JOE COLLINS SPENT HIS CHILDHOOD IN SAN FRANCISCO AND SAN LUIS OBISPO, "GLUED" TO THE RADIO. HE STARTED OUT JUST LISTENING TO THE LOCAL STATIONS, AND THEN GRAVITATED TO THE DISTANT STATIONS THAT WOULD COME IN FROM THE BIG CITIES TO THE NORTH AND SOUTH,(SAN FRANCISCO AND LOS ANGELES). THE SOUNDS THAT CAME FROM THE SPEAKERS WOULD CARRY YOUNG JOE OFF TO A "WONDERLAND OF MAGIC". AROUND THE AGE OF 9 (1955) SOMETHING MAJOR HAPPENED.......JOE HEARD HIS FIRST LITTLE RICHARD RECORD. UP TO THAT TIME, ELVIS AND PAT BOONE HAD HINTED AT A "NEW DIRECTION" FOR POPULAR MUSIC...BUT LITTLE RICHARD TOOK THE MUSIC FROM "BLACK AND WHITE" TO "TECHINICOLOR AND 3-D". BY THE MIDDLE OF 1956, JOE BEGAN BUILDING HIS RECORD COLLECTION, HAVING ONLY A 78 RPM PLAYER. HE STARTED OUT WITH "LONG TALL SALLY" BY LITTLE RICHARD, "HONKY TONK" BY BILL DOGGETT, "LOUIE LOUIE" BY RICHARD BERRY, "SO LONG" BY FATS DOMINO, AND "SHORT FAT FANNIE" BY LARRY WILLIAMS.

JOE BEGAN ADDING TO HIS COLLECTION, AT LEAST A RECORD A WEEK. ALL HIS WEEKLY ALLOWANCE OF $1 A WEEK, FOR MOWING LAWNS AND TAKING OUT THE TRASH,WOULD BE SPENT AT BROWN'S MUSIC STORE IN SAN LUIS OBISPO, SOMETIMES HE'D HAVE TO SPECIAL ORDER HIS RHYTHM AND BLUES FAVORITES, BUT.....HE'D GET THEM AT A PACE OF A RECORD A WEEK. FAST FORWARD THRU JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL, HE HAD SWITCHED TO 45's AND ADDED STILL MORE TO HIS COLLECTION, TO A RAINY NIGHT IN DECEMBER OF 1962. JOE WAS ON HIS WAY HOME FROM A "BATTLE OF THE SURF BANDS", HELD AT THE VETERANS MEMORIAL HALL IN PISMO BEACH. USUALLY, JOE HAD THE RADIO IN HIS CUSTOMIZED 1954 FORD, TUNED TO 50,000 WATT, 1110 AM-KRLA OUT OF PASADENA...BUT AS FATE WOULD HAVE IT, THEY WERE PLAYING A SONG THAT JOE TRULY HATED ("HEY PAULA" BY PAUL AND PAULA)....SO, LIKE ANY RED-BLOODED 16 YEAR OLD ROCK AND ROLL FANATIC WOULD DO, JOE PUNCHED HIS RADIO DIAL TO KFWB," CHANNEL 98" OUT OF LOS ANGELES, AND FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME, HEARD THE L EGENDARY BOBBY DALE....AND REALIZED.."OH-OH, I DON'T THINK WE'RE IN KANSAS ANYMORE" IT WAS AT THAT MOMENT THAT JOE REALIZED THAT HE NEEDED TO BE ON THE RADIO, WITH HIS OWN SHOW.

JUST 13 MONTHS LATER, IN JANUARY OF 1964, JOE QUIT THE SCHOOL SWIM TEAM, AND STARTED HIS CAREER IN RADIO WITH HIS OWN SHOW ON SUNDAY MORNINGS ON KSLY-AM IN SAN LUIS OBISPO. 4 MONTH LATER, JOE DROVE UP TO SAN FRANCISCO AND MET HIS MENTOR, BOBBY DALE FOR LUNCH WHEN BOBBY WAS DOING AFTERNOON'S ON KEWB IN OAKLAND. 2 YEARS LATER, IN JUNE OF 1966, JOE WENT TO WORK FOR KFRC IN SAN FRANCISCO AS A PRODUCTION-BOARD ENGINEER, AND BROKE IN ON HIS FIRST DAY WITH..........BOBBY DALE (DOING 12NOON-3PM FOR "THE BIG 610") JOE'S PROGRAMMING CAREER HAS TAKEN HIM FROM SAN LUIS OBISPO, SAN FRANCICSO, PORTLAND OREGON, "HIPPIE STATIONS IN SAN RAFAEL AND SANTA BARBARA, LOS ANGELES(KMET-FM), AND FRESNO. AND ALL THE WHILE....JOE HAS CONTINUED TO ADD TO HIS EVER-GROWING RECORD AND CD COLLECTION WIT H A PASSION THAT HAS CONTINUED FOR OVER 54 YEARS. (OVER 20,000 SINGLES, ALBUMS AND CD'S) IN 2006, JOE BAGAN HOSTING "THE RHYTHM AND BLUES CHRONICLES" WEEKLY ON KABX-FM, SERVING THE FRESNO-MERCED RADIO MARKET. ONE INTERESTING FEATURE OF THE SHOW IS THE USE OF "THE WAY-BACK TUNER", AND SPECIAL RADIO THAT JOE'S WIFE, ADELE, FOUND FOR HIM A FEW YEARS AGO IN AN ANTIQUE STORE. YOU SET THE TUNER FOR A CERTAIN FREQUENCY AND CO-ORDINATE...AND YOU GET BACK A PIECE OF "THE SOUNDTRACK OF OUR LIVES", AN OLD RADIO STATION JINGLE FROM THE 50'S OR '60'S, OLD COMMERCIAL, OR A SOUND FROM TELEVISION HISTORY. WE INVITE YOU TO JOIN JOE COLLINS AND "THE RHYTHM AND BLUES CHRONICLES", FRIDAY AND SATURDAY EVENINGS FROM 6M-8PM AND SUNDAY AFTERNOON FROM 4PM-6PM ON "KINGS ROCK L.A."