Beach Music Station - 94.9 the Surf

The Air Crew

Billy Smith

Billy Smith was born in Marion, SC, the middle of five children. He enjoyed the small-town atmosphere of his childhood, when “downtown” held most opportunities for activity. Billy’s family saw every new movie that came to town, and he credits this experience with his love for the movies today. His mother would take the kids to nearby Myrtle Beach on Sundays after church. The pavilion and boardwalk hold special memories for him. After all, it was there that he was first charmed by rhythm and blues music.

These early records, played on jukeboxes up and down the boardwalk, caught not only his ear but his intrigue as well. He never heard this kind of music on the radio back home in Marion, and he wondered why. The local record store in Marion became a favorite after-school activity for Billy. He saved and spent every dime he made from his paper route on records by R & B Doo-Wop groups such as the Cadillacs, Flamingos, and the Five Satins. Today, of course, this music is credited as the precluder to “beach music”.

Ray Scott

Ray Scott was born in Gary, Indiana. He moved to Monroe, NC when he was 3 years old. Although he considers Monroe his “hometown”, he actually lived in High Point, NC and Goldsboro, NC before returning to Monroe to attend and finish high school. He and his older sister Claudia can relate to Mike Schermer’s hit song, “My Big Sister’s Radio”!

Ray comes from a family with a musical background. His mom sang in a USO band during WW II. Her friend and trumpet player in the band, Bruce Snyder, eventually left that band and joined Tommy Dorsey’s Orchestra. He was the roommate of another rather famous voice…Frank Sinatra! Years later, Ray’s grandmother Blanche received a lovely framed photograph from Mr. Sinatra penned with “Happy 100th Birthday Blanche, from Ole Blue Eyes”. Ray says the other accolades she received, from Willard Scott, The President of the United States, and the Governor, paled beside Frank’s gift! Ray sang in school glee clubs and church choirs. There’s no wonder why he loved music at an early age.

Ted Bell

Ted Bell knew at age 11 that he wanted to be a radio broadcaster. It was either that, or a city bus driver. Born and raised in Lynchburg, Virginia, Ted, an only child, and his mother and father used public transportation as their main means of getting around…not unusual for a family in the 40’s and 50’s. He laughs when recalling his escapades of telling his mother that his buddy’s parents were taking them somewhere, when, in fact, he was headed lickety-split to the local radio station, WWOD 1390 AM. Ted was fascinated with radio and in particular, a show called “Night Train” which aired nightly from 8 – 11. Jim Wilkie was the host of the pop-music show and would become a personal and professional mentor to Ted.

Ted’s family moved to Orangeburg, SC when he was 15. His dad’s new boss knew the manager of a local radio station, WORG 1580 AM, and Ted began working on Saturday and Sunday afternoons at the station. Ted loved the rhythm and blues artists of that time, including Jackie Wilson, and never particularly “got into” the British Invasion (Beatles, Rolling Stones etc). He recalls that national stars, Gladys Knight and the Pips and Ben E. King to name a few, would drop in at the station when they were in town for a concert. As thrilling as that was for a young broadcaster, Ted regrets that there was no modern-day-technological sophistication, so he had no way to record their interviews.