Immediately after graduating high school, Hampton was hired at WXYZ as a ‘record spinner,’ spinning records and filling in commercials while assisting as board-op for Paul Winter, Lee Alan, Joel Sabastian and Dave Prince. According to Jim Hampton, that given opportunity ultimately became “such an amazing experience having to work with some of the best talents in broadcasting. All of them became my mentors, particular Dave, Joel and Lee.”
While greatly appreciative of his limited capacity in radio at WXYZ with a sense of purpose and desire to go well beyond, he landed his next radio job as a deejay “weekender,” which Jim described was located “in the middle of a cow pasture,” at Top 40 station WYSI.
Having gained further radio fortitude and experience while at WYSI, Hampton’s next stop will be Flint’s own WTRX. In November of 1963, he ultimately was hired as a full-time deejay there by the station GM, who was also responsible giving him the name Jim Taylor as well.
Jim on WXYZ.In 1964, Jimmy prematurely left WTRX, having quit by having thought he had a new position lined up with his former first radio love, WXYZ in Detroit. The position open at WXYZ was granted to someone else instead, and Jim found himself without work. WTRX immediately filled his position there with Larry Morrow, who later would come to prominence as Duke Windsor on CKLW.
Moving on to Jackson, Michigan. Jimmy applied and was offered a radio position with WKHM, another Knorr Broadcasting station in Michigan at the time. According to Jim, that was short-lived, as he decided to make that daily long travel there from Farmington to Jackson, a travel prospect having proved difficult.
And so it’s back to Flint one more time. But this time it’s on WAMM with the afternoon drive. Now with dual duties there, Jim accepted the initial offer to be the station’s music director as well.
Here's what Jim Taylor (Hampton) sounded like on WAMM in 1966. [ LISTEN ] (11:42)
Jim again on Wonderful WAMM in 1966, this time with Stevie Wonder.
[ LISTEN ] (53:33)
Jim again on Wonderful WAMM in 1966, this time with Stevie Wonder.
[ LISTEN ] (53:33)
Stevie is in the studio playing and singing along with his own records.
A year goes by, and by early 1966, Jimmy Hampton finally gets that call he was waiting for. Lee Alan, program director at WXYZ radio at the time, was on the horn with Jim. That call, as Hampton related, for him, “it was a dream come true.” And Jim Hampton was only every bit nineteen-years of age.
WXYZ c.1966, Dave Prince, Danny Taylor, Pat Murphy, Jim Hampton, Lee Alan, and Marc Avery.Hampton at WXYZ in August of 1966. [ LISTEN ] (10:58) And another 1966 segment from WXYZ. [ LISTEN ] (12:10)
When that call was made, the ABC-owned radio station was the gold standard for broadcasting in Detroit. Very prestigious in the field, WXYZ was also a television-affiliate and the pay was above respectable for those who were hired to work for “Broadcast House,” located in Southfield.
Hampton disclosed his pay in 1966 at $165.00 a week, roughly $60,000 in today’s inflated money standards. In contrast, Joey Reynolds, the anticipated radio star WXYZ also hired in 1966, earned roughly “$325.00 per week” during the few months he was briefly there.
But unfortunately, the “good times” would suddenly come to an abrupt end at “Wixie” radio. While still serving in the U.S. Army reserves, Hampton was called for active duty in late 1966, and would serve into the early months of 1967. During the six months he was away, changes were on the horizon that year for WXYZ. By the time he returned from the reserves, WXYZ dumped the Top 40 format for middle-of-the-road “beautiful music” instead, aptly christened as “The Good Life.”
Lee Alan was gone by then, and while Joe Bacarella was now at the helms, Johnny Randall was hired to fill the void Hampton had left open. In the meantime, Jim filled the rest of his time on WXYZ-FM for the “obligatory six months after doing service.”
Once again in search for higher ground, in late 1967, Hampton was introduced by a fellow radio acquaintance to John Detz at underground-rocker WABX-FM.
He was hired for the afternoon drive. About the same time, Jim recalled he got a call from KQV in Pittsburgh. He was offered an on-air position from program director Mike McCormick, at the ABC-owned Top 40 station there. Jim couldn’t see himself in Pittsburgh, and he ultimately got off the air, and instead became co-manager of sales at WABX-FM.
WABX, Larry Miller, Jim, and Dave Dixon.
Dave Prince, Danny Taylor, Pat Murphy, Jim, Lee Alan, and Marc Avery, 1966.
Jim and Marc Avery, WXYZ, 1969.Having set up the new sales department for WABX, Hampton was instrumental in hiring Jim Irrer and Richard Golden for the sales team. They became legends and made the station very successful...through advertising.
During his stay at WABX, another radio opportunity was left open for Jim. Late in 1968, there had been talk in the trade that WJBK was soon dropping it’s “beautiful music” format, planning it’s return to Top 40 radio in 1969 for the 50,000-watt daytimer (WJBK’s transmitted-power dropped down to 10,000 watts at night).
Jim is playing records at WTRX on August 30, 1968.
[ LISTEN ] (19:20) and a little over a year later he's in classic form again during his afternoon show at WJBK on December 7, 1969. [ LISTEN ] (17:41)
[ LISTEN ] (19:20) and a little over a year later he's in classic form again during his afternoon show at WJBK on December 7, 1969. [ LISTEN ] (17:41)
The new 1969 WJBK lineup were to include Marc Avery, Conrad Patrick, Hank O’Neil, K.O. Bailey and Tom Dean. Jim Hampton was asked to join the team. He became the music director while doing the all-night show once again. But the format would bomb within a few months after its inception on WJBK. Instead, WJBK decided to go with country. As the rest the lineup goes, Jim found himself out of radio one more time.
Recorded during Jim's stop at WJBK. This is an aircheck that aired in 1969.
[ LISTEN ] (10:07) Now it's 1970 and Jim finds himself sitting behind the mic at WCAR. [ LISTEN ] (19:11)
[ LISTEN ] (10:07) Now it's 1970 and Jim finds himself sitting behind the mic at WCAR. [ LISTEN ] (19:11)
Now nearing the end of 1969, Jim was getting a little restless with the Detroit radio market. The news director at WLS in Chicago, Phil Hayes, an old friend of Jim’s, decided to give him a call. He said Mike McCormick, the new PD, who previously invited Jim over to Pittsburgh’s KQV a few years back, was now looking for a new Production Director for the legendary Windy City station. Jim and his wife decided to leave Detroit that weekend and headed straight for Chicago. After having met Mr. McCormick during an outdoor social event, and “after a few drinks,” that same night, Jim agreed to accept the offered opportunity to work for WLS.
In the ensuing years after his last radio stint at WLS in Chicago, Jim Hampton’s career in broadcasting excelled to greater heights with syndication marketing. While in LA perfecting his craft in production writing and radio syndication, Jim produced over 1,000 specials for ABC Radio and has interviewed many musical stars for radio affiliates across the nation and around the globe as well.
Many would include various recorded specials for national distribution home and abroad, including The John Lennon Story, The Bob Seger Story, The Beach Boys Story, The Eagles Story, Michael Jackson, Super ’70s and much more.
Jim Hampton's Radio Recall at WOMC-FM on August 16, 2014. [ LISTEN ] (48:52)
DJs, Cars, and Cruisin' is the theme in this installment of Jim's look back at everything cool back in the 50s and 60s on Radio Recall, celebrating 50 years of Pop, Rock and Roll. Chuck Berry, Beach Boys, The Hondells, and classic airchecks of DJs too.
At this writing (2019), Jim Hampton resides in the Los Angeles area. But his heart never abated no less the love he always held for the city he affectionately still calls home. A winner of the Aegis and Telly Awards, currently he is CEO of Greenhouse Marketing Group, a marketing and sponsorship sales company that represent many organizations, events and broadcast properties across the United States and worldwide.
WHERE DID JIM WORK? Here is the list: WTRX, WKHM, WAMM, WXYZ, WABX, WJBK, WCAR, and WLS.
Some materials found on this page were originally published by the following: Motor City Radio Flashbacks, Airchexx.
