De laatste Top 50 maar niet het laatste gedrukte exemplaar, dat was nummer 180 en die krijg je er deze week als extraatje bij. Een van mijn favoriete zomerplaten is Hé Hé ’t is zomer van Luk Bral, deze week staat-ie op nummer 32. De hoogste nieuwe binnenkomer is deze week Albert Hammond het I don’t wanna die in an air disaster, toepasselijke plaat net een week voor de stilte in de ether. Donna Summer rukt sterk op maar nog niet sterk genoeg om George McCrae van de eerste plaats te verstoten. In de Troef 20 staan voor mij een aantal onbekende platen hoewel ik de kanskaart van Leo van der Goot wel herkende toen ik ‘m hoorde. Een toepasselijke plaat op nummer 2 en kippevel bij het beluisteren van de treiterschijf. Op 5 staat het grappige nummer De Fietser van Ekseption en op 9 het prachtige Laughter in the rain van Neil Sedaka.

Deze Top 50 kun je hier beluisteren:

Uur 1 Uur 2 Uur 3

En omdat dit de laatste Top 50 van RNI is, de Troef 20 als extraatje

TROEF 20

Top 50 nummer 180 hieronder vermeld de programma’s op de laatste dag van RNI.

Hier kun je ze downloaden in middengolf kwaliteit.

Onder de TOP 50 kun je de herinneringen van Michael Downing lezen uit de tijd dat deze Top 50 werd uitgezonden en daaronder een paar scans uit de ME van Augustus 1974.

The RNI memories of Michael Downing for this period

24 August 1974 was, of course, the final Super Hit 50 to be broadcast on RNI. Presented, as usual, by Ferry Maat, the programme was now four hours long from 12.00 to 16.00, with "Prijsbewust" at 13.00 presented by Tony Berk in the middle. The final Troef 20 later that day was presented by Gerard Reitsma.

The last International Service Toppers 20 show had been broadcast the previous evening, Friday 23 August 1974, from 20.00 to 22.00 and was presented by Don Allen. "Mr Soft" by Cockney Rebel was at no.1, with the highest new entry, "I'm leaving it all up to you" by Donny and Marie Osmond, at no.2. There were new entries for a number of records that would do very well in the UK chart over the next couple of months, including Johnny Bristol's "Hang on in there baby", "Queen of Clubs" by KC and the Sunshine Band and "Annie's Song" by John Denver, but these would not be remembered as RNI hits, as the station did not stay on the air long enough to play them very much. The final International Service Smash Play was "Wintertime" by Kayak, another in the series of Dutch records which the International Service had as its Smash Play, but, like "Maybe Tomorrow Maybe Tonight" by Earth and Fire and "Blackboard Jungle Lady" by the Sandy Coast, both earlier Smash Plays, it was not a hit in the UK.

The whole of the International Service DJ team was on board the Mebo 2 for the final week. The final complete night of International Service broadcasts was Thursday 29 August 1974, which had the following schedule:

20.00 Don Allen

22.00 Brian McKenzie

24.00 Robin Banks

2.00 Roger Kent

4.00 - 6.00 Bob Noakes

The following evening, Friday 30 August 1974, saw the International Service close down at midnight, with the final programmes being:

20.00 Don Allen

21.00 Robin Banks

22.00 Brian McKenzie

23.00 - 24.00 All DJs - Closedown programme

The Dutch service DJs also came out to the Mebo 2 during the course of the week to present their programmes live and there were a number of shows presented jointly - Dick de Graaf & Marc van Amstel, Gerard Smit & Peter Jager, Gerard Smit & Erik Post. The only member of the team missing from the Mebo 2 was Herman de Bruin, who was ill and therefore missed the final week.

The Dutch service took over at midnight on Saturday 31 August 1974 and the final day's programmes were:

24.00 Leo van der Goot

2.00 Buitengaats team and newsreaders (Gerard Smit, Erik Post, Gerard Reitsma & Peter Jager)

3.00 Ted Bouwens

4.00 Technici (John de Mol Jr, Pieter Damave & Leo Visser)

5.00 Tony Berk

6.00 Dick de Graaf & Marc van Amstel

9.00 John de Mol Jr

10.00 Ted Bouwens

12.00 Tony Berk

14.00 Ferry Maat

16.00 Leo van der Goot

18.00 - 20.00 Closedown programme with all DJs, hosted by Ferry Maat

There were separate programmes on shortwave on Saturday 31 August featuring A J Beirens, Pierre Deseyn and Peter and Werner Hartwig.

Ferry Maat was the longest serving DJ at 31 August 1974, having been with RNI throughout the period that the Dutch service was on the air from March 1971. Leo van der Goot and Tony Berk had both joined in the summer of 1971, Gerard Smit in the spring of 1972 and Dick de Graaf and Marc van Amstel in the summer of 1972. All of these therefore had over two years' service with RNI on 31 August 1974. Ferry Maat was soon back on the radio on Hilversum 3 presenting the Top 40 and the Soul Show on TROS Donderdag, whilst Leo van der Goot presented the VARA breakfast show on Tuesday morning from October 1974 to December 1975 and then joined the VOO. Tony Berk appeared on Radio Monique in the 1980s (although his programmes never mentioned the station) and Marc van Amstel presented some Nachtwacht programmes for the TROS and was heard on Radio 192 in the early 2000s. Dick de Graaf did a few programmes for Radio Mi Amigo and Gerard Smit went to live in Suriname.

Of the International service DJs, Brian McKenzie had served the longest, since October 1971 (apart from a 10 day break in October/November 1972 when John de Mol closed the International service), Don Allen had been with RNI since November 1972, Robin Banks since August 1973 and Roger Kent since February 1974. Roger Kent therefore spent longer with RNI than DJs such as Roger Day, Spangles Muldoon, Michael Lindsay and Stevi Merike, although he is less well remembered and has kept a very low profile in the offshore radio world since August 1974.

From early 1970 to 31 August 1974 RNI broadcast a lot of top quality programmes and, in Ferry Maat and Leo van der Goot, produced two of the best DJs on Dutch radio. In the 38 years since 31 August 1974, there has rarely been better radio than Driemaster. As Leo said at the end of his final Driemaster "these have been the best years of my life" and I think all RNI listeners agreed with him.

De voorpagina van de Muziek Expres van Augustus 1974

Ze staan op nummer 5 en nummer 37, welke Rubettes ontbreken op deze foto?

Band on de run zakt deze week 21 plaatsen en komt daarmee op 40 uit

Mud stationair op 3 met Rocket

Ook deze reklame hoorde je regelmatig op RNI