(courtesy Gord Lansdell at Northwest Broadcasters)


Dave McCormick

After over two decades with the Jim Pattison Broadcast Group, veteran musicologist Big Daddy Dave McCormick will do his final show on Adult Favorites CKBD AM 600 Vancouver this Friday, August 15.

After a stint at CHML Hamilton ON, he started in the Vancouver market at CFUN in 1957.  
He was music didrector at KMAK & KYNO Fresno CA in the early to mid 1960s, PD at KOL Seattle from 1966-67 and PD/MD at KMEN San Bernardino CA from 1967 until his return to Vancouver in 1972.

Dave is a four time BC Country Music Association Country Broadcaster of the Year and 1998 inductee into the BC Country Music Association Hall of Fame.  
CKBD will flip to FM this fall as AAA The Peak CKPK-FM 100.5.

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Dave didn't do his show Thursday on AM 600, and it doesn't seem he's there today either.  Has he already bid adieu?

It's always so sad when this sort of thing happens. I've enjoyed listening to Dave McCormick over the years and I think he is one of the best DJ's to of ever worked in Vancouver radio.

I'm 56 years of age and I've listened to a lot of radio personalities over the years and IMO Dave is right up there among the best.

Hopefully Dave will get another radio spot very soon. All the best Dave.

Its just after 7:30 on saturday night, and Big Daddy is on 600 AM. Could this be the much-anticipated last show?

Dave McCormick off the air
blogged by Red Robinson on 08.17.08

One of the truly great radio guys has seen another change and is again without a set of headphones and a microphone. Dave McCormick and I go back a long way. I remember when he started working in Vancouver back in the Fifties. He had that honest knack of being himself and that is probably the most difficult thing to convey on radio. He never varied from this personable approach. When listening to Dave you always felt that it was a neighbour leaning over the back fence. His knowledge of music is impeccable and his love of the business is beyond question.

To have yet another radio station go “dark” and move to FM is certainly a sign of the times but to cast aside one of the city’s best communicators is not only a mistake but tragic. However, being the eternal optimist I see him resurfacing. After all Vancouver is about to have 2 more stations (in addition to the Pattison station that apparently has no room for Dave). Maybe a program director or owner at one of these outlets would have the “smarts” to hire Dave.

If I may comment after 51 years in this business, I find it ironic that the new Program Director of The Peak is a lovely woman who is best known for her work in television. Tamara Stanners is taking over the helm as I understand it. I always admired her television work but for the life of me I cannot relate to her duties as a program director unless of course (and this is the norm today) she will be working with a radio consultant and following orders. This in no way is meant to slam Tamara but when a seasoned pro such as Dave is let go and the new direction of the new station is in the hands of someone who is not known (at least to me) as a program expert I find it appalling.

Dave, it was my honor to induct you into the B.C. Entertainment Hall of Fame. You are a great guy and a great talent. I hope you don’t leave radio forever. We deserve more from you.

I, like Red Robinson, agree that it is a sad day when a broadcaster like Dave McCormack is no longer gracing the airwaves.  I hope that his absence from Vancouver Radio is short.
For my part, I can not tell you how excited I am to have the opportunity to help program a brand new radio station for the Pattison Broadcast Group in Vancouver.
For people who don't know me, I may see like like an odd choice to help program a new radio station.  But, for anyone who knows me personally or professionally this new endeavour will come as no surprise.
Music is my first love.  I started work as a dj at the age of 15 because of that love for music.
I have been very fortunate to have been asked to work in television as well as radio throughout my career, but through it all I never once stopped working with, or loving music.
Now, at this point in my career, after having owned and operated my own business, and having worked for most of the major media organizations in Canada, I can say that I am amply qualified to program a radio station.
I believe that this new Pattison Group station will be similar to the one's that Red Robinson got his start on.  A station that is true to the music.  A station that doesn't just rely on charts or consultants, but uses it's people and it's heart to program the music.
I have always admired Red Robinson's contribution to the Vancouver entertainment scene.
And thank you Red, for calling me a lovely woman.  I think you're pretty cool too.

Tamara

Ok, so Red will NOT be the first official hire by Tamara.

Didn't Dave host "Discumentary" on CFMI many years ago?  Or was that Terry David Mulligan?  Who did it first?

http://bcehof.blogspot.com/2007/12/mccormick-dave.html

Back in 1984 Doc Harris was doing mornings, and there was Brian Arnold (he now owns a Bed and Breakfast in the Okanagan), Dean Hill (current), and Bob Boving (the big Voice on CBC tv).

Can someone find some Discumentary shows and post them as audio clips here?

One of my fave Discumentaries was the show on Steely Dan.  So if any audio clips can be found of Discumentary, much appreciated if posted here.

I always enjoyed Dave's phone-in trivia contest show, evenings on NW, back in the early 80's!

Discumentary was voiced on ROCK 101 by a John Beudwin.   Not the John Beaudin who hosts "love songs" on QMFM and programs the Newcap station in Calgary.  I'm pretty sure I butchered those spellings.

I always remember the famous words: "I'm Dave McCormick, and this is Discumentary"

Quoted from Digicart

Discumentary was voiced on ROCK 101 by a John Beudwin.   Not the John Beaudin who hosts "love songs" on QMFM and programs the Newcap station in Calgary.  I'm pretty sure I butchered those spellings.

Actually, John Beaudoin (Jumbo Dan to those in the know) voiced, I believe it was called, The Rock Journal on CFOX during his time there.  Discumentary on CFMI was first Dave McCormack then TDM in later years.  I loved that show - it was a big influence when I later started writing such programs.  

I believe you have the correct spelling of the almost identically named John Beaudin.    

I have to listen back to the John Beaudwin voiced show...maybe it was on the FOX back then.  But it wasn't called the Rock Journal...I'm almost positive it was Discumentary.  

The CRTC Foreground requirement back then was I believe to have 10 hours a week of Foreground programming.

Remember when Rhona Raskin had a Sex Talk show on Z 95?  All FM stations had to fulfill that Foreground requirement.

Another regulation on FM back then was the Hit / Non Hit Ratio.  FM Stations were restricted to 49 % Hit content weekly in order to help AM remain competitive.

Those regulations made FM sound very dry back then.  There's been some improvement lately but FM here still doesn't sound like FM in Seattle, sadly.