When veteran Chicago radio executive Jimmy de Castro took the helm of WGN-AM 720 in June, there was much speculation that the former architect of WLUP-FM might be getting his rowdy radio band back together.
Two of his former charges — Jonathon Brandmeier and Garry Meier — were already in place, and images of an aging rock army of "Loop" listeners in black T-shirts storming Tribune Tower seemed a plausible fantasy for reviving the fortunes of the once-mighty WGN.
It turns out, de Castro's vision is a lot more Wally Phillips than Disco Demolition.
Paying tribute to a legacy station whose lineup was purged several years ago in a largely unsuccessful bid to reinvent itself, WGN is returning to its own radio roots.
The venerable station plans to roll out a new but familiar lineup beginning Sept. 3, bringing back WGN alumni that include Steve Cochran and Kathy & Judy.
Morning man Brandmeier, who joined WGN two years ago, is being shifted to a new virtual FM station — wgnfm.com — while the station's owner, Tribune Co., looks to buy an FM frequency in the next year, according to de Castro, president and general manager of WGN Radio.
"We're doing a lot of innovative stuff, but we're also honoring the tradition and expectations of WGN," de Castro said.
On a dry erase board in his seventh-floor office, de Castro has been sketching out the future of WGN for several months. While the new AM lineup is not set, morning drive will go to Cochran, a former afternoon drive host at WGN who was cut loose during a 2010 shake-up by short-lived program director Kevin Metheny.
Cochran, 52, whose contract with low-rated WIND-AM expired in June, has been working on a freelance fill-in basis during the interim at WGN. He is not under contract yet with his new full-time employer.
"We're working off a handshake," Cochran said. "I'm completely comfortable with that. We'll get something done."
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