Will He Be Playing His Own Tunes?

Smokey Robinson is no stranger to radio-station control booths. It’s just that, over the course of his 45-year career, he’s usually made those visits as a performer plugging his latest record.

But starting Monday, he’s going to be on the receiving end of those caller requests when he begins his tenure as a disc jockey for “Intimate With Smokey Robinson.” The two-hour program of love songs and love talk will air Mondays through Thursdays on the newly christened Mega 92.3, the “jammin’ oldies” station that recently made a frequency jump down from 100.3 and is looking to the Motown legend to build some market share.

Which begs the question: Why, Smokey? The singer and performer who wrote pop standards like “I Second That Emotion,” “The Tears of a Clown” and “Tracks of My Tears” certainly doesn’t need the money, and for the most part enjoys an unhurried life centered on his twin passions, golf and family.

“I’m doing it because it’s something new and different, and I’m always up for a challenge,” says Robinson while sitting behind the console of a vacant control booth at Mega 92.3. At age 60, he’s remarkably fit, with the trim, sinewy physique of someone 20 years younger. “I love music so much, man, and I still listen to records all the time, so I thought it would be a great thing to get a chance to play some.”

“What we wanted to do was differentiate Mega 92.3 from any other oldies station in the country,” says Marko Radlovic, the station’s general manager. “Getting Smokey interested in his own show is like having our poster child. He is a perfect guy for our station. This is the type of show that could be franchised to our other stations around the country.”

Despite Mega’s rigidly programmed “jammin’ oldies” format, Robinson has an affinity with its library, which is top-heavy with soul and R&B; from the ‘60s and ‘70s (Mega will choose 75% of the playlist, with Robinson picking the other 25%).

“The format of the station is one that gives you a chance to hear ‘music music,’ ” he says. “I mean, I’m a song guy, and the songs they play have been remade and heard so many times because they are real songs.”

Radio has played a formative role in Robinson’s life, both as a listener and a performer. As a child, he listened to just about everything, from the great jazz singers to blues greats like Muddy Waters and gospel acts like the Five Blind Boys of Alabama. And Robinson’s early career as the leader of the Miracles dovetailed with the heyday of the superstar deejays.

“Deejays were personalities,” he says. “They would have their own rock ‘n’ roll stage shows, and whenever you would go to a town, you would have to play on their show. Guys like Murray The K, Jocko Henderson, Georgie Woods. You don’t find that anymore.”

At this juncture, the music veteran’s curmudgeonly harping about the “golden age of music” seems inevitable, but Robinson is quick to praise contemporary artists such as Lauryn Hill and Maxwell.

“There’s even some great rap,” he says, “but it’s completely taken over and that’s what mainstream music is nowadays. Very few rap songs will be covered again by other artists. It doesn’t encourage young writers to write music that they will have copyrights and ASCAP royalties on.”

Needless to say, don’t look for Robinson to be spinning Eminem any time soon. Instead, the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer will play smoldering ballads and pillow-talking soul, and callers will solicit love advice or probe Robinson about his career.

“Love is my favorite subject,” says Robinson. “People ask me, ‘Why do you write about love all the time?’ Because it’s so vast and has so many different faces. If you write a great song about love, it has the chance to live on and on. That other stuff becomes passe sooner rather than later.”

For the time being, Robinson is going to squeeze in the show between live dates. He’s currently on the road promoting his latest release, “Intimate,” his first album for Motown in 12 years.

“Motown was my home, it was where I grew up,” he says. “When we sold it, a lot of strangers came in, and I didn’t recognize it, so I left. I never thought I’d be back, but my manager, Suzanne de Passe, asked me to meet with Kedar Massenburg and the other new people at Motown, and I liked their vibe. That’s why I went back.

“There’s a whole lot of wonderful artists out there, man, who are suffering because [the business] is not open to them. I’ve been very blessed, because I’m still in the picture after all this time, and I don’t take it for granted.”

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“Intimate With Smokey Robinson” can be heard Mondays through Thursdays at 8 p.m. on KCMG-FM (92.3).