We are remembering a legendary radio station located in Los Angeles, CA. The story of KNX FM 93 is amazing. CBS New York wanted and thought KNX FM 93 was going to adopt a Beautiful Music Format back in 1973. Well the likes of CBS VP Bob Cole, Steve Marshall, and others decided to try something different. There already were Album Oriented Rock stations in LA. Namely KMET and KLOS. They thought "Hey why not do a station like them but with mellow music." KNX FM was born!
You may never have listened to this the original KNX FM. Now you have an opportunity to hear for yourself why this station meant so much to so many people. Listen for artists like The Beatles, Fleetwood Mac, The Eagles, Alan Parsons Project, Joni Mitchell, Carole King, Billy Joel, JJ Cale, Lauren Wood, Neil Young and more. We also play deeper cuts that were only played on KNX FM.
Let us take you back to a great time in Los Angeles, and Southern California history from 1973 to 1983 where the Mellow Sound was heard all over Southern California. Now its heard everywhere all over the planet! knxfm93.com
LISTENER COMMENTS
"I had the the times of my life to this station in real time, as a teenager in the OC, thank you for this, Jim"
"I was 13 in 1973... I was "nerd" because I loved KNX-FM. I still have cassette tapes that I made from those broadcasts. I still remember the last hours of the final broadcasts. I still miss it... BUT NOT ANYMORE... THANX for comin' back. Stacey"
"Will you guys start making KNX available on Airable? ANSWER Yes! It’s on now! By the way good to have you back, it's been a long 36 years I was on board from the beginning. Thanks Again! RKB."
"This is the greatest thing to hit Los Angeles in a long time. The programming / music selections are fantastic. I grew up with 93 KNX-FM in High School [1971] and College and now 40 plus years, I am working from home and listening to you all day, with online and tunein radio. Thanks for playing all the Moody Blues, and Nicolette Larson cuts. Ken"
"This station is beyond the best. Joel"
Dear KNX FM team, With a recently purchased Denon AV amplifier I discovered the Tune In function and rediscovered KNX FM, which my father used to listen to back in the 70’s. He even recorded large format audio tapes which I remember listening for hours with him. Thanks for this comeback! Best, Olivier
I was a devoted listener to KNX-FM during the 70s and up until they signed off in the mid-80s, and I GRIEVED when the station signed off and was replaced by yet another mediocre rock station. A few years ago, my sister and I sat down and made a list of all the KNX-FM songs we could think of, then burned a set of CD-Ws to try to relive the station we loved so much. We came up with 300 songs and filled 15 CDs.
Then I found you all.
Right now I am listening to Gordon Lightfoot singing “The Circle Is Small,” which I first heard on KNX-FM. A few minutes ago you played “Leave the Light On” by Maxus, a band I literally never heard anywhere but on my favorite station. You have Christopher Ames doing The Odyssey File, and so many jingles that were so artistically created that they seemed a part of the program. Oh, how I have longed for KNX-FM to come back, but it always seemed an absurd wish, a dream of a resurrection. But here you are.
When you signed off, my best friend called me and jokingly said that now there was no station that would play Kenny Rankin. I know I will hear Kenny sometime soon, mixed in with the Eagles, Dan Fogelberg, Emmylou Harris, Steely Dan, and the other acts that graced the airwaves thanks to the best LA radio station that was ever killed. I don’t know who has done me this huge favor, but I thank you.
A little request: there was a jingle that started, “When you’re weary from the hassles of the day.” I’d love to hear that. But either way, thank you. I’m so happy to welcome you back into my ears.
Franklin
Wow, you are a dream come true. The best soundtrack of my life was KNX-FM.......The playlist was classic and amazing. It is a fond memory of my later teenage and early 20's years. I remember driving west on the 10...coming through Banning Pass and finally picking up KNX-FM!!
And your use of the famous jingles is a masterstroke.
(Thankfully missing were the promos for CAL STEREO... "Bellflower, Canoga Park......... West LA and our new Whittier store at 14618 West Whittier Blvd in Whittier. CAL STEREO for sure!")
Great Job!!
Randy
I listened to KNX FM for many years after spending most of my youth at KMET and KLOS. Over the years I've often found myself thinking about how much I enjoyed listening because it was so different from the usual, and how it would be so great to have something similar now. Here's a story of how deeply entwined KNX is with my life in my brain:
I solve the LA Times Crossword every day, a habit for many years. A few weeks ago, one of the clues had to do with the children's rhyme/story Wynkin, Blynkin, and Nod. That triggered my memory of the Doobie Brother's song of that name, which in turn launched me back into reminiscing about KNX FM where I had so often listened to that tune. The thought recurred to me about an hour ago, so I looked up the Doobies and found the tune and as I listened, I returned to thoughts of KNX, so this time I did a search to see if there was anything out there that mentioned the station. I expected some references to a long-gone station that was different from anything else that was available. I can't tell you how pleased I am with how far beyond what I expected the result of that search turned out to be.
So now I have something to listen to besides The Grateful Dead, who I've been listening to non-stop since Jerry Garcia died in 1995 to the exclusion of just about everything else. I can't tell you how often I've thought "Man, I wish KNX were still around." (Different music genres to be sure, but as much a part of my life KNX was, the Dead were right there too.) Strangely, after growing up in SoCal and living there for many years, I now find myself uncomfortably living in Minnesota caring for my aging in-laws, wishing beyond anything imaginable to be back in Southern California. Listening to KNX will help immeasurably.
Well, enough gushing. Thank you for returning. You were missed.
Kent
I’m a broadcast nerd and my Amazon Fire Stick showed The Rockford Files. I thought, “what the heck.”
On the first episode, I caught a glimpse of “NX FM Stereo 93.” The K was cut off by a pole.
The episode was filmed in KNX FM’s early days, I just learned from your website. No wonder they had billboards!
You can watch it like I did using IMDB TV’s app.
Randall
Hello,
The tribute site for KNX-FM sounds great, and I have enjoyed listening to it since the fall of 2018. The station has been on my travels from St. Louis to Southern California (Route 66'ing it), Austin, Wisconsin, and Northern California. I was in radio, and one of the things I like the most is the audio chain. KS-94 (KSD-FM) St. Louis had a similar sound, as did KKHR in 1983. Well done.
Were you familiar with KEZX Seattle? In the 1980's the station had a format similar to KNX-FM, with artists current for the time. The evening programming used instrumental New Age and jazz cuts, and was called "Soft Space." A friend of mine rolled tape on the station when he lived there in 1988. I posted it online for him, and it is on archive.org . If you want the link, I'd be glad to send it your way. If you ever consider doing a tribute station for them, that would be great.
Best Wishes
Paul
Summer of 1981, working for Albert Benuchi, at Tom Tonics..256 and Western in Harbor City Ca....KNX was the sound track of the days. Jim
I just stumbled upon your .Com site. I couldn't believe it! Your back. I was crushed in back in 1983 when KNX FM went off the air. My most memorable times were between 1972 - 1974 when I was 22 - 24, working for a city Recreation Dept., going to college...what fun. Anyway, a suggestion for music, unless you have these already: Roxy Music - More than This and Don't Stop the Dance; Dave Loggins - Please Come to Boston; Cat Stevens - Oh Very Young.
