PRESERVING RADIO HISTORY ACROSS COLORADO

Archives: Stations

  • KWBI-FM

    KWBI-FM (91.1) was a Christian-radio signal in Morrison, serving the Denver area. If you tuned in to Christian programming on 91.1 in the 70s, 80s or 90s, this is the station you remember.

    History

    Colorado Christian University’s institutional timeline records KWBI’s start in 1971. The station became KLDV on December 26, 2000, and the FCC’s historical call-sign record backs up both the frequency and the change.

    On the air

    Radio personality Marty Smith recalled working at KWBI in 1995, after moving to Denver and working at KLZ.

    Call sign timeline

    • KWBI-FM: 1971 to December 2000
    • KLDV: from December 26, 2000

    This is a short page built from current station records. If you worked at KWBI, we’d love to hear from you.

    Ownership history

    • 1971 to 2000: Colorado Christian University’s institutional timeline records KWBI’s start in 1971; later owners haven’t been identified here yet

    Where the studios have been

    We haven’t found studio addresses for KWBI-FM yet. If you know them, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • KAAT-AM

    KAAT was a Denver AM station that ran from 1972 to 1979. If you were listening to Denver radio in the 70s, you may remember it as the station where Peter Boyles got his start on the air.

    History

    KAAT was known as a 50,000-watt daytime signal. Peter Boyles started his disc-jockey work there after program director Jack Merker invited him to do weekends, moving from traffic reporting to on-air work. KAAT gave local personalities a Denver home during those years.

    This page treats KAAT as its own historical call-sign record. Its later call signs and facility lineage still need to be verified before they’re merged here.

    If you worked at KAAT, we’d love to hear from you.

    Ownership history

    The owners and founders of KAAT haven’t been identified here yet.

    Where the studios have been

    We haven’t found studio addresses for KAAT yet. If you know them, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • KDFD-AM (760)

    KDFD (760 AM) is an iHeartMedia station licensed to Thornton and heard around Denver and Boulder. If you’re a Broncos fan who found Orange & Blue 760 on the dial, this is the signal, and it has a long line of call signs behind it.

    Call signs on 760

    This Denver-area AM frequency has been KJIM, KRZN, KTLK, KKZN, KDSP and KDFD over the years.

    KDSP and Denver Sports 760

    In December 2015, the station adopted the call letters KDSP. On January 4, 2016, it launched the sports format Denver Sports 760, affiliated with Fox Sports Radio. In July 2017, it became Orange & Blue 760, with a focus on Denver Broncos coverage. The call letters changed to KDFD in June 2019.

    The signal

    • 760 kHz AM, licensed to Thornton, Colorado
    • FCC facility ID 29740
    • Also carried on translator K229BS at 93.7 FM

    Super Bowl 50

    In 2016, iHeartMedia Denver engineering supported the station’s broadcasts from Super Bowl 50 Radio Row; engineer Mike Irby’s work is in the archive’s timeline entry.

    Ownership history

    • Today: iHeartMedia (the station is listed as an iHeartMedia outlet)
    • Earlier: founders and owners under the KJIM, KRZN, KTLK, KKZN and KDSP calls haven’t been identified here yet

    Where the studios have been

    We haven’t found studio addresses for KDFD yet. If you know them, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • KDJM-FM

    KDJM (92.5 FM) was “Jammin’ 92.5,” Denver’s rhythmic-oldies station from 1999 to 2005, filled with classic soul, disco and R&B. If you grew up on Earth, Wind & Fire and the Spinners, this was your station.

    History

    In May 1999, Chancellor Media moved KVOD‘s classical format and call letters from 92.5 to 1280 AM, and “Denver’s Jammin’ Oldies” took over the frequency. The KDJM calls became official on June 25, 1999. After the Clear Channel–AMFM merger, the station was spun off to Infinity Broadcasting in December 2000, where it was a sister to KXKL and KIMN under market manager Steve Keeney.

    The presentation shifted over time: “Jammin’ Hits of the 70s & 80s” by 2001, “Jammin’ Oldies and More” by 2003, and “Denver’s Classic Soul” in 2004. The format ended in December 2005. The calls changed to KLWL on December 21, 2005, and to KWLI on January 12, 2006, as 92.5 went country as “Willie 92.5.” That signal later became KWOF and today’s KKSE-FM.

    Call sign timeline

    • KVOD (classical): before May 1999
    • KDJM: June 25, 1999 to December 2005
    • KLWL: December 21, 2005
    • KWLI: January 12, 2006
    • KWOF, then KKSE-FM

    Ownership history

    • 1999 to 2000: Chancellor Media / AMFM
    • December 2000 to 2005: Infinity Broadcasting (later CBS Radio)

    Where the studios have been

    • 1999 to 2005 (as KDJM, and KWLI through 2010): 1560 Broadway, Suite 1100, Denver, CO 80202, shared with KXKL and KIMN (supplied by the archive)

    Sources

  • K226CI-FM (KYSL-HD2)

    K226CI (93.1 FM) is the Breckenridge translator that brings 93.1 Summit Country to your dial. If you want country in Summit County, from current hits to outlaw and red dirt, this is the signal.

    93.1 Summit Country

    The translator relays KYSL-FM‘s HD2 channel and carries the locally programmed 93.1 Summit Country format, owned by Krystal Broadcasting and originating from the company’s Summit County operation. The programming ranges from current country to classic, outlaw and red-dirt material, with local weather, snow conditions and community information.

    On-air team

    Craig Koehn / Chris Brooks is part of the team that launched 93.1 Summit Country and one of its on-air personalities.

    The signal

    • 93.1 MHz, FM translator serving Breckenridge, Colorado
    • FCC facility ID 142586
    • Primary service: KYSL-HD2

    Ownership history

    Krystal Broadcasting owns the 93.1 Summit Country service this translator relays.

    Where the studios have been

    A translator doesn’t have studios of its own. It repeats the programming of its primary station, KYSL-FM.

    Sources

  • KYSL-FM

    KYSL-FM (93.9) is Krystal 93, an independently owned adult album alternative station in Frisco. If you’ve lived or vacationed in Summit County since the late 80s, this is the local sound you tune to between the ski runs and the Dillon Reservoir.

    History

    KYSL launched in 1988 and has been owned by Krystal Broadcasting ever since. The company later added HD and translator services around Summit County.

    HD services

    KYSL-HD2 carries 93.1 Summit Country, a locally programmed country service relayed to Breckenridge on translator K226CI-FM. The company also runs a classic-rock HD service relayed on 103.3.

    The signal

    • 93.9 MHz, licensed to Frisco, Colorado
    • FCC facility ID 35577
    • Format: adult album alternative

    Ownership history

    • 1988 to today: Krystal Broadcasting, which has owned the station since it launched

    Where the studios have been

    Today Krystal 93 is based at 701 East Anemone Trail, Suite 203, in Dillon, even though the station is licensed to Frisco. Earlier studio addresses haven’t turned up yet, so if you know them, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • KSPN-FM

    KSPN-FM (103.1) is “The Valley’s Quality Rock,” an adult album alternative station in Aspen. If you live in the Roaring Fork Valley and like rock, alternative and singer-songwriter music with local news and weather, this is your station.

    What you hear

    A locally focused AAA format mixing rock, alternative and singer-songwriter music with local news, weather, events and community coverage.

    The signal

    • 103.1 MHz, a commercial FM licensed to Aspen, Colorado
    • Always Mountain Time operates KSPN with a network of translators reaching Aspen, Glenwood Springs and surrounding mountain communities
    • FCC facility ID 43884

    Programming

    Industry directories list Craig Koehn / Chris Brooks as a program director at KSPN, extending his Colorado programming career from southern Colorado into the Aspen market.

    Ownership history

    • Today: operated by Always Mountain Time
    • Earlier: founders and earlier owners haven’t been identified here yet

    Where the studios have been

    We haven’t found studio addresses for KSPN-FM yet. If you know them, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • KBZZ-AM

    KBZZ (1400 AM) was La Junta’s hometown station for decades, until it became KBLJ. If you grew up in La Junta or the Arkansas Valley in the 60s and 70s, this was the local AM you knew.

    Call sign timeline

    • KOKO: signed on 1937 at 1370 kHz
    • Moved to 1400 kHz: 1941
    • KBNZ: 1952
    • KBZZ: 1960 to 1999
    • KBLJ: 1999 to today

    The KBZZ years

    During the 1960s and 70s, KBZZ was a locally focused small-market station serving La Junta and southeastern Colorado.

    Today as KBLJ

    On June 1, 2022, the station changed from news/talk to classic hits as Lightning 1400. It’s licensed to Thunder Media, Inc. and listed at 1,000 watts, unlimited (Class C).

    The signal

    • 1400 kHz AM, licensed to La Junta, Colorado
    • FCC facility ID 7047

    Ownership history

    • 2022 to today: licensed to Thunder Media, Inc. (as KBLJ)
    • 1937 to 2022: the founders and earlier owners, including the KBZZ-era owners, haven’t been identified here yet

    Where the studios have been

    We haven’t found studio addresses for KBZZ yet. If you know them, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • KKCH-FM

    KKCH-FM (92.7) is a Glenwood Springs FM station. If you drive the I-70 corridor through the Western Slope mountains and want an easygoing mix on the radio, this is one of the signals you’ll hit.

    What you hear

    KKCH serves Colorado’s mountain communities with adult contemporary / adult-hits programming, and it runs as part of the Always Mountain Time group of stations serving the Western Slope and central mountains.

    The signal

    • 92.7 MHz, a full-power commercial FM licensed to Glenwood Springs
    • Booster facilities help cover the mountain terrain
    • FCC facility ID 4360

    This is a short page built from current station records. If you worked at KKCH, we’d love to hear from you.

    Ownership history

    • Today: part of the Always Mountain Time group of Western Slope and mountain stations
    • Earlier: founders and earlier owners haven’t been identified here yet

    Where the studios have been

    We haven’t found studio addresses for KKCH-FM yet. If you know them, we’d love to hear from you.

    Sources

  • KSKE-FM (106.3)

    KSKE-FM (106.3) was the original Kremmling-era identity of the FM station now known as KIFT-FM. If you grew up in Kremmling in the 80s, this was your local FM, broadcasting from above the old Ramona Theater.

    History

    The KSKE call sign was assigned in August 1983, and the station operated from Kremmling at 106.3 MHz. Records from the time describe a locally programmed mix of adult contemporary, Top 40 and album-oriented rock. The studios were on the upper floor of Kremmling’s old Ramona Theater.

    Former staff remember an unusually hands-on local operation with live personalities all day. The calls changed to KTLD-FM in September 1987, starting the next chapter of a lineage that later became KRKM, KKHI, KZMV and finally KIFT.

    Staff

    JJ Valentine was on the KSKE air staff in the mid-1980s.

    The signal

    • 106.3 MHz, licensed to Kremmling, Colorado
    • FCC facility ID 24746

    Ownership history

    The owners and founders of KSKE in the 1980s haven’t been identified here yet. The facility’s later chapters are on the KIFT-FM page.

    Where the studios have been

    • 1980s: the upper floor of Kremmling’s old Ramona Theater

    Sources