DENNIS ELSAS ARCHIVES

Welcome to the Elsas Archives – my personal collection of classic interviews, favorite photos, and memorable moments in radio history. With over thirty five years on-the-air at WNEW-FM, WFUV and Sirius I’ve worked with an amazing group of musicians, artists and friends.

Take a look around, listen in and come back again to see what we’ve added.

For more information regarding the complete interviews and/or use of the materials please contact archives@denniselsas.com
 

John Mellencamp

“I Need a Lover” by John Cougar (not Mellencamp at the time) was one of my favorite records of 1979. I became friendly with John, introduced him to NY on-stage at the Bottom Line and the relationship grew throughout the years. Combining commercial success with social activism (and helping to establish Farm Aid), John’s never been shy to speak his mind on a variety of subjects. When we sat down to discuss his 2003 album Trouble No More, he offered some surprising insights into how he viewed his own celebrity and we shared a mutual passion for an old 45 RPM single.

Ronnie Wood - The Rolling Stones

There are a lot of different ways to celebrate New Year's Eve, but I'll always remember 12/31/82 as the one I got to spend with Ron Wood. Stopping by my show to promote an upcoming appearance, Ron and his entourage were clearly in a holiday mood. With a rock 'n' roll lineage that includes the Jeff Beck Group, the Faces, and the Stones he had some great stories to share, plus a comment about their upcoming album Undercover that made me hope the FCC wasn't listening.

Pete Townshend
Meeting Pete Townshend in the 1970’s, I was pleasantly surprised when he told me he often listened to my nighttime show.  I wondered how that was possible, as he was living in England at the time. Pete explained that he had tapes of WNEW-FM sent to him regularly and that he often listened to my show while driving his daughter to school.

Being a huge Who fan, that was an image that really made me smile (it still does).

We met up again several times since then and it was on his June 16, 1993 visit to promote his solo project Psychoderelict that he revealed the secret behind all those smashed guitars.

Elton John
Elton John was a frequent and welcome guest at WNEW-FM in the 1970’s.  One of his most historic visits happened November 29, 1974, the day after Thanksgiving, when he stopped by to co-host my show.  The night before he had performed at Madison Square Garden and welcomed a “surprise” guest on-stage.  Though no one could have imagined it at the time, it would turn out to be John Lennon’s final concert performance and we discussed how it happened.

John Lennon

Without question, my most memorable interview and on-air experience to date, was on September 28, 1974, a Saturday afternoon I spent with John Lennon.

I had met him just a few weeks before at the Record Plant recording studio and casually asked him if he’d like to come up to the station to talk about his forthcoming album Walls and Bridges.   I doubted anything would come of it, since none of the Beatles had ever visited our station before.  When he showed up eager to talk, bringing with him some obscure 45’s he wanted to share with the audience, I didn’t know what to expect.

What began as an opportunity to promote the new album, turned into two hours of rare Beatle stories, insights into his immigration struggles, and John as the DJ, introducing and commenting on all the music, commercials and weather.  Highlights from the interview were used in the Beatles Anthology and various documentaries.  The complete show is part of the permanent collection of the Paley Center For Media (formerly the Museum of Television and Radio).  This moment was, and still is, one of my favorites.

Paul Simon

As a student at Queens College in the mid 1960’s, I started to hear rumors that one half of a new folk rock duo that was getting airplay, was a recent graduate of our school. The alum was Paul Simon who along with his partner Art Garfunkel had grown up in nearby Forest Hills and would soon become known worldwide.  By the time they split up in the early 70’s, I was on-the-air at WNEW-FM and introducing their solo projects to my listeners.  Paul especially was trying out new musical genres and he was my in-studio guest on September 8, 1986 to discuss his latest project, the ground breaking album Graceland.

Seventeen years (and one day) later on September 9, 2003, Simon and Garfunkel announced their long awaited reunion.  It was called the Old Friends tour, based on a song title that was part of their classic Bookends album.  I arranged for a live radio broadcast of the event over WFUV live from The Bottom Line club and here are highlights from that press conference and performance.

Meatloaf

In 1977 the words Meatloaf suddenly became recognized as something other than what’s good on the menu.  With the amazing success of “Paradise by the Dashboard Light”, Meat (or Mr. Loaf as the NY Times once referred to him) and his songwriting partner Jim Steinman had created an instant rock classic.  Shortly after the release of the original Bat Out of Hell we sat down in a NY recording studio to discuss it.
 

Nearly thirty years later (Aug 17, 2006) Meatloaf and I would sit-down again, only this time it was at WFUV as he was just about to release Bat Out of Hell 3.  You can hear the entire show here…

John Fogerty –
Creedence Clearwater Revival

Creedence Clearwater Revival was one of the most successful bands of the late 1960’s and early 70’s. 

Their leader, John Fogerty, emerged as a performer with one of the most distinctive vocal and guitar sounds in rock ‘n’ roll.  Many of the songs he wrote and recorded became not only rock classics, but also political touchstones of the period. 

Disbanding the group in 1972, he went on to pursue a solo career and continued making memorable music.

Despite his success, there were lengthy legal battles with his former record company and bandmates that made it difficult for him to embrace CCR’s legacy. 

In 2005 John finally made peace with his past symbolized by re-signing with his former record company (Fantasy Records, now under new ownership).  His latest CD for the label, Revival was released in October 2007.

We spoke in the fall of 2004 and again in 2007 about his latest releases, and of course that classic Creedence sound.

Grace Slick / Jefferson Airplane

The “voice that may have launched a thousand trips”, Grace Slick is best known for her work with the Jefferson Airplane.  As the Airplane morphed into the Starship in the 70’s, Grace continued to record with them, while also releasing solo albums.  By the 80’s the band had become an on-again off again act, but during her visit to my show on Feb 8, 1984 promoting her new album Software, she recalled one of their biggest hits.

Bev Bevan - ELO
ELO, the Electric Light Orchestra, one of my favorite bands were in the midst of one of their most creative periods when I welcomed their drummer Bev Bevan to the studio on December 5, 1977.  Though Jeff Lynne would emerge as the group’s leader, it was Bev who had become the group’s spokesman.  We discussed their origins as the Move, breaking new ground with orchestral rock, their graphics and album covers and a strange coincidence from the previous summer.

It was ELO that was spinning on the turntable during my show just a few months earlier on July 13, 1977 when a major blackout crippled the New York area.  Here’s how it sounded at WNEW-FM when Scott Muni and I returned to the airwaves the following day.

Ronnie Lane - Small Faces
Ronnie Lane was a musician loved and respected by his peers, though never as well known as the famous musicians he played with.  He was an original member of the Small Faces that ultimately became Faces joined by Rod Stewart and Ron Wood.   Leaving the Faces in 1973 he formed Slim Chance and they toured as a rock n roll circus.  He teamed up with Pete Townshend and released the critically acclaimed Rough Mix LP in 1977.  When Ronnie was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, his friends including Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck organized and performed the ARMS concerts, launched to raise money to fight the disease. On April 17, 1987 he was in NY to appear with a new group he was working with called The Tremors.  We talked about all of these things and even learned the truth about “Itchycoo Park.”

Ian McLagan was a good friend and fellow band mate of Ronnie’s in the Small Faces and Faces.  I got his take on some of the same subjects when he and his Austin, TX based group the Bump Band stopped by WFUV in November 2004.

Randy Bachman –
Bachman-Turner Overdrive

When Randy Bachman was my guest on December 7, 1974 – his group BTO (Bachman-Turner Overdrive) had emerged over that year as one of the most successful new bands of the era.  Having just scored their first number one hit with “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet”, they were in New York to play a sold out show at an unusual venue. 

They were booked as the first group (and maybe the last) to play the NFE – a short-lived attempt in re-opening the legendary Fillmore East.  As Randy explained it to me, the last time he had played in New York (four years earlier) had been at the original Fillmore, as a founding member of his earlier band the Guess Who.  He liked the idea of returning to the same place to celebrate BTO’s success.  We talked about a lot of their music, including this song (released just six months earlier) that was already taking on an anthem-like status.

Flo and Eddie / Turtles

Flo and Eddie are actually Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan, but they’re better known as the lead vocalists of the Turtles.  When the group split in the early 70’s, Mark and Howard took on the identity of Flo and Eddie, began touring with Frank Zappa and created a whole new act that incorporated rock satire with their music.  Their annual Christmas week shows at New York’s Bottom Line became a Holiday tradition and so did their visits to my show.  During their appearance in December of 1978 they recalled how they were participants in a bit of rock n roll history forever immortalized in a Deep Purple song.

Dan Fogelberg

I was really saddened to learn of the recent passing of Dan Fogelberg (12/16/07) at age 56 of prostate cancer.  Beginning with his first album Home Free in 1972, his music and voice had a great quality that seemed to reflect a loving and  positive approach to life.  Speaking with him in September 1987 at WNEW-FM, we discussed his then current release Exiles, life on the road in New York, and the story behind the holiday classic "Same Old Lang Syne."

Rick Derringer / McCoys
Rick Derringer with his band The McCoys had a #1hit with “Hang on Sloopy” in 1965.

He went on to work and play with Johnny and Edgar Winter in the 70’s, and produced Edgar’s biggest hit “Frankenstein.”  In 1973 his solo career took off with “Rock n Roll Hootchie Koo” and on April 11, 1975 he stopped by WNEW-FM to promote his new album Spring Fever.  Among the many things we discussed, was his decision to re-record “Sloopy.”

Eric Burdon – The Animals

The Animals from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, were part of the musical “British Invasion” of the mid-sixties, and responsible for some of that period’s greatest hits.

The original lineup of Eric Burdon, Alan Price, Chas Chandler, Hilton Valentine, and John Steel, were only together for two years.  Alan Price left in 1965 and Chas Chandler departed the group in 1966 after which he helped to establish the career of Jimi Hendrix as his manager.

Eric, the distinctive lead vocalist, would remain as the band’s leader and together with a successful solo career would continue to keep the group’s name alive.

Throughout the years there were several attempts to reunite the original members and in 1983 a full reunion finally occurred.   They recorded a new album Ark, and went out on tour.  They visited my show on July 22, 1983, having played the Capitol Theatre in Passaic, NJ the night before and preceding a show that night at the “Dr. Pepper at the Pier” Concert Series in Manhattan. 

I spoke with Eric about their biggest hit.

Rosko

Zacherle

Dressed as an undertaker, John Zacherle became known as “The Cool Ghoul”, hosting horror movies on television in the late 1950’s and early 60’s.  Known just as Zacherle, his outrageous presentation and unforgettable laugh were far more entertaining and memorable than most of the films he showed.  He even had a national top ten hit single with the great novelty song “Dinner with Drac” in 1958.

In the mid to late 60’s he hosted Disc-O- Teen, a TV dance show on a small UHF station in New Jersey.  He joined WNEW-FM in 1967 as a truly unorthodox radio morning man, before switching to late nights.  In 1971 he joined WPLJ, and became a fixture of NY rock radio over the next ten years. 

On Halloween night, 1997 I was lucky enough to have him as my special guest on WNEW-FM.

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