Mike Smith, the lead singer of the Dave Clark 5, passed away on February 28th, less than two weeks before the group was scheduled to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Smith’s supercharged vocals were part of the mix that brought the DC5 to the front lines of the British Invasion. The band charted 18 times on Keener beginning with “Bits and Pieces”, which peaked at number 2 on the WKNR Music Guide in April of 1964, and ending with “Everybody Knows” which had a?two week run in November of 1967. After the?DC5 broke up,?Smith?fronted his own band?until a freak accident in 2003 left him paralyzed below the ribcage. He was 64.?Smith was the second band member to pass, preceded by saxophone player Denis Payton, who succumbed to cancer in December of 2006.

More Links:
USA Today Appreciation?- AP London?- Rare Film Footage?- Susan Whitall’s Blog?-? Pat St. John Remembers?- Official Mike Smith Website?- DC5 Discography?- USA Today: Accolades finally arrive

I can’t confirm the count, but it seems to us that WKNR has been one of the most popular topics of Terry Young’s Sonic Sound Salute over at XM Radio’s 60s on 6. Terry’s back on the case on Friday, February 22nd, from 4-9PM Eastern time. You’ll hear airchecks from the Bob Green collection along with Keener’s unique mix of personality, audience involvement and great 60s rock n roll. Here’s how DetNews.com’s Susan Whitall covers the story, including a shout-out to Keener13.com.

Mike Austerman, the venerable webmaster over at Michiguide, shares the radio column beat with Art Vuolo over at the Oakland Press. He’s always worth reading, but especially so with this candid assessment of the state of the art in the Motor City. Scroll down to the comment section for some succinct analysis from Keener’s magic maker Bob Green.

Valentine’s day is traditionally a time when we break out our favorite Keener love songs. The vast majority of the 2,756 records that charted on the WKNR Music Guide were poems inspired by Cupid’s arrow. But as Susan Whitall writes in her Detroit News blog, some of the more interesting musical tomes of the last 40 years focus on love gone bad.