|
|
|
|
|
GAVIN "ROOSTER" FOX On September 5th, 1999, our co-worker and good friend Rooster lost his struggle with ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease). He was 51 years old. He left this world peacefully, and with grace, remaining upbeat and positive to the end. To the KLCC staff, he was more than a co-worker. He was a friend, mentor, blues historian, walking encyclopedia, sports fan, and overall "guy you want to hang out with." We will miss him forever. Rooster's Message to KLCC Listeners Hi Y'all, A Message from Rooster Dear Friend,
By RC Stilwell
When I started writing this column a year ago, one thing I wanted to do was interview some DJs who were the best at their particular game. Number One on that list was Gavin "Rooster" Fox, of KLCC-FM in Eugene, Oregon. Fate and an extremely fast moving case of ALS just cut us off from that. Rooster died Sunday, September 5th of complications from that disease, at the age of 51.
For 22 years Rooster has been the host of "Blues ower", the most entertaining and educational radio show I've ever heard. An afternoon of "Blues Power" was a journey through a record collection second to none, meticulously assembled over 30 years of deep, self-education about the music that was his heart & soul. He kind of backed into the blues, hearing things by the Rolling Stones and others that made him start looking for the original versions of those songs he heard. Growing up in the LA area in the '50's gave him the time & resources to do some very productive exploring, and some record stores that had the albums he was looking for. By the time he arrived in Eugene, he knew as much as most professionals, and he hadn't even had much radio experience. He was a Natural, with those special ears that can discern that elusive "Something" in a performer.
His influence was not just on radio. To Rooster, "The jam is a living organism.." and he brought it to life every Monday evening at "Roosters Blues Jam", a weekly jam session which was most recently held at The Good Times bar in Eugene, but had other homes in other years. Out of these little sessions came musicians that went on with bands like Robert Cray, Curtis Salgado, The Cherry Poppin' Daddies, and others. He spotted these guys early on, encouraged and nurtured their careers, and each of those bands went on to prove just how good his ear really was.
He was a big, bushy-bearded white guy that looked like he could whup any bouncer hired to protect him, except for that huge smile and laugh. He was one of the kindest, most open gentlemen I've ever seen in over 30 years of hanging around radio stations. In a business of petty little egos and nasty internal politics, he strode like a veritable knight in shining armor, a true original, so good at what he did that lesser talents had a hard time looking him in the eye. He commanded a level of respect that cannot be coerced through threats or power plays. He cared about the music, the musicians, and put his whole being on the line with every show.
He also helped other DJs get going. When I had a radio show for veterans, stuck in Broadcasting Siberia from 11 to Midnight on Sunday evenings, (a time you'd not expect anybody to be listening), Rooster not only listened, he came up to the studio to talk about bands and music, and let us know he thought we were doing pretty good. I have never seen anybody else do that, but he did. This was the kind of man he was, and one of the qualities that made him a consummate DJ. Yes, he had a good voice, his diction and announcing skills were good, but what made the difference was that he really had something to say. He could also put together terrific segues, which is perhaps the finest of all the DJs skills. You can fake being a good announcer, or a knowledgeable musicologist for a while, but the programming tells the story, and he could put songs next to each other that brought out the best in all of them. You cannot teach that in broadcasting school, you either got it or you don't. Rooster had it.
He could have been a star in any town he chose to live in. We were lucky he hung around a relatively small, obscure college town in the Northwest, because he enriched our lives more than a whole book could ever tell. He cared about their well-being, and worked to make radio better. He succeeded in that brilliantly, and his passing has left a huge, dark, empty place in the airwaves, the music world, and in my heart. But he'll be remembered in the music of those bands he helped grow, in the way other's who follow him will try to do what he did, and as good as they may be, they will only remind us of the One, True, Original Gavin "Rooster" Fox, the best DJ I ever heard.
|
