I grew up in the 80's too. What you say is very very dependent on your service area. I have fantastic coverage where I live, but I live in a big city. I've never had a problem with initiating a call on my mobile. It's likely my operator has done a better job of pico-celling my area than yours has. You might consider switching.

I got fast busy tones several times a year back in the 80's, and it usually corresponded to whenever a concert was announced. Maybe my phone company back then was as bad as your mobile services company is now?