Episode 4: American Top 40 in the 80s
PLAY LIST
Please Don’t Go by KC and the Sunshine Band (1980)
Call Me by Blondie (1980)
Russians by Sting (1985)
Total Eclipse of the Heart by Bonnie Tyler (1983)
Roll With It by Steve Winwood (1988)
Baby Got Back by Sir Mix-a-Lot (1992)
SHOW NOTES
Casey Kasem and the countdown show he created, American Top 40, were at the height of their popularity in the 1980s. So, was pop music, which found a welcoming audience in the AT40 listeners. However, when Watermark sold the show to ABC in 1983, that opened the door for competitors such as Rick Dees. This episode will examine the impact of Kasem and AT40 in the 80s, as well as the circumstances that led to his seemingly sudden departure in 1988.
SOURCES
“America's Top 10 (May 10, 1980).” 2019. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_fy0-tEe3o.
Anft, Michael. 1988. “Winwood in Slow Gait on 'Roll with It.'” Baltimore Evening Sun, June 24, 1988.
Battistini, Pete. 2010. American Top 40 with Casey Kasem: The 1980s. N.p.: AuthorHouse.
Ceder Rapids Radio. 2015. “Q103 Rick Dees Weekly Top 40 1989.” YouTube.
Diamond Joe. 2021. “Rick Dees - Candid Phone "Aerobics Class."” YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpOjmq1UZ_M.
Diamond Joe. 2023. “Casey Kasem's Final "American Top 40" - August 6, 1988.” YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpeZgSsu6ZQ.
Durkee, Rob. 1999. American Top 40: The Countdown of the Century. N.p.: Schirmer Books.
Fan of Casey. 2020. “Remembering Samantha Smith in a Long Distance Dedication.” YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUQQi_6YgnI.
History Channel. 2018. “Sting on the Song "Russians."” YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3gjHaxf1fI.
Milner, Greg. 1998. “Silence of the Jams: Casey Kasem's Hip Hop Problem.” Spin, March, 1998.
New York Times. 1985. “8 Killed in Maine Plane Crash.” August 26, 1985.
Radio and Records. 1983. “People (Rick Dees).” September 23, 1983.
Rocca, Mo. 2023. “Samantha Smith, the fifth-grader from Maine who became "America's Littlest Diplomat."” CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mobituaries-samantha-smith-americas-littlest-diplomat/.
“Samantha Smith on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson - July 28, 1983.” 2016. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9DXsHvG-Wk.
Sanneh, Kelefa. 2022. Major Labels: A History of Popular Music in Seven Genres. N.p.: Penguin Publishing Group.
Saturday Night Live. 2013. “Dana Carvey as Casey Kasem - Saturday Night Live.” YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNMzAcsPp44.
Simmons, Sylvie. "The Steve Winwood Chronicles". Creem (1988). Steve Winwood. Rock's Backpages. Accessed February 1, 2025. http://www.rocksbackpages.com/Library/Article/the-steve-winwood-chronicles.
Wolmuth, Roger. 1983. “'One-Hit Wonder' Bonnie Tyler Resumes Her Singing Career with a 'Total Eclipse' of the Charts.” People, November 21, 1983.