Rocktober Roundup: A Georgia Radio Giant Turns a Page, Zebra Roars Back, and Skynyrd Remembered
Written by Jarvis Prime on October 19, 2026
Atlanta's Cumulus Media comes out of bankruptcy, Richard Thompson lands his 20th solo album, Zebra readies its first record in 23 years, and Tuesday marks 49 years since the Skynyrd plane crash.
Good evening, south Georgia. Pour yourself something cold and settle in, because there's plenty going on in rock and radio this third week of October.
We'll start close to home. Atlanta-based Cumulus Media, one of the biggest radio station owners in the country, has come out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy as a privately held company. Trade reports dated October 16 say the restructuring cut about $550 million in debt and handed ownership to the company's former lenders. Mary Berner stays on as president and CEO, and the company now has a new board of directors. The old public shareholders came away with nothing. For an industry that's been through some lean years, it's a story worth following.
There's good news for the radio dial too. A new Nielsen report says radio still reaches more Americans every month than any other media platform it measures. And up in Chicago on October 8, the Radio Hall of Fame inducted eight new members: Boomer Esiason, Dennis Green, Shotgun Tom Kelly, Helen Little, Bob Pittman, Rickey Smiley, Charlie Van Dyke, and longtime WLS personality Fred Winston.
On to new music. Richard Thompson released his 20th solo album, Hippies, Thugs and Heroes, on New West Records this past Friday, October 16. He produced the 12 songs with James Frazee and recorded them in Weehawken, New Jersey. The lead single, "Cocaine Walking, Booze Talking," follows a group of London hustlers. If you like guitar playing that's sharp and songwriting that's sharper, give this one a spin.
And here's one for anybody who wore out an AOR radio station in the early '80s. Zebra, the power trio of Randy Jackson, Felix Hanemann and Guy Gelso, will release Zebra V on November 13. It's their first new studio album since 2003. The first single, "Walk With You," was co-written by Jackson and KISS's Paul Stanley. Jackson says the whole song came together in about two hours. Jack Douglas, who died earlier this year, produced part of the record, which makes it one of his last projects. The band plans to tour behind it.
Iron Maiden fans can mark their calendars too. The band dropped a planned 2027 break and announced 16 North American dates for next spring.
Now a little history. On this date in 1974, Bachman-Turner Overdrive hit number one on the U.S. album chart with Not Fragile. And it's been ten years since Desert Trip, the two-weekend festival in Indio, California, that brought together the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, Neil Young, Roger Waters and The Who. It was the first Desert Trip and the only one.
Last, a quieter note. Tuesday, October 20, marks 49 years since the plane carrying Lynyrd Skynyrd went down near Gillsburg, Mississippi, three days after Street Survivors came out. Six people were killed, among them Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines and Cassie Gaines. Down here in Skynyrd country, we'll be turning it up in their memory. Thanks for listening, friends. This is Pretoria Fields Radio.
— The Pretoria Fields Radio news desk
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