590 MIGHTY MEMORY #546

PHOTO INDEX: THE JACKSONS.

WARM AND THE "J 5"

WARM Radio played the hits. To be sure, WARM was never a trendsetter or had "breakout" debut records. But when a group was hot, WARM played their tunes. Such was the case with the Jackson 5. WARM dutifully played every Jackson song that came down the pike. And the jocks added their commentary to the songs whether it Bob Woody's making fun of the group's ode to a rat, "Ben" or the simple but upbeat song "ABC". Former WARM staffer Joe Middleton spent some time with the group in the mid 70s and was interviewed by The Times Leader today as well as this sister blog, "The LuLac Political Letter". From the Times Leader. Joe Middleton of Pittston worked for the Jackson 5 during the group’s 1973 tour. Middleton assisted with the merchandising on the tour and said he spent a lot of time around the young pop sensation. He recalled Jackson with both fondness and sadness on Thursday. “The kid was a prankster,” said Middleton. “He was great. He was fun to be with. You could tell he had talent, but he didn’t have a normal childhood. Michael had no life. That’s why the kid was screwed up. He never left his father’s side. He was the cash cow. Nothing could happen to Michael. Without Michael, there was no Jackson 5.” Middleton said he wasn’t surprised to hear stories, years later, about the negative impact that Jackson’s father, Joe, might have had on his son’s psyche. “The father was a very stern taskmaster,” he said. “The other boys would have some time to have fun, but Michael was under the father’s thumb all the time.” To look at Joe's comments on LuLac, go to Edition #859, dated June 26th, 2009. Of the many songs played on WARM from the Jacksons, perhaps the one that bridged the music gap between the WARM of the 50s to the WARM of the 70s was their remake of "Rockin' Robin".