrams showed us a lot of good things in that area. Now we do a good amount of research on our own, using call back cards, in-store and phone research and, most importantly, conceptual research which we do with the help of Southern Illinois University. Still, we do less research than KSLQ, but we do more than KSHE.” \ KADI is probably the most involved of any St. Louis station in the local concert scene, broadcasting two or three live con- | certs each month. Among the recent featured artists were Elvis Costello and Az- tec Two-Step. Parisi points out that KADI actually has more people listening to the station each week than KSHE, although KSHE holds its listeners longer. One retail observer ex- plains that this statistic is due to KADI’s "in- consistent programming. They don’t give new records enough play for people to get into them, just enough to turn listeners off." j Black Stations Perhaps the fiercest radio competition (continued on page 24) I Peisinger Named To Marketing Post At Polygram Inc. NEW YORK — Jon Peisinger has been ap- pointed vice president of marketing developmentfor Polygram Distribution Inc. In his new position, Peisinger will head " up Polygram Distribution's newly- I established marketing department, with a team of managers to coordinate marketing developments with each Polygram- distributed label. Peisinger will also be responsible for creating and implementing merchandising programs for the distribu- tion company. . Peisinger will report to Jack Kiernan, vice president of sales for Polygram | Distribution. Since last August, Peisinger has been eastern regional director of Polygram Dis- tribution. Prior to joining the company, he was director of national sales for Arista, and was previously affiliated with Elek- I tra/Asylum as regional marketing director. 14 Cash Box/April 22, 1978 John Denver I Want To Live WHERE THERE'S A£TION...THERE'S REACTION "I Want To Live” PB-11267 A New JOHN DEN VER Single. ' A The hit of his national tour. Jerry Weintraub Management III Produced by Milton Okun LAST YEAR lit OF ALL WOODFORD AND IVEY PRODUCTIONS HIT THE CHARTS NOW . . . 10 NEW PRODUCTIONS BY WOODFORD AND IVEY H LP'S HOT Big Tree "If That's the Way You Want It" MAC McANALLY Ariola "No Problem Here" JOHN KAY Mercury "All in Good Time" HOO DOO RHYTHM DEVILS Fantasy "All Kidding Aside" SMITTY A&M "Smitty" GARFIELD Capricorn "Out There Tonight" HARMONY Phonogram International "Harmony" SINGLES DONNY LOWERY Elektra "He Can Be An Angel" BRENDA LEE Elektra "Gould It Be Love I Found Tonight" ROBERT BYRNE Mercury "Learning to Live Without You" AND RECORDED AT WISHBONE LEBLANC & CARR Big Tree "Falling" BILL BRANDON Prelude "We Fell In Love While Dancing" SOUNDING LIKE t INC. RECORDING STUDIO • PRODUCTIONS TERRY WOODFORD CLAYTON IVEY MUSCLE SHOALS Executives On The Move Silvers Sheppard Levy Jasper Silvers Named At GRT — Howard Silvers has been named vice president of sales for GRT Record Group. With the company for eight years, he was formerly national sales manager, GRT Record Division. Sheppard To CTI — CTI Records has announced the appointment of Bunky Sheppard as vice president. Prior to joining CTI, he was with Motown for 5 years where he held the posi- tions of vice president/R&B promotion for 1 year and national promotion director for 4 years. Levy Promoted At GRT — Jim Levy has been named vice president, business affairs for GRT Corporation. He was manager of business affairs for GRT Music Tapes and joined the company in 1973 as manager of direct marketing. He was formerly manager of corporate development for a division of Time, Inc., and was managing director of Time-Life Audio, a division of Time-Life Books. Grossi Promoted At Jem — Robert Grossi has been named sales manager for Jem Records. He has been with Jem Records for three years as a salesman. He was previously involved in television commercial advertising at Videocon, Inc. in Boston. Jasper Appointed At E/P/A — Epic/Portrait/Associated Labels has announced the ap- pointment of Carol Jasper to manager, national secondary promotion, E/P/A. She joined CBS Records in 1973 as advertising coordinator. In 1975 she became national singles sales manager for E/P/A, the position she has held until her current move. Scobey Appointed At Wishbone — Wishbone, Inc. announced the appointment of Lola Scobey as vice president of Wishbone. She was formerly Nashville editor of Cash Box and a free-lance magazine writer. She is author of the book, “Dolly, Daughter of the South,” a biography of Dollv Parton now in its second printing. Kapner Joins MCA — Suzan Kapner has been appointed director of creative services for MCA Music’s west coast office. Prior to MCA, she was associate professional manager for Peer-Southern Organization. Scobey Kapner Tavares La Russo Rothsteln To Sweet City — Sweet City Records has announced the appointment of Joel Rothstein as midwest tertiary promotion. In his duties he will work with radio stations where there are major college campuses. Tavares Appointed At CBS — CBS Records International Latin American operations has announced that George Tavares has been appointed to manager, business affairs for Latin American operations in Coral Gables, Florida. He joined CBS in 1976 as manager, area desk west, CBS Records International. Saisoul Names La Russo — Salsoul Records has announced the appointment of Glen La Russo as international product manager with Salsoul Records. He comes to Salsoul from Polydor Records, Incorporated, where he was international product manager based in New York, overseeing all producHicensed outside the United States. Rogers & Cowan Names Herveyt— Rogers & Cowan, Inc. Public Relations, has announced that Ramon Hervey II has been pj^moted to west coast music manager. Prior to joining Rogers & Cowan, he served as a writer/publicist for Motown Records based in Los Angeles. He initially joined Rogers & Cowan in February, 1977, and has worked as a publicist on the west coast for the past year. Shepherd Joins Avalon — Roger Shepherd, former vice president of the David Forest Company, has joined Avalon Attractions. Prior to his work at Fun Productions, he owned and operated Shepherd Studios, a Sacramento design and advertising agency. Capricorn Appoints Pettigrew — Capricorn Records has announced the appointment of Jim Pettigrew as director of tour publicity. His previous publicity affiliations have included work with Atlanta record labels, the Great Southeast Music Hall and the Alex Cooley Organization. Casablanca Taps Walner — Casablanca Record and FilmWorks has announced the selec- tion of Jan Walner as local southern California promotion representative. She was formerly local promotion person for Private Stock Records. Hervey Shepherd Pettigrew Walner Finn Resigns — Sue Finn, vice president of David Forest’s Fun Productions and manager of Elvin Bishop, has resigned both positions to develop new projects. She will announce her new plans in the near future. Appointments At Big Sound — Big Sound Records announced the promotion of Joseph Mooney to vice president of financial affairs. He had been acting in the capacity of financial advisor prior to his appointment. Also the promotion of Benji Gant to director of merchan- dising and promotion has been announced. He was formerly liaison to retail accounts for (continued on page 46) 16 Cash Box/April 22, 19' L Part 3 is DOUBLE Platinum Columbia Broadens Its Jazz Roster While Maintaining Commercial Base by Charles Paikert NEW YORK — A recent spate of jazz artist signings by Columbia Records, including recording contracts with Bobby Hutcher- son, Ronnie Foster, and Cedar Walton, as well as a production deal with Ralph Mac- Donald, indicate “an unprecedented out- reach” for the labels’ jazz/progressive divi- sion, according to Dr. George Butler, vice president of jazz/progressive A&R for Columbia Records. “My main thrust since I’ve been here," said Butler, who headed the Blue Note label before joining CBS in 1977, “has been to bring a broad musical spectrum to the label. I'm pleased that with the artists we’ve signed thus far, we’ve come closer to achieving that goal.” The musicians recently signed by Co- lumbia have included a disparate mixture of established acts and new, virtually un- known artists. Besides Hutcherson, Foster, and Walton, the label has also ac- quired such established artists as Percy and Jimmy Heath, Lonnie Liston Smith, Wille Bobo, and Stephane Grappelli. Emphasis On Youth Butler, however, has also emphasized youth in his roster expansion program. Ac- cordingly, Columbia has signed Rodney Franklin, a 19-year-old pianist from San Francisco; Hillary Schmidt, a young woman soprano sax and flute player; Jaroslav Jakobvic, a reed player from Czechoslo- vakia; and Arthur Blythe, an avant-garde saxophonist from New York City. Another indication of Columbia’s com- mitment to its jazz roster, according to Butler, has been the meticulous attention given to production, pre-production plan- ning and promotion. As an example, Butler cited MacDonald’s four-album production deal, as well as the signing of respected producers Dale Oehler and Byron Olson to work on individual projects. Both Butler and Jim Fishel, manager of east coast jazz/progressive A&R, stressed the importance of pre-production planning. “Before any of our artists go in the studio,” Fishel commented, “George, Vernon Slaughter, our director of marketing, Bruce Lundvall, and myself talk the project over, so it’s plotted out before they go in. 99% of the time we will not let them go in and produce themselves.” Better Planning Fishel noted a change from the days “when jazz artists would go in the studio with a head arrangement and just blow. (continued on page 46) Smith Appointed As V.P. Of WCI NEW YORK — Roger R. Smith, Warner Communications Incorporated’s director of investor relations, has been elected a vice president of the company. He will continue to serve in his present capacity at WCI. Commenting on this appointment, Steven J. Ross, chairman of WCI, said, “We are pleased to recognize Roger Smith’s contributions to WCI by his election as a vice president. The combination of his financial background and the knowledge of our businesses which he has acquired since joining WCI make him a valued cor- porate executive.” QUESTION: CAN Y°U GUESS WHICH BAND HAS PLAYED FOR OVER A MILLI°N FANS IN THE LAST TWELVE M°NTHS AND I VS S°LD WELL OVER 4,000,000 OF THE FINEST LP'S YOU'LL EVER HEAR?... WOMAN-CHILD SIGNS — Hit Inter- national recording artist Helene Frances visited the Licorice Pizza store in Holly- wood recently to autograph posters and copies of her debut LP “ Woman-Child . ” Pictured (l-r) are: a fan; Jeff Godsil, associate salesman , and Frances. East Coastings/ Points West EAST COASTINGS — WELL, WHY NOT? — There’s a Country Music Hall of Fame, there’s an on-again, off-again Jazz Museum, so what about a museum to enshrine the musicians who made rock great? Great idea, right? Well, a group of women up in Dover, New Hampshire are doing something about it. They’ve been legally incorporated as a non-profit organization called The Museum Of Contemporary Music, Inc., and right now they’re trying to drum up financial support from record companies and promoters. If all goes well, they hope to open a New York City site by 1980. DISCO 60 — The “60 Minutes” cameras have invaded the world of disco, and the segment will be shown some time in late April or early May. Dan Rather handles report duties, and he followed the making of a disco record from studio production to retail sales. Among the artists spotlighted are Peter Brown and Desiree, whose record, “Good- bar Won’t Ya Take Me Home Tonight,” was test-played at Manhattan discos Studio 54 and New York, New York. Also up before a national audience will be WNEW-FM’s own Tom Morrera and John Ferrara, producer of the “Goodbar” record. ON BROADWAY — Starting uptown, on the corner of 74th, there’s the majestic Beacon Theatre. A “ban” on “hard rock” was im- posed last year, but, fortunately. Little Feat was booked and no fuss was made. The group’s New York audience proved to be ultra-fanatics, and included among them were James Taylor, Carly Simon, and Phoebe Snow. James and Phoebe, along with John Hall, who opened the show, jammed with Lowell George and company for a rousing encore . . . Downtown, “On The 20th Century,” the new Cy Coleman musical, continues to draw long box office lines. The show itself is a visual treat, as well as an aural extravaganza, featuring outstanding perfor- mances by John Collum and Madeline Kahn, last seen in Mel Brooks’ “High Anxiety." . . . Finally, George Benson comes to the Belasco Theatre for five days, May 3-7. The dates will make the New York debut of Benson's self-designed guitar, made in conjunction with the Ibanez guitar company, which will soon begin marketing “George Benson Model” axes. NAMES IN THE NEWS — What's that again, Rlngo? In a recent interview, Ringo claimed his old bar-band pal, John Lennon, was “recording.” No verification, however . . . Looks like the Temptations will be reuniting soon with some cohorts from the Motown days, producers Holland and Holland . . . Mitch Ryder, the blue-eyed C.C. Rider from Detroit City, is on the comeback trail, now gigging in western Canada . . . Speaking of comebacks, Brenda Lee has signed with Elektra/Asylum, and is recording an album at Muscle Shoals . . . Etta James will be a featured guest of the Average White Band for their May 2 Avery Fisher gig . . . Tony Dow and Jerry Mathers were spotted at a Miami Beach supper club performing in the play, “Boeing Boeing” . . . Dave Edmunds and Nick Lowe have been booked into the Bottom Line . . . Speaking of that famed, dreaded, loved, and hated New York nightspot, a familiar figure will be mis- sing. Yes, the imposing presence of Jaz Mason will no longer be there to ward off gate-crashers. Jaz has taken a gig as staff songwriter for United Artists Publishing Company . . . Finally, a portent of things to come — the first bar-coded album has passed across our desks, and It’s by Buddy DeFranco, on Classic Jazz Records. WHERE HAVE YOU HEARD THAT VOICE? — Roscoe, the legendary New York FM disc jockey, is working on an album project for CBS Records, under the auspices of Dr. George Butler. The album will feature music and a spoken word track by Roscoe. Although no longer a staple feature of the Big Apple FM dial, Roscoe is doing a Sunday afternoon show for WBLS- FM, and commutes to Paris every week, where he does a weekly show for Europe I radio. THOR? WOULDN’T YOU BE THOR AFTER SMASHING A CEMENT BLOCK? — When new Midsong Recording artist Thor goes on the road this week, rock fans might do well to bring some popcorn. Apparently, the golden-haired Canadian strongman has an act to rival the Ringling Brothers. Houses two water-cooled ion lasers, reportedly worth $10,000 a piece, that project images on the stage, as well as a laser helmet and a laser hammer than both project beams. For an encore, Thor is chained to a custom-designed torture rack with a “several hundred pound” cement block strapped to his chest. The cement is drilled through with a jackhammer, and then Thor breaks steel chains for a dramatic finale. Rock and roll. DISCO — DATO — Emuir Deodato, the Brazilian composer/arranger whose “Theme From 2001” opened up the jazz/fusion door ever-wider, dropped by the CB office with a copy of latest album, “Love Island.” The album is his first for Warner Brothers, and his first outing, in fact, since he left MCA two years ago. In that time he sailed to the Bahamas, built a house in East Hampton, and did studio work. Now he’s back with a disco sound, and some feisty opinions on the subject. “All disco music is stolen from Brazilian music, you see." Deodate exclaims, “so that when I’m doing ‘a disco thing,' I'm really only using the American formula for disco music. I like to think of my music as accessible. It’s only com- mercial once it sells." Charles paikert POINTS WEST — BEATLES ARE BACK — In the news, that is. Japanese tycoon Rocky Aoki has made a formal bid to buy the Aintree race track outside Liverpool, home of England’s famous horse race The Grand National, and is said to have offered the former Beatles at least $50 million to get together and play there. The race track had been in poor financial shape for some years and the owners put it up for sale because of falling profits. Aoki, who is prepared to pay around $5 million for the track, plans to turn the site into an en- (continued on page 24) RODEN SIGNS — Jazz rocker Jess Roden has signed a North American recording contract with Island Records, Inc. Pictured at the signing (l-r) are: Charley Nuccio, president of the label; Roden; and his manager, Fred Heller. 18 Cash Box/April 22. 1978 Write or call your local Polygram Distribution office for displays or other promotion items. “ Luck once again rewards those who wait for the call. Now he can look back and smile to himself as he recalls the memories \ the casualties ; the friends, ; won and lost. He can thank the Lord, for he is truly blessed. He is indeed a \ Survivor ” KANDY BACHMAN. ROCK Or ROLL HAS DEVOURED EVERYTHING IN ITS PATH. RANDY BACHMAN IS THE "SURVIVOR;' rf*** OK POLYDOR RECORDS & TAPES MGMT: GRAEME VVAYM ARK C.A. 626 BUTE ST., VANCOUVER, B.C. BOOKING: THE HOWARD ROSE AGENCY LTD. 2029 CENTURY PARK EAST. LOS ANGELES, CA. Pictured (l-r) are: Richard Bibby, MCA vice president of marketing ; Lorine Mendell, national secondary promotion director; Sammy Vargas, regional promotion manager; Paul Lambert, national promotion director; Denise Moncel, regional promotion manager; Leon Tsilis, regional promotion manager; Wayne McManner, regional promotion manager, and Stan Bly, MCA vice president/promotion. MCA Restructures Promotion Dept. With Adoption Of Regional System by Jeff Crossan LOS ANGELES — MCA Records has Chicago Chooses Dacus As Group’s Singer/Guitarist LOS ANGELES — Columbia recording group Chicago has announced that singer/guitarist Donnie Dacus will replace the band's former guitarist Terry Kath, who died in an accidental shooting incident last January. Dacus, a 26-year-old from Texas, has previously played with Stephen Stills and Boz Scaggs and has also recently been cast for one of three leading male roles in the film version of “Hair.” Stills has recorded six songs written by Dacus, including “T urn Back The Pages.” Chicago is currently getting ready to record a new album at Criterion studios in Miami before beginning a summer tour. Concerts are already scheduled in August at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles and at Central Park in New York. Chicago has sold approximately 20 million albums in the U.S. according to CBS, which reports that sales have generated $60 million dollars. All of the band’s 11 albums have been certified platinum by the RIAA. London Gives Pickwick Atlanta Distribution NEW YORK — London Records and the distribution division of Pickwick last week finalized the deal transferring the London line to Pickwick’s Atlanta branch. (Cash Box, April 15). Pickwick will now distribute London in Atlanta, Nashville, Memphis, and Charlotte, all out of the Atlanta Branch. London is already distributed by Pickwick in Miami, St. Louis, and Min- neapolis. restructured its promotion department and adopted a new regional promotion strategy with the creation of four regional manager posts and the appointment of a new national promotion director and a new national secondary singles director. The label, which previously directed all promotional activities from its main offices here, has established four geographic dis- tricts which will be underthedirection of the newly named regional promotion managers. The regional managers will report to MCA vice president of national promotion Stan Bly. Paul Lambert, former national singles promotion director, has been named to the new national promotion director post while Lorine Mendel, who previously was local promotion manager in Atlanta, has been promoted to director of national secondary singles. Four former local promotion managers have been appointed to the new regional posts. Sammy Vargas, who previously handled local promotion responsibilities in New York, has been appointed regional promo- tion manager of the new east coast district which spans the New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Baltimore and Washington, D.C. areas. Former Detroit promotion manager Denise Moncel has been named manager of the midwest district which covers Cleveland, Cincinnati, Detroit, Chicago and Minneapolis. The new southeast region, which con- tains Nashville, Memphis, Atlanta, Charlotte, Miami and Little Rock, has been placed under the direction of Leon Tsilis, who will be headquartered in Nashville. Wayne McManners has been appointed regional promotion manager of the southwest district. McManners, who will be based in Houston, will be responsible for promotion activities on much of the west coast as well as in the Dallas and New Orleans areas. The establishment of the regional manager posts will localize executive responsibilities, according to Bly, who said the four regional managers “will serve the same function as a national director on a miniature scale. “They will be setting up local conference calls with the local promotion staff,” he said. “Before they just had a little local area to worry about, but now they will be managers of a territory.” The new regional system, Bly said, will expedite communications in the promotion department because “the regional managers will be able to give direction to the local people much quicker. In this business, communication is so important,” he said, “but it is impossible sometimes to have everything nailed down tight from just one national office.” Bly said he plans to keep in touch with the regional managers by telephone on a weekly basis. And every three weeks he will coordinate a conference call with both the local and regional staffs. The new system should swing into effect, Bly said, by the end of April. “We have already had a meeting here in Los Angeles with the four new regional people to run down the parameters,” he said. “There is quitea bitof areato cover and they will have to learn to work closely with the regional salesmen." Bly also announced that new local promotion staffers will be hired to fill the vacancies created by the promotions. QUESTION: D° Y°U KN°W WHICH BAND HAS EARNED A PLATINUM AND FIVE GOLD ALBUMS, GETS CONSTANT AOR AIR- PLAY ON EACH, AND IS ABOUT TO RE- LEASE ITS SEVENTH CLASSIC ALBUM F°R CAPRIC°RN RECTOS? Radio City Venue To Remain Open NEW YORK — Radio City Music Hall will stay open for at least one more year, ac- cording to reports in New York City's daily newspapers. Resolving a last-minute cliffhanger, trustees of New York State's Urban Development Corp. agreed to provide up to $1.8 million in state economic development funds to keep the Rockefeller-owned Music Hall in business until April 12, 1979. At the end of this time, the Music Hall may be placed under a nonprofit state sub- sidy while a feasibility study is made of building a high-rise office tower over the hall. Under one proposal, profits from office rents would be used to sustain the Music Hall in the future. Trugman To Fill Re-election Post For Gov. Brown LOS ANGELES — Richard S. Trugman, vice chairman of Casablanca Record & FilmWorks, has been appointed finance chairman for the re-election campaign of Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr. of California. Trugman, who will be responsible for handling all campaign finances, will direct various fund-raising activities. Trugman's estimated goal for the June primary is more than $1.4 million. Upon the announcement of his appoint- Richard Trugman ment, Trugman said, “I am very honored by the governor’s confidence in me for this very important task and I look forward to the entertainment industry’s continued support of Governor Brown. In the brief time that I have been with the campaign, I have found that Californians, for the most part, are supportive of the governor and I anticipate achieving the goals set forth for the campaign.” RCA Records 1st Quarter Earnings More Than Double NEW YORK — RCA Records’ first quarter earnings more than doubled over last year, according to RCA Corp. president Edgar Griffiths. Overall, the corporation reported record first quarter earnings of $54.9 million, a 13% increase over the previous year's period. First quarter sales for RCA Corp. climbed 10% to a record $1.5 billion. RCA does not, as a matter of policy, break down the dollar figures for its divi- sions. RCA Records officials declined further comment on Griffith’s statements. Chic Debut Gets Gold NEW YORK — “Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah),” the debut single by Atlantic recording group Chic, has been certified gold by the RIAA, 20 Cash Box/April 22, 1 978 * Cm l iuIct 1 h o Diivciicn < )i ( ),lc Souinls anil \ isuals )isli ibulod lb II M Ri-ivnK hu • ?M‘) KcniKils Uil Smiili I’l.iinlii-kl. VI iHimi i 2n| i W'-MOO • IS(il5 Tnphiim RJ.. Reseda. (. A » 213 > ‘KJfr-6754 ANS WER : IT'S THE MARSHALL TUCKER BAND WH°SE BRAND NEW ALBUM T°GETHEK F°REVER' SHIPS NEXT WEEK. WATCH FOR IT ON CAPRIC°RN RECORDS, MAC°N, GE°RGIA. & by Dale Kawashima LOS ANGELES — From the involvement of fellow label artist Jackson Browne to the extensive “Excitable Boy” campaign by Elektra/Asylum, Warren Zevon has been the recipient of total record company sup- port. “There are very few moments in this business when all things point to a major breakthrough for an artist," said Joe Smith, E/A chairman of the board. “All of that was in place for Warren Zevon, and I think that E/A people can take justifiable pride in their quick reactions. “I think we’ve added another brilliant name to the roster whose longevity and growth should be considerable.” WHERE’S THE POT ROAST, WARREN? — Elektra/Asylum recording artist Warren Zevon (c) was greeted backstage following his recent three-night stand at the Roxy in Los Angeles by E/A execs Mel Posner, vice chairman (I), and Steve Wax, president. With the fast rising success of the single “Werewolves Of London" along with the LP “Excitable Boy,” Zevon and E/A are begin- ning to enjoy the fruits of the multi-faceted campaign initiated by the E/A staff last December. However, key momentum and exposure for Zevon had already been es- tablished with the help of Jackson Browne and Linda Ronstadt. Valuable Association Howard Burke, Zevon’s manager, ex- plains why his client’s association with Browne and Ronstadt has been so valuable. “There has been a great deal of assistance, cooperation and participation between Ronstadt, and of course, Browne. Linda has recorded three of Warren's songs and as a result has provided widespread market exposure for him. As for Jackson, his involvement has been a very direct, crucial factor. “As one of E/A’s most important acts, Jackson could assure that the label would maintain its support for Warren. So you might say that in addition to producing both albums, he was also semi-managing him. Also, Jackson gave early exposure to ‘Werewolves Of London’ by performing the tune in concert long before Warren had recorded it.” Once Zevon had recorded “Werewolves" and the rest of “Excitable Boy,” the E/A staff then began to plan its strategy to promote, merchandise and market the album. Kenny Buttice, E/A vice president of record promotion, authorized his national promotion staff to canvass the top FM sta- tions in the country with “Excitable Boy" (continued on page 51) Research, Ratings Discussed At NAB Convention LAS VEGAS — With radio research cur- rently a subject of much debate, it was not surprising that the NAB session “Research Means More Than Just Ratings” drew an overflow crowd. John Dimling, NAB research director, was moderator of the panel which was comprised of John Sack, general manager of station KOB in Albuquerque; Steve Casey, research director at KHJ in Los Angeles; and Charles Murdock, president and part-owner of WLW in Cincinnati. Sack started the session off by telling the crowd that if they were relying on ARB to do their research, they were missing the boat. Sack said ARB “is simply a headcount. It’s information after the fact whereas audience research, if done properly, can tell you if your audience likes your personalities, music, news or what have you. Research can tell you in what areas you need to make a programming change but not howtodo it. In order to follow through with information you have received from your research, you must have qualified programming person- nel. Research can tell you what not to do. but not what to do. Audience research can let you know how your audience perceives your station." Sack went on to say that, “Good market research from companies like the Frank Maggot company or the Research Group can aid your station in bridging the gap of the big ’what if.’ In other words, before you ask yourself, ‘What it I make a particular programming change?,’ research can give you that answer.” Effective Research Murdock told conventioneers they must use audience research "to find out what ARB is really telling you." Murdock then asked, “Why pay eight million dollars for a radio station and still not know all that af- fects the diaries in your area? A recently in- itiated audience measurement firm. Ram Research, operated by Jack McCoy, dis- tributes more diaries in an area than Arbi- tron does, so I reiterate that you must know what Arbitron is really telling us." Murdock discussed a recent research survey his station had done that concluded that television was by far the best way to ad- vertise his station. “Here again research would be able to tell you if you are spending your outside station advertising dollars correctly. When you do decide to place TV ads, you should first check TV ratings in ac- cordance with the segment of the audience you are trying to reach. For example the af- ternoon soap operas have a very high rating for women in the 25 to 49 age group. So if these are the demographics you are after, TV ratings can give you that informa- tion. Nothing should be left to chance. Know everything that is happening around you.” Paul Casey addressed the broadcasters saying, “Radio competition is at an all-time high and with this fact in mind we cannot af- ford the luxury of being without research." Casey said seeing a station that changed formats five times in four years “would cer- tainly let you know that there was little research done there. All stations must do some research. Even gut feel is an informal way of researching. But your main programming research is music research. “In a recent study we conducted we found that your audience more frequently will switch stations when they hear a bad record than for any other reason," he con- tinued. "At KHJ we maintain a panel of 700 listeners that the station polls on a weekly basis. The information we receive is then fed into a computer where we get our results. We feel that our call out research can help the station get better in touch with our potential listeners as well as keeping what we have.” O'HARA ON DINAH — Chrysalis recording artist Mary O’Hara recently taped a seg- ment of the Dinah Shore Show to be aired on April 24. Pictured (l-r) are: Phyllis Diller; Bob Arvon; Dinah Shore: Billy Preston and O’Hara. NAB Session Focuses On AM Stereo Expenses LAS VEGAS — With the advent of AM stereo just around the corner, an NAB ses- sion entitled “Getting Ready for AM Stereo” gave station owners some insight into what conversion to stereo would cost them in dollars, personnel and equipment main- tenance. Speakers for that session included Harold Kassens, chairman of the national AM stereophonic radio committee, and Chris Payne of the NAB, who was the moderator. Kassens told the overflowing room of radio people that the FCC will probably propose rulemaking by July. He predicted that some systems will be in operation by the beginning of next year. The FCC is presently testing five systems from Magnavox, Motorola, Belar, Harris and Kahn. Payne explained that the cost of install- ing an AM stereo may be a drawback for some with the initial cost of converting a transmitter at approximately $10,000. There is the possibility, Payne said, that AM stereo in a car may be better than FM with the cost of the car radio also being less. Payne also told the gathering that AM stereo would work on any equipment but that the quality would depend on many variables. Questions were fielded by the panelists and the discussion ended with Payne stating that, “AM stereo can be as good as FM but it may be very demanding in cost.” Gov. Regulations Decried At NAB Annual Convention (contintued from page 9) Ferris told the gathering that if they hired minorities they wouldn’t have to worry about changing their programming to meet the needs of minority listeners because “these changes will come automatically.” “I will not only vigorously enforce the hir- ing of minorities and women in broad- casting position” Ferris said, "but I will also see that they are holding broadcast licenses.” Approximately 6,000 U.S. broadcasters attended the NAB meet which featured the world’s largest display of broadcast equip- ment, valued at more than $150 million. More than 300 exhibits were on display. Other speakers included author Alex Haley, Sen. Howard Cannon, Sen. Paul Laxalt, Nevada Congressman James San- tini and NAB president Vincent Wasliewski. The NAB is scheduled to hold a programming meeting in Chicago in August. Multi-Faceted E/A Campaign Is Crucial In Breaking Zevon 22 Cash Box/April 22. 1978 DREGS JOIN SANTANA — Capricorn recording artists Dixie Dregs jammed with Santana during their recent show at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta in support of their ‘‘What If" album. Pictured (l-r) are: Carlos Santana and Steve Morse and Allen Sloan of the Dregs. UA’s Departure Dismays Indies (con tint ued from page 10) one-stop and rack operations. Our business will improve this year regardless of the departure. “UA’s leaving is another chapter in a very large book. It is now increasingly difficult for pure indie distributors to survive unless they are in major markets like L.A., Chicago or New York. But the business continues to grow and we continue to grow with it one way or another. "We did an excellent job with 20th Cen- tury this year and we continue to have Lon- don, Chrysalis, Mushroom and Butterfly, among many others, and these people will continue to grow. The only way that small labels can become majors is through in- dependent distribution. They cannot become majors with someone else con- trolling them. There is still room for good in- dependent labels.” Possible Partnership Harvey Korman, vice president, general manager and co-owner of Piks Corporation in Ohio, said, “I guess Mogul! was up against the wall and had nowhere else to turn. I feel he should have called his dis- tributors when he was looking for money; I believe the dsitributors themselves would have backed him. They could have formed a partnership and come up with the money. “The United Artists line accounted for approximately 15-18 percent of our product. I know there are some indepen- dents that have been terribly hurt by this transaction. It is going to put some indies out of business," Korman said. “I believe the independently distributed manufacturers must now take a stand and pick their top 12 or 13 indies and enlarge their territories and markets in order to keep them stable. If the manufacturers will give the independent distributors ad- ditional territories and markets, our situa- tion will remain healthy." "I'm sad," said Tom Schlesinger, general manager of Arc-Jay-Kay Distributing. “I don't have much more to say because I don’t know UA's plans. Artie called me and said he wanted to be a gentleman and notify me but he said he did not know for certain yet what will happen. I imagine we will lose the line, strong Country Line Hutch Carlock, the owner of Music City Distributing in Nashville, said, “We will be i very sorry to lose the line. With Crystal Gayle and Kenny Rogers and other acts, UA has been a really good selling line for us. "I don't foresee any other labels splitting away from branch distribution at the pre- sent time. That doesn’t seem to be the trend at all. In fact, as much as I hate to say it, it seems to be going the other way." Because of the lack of official announce- ment at press time, many indies are uncer- tain of what will happen with the UA product which they are currently carrying. "I don't have much excess," said Nevin St. Romaine, Denver manager for Western *• Merchandisers. "I have no idea what will be done with it at this point because I have not heard from UA. I’ll just keep on doing business as usual." Uncertainty Expressed By Chain Retailers In Wake Of Wholesale Pricing Increases (contintued from page 9) increases. Joe Bressi of the 66-unit Camelot chain noted that his prices have risen more than 50 cents in the past few months as a result of all these factors. "Nowwith CBS, we’regoing to havetodo something," said Bressi. “We may have to raise our prices again, or do more direct buying. At this point, we’re simply sifting it all out, and we’ll be coming out with an en- tirely new market strategy." Tom Roos, sales manager of the Record Bar chain, noted that in response to manufacturer increases, Record Bar has upped the shelf price of some product from $6.49 to $6.99 (on $7.98 list items). Roos ex- plained that this increase was within the chain’s policy of trying to keep retail hikes below the next higher dollar mark. “Right now we're preparing to take a sur- vey of our stores and the competition on future pricing," Roos told Cash Box. “We’re still staying loose and flexible.” The 1812 Overture chain in Milwaukee, which raised its prices about 22 cents on WEA product last winter, and Record and Tape Collector in Baltimore, which raised its overall shelf prices 20-30 cents, are two other retail operations that have reacted quickly to cost pressures. Sitting Tight Other retailers, however, are sitting tight. Linda Stellinger of the Harvard Coop in Boston said the Coop will consider a price increase in September. The Coop’s present shelf price of $5.99 and sale price of $4.99 (on $7.98 product) are only a few cents higher than its prices at this time last year. “The increases (for us) have actually worked out to be a price decrease," Stellinger explained, "because we were considered a pure retailer before and paid a premium price, and now we’re qualifying for a lot of programs as a multi-unit store that doesn’t have resale but does re- distribute ...” George Levy, president of the Sam Goody chain, said his prices vary from store to store and market to market. While overall sale prices at Goody have risen about 30-40 cents in the past year, a major factor in that increase was the demise of the lowball Jimmy’s Music World chain last August. Jimmy’s, with its $2.99 specials, had forced Goody to lower its prices to meet the competition. Lew Kwiker, president of the seven-store Music Stop chain in Detroit, said he has not changed his prices since the WEA price an- nouncement in January. However, Kwiker noted that his low advertised price on $6.98 list items is currently $3.99. Last fall, Music Stop was shaking up the market with weekly $2.99 specials. ‘Bite The Bullet’ Several retailers asserted that they planned to “bite the bullet” and absorb the wholesale price increases, rather than risk decreasing their unit sales by upping over- the-counter prices. John Houghton of the Licorice Pizza chain in California said hefeltthe wholesale increases would probably have to be passed on to the consumer “eventually. But we are not planning anything in the near future,” he added. Lou Fogelman, president of the Music Plus chain, said that he was hesitant to up his prices because the consumer has already had to face a list price hike to $7.98. "Asking the customer to take two increases that close together is a little scary," Fogelman said. "That's one of the reasons we’re biting the bullet ... I think the price of records can be increased to the customer, but you can’t keep hitting him over the head. You have to do it gradually . . Fogelman and other Southern California retailers are so concerned with the effect on their customers, that they have actually lowered prices since WEA’s January policy change. Lee Hartstone's giant Wherehouse chain, for example, lowered its $7 98 sale price to $4.47 shortly after the WEA in- crease. These retail price decisions, however, are apparently related to the Los Angeles market’s highly-competitive nature. More Hikes To Come? Still, the overall consensus, even among those retailers who have not raised their prices, is that across-the-board retail hikes must come. Allan Dulberger of the 1812 Overture chain voiced the opinion that most major retailers would be raising prices about 20-30 cents over the next few months. However, Dulberger expressed the fear of many U.S. record retailers when he called for lower list prices on albums by new or “marginal acts.” Lamented T om Roos of Record Bar, “For the long run, higher retail (and list) prices won’t hurt, but it does have to stop somewhere. There has to be a point where the consumer will not buy a record. He will certainly not take a shot at a new artist at $6.99 or $7.99. The consumer in me is worried about all this . . Along with increases in retail prices, most U.S. retailers fear a $1 list price hike within 12 months. Said Dulberger, “I wouldn’t be surprised if, by year-end, major artists like The Who, Pink Floyd, or McCartney come out with $8.98 albums.” George Levy of Sam Goody foresaw a “high possibility” that a "good deal of hit product will go out at $8.98 this year.” And Ira Heilicher of Great American Music Co. said that he "definitely” foresaw a higher list price because "manufacturers are going to take what they think they can get $8.98 for and go get it.” Grover Sayre, director of retail opera- tions for Pickwick, which operates over 300 Musicland and Discount Records outlets, noted that it is far too soon to discuss an $8.98 catalog list price. "I think the public accepts the $7.98 list, but we should not lay an $8.98 on them too soon." Many retailers across the country, beset by higher unit costs, and worried about the effect of higher retail prices on their customers, are trying to beef up profit margins through the promotion of mid-line and cutout product. John Cohen said he was excited by the new mid-line product unveiled by MCA, but noted that “cutouts seem to be drying up for us," mainly because of the problems in getting top-notch cutout LPs. Linda Stollinger of the Coop mentioned that her classical budget lines have picked up noticeably over the past few months. Ken Dobin, buyer for theWaxieMaxiechain in Washington, D.C., also expects bigger mid-line and budget LP sales as a direct result of higher front-line prices. Other retailers said the wholesale in- creases had prompted them to invest much heavier in budget and cutout merchandise. "We haven't been as active as we should be in these areas,” said Tom Roos. "I hope we’ll get more into cutouts and stay with them longer. It gives us the opportunity to offer our customers something cheaper." Several retailers, however, cited the dif- ficulty in stocking quality cutouts. Browsers who sift through the cutout bins without finding any good items are not likely to return to that section of the store, opined the retaliers. Likewise, the equalization of tape and LP wholesale prices has spurred tape sales at most retail outlets queried Allan Dulberger reported a 10% increase in tape sales, and projected a far “greater influx” of tape volume over the next 10 years. Stellinger noted that The Coop’s tape sales have been steadily escalating, despite the fact that Boston is a notoriously slow tape market. George Levy of Sam Goody suggested that, in addition to higher LP prices, the tremen- dous amount of equipment on the market has helped spark his tape sales. Catalog Dealers Fare Best The retailers who will be hit hardest by the recent manufacturer increases, then, are those who are most heavily stocked with Top 200 product. “The retailers who don’t have the selection and continue to deep discount will probably be in for the biggest squeeze of all,” concluded Ira Heilicher, who said he was waiting to turn his remaining 30-day inventory before making any “value judgments” on future pricing. Heilicher cited the strong "psychological barrier of $5 or $6,” and suggested that full-line stores, featuring wide selections of musical categories, would have the best chances of withstanding cost pressures. Lou Fogelman added that even as a full- line retailer, Music Plus always depends on first-line goods. "The rest is a little gravy here and there," he asserted. Fogelman concluded that he didn’t want to have to increase his business through higher prices, but preferred to sell more units. "I have no qualms that the $8.98 list will (sell)," he said. “But the customer can’t absorb it all so rapidly. To ask them to take an additional increase (in retail prices) in between list price hikes has me a little worried.” Mort Burnett of Record and Tape Collec- tor summed up the overall feeling about higher prices: “People haven’t stopped smoking, and cigarettes went up. They still drive cars, and cars went up. Shoes cost $75, if you want a good pair. Eventually, if you’ve got a piece of product, you'll sell it." LOS ANGELES — "Son Of A Son Of A Sailor." Jimmy Buffett's latest album for ABC Records, has been certified gold by the RIAA less than a month after its release RETAIL PRICE GRAPH $7.98 List LPs Current Same Time Last Year Sale Shelf Sale Shelf Disc Records $5.98 S6.98 $4.99 $5.98 Rose Records $4.89 $6.35 $4.89 $6.35 Music Plus $4.59 $4.99 $4.59 $4.99 Record & Tape Collector — $6.79 — $6.49 18120verture $4.89 $6.29 $4.89 $5.98 Camelot $4.99-$5.50 $6.99 $4.50 $6.49 Record Bar $4.99 $6.99 $4.99 S6.49-$6.99 Sam Goody $5.39 — $4.99 — Coop $4.99 $5.99 $4.89 $5.99 Wherehouse $4.47-$4.77 $5.97 $4.47-$4.77 $5.97 Tower $4.99 $5.99 $4.99 $5.99 Licorice Pizza $4.69 $5.69 $4.69 $5.69 Great American Music Co. $4.99 $5.98 $4.99 $5.98 Music Stop $4.49 $4.99 $4.49 $4.99 Buffett Album Gold Cash Box/April 22, 1978 23 East Coastings/ Points West KSHE&KSLQLead St. Louis Music Stations, Survey Finds (continued trom page 14) under the Gateway Arch is among the sta- tions catering to black audiences. KATZ- AM and KKSS-FM are the two top black stations, and WESL-AM in East St. Louis is another rival. According to the stations themselves, KATZ employs a modern con- temporary black format, KKSS uses an AOB (album oriented black) format and WESL is free-flowing R&B. Most recent ratings surveys show the two leaders neck and neck, but many feel that the ratings services do not accurately reflect the strength of black stations. "Ratings surveys are not made for black radio,” says KATZ general manager Doug Eason. “We only get a certain segment of the general market, and many of our listeners don’t respond to surveys.” KATZ is described as “a black KSLQ that plays the hell out of singles” by Streetside's Mandelker. Eason says the station “stays primarily on Top 40 black records, top album cuts and white records that cross. At different times we try and program for dif- ferent audiences, such as housewives on weekdays.” KATZ has been a factor in St. Louis radio for some 25 years and is owned by Laclede Broadcasting Co. Eason says the station is proud of its history and this sentiment is reflected in their motto, “the one with the hits, the one with the roots.” On the other hand, KKSS has just com- pleted a sweeping overhaul of its staff and a format adjustment. “We were very disco oriented, which tended to erode our black audience,” says At Ramirez, KKSS operations manager since the end of February. “So we changed our music policy to what we call AOB. play- ing basicaiiy album cuts, but also playing singles that are prereleases off albums. “Judging from reactions on the street, we’re looking for a reasonable jump in the new ARBs. Last time KATZ beat us in women and we beat them in men, so our new battle plan is to beat them in women without blowing off any of our men.” Many observers believe that KKSS is moving forward since the station was overhauled and may well move up in the ratings to challenge KSHE and KSLQ in market share. “KKSS is a station that has grown con- siderably in recent weeks,” says KSHE’s Grafmars. KADI’s Parisl goes even further, stating that “with the percentage of blacks in this city (approximately one third of the population) and them being the only black station on the FM dial, they have a gold mine.” WESL has also experienced turmoil within the station recently, which accounts for its low ratings in recent surveys, ac- cording to program director Jim Gates. The station, owned by St. Louis Broadcasting, draws 80 percent of its listeners from the black community. “As far as black radio goes,” says Gates, “KATZ and KKSS are tied, and they both beat us in almost every area. But for some reason we usually seem to beat them in women.” All three R&B stations have their own research methods. KATZ does a request show on the air to track listener response, as well as random call outs and com- munication with top black stations across the country. KKSS does a mix of passive and active research, while keeping close tabs on what is going on in Chicago as a parallel market. WESL does its research through local retailers. Top 40 Monopoly St. Louis has one Top 40 station, KSLQ- FM, owned by Downe Communications, which recently purchased it from Bartell Broadcasting. With no direct Top 40 com- petition since KXOK-AM switched to an adult contemporary mix of singles and golden oldies, KSLQ is able to program one of the most progressive Top 40s in the na- tion. “KSLQ may be Top 40, but it is a very good station when it comes to having a widespread sound,” notes Grafman, whose station vies with KSLQ for top ranking among St. Louis’ music stations. "They're a highly respected station.” Program director Bill Bailey thinks the Gateway City supports only one Top 40 largely because of the relatively high me- dian age of its population. “The city is getting older,” says Bailey. “School enrollment Is down as a result of the end of the post-war baby boom, which had a great effect on this market. With the median age here being about 30 or 31, most of ourtime buys are aimed at adults — and we’re the Top 40 station." Baiiey believes radio listeners are doing a lot of sampling now because of the changes at a number of stations, in what was recently known as a stable market. Along with KXOK and KKSS, KCFM has gone from easy listening to automated adult contemporary. A spokesman for KXOK was reached during the survey, but he declined to com- ment on St. Louis radio. “We’re in a state of change here,” said station general manager Philip Trammel!, "and I don’t feel that 1 should discuss our situation at this point.” Another station that consistently fares well in the ratings is KSD-AM, an adult con- temporary pop player owned by Pulitzer Broadcasting. "We leave the 1 8-24s to the AORs,” says KSD general manager Ed Newsome. “There's no way a station like ours can ap- peal to them without alienating the 25-44s. We’re more in competition with KMOX and Wil, the country station.” The Country Station WIL-AM and FM, owned by Lin Broad- casting, are the St. Loui