Howdy Hello Everyone
Allow me to introduce myself… John Button, KVMR’s webmaster and Techie 2nd Grade.
I’ve been around KVMR since 2000 when I returned home to N.California from a 12 year absence while working in the semiconductor industry.
I first became aware of the Nevada City and Grass Valley area while I was the soundman at The Shire Road Pub in Fair Oaks, CA for their first couple of years of existance.
That was in 1972 and 1973 and while KVMR wasn’t in operation, I became acquainted with an amazing number of musicians that came out of that area.
Now, back before that, I had the wonderful opportunity to work at KZAP in Sacramento, CA for a couple of years around ‘70 & ‘71. Those were wild times and I was absolutely blown away by all the great music that the KZAP broadcasters were playing. The late ’60s and early ’70s were incredible as far as the creative new music that was being played and recorded… and being just a couple of hours from San Francisco sure helped utilize all those free concert tickets we were given to promote concerts.
KZAP was a commercial radio station that probably didn’t make a buck until after it was sold after the first few years of its lifetime. I could go on for years about what happened at KZAP, but for those that are interested … here’s a link to some KZAP history that might be fun… and sometime in November of 2008 we are going to have another reunion to see who’s left and who can remember anything?!
Anyways. shortly after KVMR went on the air in 1978, I gotta a call from an old KZAP & Shire Road Pub friend, Paul Emery. At the time he was part of a musical collaboration that was reminiscent of earlier jug bands, The Greater Charmichael Traveling Street Band and Scantified Singers with Brother Lee Love.
Paul and Brother Lee Love were going to be interviewed on KVMR and they might get to play a little live music, so they wanted someone along to help make sure everything sounded just exactly perfect. Instead they were able to get me to join them. At this point KVMR was broadcasting from the transmitter shack on Banner Mt. and when we got there. I learned that there wasn’t enough room in the control booth for everyone and so I got to listen from outside.
Since that period of my life, I’ve been around the western states involved with a small welding shop of another good friend, Alan Hiatt. Hiatt’s Metal Fab is now in Plymouth, CA, but he started his shop in Folsom, where I hooked up and spent 12 years becoming a metal fabricator.
My next career was in the semiconductor industry that took another 12 years and lead me to Samel, OR for a few year and finally to San Antonio, TX. It was there that I finally had enough of working for big business and dealing with all the stress that working with seriously toxic chemicals on a daily basis.
About this time KZAP was having their 30th anniversary and after that party I knew I had to come home to N. California. It wasn’t too long before I was listening to KVMR and and calling in requests and membership pledges.
It was also about this time that I decided that KVMR’s web site needed a little help and I volunteered. After another several months, I gotta call from another old KZAP buddy, Paul Paterson who was KZAP’s chief engineer. He had recently been hired as KVMR’s engineer and he as looking for a room mate. And that was it, we found a place on Zion St. and I’d found my home here in Nevada City. Since then we’ve each found our own homes, but we’re both still home in Nevada City and at KVMR!
Ok now, I’ve introduced myself … it’s your turn
