Partner Tupper Lake Partners 2021 - Present 2 years. Bob is jazz radio, David Conant, former general manager at WRTI, told The Inquirer in 2016. Im the only one thats doing this thing on regular radio and I enjoy very much what Im doing, and the feedback that I get from people who enjoy it. Perkins has been ill and off the air for a few months but will make his return in the first week of January. Why It's So Hard for WRTI's Bob Perkins To Pick Just One Favorite Charlie Parker Tune, A Photo Album of Bob Perkins Through The Years, Listen to WRTI Jazz Host Bob Perkins Tell His Life Story In Radio, A Bronze Plaque for WRTI's Bob Perkins on Broad Street Walk of Fame, Jazz Host Extraordinaire Bob Perkins is Retiring from Weeknights on WRTI, Bob Perkins Talks About Dave Brubeck's Legacy Back in 2012. Bob Perkins's Phone Number and Email. - regular airs Philadelphia Youth. Box 18869, Philadelphia, PA 19119 - Phone (215) 848-7864 - Fax (215) 848-7893 ABOVE PHOTO: The Legendary BP with the GM (Photo courtesy of WRTI-FM). His distinctive deep voice and progressive points of view became an on-air signature for the fast-growing FM and AM operations at WDAS over 19 years during the 1970's and '80's. A survey of the playlist from one of his last shows before his stroke is a ramble through classic jazz interpretations of American Songbook standards. The mission of WRTI public radio is to broadcast the very best classical music and jazz recordings, and produce innovative, entertaining, and informative content that enriches the daily lives of our audience and the cultural life of Philadelphia and the tri-state region. Mr. Bob Perkins ("BP with the GM") WRTI jazz host extraordinaire turns 80 years old today. It was typically BP in tone. Music. He currently hosts from 6-9pm Monday through Thursday, and from . Jazz Host Extraordinaire Bob Perkins is Retiring from Weeknights on WRTI Our beloved "BP with the GM"Bob Perkins with the Good Musicis turning off his mic on weeknights starting on June 30th after a long and storied career. If theres any good thing about thisand theres very little good about itits the fact that maybe families are getting together again and eating at the dinner table again, in the kitchen or living room, and doing things together again. Bob says that it was Joe who first introduced him to jazz. In 2007, he was recognized with a proclamation by Philadelphia Mayor John Street, Philadelphia City Council and the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. "You guys go home! New Temple Press book celebrates Philadelphias Italian legacy, Hundreds of Temple community members gather to celebrate the life of Sergeant Christopher Fitzgerald with his family, Temples Lenfest Center increases job opportunities for the North Philadelphia community, Globally connected campus: A presidential visit to Temple Rome, Whats the best way for an athlete to build their brand? "[4] He is also an accomplished radio news journalist and a First Call Master of Ceremonies for regional jazz music events. His stories are not secondhand.. He was known for his laid-back and mellow style. Eventually, Perkins moved to Detroit at the suggestion of his older brothers who already lived there, having moved from Philly after World War II, he said. Ive gotta find something else to do, he said. BP was awarded the 2002 Mellon Jazz Community Award. Not only with his actual speaking voice, but also with the music he selects, Block said. Last Update. Have Your Say - WRTI's Bob Perkins 97 views Aug 17, 2020 4 Dislike Share Save MLTV - Main Line Network 2.72K subscribers Hosts Anne Minicozzi and Diana Robertson welcome radio personality. They offered me a job and I accepted. His show will come to an end June 30, but he says this wont be the last his fans hear from him. WRTI has not yet put a new DJ in Perkins usual weeknight spot, which will temporarily be filled by station associate general manager Josh Jackson, KYW Newsradio reported. He was the youngest child and when his mother became ill, he felt responsible to stay and care for her. A mainstay of the jazz music and radio community, Perkins has been on-air at WRTI since 1997, helping to establish the station as one of the countrys leading jazz music broadcasters. Hes one of the last purveyors of our actual history. Im just playing music. I dont think that there's anybody in Philadelphia who's a true jazz fan who doesn't know who he is, McKenna said. I wrote for Hugo Warren for 20 years. Each Friday at 6 PM, there's Nouveau Jazz . His salvation was radio, Perkins said. Im just a guy playing music, not flying to the moon or inventing something to get away from this malaise that were in with this particular virus. Melinda Whiting, Courtney Blue, Bobbi I. Booker, Susan Lewis and Maureen Malloy are familiar voices on WRTI. But BP programs his own. I program most of the music on the station, said Maureen Malloy. Went to Texas A&M University. Im the only one thats doing this thing on regular radio and I enjoy very much what Im doing, and the feedback that I get from people who enjoy it. We all need that role model, that patriarch to keep it going. Bob Perkins, age 8. Who knows what lies behind that smile? Experience Board Chair Orennia 2021 - Present 2 years. Bell Building Lets sit around and gab, whatever the case may be. She was 81.Bob Perkins recalls how, Tommy Potters name wouldnt get much attention in jazz circles these daysunless the gathering were comprised of musicians and jazz fans with, WRTI Your Classical and Jazz Source | Am I going to capture their imagination today? The world wasnt moving quite as fast. In 1988, big changes came to WDAS, and I was amongst the first of the old group of employees to be let go, he continued. Its almost like were trying to do too much. After 58 years of working in broadcast radio, Philadelphias Bob Perkins will lay down his microphone by the end of this month. Ive met a lot of good people, a lot of entertainers, musicians, and politicians along the way. Mr. Bob Perkins ("BP with the GM") WRTI jazz host extraordinaire turns 80 years old today. They had hired me for all the wrong reasons in the first place. Targa Resources 20 years . After a longtime gig at WHYY, he joined WRTI in 1997. We love your GM ("Good Music . BP with Dave Brubeck in 1983 - backstage at the Academy of Music. They don't think that it's accessible to younger people. Bob Perkins reflects on his memories of Philadelphian tenor saxophonist Sam Reed, who passed away earlier this month.. The late teen years. He has attended two White House Presidential news conferences - one of Gerald Ford's and one of Jimmy Carter's. Please let Bob know in the comments section below. BP means a great deal to listeners of all ages. PERKINS, 88, has been hosting at WRTI for 25. PhillyVoice Staff, Monday through Thursday from 6-9 p.m. and from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on Sundays. Wait two seconds and you'll hear about yet another award bestowed on "Ol' BP," as he calls himself. Bob has always taken that part of his life very seriously and gives credit where credit is due. He was known for his laid-back and mellow style. Jazz host Bob Perkins in his office at WRTI. Electronics and technology are magnificent. But theres something about music. Mr. Bob Perkins, WRTIs own BP with the GM," is retiring from full-time broadcasting after 25 years at the station and 57 on the air. Information about his on-air schedule may be found at WRTI's website. The radio station was owned by the Black Masons of Detroit. Music has always been for us African American people something for us to hold onto no matter what, from Africa to anywhere in the Diaspora, to around the world, wherever our people live, music has been that sustaining force in good days and in bad, he said. A young BP with his brother Joe. BP's last WRTI weeknight shift is on Thursday, June 30th from 6 to 9 PM. He got his first job in radio during a trip to visit his two brothers in Detroit in 1964. The mix of music was an image of the man who chose it: smart and warm and nostalgic, displaying impeccable taste and a steady, low-key, and almost offhand hipness. Not really fair to the jazz side, IMO, since most people sleep 8 hours of that half, but if you hook yourself up through the website, you can get streaming of whatever . He is genuine, a real original.. He continued to grow, working as newsman and assistant director at WJLB-AM in Detroit, before his career path returned him to Philadelphia, where in 1969 he joined WDAS-AM/FM as a newsman and after two years became News Director there;[5] after another year he also became the Editorial Director. He grew up in South Philadelphia and fell in love with radio as a child. Perkins was honored with a bronze plaque in the Philadelphia Music Walk of Fame on the citys Avenue of the Arts in 2016 and was inducted into the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia Hall of Fame in 2003, among other awards and accolades. Maybe its one of the high points in their life.". Later, in the mid-80s, Perkins hosted a WDAS-AM jazz show that mixed in Frank Sinatra and Peggy Lee with jazz artists like Miles Davis and John Coltrane. Bob Perkins will retire from his full-time position hosting nights at Temple University Jazz 90.1 WRTI Philadelphia. It took Perkins a little while to break into radio. Bob Perkins' first radio gig at WGPR-FM in Detroit, 1964. He is a gentleman, a kind soul, and every bit as nice in person as you hear on-air. Im thrilled hell continue to host Sunday Jazz Brunch after he retires, because we all need some GM (good music) with our toast and jam!. He made his own antennas and we could sit and listen to Chicago, Detroit. Its not the same. You know, its magic that Ive been around that long and people have that much confidence in me. And he knows the history of the music so well. You can touch a button and get any answer to any question that you have. Jazz radio host and South. A stroke survivor from three years ago, Perkins is still kicking and hes still ticking, playing some of the best jazz music you ever want to hear on WRTI-FM. Maybe were getting back to that today. I never knew exactly how my father came to love radio so much, but he was an avid radio listener, Perkins recalled. Someone can think of something and express it in a musical form and without hitting any sour notes and make it sound melodic, where you can tap your foot or you can close your eyes and dream on it. Learn More about Joe Bob Perkins' net worth. Jazz radio legend Bob Perkins, 88, will retire in June from his full-time role as a host at Philadelphia's WRTI-FM. I lived on the same block as the famous Heath Brothers in South Philadelphia growing up, he said. I think it would be silly to have me programming for a jazz historian.. Ive been in radio for about 55 years and in Philadelphia for 50 years. Thats our savior, man.. I did what I could, he told The Inquirer in 2020, because I didnt know a thing about writing editorials. That was 25 years ago.. Over the last 20-some years, BP with the GM has become an icon of the Philadelphia airwaves, holding down a prime, three-hour early evening time slot Monday through Thursday on WRTI. If I was lucky enough to get a radio gig in the boonies without any experience, Id be lucky, I was told. In 1969, his hometown of Philadelphia beckoned him back with a gig at rhythm-and-blues station WDAS, where he worked for the next 19 years. At one time, you could hear him from 6-9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and. Joe Bob Perkins Director Former Executive Chairman, CEO, and Founding President of Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) since 2003 (took Targa Public) Held a variety of executive and business development roles with Reliant, Coral Energy, and Tejas Gas, and also worked for McKinsey and Company and Mesa Petroleum; Serves on the Targa Resources Board, is a . Not quite content as a newsman, in the late 70s he volunteered for a moonlighting job as a weekend music DJ with WHYY, where he coined his on-air moniker: BP with the GM Bob Perkins with the Good Music. Growing up in a two-bedroom rowhouse near 19th and Reed in South Philly during World War II, Bob Perkins received intimate and powerful instruction on the healing properties of radio. A mainstay of the jazz music and radio community, Perkins has been on-air at WRTI since 1997. They just let me have my own way and they seem to like what I play. His fathers illness is what really led to radio becoming an important part of the Perkins household. He throws in a four-hour show on Sunday mornings for good measure. June is observed nationally as Black Music Month, and so it seems fitting that someone who has worked in radio for almost six decades the last 20+ years playing jazz music would close out their career in June. Thats a long time. I said yes, he said. Five days a week, on WRTI, "BP with the GM" (that's Bob Perkins with the Good Music), plays jazz with a connoisseur's ear and an infectious sense of joy. Perkins is currently engaged for the annual Cape May Jazz Festival Concert Series and the Tony Williams Jazz Festival Concert Series. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. And I would sit with him and we would listen. Perkins wandered into the station at WGPR-FM and got a position as on-air DJ and Announcer. BP with jazz pianist McCoy Tyner at WRTI in 2015. He wasn't doing well at, Classical Events Calendar Submission Form. This music conjures up some beautiful memories. Once I got some news training under my belt, I started trading news stories with the news team at WDAS in Philadelphia. I look forward to the opportunity to pick up the mic at WRTI on Sundays to continue to serve all the listeners with finely-tuned ears who have said that Ive helped keep jazz music alive in Philadelphia, and beyond.. "I got radio rammed down my throat, because that was my fathers relief from his pain.. I met him when he was a frequent visitor to the 900, One November night in the year 1934, a 17-year-old girl was about to take the stage at the Apollo theaters Amateur Night program and planned to do a, Many years ago, a group of teenage musicians decided to form a small jazz band in South Phillythey went on to become high-profile players in the jazz, WRTI's own jazz legend Bob Perkins sat down with Kile Smith in December, 2012 for a wide-ranging interview about Dave Brubeck the man, his music, and his, I believe the year was 1983 when I was asked if Id like to emcee a concert at the Academy of Music, headlined by Dave Brubeck and his sons and the Modern, Some folkseven jazz fanswouldnt know that 'Robert Chudnick' was the real name of the musician whose handle was Red Rodney. After establishing himself on Detroit radio in news and jazz, Perkins returned to Philly in 1969 and became WDAS-FM's news/editorial director while hosting a jazz show at WHYY-FM. WRTI's legendary jazz host, Bob Perkins, is surrounded by his cd collection of jazz recordings in his home in Wyncote, PA on December 19, 2019. Joseph V. Labolito. Jazz host Bob Perkins in his office at WRTI. Fivedays a week, on WRTI, BP with the GM (thats Bob Perkins with the Good Music), plays jazz with a connoisseurs ear and an infectious sense of joy. Jazz also captivated Perkins at a young age. Mr. Perkins in 2006. One day in late summer last year, his familiar and congenial voice the aural equivalent of a cup of hot chocolate and a soft blanket went silent. By Bob Perkins | WRTI-FM (Philadelphia, PA) One November night in the year 1934, a 17-year-old girl was about to take the stage at the Apollo theater's Amateur Night program and planned to do a dance routinebut changed her mind and decided to sing a song instead. Bob Perkins is a Dj at Wrti based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A few Philadelphia artists were sprinkled into the evening, including Perkins longtime friend, saxophonist Bootsie Barnes, and vocalist Phyllis Chapell, who dedicated her latest album to BP. This net worth approximation does not reflect any other investments that Mr. Perkins may own. I went downstairs at the same building, and told the insurance company, Im here to quit a job I never started. Leaving out the door of the insurance company, the man who had offered me a job selling insurance said, Do you know what theyre going to pay you up there? Fifty-seven years after his voice first graced the airwaves, Perkins, best-known for his weeknight jazz show at WRTI, is entering semi-retirement after 25 years at the station. The jazz hosts show offers a break from the stresses of COVID-19. Perkins has been ill and off the air for a few months but will make his return in the first week of January. Juneteenth 2022: Honoring Radio Personality Bob Perkins and Celebrating the Life & Legacy of W. Cody Anderson Temple University Libraries Join the Charles L. Blockson Afro-American Collection and the Office of Community Affairs and Engagement for a day of celebration and remembrance. Bob Perkins on Trumpeter Red Rodney, an Overlooked Philly Great! 12 of 12. Perkins, known to listeners as "BP . He said yesand hes been here ever since. Bob Perkins has been a fixture on Philadelphia's airwaves for 50 years. I wondered to myself, could I get hired for two jobs in one day?, I went upstairs in the building where the radio station was located and I met the general manager, Perkins continued. Joe Blocks parents were fans of WRTI and the pianist grew up listening to BP, becoming a fan himself. Bob received a Master of Science degree degree from Nazareth College. I had also served in the United States Army from 1956 to 1958. It has to be accurate. You had to sit around the radio and visualize. But I mimicked what I thought the great guys Id grown up with would do, and I got away with it for years., READ MORE: Talking all that jazz with WRTI legend Bob Perkins. He will continue to host his Sunday program. It takes a little bit of thought. I know Ive been very blessed. Why might that be? I always felt like they hired me because they wanted to get back at WDAS. Of COVID-19 good music fans hear from him Tupper Lake Partners 2021 - Present years... 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