Before the dawn of the Hot Topic era, “120 Minutes” was one of the very few lifelines for the weird kids — hair metal haters, goth poets and smart, Sassy-reading kids lost amidst the prescribed vacuous teen rituals. These kids were often too young to sneak into cool clubs or easily travel to the nearest […]

By Bruce Warren, Program Director for XPN
120 Minutes on MTV
 Where were you when “120 Minutes” went on the air on MTV on March 10, 1986? In its time, when MTV was still relevant as a medium where you could see some really cool videos and music from alternative bands. When it started “120 Minutes” was […]

The List Guy is Dan Reed, Music Director for WXPN. Three times a week, Dan gives his spin on Top 10 musical moments in pop culture.
Every music fan has one of these lists… here’s a list of artists who I think shoulda been contenders. I recommend that you check out a few of these artists […]

by Stu Green, Swarthmore, PA
It was late spring, 1963 and I was taking summer school courses at UofP. My radio was blasting WDAS-AM when all of a sudden, this came over the airwaves: “Star time ladies and gentlemen. Are you ready for star time?” It was Fats Gonders’ introduction of “the hardest workin’ man in […]

by Kathy O’Connell, XPN, Host of Kid’s Corner
Mostly, I remember screaming.
I won tickets to the Beatles concert at Shea Stadium in 1965 from Flip Magazine, in a contest to finish the sentence “I want to see the Beatles because…” My answer was something like “just look at them –John, Paul, George and Ringo.” I […]

By today’s standards it may seem quaint. But when it was released in 1979 the cassette playing walkman made it possible to walk, jog, shop or travel listening to your favorite album in stereo quality. The product was conceived when a Sony executive asked the company’s tape recorder unit to rig up a listening […]

by Rick Difonzo, Belmar,NJ
While on tour with Patty Smythe in the late 80’s, we played a series of dates in LA. I was shocked to see Eddie Van Halen show up one night — his then-wife Valerie Bertenelli was a big Patty fan. Well every night during the encore (”Goodbye to You”) I would do […]

by Beth, Levittown, PA
There used to be a really cool place in Upper Bucks called “The Hearth,” and some big names would play there once in a while, and my boyfriend at the time knew the owner.
Well, Eric Burdon came to town, and naturally I went to the show. Afterwards my beau said “come with […]

by Donna Conaway, Malvern, PA
My father passed away in 1971 and left my mother, at the age of 38, with 4 children aged 15, 14, 13, and 10. The year after his death, my mother bought a large, green Plymouth station wagon, which my teenage brothers promptly filled with their friends. It was not uncommon […]

by Todd Beauchamp, Sherman Oaks, CA
One night, in the middle of a particularly great show at the Tin Angel, Francis Dunnery asked the audience to raise their hands if they were doing what they love with their lives. It was a sold-out show and two hands went up. He said he didn’t know any sculptors […]