But the big daddy of them all was not some major market powerhouse fueled by a cosmopolitan cool and a diverse urban audience. The single most influential radio station in all of North America was a foreign juggernaut that single-handedly redefined Top 40 radio. This mid-sized media giant, going under the call letters of CKLW, is now the subject of the fascinating film Radio Revolution: The Rise and Fall of The Big 8. While overflowing with nostalgia, this masterful documentary is also a primer about how rock, pop and soul became completely ingrained into the fabric of our scattered social order.

The Plot:
That's right, it wasn't even American. The most influential and important radio station in the entire United States was not even a product of our own commercial airwaves. Situated in Windsor, Ontario Canada, just across the river from the Motor City itself, Detroit, CKLW was a longtime resident of radio frequencies. It started life as a standard informational station, a network like variety showcase, and a news and interview outlet. But in the early 60s, a new music format was sweeping the country. Entitled 'Boss', it was a tightly programmed hour of songs, jingles and minimal DJ patter. It was a West Coast sensation, and when CKLW decided to switch over, the event reverberated around the Midwest, then the nation.

Pumping 50,000 watts out of its Great White North transmitter, with a system specifically set up to make the station sound 'different' than all the others, this onetime minor player in the local ratings suddenly shifted, becoming the business model for all other radio formats to follow. During its heyday, it dictated the songs that made the hit parade, and proved that a combination of news, nonsense and a critical pop culture ear could literally rule the world. Naturally, it took an act of government to bring it all down.

The DVD:
It is always refreshing to stumble across a story you've never heard of before, especially one that feeds an innate curiosity about a subject you enjoy. For this critic, music has been a vital part of life, and growing up in Chicago, WLS AM was Olympus. It was where the gods spoke - both musically and as disc jockeys - and it set the school year social agenda with its selection of hits and its popular cool catchphrases. Everyone listened to it, and for the most part, was influenced by it. So it's surprising that during this incredibly important time in one's life that the story of CKLW and its industry domination is almost a complete unknown. Not that one thought that WLS would champion - or even discuss - the way CKLW formed the foundation of 60s/70s Top 40 Hit Radio. But living so close to the areas the station served (Chicago and Detroit are just a few hundred miles apart) one would assume some minor familiarity of the channel and its earth shattering importance.

Sadly, such was not the case over three decade ago. Indeed, it takes the fantastic documentary Radio Revolution: The Rise and Fall of the Big 8 to get the full impact of what CKLW meant - not just to the Midwest, but to the entire music industry. Within this fascinating and insightful 72 minutes is a movie of incredible depth, loaded with anecdotal and actual testimony about the place within a historical perspective of one of radio's most revered operations. Most of what we all heard during the late 60s and early 70s was a direct reflection of the Big 8 playlists, and the way the Top 40 format itself was reconfigured to maximize music and minimize potential channel changing jive was a result of CKLW's efforts. From the no nonsense (and quite provocative) 20/20 News to the mood-manipulating jingles, everything about the Big 8 was larger than life and fabulously fan friendly. Their song selection was sage-like, their combination of R&B and rock, pop and teenybopper pap steered the sound of a generation, and proved that all types of music could happily co-exist together (no genre specific sonics here).

Of course it didn't hurt matters that right across the border, just a brief car trip away, was Hitsville USA itself, Motown, and the mindbending Berry Gordy masterpiece machine. Indeed, over the course of the film's narrative we learn how important said slick soul outlet was to the development of Big 8's culture crossing playlist. While no one is arguing the flawlessness of those amazing R&B classics, it is clear that CKLW made so called "race music" (as it was referred to in the 50s) safe for white listeners. In addition, the station opened rock up to an ethnic audience, bringing a more diverse demographic to the already skyrocketing ratings.

This perfected blend of music, mass marketing, and media saturation guaranteed a good return. But what Radio Revolution argues is that CKLW tapped directly into the times, reflecting them perfectly and providing a backdrop for all the important events and ideas of the era. As the numerous interviews with jocks past, along with station personnel and listeners can attest, the Big 8 was as much a civil component of Detroit and areas surrounding as the auto industry, the growing equal rights movement, and the ever shifting permutations of pop culture. It is just part of the many amazing stories that make this documentary so delightful.

In truth, the real narrative within Radio Revolution is the modern day myth surrounding someone known as Rosalie Trombley. Frankly, why some Hollywood studio hasn't scooped up her story and made it into a stunning female superstar showcase (here's a nod for Meryl Streep) is confounding. It is one of the most arresting tales in all of modern music. Originally given the task of record librarian for the station, her keen ear quickly earned her the job of program director. Even better, her ability to pick hits and mix musical genres to please the audience gained her a dominant and influential reputation in the music business. Untainted by payola, and relying on her skills as an organizer and researcher (she had a staff whose sole function was to call local record stores to see what was selling, while others tabulated the request lines) she plugged all this demographic data into her savant like mental system and devised a surefire hit making mannerism, Then, if she liked it, it got on the air. Suddenly, hundreds of record execs and rock acts were lining up to see if they made Rosalie's grade. Some did, many didn't. And as a result, stars like Alice Cooper and Mitch Ryder found fame. Others were never heard of again.

It's stories like those of rockin' Rosalie that make Radio Revolution one of those amazing lost gems, and the remarkable fact is that there's more where that came from. The entire 20/20 news angle, with its oddball emphasis on old style potboiler writing, the battles with Canadian Broadcasting over the proper amount of local content as mandated by national law, the undeniable dictatorship of Paul Drew, the coverage of the Detroit riots - it's a mini-series in the making as story after story unfolds. As with any manufactured moment in time, luck and the convergence of several outside factors fail to get a lot of discussion. In truth, it would be near impossible to replicate the success of CKLW. Prior to FM's ascension as the preferred format, AM radio was a media mogul unto itself. It drove record sales and created/stalled careers. The Big 8 believed in itself and the audience had faith in it. When all that floundered, it was the deathknell of the station - and a specific era in radio. Thankfully, we have the stellar Radio Revolution to remind us of the good old days. This was the first time this WLS listener ever heard of the powerhouse Canadian station - and after this dynamite documentary, he is certain it won't be the last.

The Video:
Presented in a fresh and clean 1.33:1 full screen transfer, Radio Revolution looks fantastic. Sure, there is some less than perfect archival material, and some of the film's lower budget production does make a minor visual appearance. But overall, considering the amount of footage past and presented used to tell this story, the DVD version of the documentary looks great.

The Sound:
Since we are dealing with AM radio here, and basic Dolby Digital Stereo, don't expect Radio Revolution to rock your home theater system off its brackets. The channels will be slightly challenged, and all the interviews are crystal clear and easily understood. Some of the old broadcasts sound pretty pathetic, but the use of numerous hits from the era - including tracks from Cooper, Motown, and Elton John - make for an enjoyable trip down a melodious memory lane.

The Extras:
Though it is only 72 minutes long, Radio Revolution is jam-packed with facts and information. Luckily, the sole added content on the DVD is more of this data based goodness. We get clarification on several segments from the movie, more conversations with the disc jockeys and crew, and lots of photos from a truly bygone era. Clocking in at nearly an hour, it's like having a whole other film for the viewing, and when taken together, they make this disc a fairly definitive presentation of the CKLW/Big 8 story.

Final Thoughts:
If you are a fan of vintage radio, there is no reason not to rush right out immediately and buy this DVD. If you just like oldies music and would like to know more about the stations that specialized in it, this disc is a definite must-own. Those looking for insight and incisiveness about a time when radio defined the parameters of popular culture, will find no better source than this sensational work. And even if you're just a casual fan, always game for a good story, you can't go wrong with this masterpiece of a movie. Radio Revolution: The Rise and Fall of The Big 8 easily earns a Highly Recommended score, bordering dangerous close to Collector's Edition status. You'll not find a better look back at the defining moments of rock radio than this exceptional documentary. Hats off to writer/director Michael McNamara for bringing this story to the fore. It was, and remains, a tale definitely worth telling.

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