Remembering Jim Ladd
• It is with heavy hearts that the SiriusXM family honors one of its own, as we learned yesterday that legendary rock radio talent Jim Ladd, host of SiriusXM’s Deep Tracks channel, died early Sunday morning at the age of 75, his wife Helene by his side. The cause of death was a heart attack. The sad news was broken Monday by Ladd’s colleague Meg Griffin at the outset of what would have been Ladd’s show.
Jim Ladd was a pioneer and the most steadfast defender of freeform rock & roll radio. Throughout his remarkable 50-plus-year career Jim entertained millions of fans with carefully selected thematic sets of music and interviewed countless artists from John Lennon, to Pink Floyd, Stevie Nicks, Led Zeppelin, The Eagles and Joni Mitchell.
Ladd got his radio start in 1967 at KNAC/Long Beach, and soon after entered Los Angeles radio where he reigned for decades, first at KLOS, followed by a nine-year stint at the late, legendary KMET, where he developed the popular syndicated show, Innerview
In 1989 Ladd played a semi-autobiographical role in Cameron Crowe‘s movie, Say Anything, and his distinctive voice was also featured in the films Tequila Sunrise, Rush, She’s Out of Control, and Defendor. In 1991 Ladd published his first book, Radio Waves: Live and Revolution on the FM Dial, and in 2002 he was honored when Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers used him as the inspiration for their album The Last DJ. In 2005 Ladd was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Ladd returned to KLOS in 1997 and remained there in nights until Oct. 2011, when he and then-PD Bob Buchmann were downsized during a round of corporate budget cuts. The following year Ladd joined SiriusXM’s Deep Tracks, where he shared his love of deep rock and roll with his listeners, who he endearingly labeled “The Tribe.”
Jim Morrison’s Twitter account said of Ladd, “Jim, with his electric persona and cool voice, was an essential part of the culture of rock & roll. Jim’s legendary interviews with Ray, John and Robby on The Doors and Morrison were later released as NO ONE HERE GETS OUT ALIVE, which still stands as the most definitive interview in the history of the group. Rest easy, Mr. Ladd.”
