Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
‘Beaker Street’ Finally Back
A legendary Little Rock radio show returns to the airwaves tonight.
“Beaker Street,” hosted by Clyde Clifford, will air from 9 p.m.midnight today on the Arkansas Rocks network of stations.
The album rock program is described by Clifford as a “true musical stream of consciousness where not even the first song each week is pre-planned,” according to a news release. “The songs that fill the three-hour show are chosen following the whims of the audience, the circumstances of the night and the wandering imagination of the host.”
“Beaker Street” debuted in late 1966 on Little Rock station KAAY and featured a pioneering format of underground rock ’n’ roll and deep album cuts not normally played during the daytime.
It continued with other hosts after Clifford, whose real name is Dale Seidenschwarz, left the station in 1974. It was taken off the air in 1985 when KAAY was sold, though it resurfaced 10 years later with Seidenschwarz as host, first on KZLR-FM, “KZ-95;” then on KMJX-FM, 105.1, “Magic 105;” and KKPT-FM, 94.1, “The Point.” The final show aired on The Point on Feb. 6, 2011, according to the show’s Facebook page.
After retiring from his job at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Seidenschwarz hosted “Beaker Street” on Arkansas Rocks at midnight on New Year’s Eve, playing deep album cuts of classic rock into the wee hours of Jan. 1, 2020.
Health issues forced Seidenschwarz to stay away from the mic since then, but Arkansas Rocks’ Tom Wood said that “Beaker Street’s” return is confirmed for tonight, and the show will continue weekly.
Stations in the Arkansas Rocks Network include KLRG-FM, 94.5, Little Rock; KAFN-FM, 99.3, Benton; KWPS-FM, 99.7, Hot Springs; KDELFM, 100.9, Arkadelphia; KZYP-FM, 104.1, Malvern; KXYK-FM, 106.9, Gurdon; and KCMC-FM, 94.3, Mountain Home.
Programming can also be streamed at arkansasrocks.com.