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i i longest running live show on the local radio. ^t ? "Jimmy did not talk on the /^ Y$J{Jr show. It was all him playing music. He played number after number without making any announce- » > - / \*~ ments. He had his own theme yyf^/^^vV ^ 5 / 0 music, a sort of reverse arpeggio introduction. We'd do the introduc- tion and at the end of the program y signed him off," recalled Flagler. \ In the early years, CJBQ listeners spanned most of Hastings County, Prince Edward County and Napanee. "There,were not many stations at the time so the interference was low. With the station's 1,000 watts, back in those days, we could bang away all the way to Cobourg, Napanee, Kingston, most of north of Hastings County and all over Prince Edward County with no problem. We had a good audience," said Flagler. Corradi's show might have been the longest running live perfor- mance on this radio station but there were also many other local individuals and bands who caught the attention of music enthusiasts among the listeners in the area. Some of them, noted Flagler, were Hami MacDonald, The Rhythm Ranch Riders, Lionel and His Guitar, Trent Valley Ramblers, The Sweet Brothers and a jazz group called Bill Arnold and his Quintet. Aside from Corradi, among musically gifted individuals of Belleville noted in Nick and Helma Mika's book Belleville Portrait of a City, were an exceptionally talent- ed organist Alec Gordon, director of the Bridge Street United Church Choir Robert Reid, pianist Gregory Butler, founder and director of the Eastern Ontario Concert Orchestra Stephen W. Choma, vocalis-t and producer Susan Dawe and Mary Deacon who composed songs for Canada's centen- nial in 1967 and for Belleville in 1978. Mikas' book noted that the late Eugene Lang, though not a performing artist was an expert music critic who contributed much to the local scene through his role as a commentator in his weekly radio broadcasts and through his appearances on Cablevue, the cable television system, where he profiled local artists. Contact Benzie Sangma at: bsangma@cogeco.ca