Tom Wardle

Tom Wardle is well-known in the traditional country music community, including by many legendary performers.  His ‘Honky Tonks & Heartaches’ show has been critically acclaimed as one of the finest radio shows on the air in support of ‘legitimate’ country music.  He is well versed in the history of country music, its performers and the legacy created by those artists and songs….the well-known as well as the obscure.

For four years, he compiled and published the  TopTrax Traditional Country Airplay Chart, ranking monthly airplay from 40-50 reporting US stations.  His efforts were widely recognized, including  by several Grand Ole Opry members…..folks who were thrilled to see their names on a meaningful chart once again.  Tom also worked as a radio promoter for independent artists, and has emceed a number of country music concerts and bluegrass festivals.

In 1995, Tom began his radio DJ experience, when he initially co-hosted a big band/popular standards show on WDVR-FM in New Jersey.  At WDVR, he expanded into airing two weekly traditional country music  shows…..’Country Classics’ and ‘Honky Tonks & Heartaches’.    These broadcasts continued for 13 years, until he retired from WDVR in 2008.  Concurrently, he recorded a weekly show for ‘Twangtown USA’ in Nashville.

Following his departure from WDVR-FM, Tom became a free-lance DJ, recording weekly shows at his home studio and transmitting them to KSEY-FM in Seymour, Texas, KWSP-FM in Kerrville, Texas and ‘’The Renegade’ internet broadcast.

In 2014, he joined the newly-established KTNK-AM/FM  in Lompoc. California (America’s honky-tonk station), where his shows were broadcast 56 hours per week, as KTNK’s flagship program.    In 2020, he joined the staff of ‘Keeping It Country Live ‘, an internet platform, and in 2024, was added to the lineup on ‘Real Deal Country Radio’.

AWARDS/RECOGNITION:

2002 – Twangtown USA –USA Disc Jockey of the Year

2002 – Twangtown USA - USA Radio Station of the Year

2003 -  Airplay International Nashville – Country Radio Station Of The Year

2014 – Academy Of Western Artists – Disc Jockey of the Year

2014-2019 – Academy Of Western Artists – Certificates of Appreciation

2016 – Featured in ‘Fair Play Country Music’ Magazine (Germany)

Tom has interviewed, on-air, many of country music’s legends, including Ray Price, Bill Anderson, Vern Gosdin, Leona Williams, Ferlin Husky, Billy Walker, Hank Locklin, Jeannie Seely, Norma Jean, Stonewall Jackson and Ernie Ashworth.   And…..steel guitar legends—Tom Brumley and Weldon Myrick.  Independent artists like Justin Trevino, Jimmy Eaves, Dugg Collins, Tony Booth, Tricia Elliott, Ann Brown and Frankie Miller have also had on-air interviews with Tom.

His ‘Honky Tonks & Heartaches’ show features only solid, traditional country and honky tonk.   The show  features a huge complement of independent and unknown artists, who carry on the tradition of legitimate country music, as well as the legends, the ‘not-so’ legends and obscure artists from the golden age of country……whom he refers to as ‘no hit wonders’ or  ‘unsung honky tonk heroes’.  Included regularly are listener- favorite steel guitar instrumental solos.  A world-wide audience regularly enjoys “the best country music you never heard”, and like Tom professes…”If it ain’t traditional, it ain’t country”.

Tom is a retired mechanical engineer and resides in Bucks County, PA.  He may be contacted at honkytonkradio@yahoo.com., or by visiting his Facebook  pages.