Stephanie G. Mathis Jim Ladd died at his Sacramento home on December 17; he was a maverick Los Angeles DJ who pioneered free-form F.M. in the 1970s and became a rock icon and inspiration for Tom Petty’s song “The Last D.J.” He was 75.
Helene Hodge-Ladd, his wife, confirmed that the cause of death was a cardiac arrest.
Longtime listeners knew Mr. Ladd as the Lonesome L.A., thanks to his relaxed manner and impressive equestrian abilities. Cowboy is a song from 1973 by the New Riders of the Purple Sage. He became a rock celebrity for his extensive musical knowledge, sassy humor, and outspoken politics. Not only in Los Angeles, where he spent a long time at KLOS and KMET but also nationwide, with the help of his hour-long syndicated show “Innerview.”
In 1974, “Innerview” made its debut. It featured interviews with rock legends such as the Beach Boys and Led Zeppelin. The show was broadcast on 160 radio stations across the country.
His house attracted friends like Stevie Nicks, George Harrison (quiet Beatle and lead guitarist who died at 58), Roger Waters of Pink Floyd, and others. His house attracted friends such as Stevie Nicks, George Harrison, and Roger Waters from Pink Floyd, who included Mr. Ladd in his second solo album.
M. Ladd, who was more interested in challenging his listeners by playing new sounds, was suited for the early days of free-form radio. This was enabled by the 1964 Federal Communications Commission rule prohibiting AM stations from reproducing their formats in excess of 50 percent on F.M. stations owned in the same market.
In his memoir “Radio Waves – Life and Revolution on F.M. Dial”, he said, “Free-form Radio was an approach to music and the show, which resulted a highly personalized and completely spontaneous art form.”
He wrote: “Most people never considered it a job.” “A job is something that ‘ straight’ people do to get ulcers. It was a more personal experience for us. We were guerrilla warriors for a new generation of creative explorers. Inmates who took control of the asylum to “play with the public-address system.”
Mr. Ladd first had access to the public address system at KNAC in Long Beach, Calif., in the late 1960s. He challenged listeners by playing the newest underground tunes. He also challenged authorities by displaying his political passions. For example, he stacked songs such as “Universal Soldier,” “The Unknown Soldier” by the Doors, and “I Don’t Wanna Be a Soldier, Mama, I Don’t Wanna Die” by John Lennon as musicals.
Mr. Ladd wrote, “Music at that time contained radical new ideas as well as a unique perspective from a generational standpoint.” The music was a loud and clear way to hear alternative points of view that were not being listened to on the news at six o’clock. Songs about peace, civil rights, and Vietnam. Drugs and generation gaps. And massive amounts of sex.”
James William Ladd, the oldest child of Obie Ladd and Betty Ladd, was born in Lynwood on January 17, 1948. His mother, who was also a lender, was a former banker.
Mr. Ladd worked in the 1970s for the Los Angeles rock station KLOS before moving to KMET. He remained there until 1987, when KMET changed its format and started playing smooth jazz. In his book, Ladd called the new sound “a computerized Valium tablet and dentist-office-music for yuppies.”
Ladd’s outspoken ways were said to be an inspiration for the 2002 Tom Petty song “The Last D.J.,” a critique of commercial radio that featured lyrics like em>”/em>Well, the href= “https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/03/arts/music/tom-petty-dead.html” title=”>top brass/a> don’t like him talking so much/And he won His outspokenness was credited as an inspiration for Tom Petty’s 2002 song “The Last D.J.,” an indictment against commercial radio, which featured lyrics such as “Well the top Brass doesn’t like him speaking so much/And they won’t let him play what they tell him to play.”
In the liner note for the album with the same title, Mr. Petty thanked Ladd “for his inspiration and courage.”
He added: “I’m very, very proud, but I don’t think it’s all about me.”
Over the years, Mr. Ladd has visited multiple radio stations. In 2011, he became a SiriusXM host for the Deep Tracks Channel. He remained at the station until his death.
Along with his wife, Mr. Ladd has a brother named Jon and a sister named Veronna Ladd.
In a 2000 interview he gave to The Los Angeles Times when Mr. Ladd returned to KLOS, he pulled out a few papers. The station’s schedule of songs was on the paper. It mapped the songs that would be played throughout the day, except for his slot at 10:00 pm, which was blank. He could still play whatever he wanted, just like in the past. Listeners knew they could always count on Mr. Ladd to deliver his catchphrase, “Lord, have mercy.”
When asked why Mr. Ladd was allowed to follow the muse he had when other D.J.s were not, he replied, “Stubbornness.
Rita Wilde of the station, who was quoted in the article as having a different opinion, said: “Not many people would know what to use the freedom if it were given.”
