March 1st, 1988 in Billings, Montana if you tuned your radio to 102.9 on the FM band, you heard a new radio station calling itself "Cat Country".

We were the first radio station to play all of our music from compact discs. And we played ten songs in a row every hour.

Back in 1988, pork chops cost 45 cents per pound. It cost you $3.50 to see a movie. And gasoline was $0.91 per gallon. And here in Billings, you could still have lunch at Lil Pizzas on Grand Avenue.

When we started, country radio had yet to hear any music from Travis Tritt, Alan Jackson, Shania Twain or Garth Brooks. Yes, we're THAT old.

In the radio business, at that time, you could only own one AM and one FM station. And I liked that. It really gave us a sense of "us against the broadcast world".

We did contests like the "Tell A Friend Free Money Cash Call". We actually gave away t-shirts and hats. (Yes, we used to do that)

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Our first concert was Tanya Tucker at the Metra. Tickets were 5 bucks.

We spent fair week broadcasting live from the roof of Denny Menholt Chevrolet when he was still located downtown.

But I'm interested in what you, the listeners, recall from way back when.

Did we play basketball in your town?

Cat Country All-Stars
Credit: Cat Country
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Did we have lunch at your school?

Credit: Mark Wilson, Townsquare Media
Credit: Mark Wilson, Townsquare Media
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Did you win some prizes from us?

Did you attend any of the concerts we emceed?

March 1st we turn 34. And we will be reminiscing.

LOOK: See the iconic cars that debuted the year you were born

Here are the top 25 hits of the ‘80s based on their overall popularity.

 

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