RIP B.E. Taylor

Back in 1997, I started doing something a little different on the Saturday morning version of my morning program on WWSE-FM in Jamestown.  In the 9 AM hour, I started doing little interview segments.  I was being approached by artists who were going to be in the area, or if they had something new to share.  My weekday program wasn’t really set up to do anything too long, because of the way the hours were set up.  But there was more flex on Saturday.

Early on in that experiment, I connected with B.E. Taylor.  While I didn’t know much about him at the time we discovered shared roots in Pittsburgh.  He was from the same area where my wife had grown up. I had a great conversation with that day, and I would hear from him every once in a while afterward.  We worked a promotion with him and his music in time for Valentine’s Day in 1998.  Back in our home area, he became an annual Christmas tradition for many families.  As I listened to this interview again, I could hear the unmistakable sound of “home”.  I have always had a very warm spot in my heart for him and this interview.

Five albums, a song that got heavy rotation on MTV in the ’80s, and thousands of fans.  He died of an inoperable brain tumor, diagnosed almost ten years ago.  B.E. Taylor was 65 years old.

Here’s the video for “Vitamin L” –

He was a wonderful, warm human being.  My condolences to his family, friends and fans.

Here’s the unedited interview from 1997.