58 years of Beautiful Music comes to an end

[KilowattKat]

WKTZ was donated to Jones College in Jacksonville, FL back in 1964. Singer Jack Jones started it's Beautiful Music format, and continued as online only after the station was sold to EMF. The article has a glaring error in that Jack Jones is NOT dead. He's 84 and has a number of tour dates planned this year and next...

Listening no more: The 'beautiful music' first played at Jones College in 1964 comes to an end

The online version of what used to be known as Jones College Radio has ended. Kenneth Jones posted the news for what had become Riverton Tower Radio.

www.jacksonville.com

 

[Marcos_C]

A letter of appreciation to the station's listeners is all that is left of its website.

Riverton Tower Radio (formerly Jones College Radio)

 

[Casey]

It amazes me that there isn't more support for Beautiful Music. It is incredibly hard to replicate the format, so you would think listeners would want to help keep these stations alive. A lot of the songs are not licensed for on-demand play, so you can't simply recreate them on Spotify.

 

[PTBoardOp94]

Most webstreams -- not just in beautiful -- are projects of one individual who provides most of the financial support. They'll often have a tip jar, but I doubt the tips are a a meaningful percentage of operating costs.

 

[Mikey Radio]

For those looking for a (web-based) beautiful music outlet, you might give "Jib on the Web" a try: http://jibontheweb.com/
It's also available on several of the more popular radio apps.

JIB on the Web is a re-creation of former Beautiful Music radio station WJIB FM-97 which served the Boston, Massachusetts USA region for 23 years. JIB on the Web brings back the traditional presentation of the format just as it was heard decades ago including former WJIB-FM music hosts. Additionally, we ring the bell of "Old Ironsides" at the top of every hour, just like the original radio station. Elegant and polished, Beautiful Music never sounded better.

 

[cc333]

I like Beautiful Music.

I was lucky to hear the final throes of 960 KABL's existence as an America's Best Music affiliate/adult standards/oldies station, and there were still traces of it's former Beautiful Music format in the form of occasional string orchestra covers of pop songs.

I listened to an unscoped aircheck of KABL from 1960, and while it was a bit stilted and stodgy sounding, I liked the format overall.

Tonight I listened to a 1978 recording of WHP-FM out of Harrisburg, PA, which featured a later, somewhat simplified form of the Beautiful Music format, and it was perfect.

I think, with the proper support, the format can still be viable on terrestrial radio.

I don't really understand how demographics work, but believe it or not, I think there's a growing demand for some kind of "calm" music that isn't AC, soft pop or classical, yet has elements of all of these (something like modern Easy Listening as far as music selections, but more structured and carefully programmed like Beautiful Music). It's still pretty niche at this point, but some people I know who are in their early 30s are talking about it, and I'm sure we'll start hearing more about it before long.

c

 

[davideduardo]

I think, with the proper support, the format can still be viable on terrestrial radio.

I don't really understand how demographics work, but believe it or not, I think there's a growing demand for some kind of "calm" music that isn't AC, soft pop or classical, yet has elements of all of these (something like modern Easy Listening as far as music selections, but more structured and carefully programmed like Beautiful Music). It's still pretty niche at this point, but some people I know who are in their early 30s are talking about it, and I'm sure we'll start hearing more about it before long.

I actually owned and programmed a Beautiful Music program service in the 70's 80's that was on the air in several markets of about 10 million and many more in the million-plus range. By 1986 or so, the format was dying and by 1980 1990 it was dead.

Years corrected... brain spasm!

Most such stations got their programmed music on tape from program services. Nearly none did it themselves. This was because most of us had to record custom tracks of current hit songs in instrumental versions to remain viable, and that was expensive.

But by the late 80's, most listeners were over 55 years old and were not attractive to advertisers. And there was a general trend away from instrumental music in all genres, too.

The format has been truly dead for three decades... at least.

 

[cc333]

Maybe so, but dead formats can be revived, no?

Take vinyl, for example.

People were saying it was dying since the mid 80s when CDs and cassettes began to take over.

It was true that for much of the 90s and 2000s, vinyl sales were dwindling rapidly, and for a time, it was seeming increasingly dead, but there was a revival sometimes in the 2010s, and now, vinyl is selling in record numbers (no pun intended).

Perhaps radio formats are different in ways I don't understand?

c

 

[davideduardo]

Maybe so, but dead formats can be revived, no?

Not if they are age-related. Beautiful Music came out of the instrumental songs of the Big Band era, which were modified from brassy to sting and piano based versions that were less for dancing and more for relaxing.

In a way, Beautiful Music evolved into the Smooth Jazz format... soft, rather melodic in part, but a little more varied. That died with the PPM around 2008-2010.

Take vinyl, for example.

People were saying it was dying since the mid 80s when CDs and cassettes began to take over.

It was true that for much of the 90s and 2000s, vinyl sales were dwindling rapidly, and for a time, it was seeming increasingly dead, but there was a revival sometimes in the 2010s, and now, vinyl is selling in record numbers (no pun intended).

Record compared to 5 years ago. But less than a percent or two of what vinyl sold in the 60's and earlier 70's.

Hint: cassettes are not coming back, either. Nor are 8-Tracks.

Perhaps radio formats are different in ways I don't understand?

In the 100 years... actually 103... of radio as we know it, no format has come back.

(Some will say Big Band came back in the 70's but it really never died... just the old MOR stations died and pure music ones on mostly terrible signals replaced them).

 

[Mediafrog+]

In a way, Beautiful Music evolved into the Smooth Jazz format... soft, rather melodic in part, but a little more varied. That died with the PPM around 2008-2010.

Back in the 80s New Age music was seen by some as a “modern” replacement for Beautiful Music, and a number of what would become Smooth Jazz stations started out that way…I‘m thinking of the first incarnation of KOAI (The Oasis) in DFW or how KTWV sounded when first launched. But New Age was a niche genre that had no traction on FM.

 

[davideduardo]

Back in the 80s New Age music was seen by some as a “modern” replacement for Beautiful Music, and a number of what would become Smooth Jazz stations started out that way…I‘m thinking of the first incarnation of KOAI (The Oasis) in DFW or how KTWV sounded when first launched. But New Age was a niche genre that had no traction on FM.

Remember, when Cody and Leach created the format for KTWV in LA, they were very new age, with windchimes and the like. Rather rapidly they realized that they needed to move away from that and do a more "light jazz" and modern instrumentals with "soulful" vocals.

The "smooth jazz" name for the format did not pop up until a station in Chicago, not wanting to license the "Wave" name came up with "smooth jazz" in a one-on-one perceptual research project with Owen Leach's company where a listener, opon hearing a sample montage of the format, said it was "sort of like smooth jazz". The name was taken for its clarity and simplicity.

 

[cc333]

Record compared to 5 years ago. But less than a percent or two of what vinyl sold in the 60's and earlier 70's.

Well, of course! Back then, vinyl was all there was (aside from reel-to-reel, 8-track and cassette (once the technology improved enough that the quality was music-friendly), of course, but then much as now, those were all niche, with the notable exception of cassettes, which enjoyed a good 25 or so years of near ubiquity in car stereos).

In the 100 years... actually 103... of radio as we know it, no format has come back.

There's always a first time....

Back in the 80s New Age music was seen by some as a “modern” replacement for Beautiful Music, and a number of what would become Smooth Jazz stations started out that way…I‘m thinking of the first incarnation of KOAI (The Oasis) in DFW or how KTWV sounded when first launched. But New Age was a niche genre that had no traction on FM.

Yeah, I actually like some of that new age stuff (especially from the early 80s), but I can see why it wouldn't do so well commercially.

Despite this, I do believe it was popular in the SF Bay Area up to the Mendocino coast for a time during the early-mid 80s, and there's still a few artists here who perform and compose new age music. Does any of this stuff ever actually get on the radio? I don't know, but perhaps there's some LPFM or NPR affiliate stations that play it from time to time.

c

 

[spiritof67]

Yeah, I actually like some of that new age stuff (especially from the early 80s), but I can see why it wouldn't do so well commercially.

Despite this, I do believe it was popular in the SF Bay Area up to the Mendocino coast for a time during the early-mid 80s, and there's still a few artists here who perform and compose new age music. Does any of this stuff ever actually get on the radio? I don't know, but perhaps there's some LPFM or NPR affiliate stations that play it from time to time.

c

When stations like KTWV launched in 1987, it was during a time where labels like Windham Hill, American Gramophone, and Narada had good sales of artists, but very little airplay. The compact disc was gaining traction as many replaced their LPs with the newer format. The majority of the New Age cuts played on these stations had catchy melodies (think "Orinoco Flow" by Enya), and were relatively radio friendly. Another factor was the kind of contemporary jazz during that time that blended well with this music, and labels like GRP supplying the artists. And to tie these together, familiar artists from rock or pop like Sting, Paul Simon, and Dire Straits, along with upstarts that didn't quite have a home on the traditional AC charts.

This kind of playlist had a good run for about five or six years.

As for New Age music played on the radio now, one of the better known national shows to feature artists is "Echoes" based in Philadelphia (echoes.org). John Diliberto has hosted the show since 1989, and airs on several public radio stations through PRI/PRX. Radio Kansas, a network of four stations in central KS has featured a three hour nightly show called Nightcrossings for decades.

 

[spiritof67]

Remember, when Cody and Leach created the format for KTWV in LA, they were very new age, with windchimes and the like. Rather rapidly they realized that they needed to move away from that and do a more "light jazz" and modern instrumentals with "soulful" vocals.

The "smooth jazz" name for the format did not pop up until a station in Chicago, not wanting to license the "Wave" name came up with "smooth jazz" in a one-on-one perceptual research project with Owen Leach's company where a listener, opon hearing a sample montage of the format, said it was "sort of like smooth jazz". The name was taken for its clarity and simplicity.

That station was WNUA, which launched in the summer of 1987.

The people who originated The Wave and syndicated the format nationally took a risk, and weren't as successful as they thought. If I remember, to carry the syndicated Wave format, stations paid a monthly fee, as opposed to barter, and there was the license fee to use "The Wave" as a slogan.

Chicago even had a Wave affiliate--WTWV (106.7 MHz), but that format only lasted into April 1989.

 

[landtuna]

Despite this, I do believe it was popular in the SF Bay Area up to the Mendocino coast for a time during the early-mid 80s, and there's still a few artists here who perform and compose new age music.

c

That's because all those weed fumes from the burning fields drift inland to CA residents who believe it's some really delightful type of flower.

 

[vchimpanzee]

I like Beautiful Music.

I was lucky to hear the final throes of 960 KABL's existence as an America's Best Music affiliate/adult standards/oldies station, and there were still traces of it's former Beautiful Music format in the form of occasional string orchestra covers of pop songs.

I listened to an unscoped aircheck of KABL from 1960, and while it was a bit stilted and stodgy sounding, I liked the format overall.

Tonight I listened to a 1978 recording of WHP-FM out of Harrisburg, PA, which featured a later, somewhat simplified form of the Beautiful Music format, and it was perfect.

I think, with the proper support, the format can still be viable on terrestrial radio.

I don't really understand how demographics work, but believe it or not, I think there's a growing demand for some kind of "calm" music that isn't AC, soft pop or classical, yet has elements of all of these (something like modern Easy Listening as far as music selections, but more structured and carefully programmed like Beautiful Music). It's still pretty niche at this point, but some people I know who are in their early 30s are talking about it, and I'm sure we'll start hearing more about it before long.

c

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[davideduardo]

That station was WNUA, which launched in the summer of 1987.

Yes, and it was consulted by Cody and Leach who had created the original KTWV format just a bit earlier.

The people who originated The Wave and syndicated the format nationally took a risk, and weren't as successful as they thought.

That was Metromedia, the owner of KTWV, in conjunction with a syndication company.

If I remember, to carry the syndicated Wave format, stations paid a monthly fee, as opposed to barter, and there was the license fee to use "The Wave" as a slogan.

All syndicated formats worked that way back then. It was mostly short form content that was done with barter using the AT40 model created by Tom Rounds.

The use of the name "Wave" came with the format deal. It was a package.

Chicago even had a Wave affiliate--WTWV (106.7 MHz), but that format only lasted into April 1989.

And that was a suburban station that only puts a 60 dbu signal over about 1/3 of the Chicago MSA.

 

[SomeRadioGuy]

I like Beautiful Music.

I was lucky to hear the final throes of 960 KABL's existence as an America's Best Music affiliate/adult standards/oldies station, and there were still traces of it's former Beautiful Music format in the form of occasional string orchestra covers of pop songs.

I listened to an unscoped aircheck of KABL from 1960, and while it was a bit stilted and stodgy sounding, I liked the format overall.

Tonight I listened to a 1978 recording of WHP-FM out of Harrisburg, PA, which featured a later, somewhat simplified form of the Beautiful Music format, and it was perfect.

I think, with the proper support, the format can still be viable on terrestrial radio.



c

nope, not even close @cc333 . I worked for a station that ran the Americas Best Music format a few years ago.... had it been a stand alone AM instead of part of a cluster, it wouldve gone dark years before. 2nd oldest station in that part of the state, an older population who loved the station.

One Sunday i recall in particular we had 6 COMMERCIALS! NOT 6 SPONSORS, just 6 spots all day! It couldnt pay its own bills.

They ditched it for talk, and it did even worse.. and then went back to the standards format. Theyve got a full time AM with a good signal over the core of the market and a 250 Watt trtanslator on a 400 tower on the tallest point in a muilti county area.

Theyve also got the regions best and most expierienced sales people.

 

[spiritof67]

I actually owned and programmed a Beautiful Music program service in the 70's that was on the air in several markets of about 10 million and many more in the million-plus range. By 1976 or so, the format was dying and by 1980 it was dead.

Most such stations got their programmed music on tape from program services. Nearly none did it themselves. This was because most of us had to record custom tracks of current hit songs in instrumental versions to remain viable, and that was expensive.

But by the late 80's, most listeners were over 55 years old and were not attractive to advertisers. And there was a general trend away from instrumental music in all genres, too.

The format has been truly dead for three decades... at least.

In St. Louis, the Easy Listening format lasted well into the late 1980s.

In 1980, our area had three stations with the format--KCFM (93.7), KEZK (102.5) and AM WRTH (590). Between 1978-9, KCFM had an unsuccessful run as a Soft AOR, and returned to its former Easy Listening format under new owners Gannett. KCFM became AC KSD-FM/KS-94 that July. WRTH was purchased by the owners of KEZK in 1982 and switched to Adult Standards that year. KEZK continued with the Easy Listening format, with minor changes through the late 1980's. In 1990, the station shifted to a Soft AC format, and moved the Easy Listening to 590.

While the format was still liked by advertisers, KEZK likely had to make the difficult decision to end the format due to demographics. What complicated matters was in the St. Louis market was KMOX--then a juggernaut that took 20 per cent of the radio advertising pie.

The transition to AC wasn't easy--for a few years, KEZK had trouble getting advertisers. During that time the market was saturated with three other "Lite" rock stations. KEZK-AM became sports KFNS at the beginning of 1993.

 

[davideduardo]

Easy Listening might have been dead where you were in 1980, but in St. Louis it wasn't.

Thanks for noticing this. I posted wrong (and just corrected) the decades. My service to Latin America ended around 1988. The format just sort of collapsed after the mid-80's.

In 1980, our area had three stations with the format--KCFM (93.7), KEZK (102.5) and AM WRTH (590). Between 1978-9, KCFM had an unsuccessful run as a Soft AOR, and returned to its former Easy Listening format under new owners Gannett. KCFM became AC KSD-FM/KS-94 that July. WRTH was purchased by the owners of KEZK in 1982 and switched to Adult Standards that year. KEZK continued with the Easy Listening format, with minor changes through the late 1980's. In 1990, the station shifted to a Soft AC format, and moved the Easy Listening to 590.

The transition to AC wasn't easy--for a few years, KEZK had trouble getting advertisers. During that time the market was saturated with three other "Lite" rock stations. KEZK-AM became sports KFNS at the beginning of 1993.