Tom Rounds, Radio Icon and Festival Innovator, Dead at 77

Amid all the unfortunate news surrounding radio legend Casey Kasem's health, it appears the man who helped him co-create the long-running American Top 40 radio program, Tom Rounds, recently died at the age of 77 due to complications related to surgery.

While unknown to many, Rounds was a legendary fixture in the world of music and radio and helped influence generations of young music lovers throughout history. He assisted in forming the Fantasy Fair & Magic Mountain Festival back in 1967 after noticing the increasingly hostile nature of security guards towards fans and audience members at indoor venues. Therefore, he chose to take concerts outdoors and create what is now known as the music festival.

On the subject, Rounds told Rolling Stone, "I watched beefy security guys throwing teeny boppers over the barricades, which was awful and said, 'We really need to stop doing this and go outside and do something that won't be armed warfare."

The Fantasy Fair & Magic Mountain Festival would become one of the first US rock festivals, preceding the Monterey Pop Festival and Woodstock '69. It brought in swarms of concertgoers to the San Francisco area and featured sets from heavy hitters such as the Doors, Jefferson Airplane and the Steve Miller Blues Band.

Rounds would go on to produce numerous festivals with 1968's Miami Pop II Festival being the most recognized. The concert had the likes of Marvin Gaye and Fleetwood Mac on the bill.

It wasn't until 1970, however, that Rounds co-created American Top 40 with Casey Kasem. The show assembled the top 40 songs at the time on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles chart. Kasem would host the show until 1988 and then again from 1998 to his 2003 retirement. Ryan Seacrest took the hosting spot in 2004 and has done so ever since.

Most recently, Rounds was known as the CEO of Radio Express, a network of radio stations that deal with the production and syndication of over 40 shows, including American Top 40 with Ryan Seacrest.

Tags

Casey Kasem, Ryan Seacrest, Billboard