Remembering Alton Irwin
• Over the weekend we received the sad news of the Feb. 5 passing of longtime major market personality Alton Irwin, better known to his legions of fans in his various incarnations as “Smokin’ Willie B. Goode,” “Cliff ‘Truckin’ Kenyon,” “Mike Rivers” or “Gnarly Charlie,” whose voice, over the course of a half-century career graced the airwaves of WPLJ and Z100/New York, WHTT/Boston, KC101 & WAVZ/New Haven and WCCC/Hartford, along with notable South Florida stops at WMJC, WFLC, WKIS, and WBGG/Miami.
As expected, Irwin’s Facebook page is rapidly filling up with remembrances from his many friends, fans and former colleagues. Irwin’s daughter, Alannah (pictured here) posted a her own beautifully heartfelt tribute to her Dad that reads, in part, “You are never really fully prepared for that moment when you get ‘the call,’ but I am so thankful that he was able to go peacefully and without pain. For those of you that knew him, he was always an upbeat guy that enjoyed life as best as he could. He had a love for all things music and baseball. He had a 46-year career in radio, casting his iconic voice all over the airwaves in New England, New York, and South Florida. He was known for his booming, charismatic tone and always made radio fun.”
Alannah added, “Whether you knew him as Cliff ‘Truckin” Kenyon, Smokin’ Willie B. Goode, country DJ Mike Rivers, or your Certified ’80s Freak Gnarly Charlie, his favorite role was always ‘dad.’ He was always out to make people feel special and heard on the radio, but he’d always tell you how proud he was of his little girl.” Alannah says a celebration of her father’s life will be announced at a later date.
• That’s two legends lost in less than two weeks, says Matt Seinberg of Big Apple Airchecks, who has now begun to produce an aircheck tribute to Irwin, while also still working on a tribute to Tim “The ByrdMan” Byrd, who died on Jan. 27. Seinberg is looking for any of Alton’s or Tim’s friends and colleagues who wish to submit audio remembrances for inclusion in these tributes. Seinberg can be contacted at matt@bigappleairchecks.com.
