Ron Raymond, Jr.

I was born in Bar Harbor, Maine, have spent a good chunk of my life between Portland, Maine and Winslow, Maine and have loved the 80s since 1979 (you can figure the math out on that one ;)

Of the 25 years+ I've been with WMPG, for 10 years, I was Music Director for WMPG, where I got to meet and/or interview some of my 80s heroes and heroines, such as Rob and Eric of The Hooters, Dave Wakeling of The English Beat, Elvis Costello, Aimee Mann of 'til Tuesday, Colin Hay of Men at Work, Peter Murphy of Bauhaus, John Flansburgh of They Might Be Giants, and the incomparable Cyndi Lauper.

STUCK IN THE 80s was a Sunday night staple on WMPG for over 20 years (with forever grateful thanks to my regular guests hosts DJ HOPE and DJ SHAWN EMERICK!!)! I started the show when I was 29, and I ended the show on my 50th birthday, on February 12, 2017, during the Valentine's weekend blizzard. Just felt right. It was an absolutely amazing time!

And, in 2020, after the COVID pandemic led WMPG DJs to record their shows remotely from home, it just felt right to resurrect STUCK IN THE 80s for some rebroadcasts of old shows, and record some new ones, including the 25th and final STUCK IN THE 80s Holiday Show with the amazing DJ HOPE!

Not long after the Holiday Show, DJ HOPE and I recorded some shows remotely for New Year's Eve 2020, and one of the shows I recorded was a show about the music from 1979. I had so much fun with it, got some great feedback from it, and DJ HOPE and I loved it so much, she suggested I continue with it and turn it into a regular show.

So, beginning on Saturday night, January 23, 2021, and starting at 11:00pm, my first new regular show since STUCK IN THE 80s premiered: 1979 - THIS AIN'T JUST DISCO. The 2-hour show features songs from the year I fell in love with music, and music from 1979 I fell in love with later on, and a wonderful PURPLE MONKEY DISHWASHER 70s SPOTLIGHT with DJ HOPE!

1979 lasted just 17 shows, but I was so glad because it meant that things were getting back to the old normal at WMPG, and DJs were back!

Fast forward to March 2022, and I've started a new remote show, simply called 1984. It was the year of Cyndi Lauper, FOOTLOOSE, GHOSTBUSTERS and PURPLE RAIN, and the year Liverpool, England's Frankie Goes To Hollywood to relax...and then some.

On 1984, you'll hear music spanning multiple genres, (real) one-hit wonders of 1984, No. 1 songs from around the globe, and some Cold War Classics too.

I sure hope you can tune in every Thursday morning from 3:00 to 5:00am, or listen to the show on the archives!

And don't forget to tune into the triumphant return of DJ HOPE's awesome badass retro show, PURPLE MONKEY DISHWASHER, airing 1:00 to 3:00 Monday mornings, and also tune into the fantastic and educational LEFT OF THE DIAL with DJ SHAXX, airing 8:30-10:00pm, where I bring you a weekly 12" remix!

Until next time, take care, be good and I'll catch you on the flip side!!