The FM radio band was created in the 1940s, but until the 1970s AM was “King of the Dial”. From the mid 60s to the mid 70s illegal radio stations were being set up to broadcast rock and roll.

Top 40 stations would play one song from an album, calling it the “Hit”. It was a shorter version than on the album, that way they could play more songs in an hour. The illegal stations would play the longer album version. They also played several songs from an album rather than just one. Looking back on these revolutionary ideas, it is clear that the illegal radio staions were precursors of today’s Album Rock stations.

Now it was, and still is, illegal to start broadcasting without a governmental license. So the Federal Communications Commission (or FCC) ran around closing down these illegal stations. The most successful stations put their transmitters on boats and rode out to international waters, where the FCC didn’t have jurisdiction, hence the term “Pirate Radio”. These Pirate Radio Stations dotted the coastlines of the United States, England, Ireland and Australia.

AM and FM battled for years before it became obvious that the radio consumer wanted the better quality stereo sound that was available on FM. FM Pirate Radio is a syndicated radio program designed to play classic rock from that time period. These songs are often overlooked by today’s radio stations. Taking that music and sprinkling in a spicy taste of the comedy of the era and you have FM Pirate Radio: An old sound that is new again. You can’t get it anywhere else, so hop on board. We hope you enjoy your trips, as we go back in time on our ship FM Pirate Radio. Remember, it’s Classic Rock ….with an Attitude !!!