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This photo was taken as we were initiating the new studios in 1996. I believe that is Cynthia Takahashi with me in the control room, moving the equipment from the Pasadena studio. As you can see we had already begun to decorate. The filled cabinet was CDs, the empty ones for tape cartridges, or carts.

The "Virgin" Kennedy, who drove me around for months whilst my license was suspended, is great in photos. Given to plaid design, her personality was huge. Scott Weiland of STP felt hopeless about being on heroin. He believed that unless someone was threatening your career, it was impossible to get clean. I guess I was lucky.

As you see, Fish is my real middle name. I was 17 when I took and passed the exam for the First Class Radiotelephone Certificate. Issued in Long Beach. This enables one to do technical work on TV and radio transmitters. I just got it to exceed the requirement for a Third Class license. As I had no interest in this, I allowed it to expire. I framed the license, and it became a chopping surface for nasty drugs in the KROQ control room in Pasadena on Los Robles Blvd.

PJ Harvey in the Assistant Program Director's office in 1995. I think that giant black shape overhead was a robot. With ears.

photo bt Debbie Leavitt.

Likely the most embraced version of the KROQ logo, it was co-designed by KROQ Promotions Director Quay Hays.

Whadday know. Amazing who you run into in the KROQ control room. I can't figure out why Bonnie Raitt was there, other than to sniff something with our program director. I'm sure he did her the courtesy of actually playing her album for a week. She was sweet.

Nick Rhodes backstage at Acoustic Christmas with -- I have no idea, but he seems a bit more interested in the keyboards than Nick's other observer. 1992

Jed The Fish and Dusty Street at a party in Santa Monica. Photo Debbie Leavitt.

Those silly backward shirts. Way to go! You’re promoting a radio station nobody’s heard of, and they can’t read the shirt. I remember also having fun with Doc on the Roq that day. Yes, we played King Crimson.

Rick Rippey was my producer for 12 years, in my opinion my best years. He encouraged diabolical ideas. Suggests things in just the right way to inspire me. Burbank KROQ control room. Now THIS guy could fix any piece of equipment put in front of him. Note the overbridge, which he and Scott Mason installed. It allowed the cart machines to be places directly over the control board for smoother workflow.

Debbie Leavitt contact sheet from 1982, KROQ control room in Pasadena. Never a fashion trendsetter, somehow the DJs picked up on the medical scrubs look.

What the hell happened? KROQ used to be a fun station. We not only put out calendars, but gave events for them. This one was in Orange, 1999. Wonderful crowd. Hey, let me know if you have a better guess at the year.

During the Whammy tour, if you took a photo backstage with the B-52s, you had to wear a hat, a wig, or otherwise be goofy. Their last time out with Ricky Wilson, left.

Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs. Ask anyone over 40 from down under and they know exactly who he is. A promo person, friend to all at KROQ Jon Scott, brought him around and got us playing his solo record, Children of the Sun. We actually spent a fair amount of time together, so I'm surprised that I can't remember what his music sounds like.

When there was a Tower Records in Sheman Oaks, the corpselike countenance of Andrew Eldritch appeared along with two other guys in shades, Jed The Fish and Program Director Andy Schuon, already planning his escape to MTV. While a young lad living in Denver, Andy won a contest by AM/PM to name a thirty-two ounce drink. It’s STILL called the Thirsty-Two-Ouncer. A droll wit and brilliant marketer. 1990.

The Weird Science/Dead Man's Party synthesizer. Danny actually asked for this back, and I tried several times to return it. I think it was Leon of Oingo Boingo who sewed the cover for it. If this isn't cool memorabilia, I don't know what is.

L-R, Asst. PD Gene Sandbloom (creator of the names for KROQ events) and I can't even tell which Ramones showed up that day -- Markie? Ritchie? -- random promo guy, Program Director Kevin Weatherly in the light shirt. Back on the left, Image Master John Frost, preparing to vomit, Sherri Trahan, Richard Blade, Tami Heide, and Jed The Fish in my favorite U2 shirt.

Working at KROQ was fun, and I’m sure it sounded like it on the air. In back of me, albums, below my right elbow 7” 45rpm singles, the rest hundreds of carts, to my right and in front of me, shelved and stacked. The Grace Jones poster, seen in many photos, was directly to my right. We had creepy green carpet and awful green and red curtains which were never open. This control room had soul, the walls were covered with notes, flyers and photos. Ask me about Sly Stone.

I bet you have one of these yourself. Really a memory of the passion we have for music.

Jed The Fish, Cal State Fullerton's Daily Titan

Years away from his gig as a late night talk show host, Jimmy Fallon has always been good natured. Here I am trying to have a conversation with people talking to me in my headphones. Hey Jimmy, do you remember me?

Just after the interview, the station was swarmed with fans. Here is the boldly-named Elvis, before he got in his limo. Pasadena.

The dawn of professional CD players. You cued them up by hand, almost like vinyl. Sony “Digital.”

Chuck Randall arrived at KROQ shortly after I did in 1978. A short-term Joq but a long time friend, he went to Acoustic Christmas with me in 1992. Chuck helped me stay sober as well. I got smart that year and asked for a photo pass.

Jed The Fish, Cal State Fullerton's Daily Titan

Between Kevin and Bean and Jed The Fish, we had a pretty good award run until Album Network, the trade publication, was bought by Clear Channel. I guess our competition couldn't bear to see us sweeping up awards, so they just bought the magazine. Now they are called I Heart. Do you think I Heart is a good name for a radio group?

Me in my pannies in 1983 introducing Boingo at the Us Festival. This was the day I was used by Terri Nunn to make Richard’s first wife jealous. She picked at my nipple with her long nail. I could only watch.

photo Debbie Leavitt

We did a ton of beach remote broadcasts, which were difficult from a technical perspective: we had to hear ourselves, we had to communicate with the person running controls at the studio, and we needed to make sure the audio was good, which was not easy. Since I usually could not hear the music at all, I had to hope I was back-announcing the right record. Even with today’s tech, PD Kevin Weatherly hates them, because it’s almost never a controlled situation.

This amazing guitarist also played with Zappa and Missing Persons, so I've actually known him for a long time. While most guitarists strum at each other, Warren Cuccurullo was strumming at the string section. Duran Duran at Acoustic Christmas, 1992.