It’s Been One Wild Trip

I was organizing my closet (for the one millionth time) and I came across some of the items in my “brag box”. It’s full of stuff that I’ve accumulated since my college days. One item was a cassette demo of Bob & Sheri we produced when I first joined the show. It took me back to the first time I met Bob & Sheri. It was a whirlwind day with no shortage of strange stuff.

It started when (then station Manager) Rick Jackson told me about the show, I was in Connecticut and had no idea who Bob and Sheri were. I always wanted to own my own business; it was my business plan that got Rick and I talking about Bob & Sheri. Rick asked me to fly to Charlotte to meet with him and discuss a job.

I flew to Charlotte on an early morning flight. It was one of the most turbulent flights I had ever been on. After one huge bump, I found I was wearing a full cup of US Airways coffee! I soaked it up as best as I could and figured I’d keep my suit jacket closed.
After arriving in Charlotte, I chatted a while with Rick and I discovered the my “interview” was going to be with Bob, Sheri, Rick, the PD, the Operations Manager, the Vice President of Programming for the company and the company President. As I was trying to eat lunch and answer questions, I glanced over and saw Sheri using a fork to turn her pasta into total mush because she was wearing braces at the time. For a moment, I wondered if I really wanted that job. I also worried a lot less about the coffee stain on my shirt!

Fast forward to 2023. I’ve spent most of my career—and a large chunk of my adult life– involved with Bob & Sheri. We’ve been through a lot together. Divorces. Marriages. Marriages. And more marriages. Incredibly bizarre and hilarious road trips. The show’s been recognized by our industry for many awards. That Marconi award still eludes us.
We said goodbye to “corporate” in 2017. It was freeing. And it was like drinking from a fire hose. We lived off our Visa cards. But it was the right move. There were decisions they supported, like starting a daily podcast in 2006. But there were other situations where our ideas were greeted with a hard “no”. We have had so much fun these last five years trying stuff. Some worked, some not so much, but we got to try.

As I was staring at that old cassette tape, I was also reminded of the amazing team I’m part of. Max has been my confidant and my wing man. He sat through a string of invective worthy of the New York Mafia as I drove back from a not-so-great outcome in Eastern Kentucky. Bob, my Radio Geek buddy who I love swapping music trivia and radio stories with. Sheri has been like my younger sister. She’s always been there for me and my family. She officiated my daughter’s wedding. Heather has taught me more about social media and digital than I could have learned in a thousand hours of online learning. Doc’s quiet intensity and dedication is awesome. And Lamar’s easy going good-natured vibe and his incredible sense of humor is infectious. You are not going to have a bad time if Lamar is around.

To coin a phrase, it’s been a long, strange, trip. But as Max and I have said many times over the many years: We’ve never worked so hard or laughed so hard in our lives. I thank them, and I thank all the listeners who have supported the show so loyally and for so long for making those laughs possible.

Tony Garcia