Ray Evans signed off for the final time in his 47 year radio career on Thursday, Dec. 9, capping a career spaning across Canada and into Europe. (Alex Rawnsley/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Alex Rawnsley

sign off

‘Thank you so much:’ Ray Evans caps nearly 50 year radio career which started by chance

Dec 9, 2021 | 4:13 PM

PARKSVILLE — Many greats in Canadian radio broke into the business by pure chance, a completely fortuitous encounter with the right person leading to a multi-decade career on the air.

By that definition, Ray Evans is a great of Canadian radio who signed off for the last time on the 88.5 FM The Beach on Thursday, Dec. 9.

Evans’ final show on the Pattison Media station in downtown Parksville concluded an impressive 47 year career.

Evans’ entry into the industry came four days after his 18th birthday in Europe where his father was stationed for the Canadian Armed Forces.

A musician at the time, he was at the Canadian Forces Network studio at the request of a friend to re-record music with his band and conduct interviews for a special to run on air.

new mayor

Spring Mayoral by-election called in Ladysmith

10h ago

holiday check stops

Nanaimo motorists shine during province-wide crackdown

13h ago

targeted job action

Striking Nanaimo postal workers disrupt Purolator operations

16h ago

“I walked into his studio while he was doing a break and when he was done, I said “hey, that looks like fun!’ Just then the PD walked through the door and said ‘well if you think it’s fun, you should get Rick [his friend] to help you make a tape and maybe we can use you.'”

The rest is history.

Outside a two year stint as the house entertainment on Mount Washington in the early 1980s, the 65-year-old Evans has entertained up and down the dial.

A young Ray Evans performing on stage as an 18 year old, around the same time he entered into radio through the Canadian Forces Network. (submitted photo)

Stops in North Bay, ON, Kamloops and Regina were precursors to a 20 year, immensely successful run as a big market ratings king at Q94 in Winnipeg.

His final stops were on Vancouver Island beginning in July 2004, first based in Nanaimo at 102.3 FM The Wave before finishing his career on mornings at 88.5 FM The Beach.

The content and target demographic for his show may have changed over the years, but Evans’ dedication to his craft hasn’t.

“It all depends on the format of the station, what kind of energy people want. I got to Winnipeg and it was an easy listening station and shortly after I got there they turned it into a CHR (contemporary hit radio) station. You learn how to adjust.”

Evans, somewhat quiet and reserved around the station, comes to life in front of a microphone whether on the radio or on stage.

“I am a little bit reserved, a little bit back until I get my guitar and get up on stage then I basically become the same person I am behind the microphone at the radio station,” he quipped.

Ray Evans and Daryl Major combined for a very successful morning show on 102.3 The Wave in the mid-2010s, until Ray moved to afternoons in 2017. (submitted photo)

Despite not spinning records for a living anymore, Evans will keep music as a big part of his life moving forward.

He’s spent the last while playing in a band with a pilot friend and a school teacher in the hopes of “getting something going.”

Evans will also make more time for his other love, playing hockey, as well as travelling. He’s eager to reconnect with his brothers in Munich and Texas, both of whom he hasn’t seen in years.

When asked whether he’d recommend steering 18-year-old Ray Evans towards a career in front of the microphone, he said it’s a completely different situation to when he started out.

“I just jumped into it completely cold, not knowing anything I think I’ve basically built [my on-air persona] over the years, tweaked it as I went along depending on format, where I was. It’s a difficult industry to get into and I feel sorry younger people don’t get the same chance I had when I first got started.”

Evans said he’d miss the feedback from listeners the most, the positive and negative.

When not on-air, he spent much of Thursday morning scrolling through hundreds of private messages and comments he’d received from listeners around the world, tuning into his final show.

He signed off with the theme to the hit sitcom ‘WKRP in Cincinnati’.

“It’s been a heck of a ride. So many people along the way, so much support. Thank you to everyone, to anyone I’ve crossed paths with or didn’t cross paths with who heard me on the radio, thank you so much.”

Join the conversation. Submit your letter to NanaimoNewsNOW and be included on The Water Cooler, our letters to the editor feature.

alex@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @alexrawnsley