Maine radio listeners have a wide variety of options on Saturday night, but for a significant number of them, there is only one show and one voice - “The Original Country Gold” with Rowdy Yates. “If you listen carefully, you’ll hear them once in a while,” Rowdy said with a laugh. Learn about careers at Cox Media Group. Strategic career moves took him to stations in New Orleans, Oklahoma City and Houston, where he spent 16 years on the air at 100,000-watt country powerhouse KLIT Radio. Original Country Gold with Rowdy Yates highlights music from "Urban Cowboy" to "Hot Country.". Since that early start he has done just about everything: DJ, Music Director, Program Director, Operations Manager and Owner (Mark owns KIOX-FM outside Houston). If I’m remembered for nothing else, that’s what I want people to remember me for – the fact that it was the highlight of their week.”. I threw a cream pie at Peter Frampton and had an endless supply of free movie tickets and passes to Six Flags. Mark’s down home, good ol’ boy, southern style has resonated with a loyal fan base spreading across the Country. “I was right out there with everybody soaking it all in,” he said. Since late July, millions of classic country music radio listeners across America have wondered what happened to their friend, Rowdy Yates, longtime host of 'Country Gold Saturday Night.' “Dad took Donny, Marie, Jimmy and a couple of their siblings and threw them onto the street,” Rowdy said with a deep laugh. I walked out into my backyard and cried every night for a month when that s--t started.”. He had built his own wildly successful syndicated radio show from scratch. He’s not kidding. In 2012, Rowdy was in the midst of a very successful run as host of the Saturday night “Country Gold” request show when a sudden network merger shockingly resulted with him being replaced by Randy Owen, front man for the band Alabama. I’m 6 feet, 5 inches and weigh 300 pounds. “We could have filled a venue twice the size,” Rowdy said, as he remembered how jammed with fans the building became. Rowdy says he and his siblings often provided a cover for his father when the newsman would do some investigative reporting, saying “Nobody suspected that a man who was dragging along four little red-headed kids would be chasing a story. This is the only show that brings together demographics of all ages and creates true Brand Loyalty For Your Station! Weird! Rowdy landed his first on-air job at age 15 and soon secured a full-time gig in Bridgeport, located about 50 miles northwest of Fort Worth. During Rowdy’s first week back on the air in 2013, he took 36 stations away from the Randy Owen-hosted program, which had already lost more than half of its affiliates since Rowdy left. “Pepper is especially fond of chiming in on the show.”. Everything you love about countrylegends971.com and more! During his subsequent Maine visits, he did exactly that.