334:.) Seger wrote it in frustration at not being able to get his songs played on CKLW at that time. There are differing stories concerning Trombley's reaction to the tune: some claim she hated "Rosalie" and refused to allow her DJs to play it; others insist the programmer was flattered, but worried about a potential conflict of interest. Either way, CKLW never played "Rosalie", although the song did receive spins on other Detroit stations, as well as Top 40 outlets as far away as Idaho.
354:, produced by Toronto-based Markham Films. Much of the documentary was about her contributions and influence. The film's co-producer Eugene McNamara noted that unlike others who worked at CKLW, she did not go on to additional successes after her years at the Big 8. "I think it was because she was a woman in a male-dominated environment," McNamara stated.
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rules and play a certain percentage of
Canadian music. Trombley picked the Canadian records she felt stood the best chance of becoming hits for airplay. In some cases, listener response to the Canadian records the station featured led to an American single release, and occasionally a national hit,
173:
As music director, her job was to find the songs that listeners liked best; her decision to add a song to CKLW's playlist could influence its success. Known for her "good ears", Trombley was frequently able to predict when an album track had the potential to become a hit single.
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at CKLW. After becoming familiar with how a top 40 station worked, she accepted a position in the music library, and in the fall of 1968, she was offered a full-time position as CKLW's music director, a job she later attributed to "being in the right place at the right time."
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Trombley served as music director of CKLW from 1968 to 1984, through the station's top 40 years and into the era when CKLW changed format to appeal to an older audience. After leaving the station, she worked at WLTI-FM in
Detroit and then CKEY in Toronto.
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market in the USA; part of its programming strategy was to downplay the fact that its city of license was
Windsor, Ontario, and to present itself as an American station. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, With its 50,000-watt AM signal, CKLW covered
109:, also known as "The Big 8". She was known for her ability to select songs that would later become big hits. At the time, she was one of the few female music directors in AM Top 40; CKLW's listenership reached across the
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Many recording artists visited
Trombley to promote their latest single releases, and the walls of her office were lined with gold records. Among the artists she is credited with helping are
374:, for their Music Theatre Performance program. On June 16 of that same year, Rosalie received an honorary diploma from the Music Theatre Performance program.
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magazine article that her station no longer had the "clout" it once did; but despite that, CKLW continued to play a role in breaking hits.
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Trombley was inducted into the Motor City (Detroit) Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the
Canadian Music Week Broadcasters Hall of Fame.
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305:" as a single, because she believed, correctly, that it would be a cross-over hit, appealing to both black and white listeners.
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In April 1992, Trombley was awarded a
Lifetime Achievement Award at the first annual Motor City Music Awards, held in Detroit.
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581:"The Legacy of Rosalie Trombley, Radio Pioneer Immortalized in Bob Seger's 'Rosalie' and Breaker of 'Bennie and the Jets'"
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210:, Cleveland and Toledo. In the early 1970s, the station had one of the largest cumulative audiences in North America.
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The "Rosalie
Trombley Award", which honours women who have made their mark in broadcasting, is presented during
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With so much
Canadian content, the station's American popularity began to fade. Trombley acknowledged in a 1982
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Trombley and her then-husband
Clayton moved to Windsor, and she was hired in 1963 to work as a part-time
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album ("She's got the tower, she's got the power / Rosalie"). (The song was later covered by Irish band
230:", playing it for over three months as an album cut before its release as a single. Another example is
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In April 2016, Trombley received the Walt
Grealis Special Achievement Award at the 2016 Juno Awards.
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Harry Van Vugt. "CBE Radio's Les Mather Suspended." Windsor Star, December 16, 1988, p. C8.
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A statue of Trombley was unveiled in Windsor along its riverfront, in September 2023.
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Her influence as a music director later led to an annual award being named after her.
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Rosalie Trombley & the Sounds of Motown – And The Rest Is HerStory (UDetroit)
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on November 23, 2021, at the age of 82 in a long term care centre in Leamington.
815:"Burton Cummings lauds Rosalie Trombley at statue unveiling during Open Streets"
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Robert Martin. "Super-Monster Rosalie Trombley is Queen of the Top 40 Charts."
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transborder region, and Kal Rudman, editor of the music trade publication
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797:"'Girl with the golden ear': Radio hitmaker Rosalie Trombley dies at 82
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Ted Shaw. "Radio's Glory Days: Filmmakers Revisit Heyday of CKLW-AM."
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Trombley granted interviews only occasionally, including for the 1971
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On June 14, 2011, a scholarship in Trombley's name was announced by
289:. Among the hits that CKLW was first to play were the Guess Who's "
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411:"Rosalie Trombley, Who Picked Hits and Made Stars, Dies at 82"
567:"An Audio Odyssey: Coast to Coast and Back in Top-40 Radio."
551:"Diehl: Top 40 Success Keyed on Impending Music Polarity."
518:"Honouring Rosalie Trombley, the 'girl with the golden ear'"
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Joe Fox. "Motown and Murder a Potent Mix for the Big 8."
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Ron Base. "What Rosalie Likes, Almost Everybody Likes."
134:, who later wrote a song about her entitled "Rosalie".
91:(September 18, 1939 – November 23, 2021) was a Canadian
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Motor City news archive of sources on Rosalie's career
705:Bill Gray. "Seger's On the Verge of Breakthrough."
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852:Walt Grealis Special Achievement Award – 2016 Juno
312:in his 1973 song "Rosalie", which appeared on the
495:Ted Shaw. "Big 8 Legend Rosalie Feted in Style."
840:Radio Revolution: The Rise and Fall of the Big 8
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748:. Motor City Radio Flashbacks. January 29, 2012
625:"Rosalie Trombley: Record Breaker, Hit Maker."
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240:Calling Occupants Of Interplanetary Craft
679:"Cuba Gooding Sr. Has Renewed Success."
301:". She persuaded Elton John to release "
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813:MacLeod, Brian (September 18, 2023).
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720:"KRLC 1350 Lewiston Survey 04/09/73"
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795:Friend, David (November 24, 2021).
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599:"Skylark flying on 'Flower" Power"
587:, January 21, 2016, by Karen Bliss
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524:, Linda Barnard, March 28, 2016
896:People from Leamington, Ontario
786:, By David Bell, April 2, 2016
746:"The History Of Detroit Radio"
234:' 1977 cover of Canadian band
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350:and for the 2004 documentary
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629:, August 7, 1982, p. CKLW-2.
348:The History of Detroit Radio
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328:and again on their 1978 LP
73:Leamington, Ontario, Canada
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116:Friday Morning Quarterback
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540:Toronto Globe & Mail
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299:Everybody Plays the Fool
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153:while in high school.
409:(December 17, 2021).
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263:Earth, Wind and Fire
163:switchboard operator
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382:Alzheimer's disease
362:Canadian Music Week
303:Bennie and the Jets
147:Leamington, Ontario
52:Leamington, Ontario
801:The Canadian Press
416:The New York Times
331:Live and Dangerous
213:In the 1970s, the
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68:(2021-11-23)
886:2021 deaths
881:1939 births
611:December 8,
471:Youtube.com
315:Back in '72
177:CKLW was a
151:Bell Canada
875:Categories
391:References
320:Thin Lizzy
293:" and the
291:These Eyes
275:Ted Nugent
267:Elton John
228:Wildflower
141:Early life
79:Occupation
44:1939-09-18
627:Billboard
604:Billboard
585:Billboard
553:Billboard
310:Bob Seger
287:Bob Seger
257:Influence
247:Billboard
132:Bob Seger
128:Aerosmith
842:DVD site
784:CBC News
730:July 29,
325:Fighting
204:Illinois
188:Michigan
866:Discogs
752:May 27,
224:Skylark
208:Ontario
200:Indiana
183:Detroit
338:Legacy
236:Klaatu
226:song "
157:Career
130:, and
103:Top 40
56:Canada
823:2023
754:2017
732:2014
613:2009
479:2021
424:2021
344:WDRQ
285:and
271:Kiss
238:'s "
215:CRTC
202:and
192:Ohio
165:and
107:CKLW
63:Died
38:Born
799:".
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