a slightly different perspective of WBCN and Oedipus

[BoscoGoldBear]

This is from someone who was a tad bit more partial towards Kiss 108 from the Sunny Joe days over the WBCN juggernaut of the 1980s. There are people who seem to be complaining that the WBCN on the air since 1980 is inferior to the 1970s "anything goes" version (i.e. the Maxanne, Charlie Kendall, Tommy Hadges and the frequent "appearances" of Duane Ingalls Glasscock). I've got news for you: 'BCN had to change from an "anything goes" rock station to a mainstream rock yet alternative friendly station (i.e. B-52's, Modern English, Pretenders, Police, U2, Talking Heads) because they were getting their a**es kicked by 'COZ (today gang-banger station Jam'n 94-5). Obviously this approach worked. Even when they had tough new competition ('ZLX, Oldies 103), 'BCN was always at or close to the top both overall and in the most important 25-54s. Once the Seattle grunge crap emerged, 'BCN avoided it like the plague (poor 25-54 appeal) and instead ramped up the comedy, with The Big Mattress (the Vanilla Ice parody "Italian Ice" came around this time), Captain Ken with an overdose of classic rock, Mark Parenteau saying his pet phrases "Lick me" and "D***in' the dog" a hundred million times during his show, and of course Howard Stern to end the day. Once Stern began the day, and the comedy was replaced by alt-rock (Nirvana, Alanis, Counting Crows, Dave Matthews, BNL, Pumpkins, Green Day, etc.), that started 'BCN towards the ramp for that shark jump. Once CBS bought Infinity in 1996, and Mix 98-5 (whose music was identical to 'BCN's), 'BCN and Oedipus totally sailed over the shark IMHO, especially since Oeddy caved in to Greg Strassell over at fellow alt-rocker Mix, and Oeddy had to rely on Stern as a net result. (That shark wasn't even in the rear view mirror by the time DLR came around.)

Bottom line: my view of 'BCN isn't nearly as harsh as some other people's points; I'm just very disappointed at the result.

 

[scooty430]

This is from someone who was a tad bit more partial towards Kiss 108 from the Sunny Joe days over the WBCN juggernaut of the 1980s. There are people who seem to be complaining that the WBCN on the air since 1980 is inferior to the 1970s "anything goes" version (i.e. the Maxanne, Charlie Kendall, Tommy Hadges and the frequent "appearances" of Duane Ingalls Glasscock). I've got news for you: 'BCN had to change from an "anything goes" rock station to a mainstream rock yet alternative friendly station (i.e. B-52's, Modern English, Pretenders, Police, U2, Talking Heads) because they were getting their a**es kicked by 'COZ (today gang-banger station Jam'n 94-5). Obviously this approach worked. Even when they had tough new competition ('ZLX, Oldies 103), 'BCN was always at or close to the top both overall and in the most important 25-54s. Once the Seattle grunge crap emerged, 'BCN avoided it like the plague (poor 25-54 appeal) and instead ramped up the comedy, with The Big Mattress (the Vanilla Ice parody "Italian Ice" came around this time), Captain Ken with an overdose of classic rock, Mark Parenteau saying his pet phrases "Lick me" and "D***in' the dog" a hundred million times during his show, and of course Howard Stern to end the day. Once Stern began the day, and the comedy was replaced by alt-rock (Nirvana, Alanis, Counting Crows, Dave Matthews, BNL, Pumpkins, Green Day, etc.), that started 'BCN towards the ramp for that shark jump. Once CBS bought Infinity in 1996, and Mix 98-5 (whose music was identical to 'BCN's), 'BCN and Oedipus totally sailed over the shark IMHO, especially since Oeddy caved in to Greg Strassell over at fellow alt-rocker Mix, and Oeddy had to rely on Stern as a net result. (That shark wasn't even in the rear view mirror by the time DLR came around.)

Bottom line: my view of 'BCN isn't nearly as harsh as some other people's points; I'm just very disappointed at the result.

Definitely agree the "result" of BCN is that it is dead. A station with no heart, no soul.

Also agree that the freeform BCN of the early 70s was never a ratings powerhouse. No freeform station really can be.

However, I'm not so sure that playing stuff like B52s and Modern English is what got BCN to #1 in the 80s. Indeed, if you read interviews at the time, you will see Charles and Oedipus talking about how they had to fight to get stuff like Elvis Costello and early Prince on the playlist, because the audience wanted Zep and Floyd. They wanted to keep the station current, and play a wider variety of new, more hip artists, yet still cater to the people who listened to COZ, then later AAF, and still later ZLX. They probably could have done it more easily WITHOUT the new wave and pop stuff, frankly. Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Cyndi Lauper, and Rock Lobster were not considered very cool by a lot of Boston rock fans, but they put up with it because BCN was overall the best station, with the best personalities. I think they are to be commended for creating a station with a greater variety, yet still retaining a big audience. Other markets at the time had a "rock" station, a "pop" station, and maybe a "modern" station. BCN managed to be all of them.

Once the classic rock boom happened, in the late 80s, BCN did a great job of still keeping new music in the rotation, while playing/rediscovering some of those older artists. I remember one weekend where BCN played every song ZLX played, about 5 minutes after they did, but when ZLX played a commercial, they would play a new song that ZLX wouldn't touch. It really showed that with BCN you got it all.

I would say they kept it up until the Howard Stern decision. Once you start devoting four or five hours to a guy who just talks, you are no longer a music outlet. Especially when you give up the night slot, where great DJs like Carter Alan and Bradley J played more unusual stuff. Adding in football is even more idiotic. But of course, the biggest blow was trying to jump on the alternative bandwagon. They essentially "blew up" the station, and lost their heritage. A better tack would have been to dump ZLX and make it the "cool new alternative" station, and keep BCN, and all the old DJs, for another 10 or 20 years. If they'd done that, they'd still have Charles, Ken, and maybe Mark if he hadn't turned out to be a criminal. They could even have played some of the better new music that fit in with the classics.

It was certainly a fun station while it lasted.

 

[Neanderpaul]

The thing is though. And this is part of the reason I got into the business..

WBCN was the entertainment source for my lifegroup. It may not be reality, but that was my perception. If WBCN was involved, I wanted to be there. This is the thing that's missing from most Rock stations of the day, and why audience erosion has happened. Because the radio station is no longer the be-all, end-all for the lifegroup. We must be consistent, if not do better in re-connecting with the audience, or they'll find somewhere else to go

The WBCN "Rock N' Roll Expo" was unlike anything anyone else did. For a kid in Southie, it was nothing to head on over to Bayside and spend $ for two or 3 days just to get in and see "Rock stuff". AND..I got to see some really cool bands of the day. These are the things that, as much as I like people in the BCN building, some of them have no idea even took place. Score one for the local argument.

Angel City never played Boston, and yet there they were and I wasn't old enough to see them anywhere else. BCN got credit for that. I would never have seen Jon Butcher, or Joe Perry, or KEEL (trust me..at the time they meant something to a 15 year-old). Plus I got my demo tape from The Drive, featuring that cool "Doin' The Countdown" song from the video on V66 that I had to put aluminum foil on my TV to even get. And I gave WBCN credit for all of that as a kid. They were cooler than WAAF because they were in my world and more accessible. WBCN was smarter than WAAF back then because they grew audience. It wasn't until my musical tastes went in the direction of Headbanger's Ball type stuff that I found WAAF. But, I stilll made Sunday night at 10PM WBCN appointment listening time, and then switched over to WERS. Because those stations catered to my musical tastes.

BCN did the "non-radio" events better back then. While WAAF was doing softball games in Framingham, or Holliston, places a city kid never went, WBCN was on Carson beach, and in Revere, places a kid could get by the T. And yeah...the signal thing mattered then too. But, once I took interest in the music WAAF played, I made every effort to get them on my radio whenever possible. They just never did anything in my world, and because of that, WBCN was my favorite station. Even though I preferred the AAF music more. Hell...Quincy's Records & Tapes got most of my money because I saw WBCN stickers on their counter.

Score another win for good promotions = worthy advertising buy.

WBCN did great things back then. The environment of radio has changed, and I'm sure budget constraints keep them from doing stuff like the Expo today. But, those are the things I remembered. And as a 38-year old male...right there in the middle of that money demo....guess who wins if that's the recall?

 

[Varulven]

The WCOZ "All Led Zeppelin All The Time" was a brilliant idea, for ten minutes.
Yes, WCOZ did kick WBCN's backside for a time, however, WCOZ ALSO brought balance and kept competition in the region. That's a very important and rarely discussed fact.

Competition was very healthy. When WCOZ morphed into the Zou playing extended mixes of dance hits, voila, WBCN had no competition.

That was very unhealthy.

When Maxanne went to WBOS circa 1982 for a short period Oedipus was in quite the quandary. His master was now his competition. That the Landlubber Hiphugger or whatever the Blue Jean company is that owned WBOS (with Mrs. Howie Carr as an advertising rep, I believe; at least Mrs. Joe Perry from Aerosmith worked as an ad rep there) dropped the format for Country speaks volumes about the no competition thing.

Oedipus fixated on WFNX and, to a lesser degree, WAAF.

There were two problems we radio fans faced:

---no real alternative to WBCN
---Oedipus morphing from humanitarian into radio mogul with too many self-interests.

For all the good Charlie Kendall and Tommy Hadges and Buffalo and Charles did to give the Tony Berardini era a chance - and Tony did make some interesting and good moves,
Charlie Kendall would've been a better choice for long-term program director. He and Sam Kopper did excellent work for the community and the "public" airwaves.

I applaud Tony's staunch support of public affairs; I applaud Tony arguing that college students listened to WBCN but weren't reflected in Arbitron ratings. The downside is that the Tony and Oedi show, for all the pluses they brought, also brought about a rotting of the foundation, thus, we have the product we have today. Dreary, boring.

The best thing one can say about the current WBCN is about whatever holdovers are left from that era... For the short term, Oedi and Tony did a good job. In the long run their policies did more harm than they did good. It's a double-edged sword.

Both Tony & Oedi could argue that change is constant in the radio business; I will allow that they did a good job for their "present" point in time (though I didn't approve of it), I also submit that WBCN is not your typical station. It is a heritage signal, like WCRB, and it was not treated with the respect it deserved.

So, we have what we have today. I would be the biggest supporter of both Berardini and Hyson (Oedipus) had they at least installed safety valves so that the station from the 60s and 70s, the "rock", would maintain some dignity after they moved on. They didn't. Like Jordan Marsh, Filenes and other trademarks, WBCN is a hollow shadow of its former self.

 

[Bill790]

... There are people who seem to be complaining that the WBCN on the air since 1980 is inferior to the 1970s "anything goes" version I've got news for you: 'BCN had to change from an "anything goes" rock because they were getting their a**es kicked by 'COZ. Obviously this approach worked.

Bottom line: my view of 'BCN isn't nearly as harsh as some other people's points; I'm just very disappointed at the result.

Yes, most rock fans (and especially rock radio fans) are disappointed. Elsewhere in this thread Paul, as usual, did a good job of laying out some details of what happened and why. But let's not lose sight of the fact that, for all its faults, BCN is still a rock station (albeit a shadow of its former self). Just look at what happened to its counterpart in New York, WNEW-FM, a station that had every bit of the "cool" factor that 'BCN had, plus greater access to the top music talent in the business. So, don't mourn BCN. It's not dead yet, is it?

 

[radiotony]

Plus, WCOZ had the "kilo" contest ... Remember that? ;D I do as a kid. Of course, I didn't know what "kilo" was at the time and later, couldn't believe that they were actually going to give away dope on the air!

The WCOZ "All Led Zeppelin All The Time" was a brilliant idea, for ten minutes.

Yes, WCOZ did kick WBCN's backside for a time, however, WCOZ ALSO brought balance and kept competition in the region. That's a very important and rarely discussed fact.

Competition was very healthy. When WCOZ morphed into the Zou playing extended mixes of dance hits, voila, WBCN had no competition.

 

[scooty430]

Plus, WCOZ had the "kilo" contest ... Remember that? ;D I do as a kid. Of course, I didn't know what "kilo" was at the time and later, couldn't believe that they were actually going to give away dope on the air!

The WCOZ "All Led Zeppelin All The Time" was a brilliant idea, for ten minutes.

Yes, WCOZ did kick WBCN's backside for a time, however, WCOZ ALSO brought balance and kept competition in the region. That's a very important and rarely discussed fact.

Competition was very healthy. When WCOZ morphed into the Zou playing extended mixes of dance hits, voila, WBCN had no competition.

If you were 12 years old (like I was at the time) and just learning about groups like the Who, Kinks, Stones, Beatles, Zeppelin, Jethro Tull, etc., COZ's hard rock period was pure heaven. I think a more seasoned listener would have been bored by the narrow playlist and lack of DJ personality, but it was definitely the only station any self-respecting suburban kid listened to in my town. BCN was way too sophisticated for us at the time! (And their signal was kind of crappy back then, too.) I remember on Friday afternoons in study hall everyone would pass notes about what the "weekend" would be. Would it be a "block party," all Stones, double-shot weekend, Zeppelin/Doors, or the best one: the album side weekend - an album side every hour. They also played an entire album every night at 9pm, which was pretty cool. And they had Dr. Demento. Of course, to listen to COZ now would be as boring as......well....ZLX, basically. But we weren't burned out on those Zep tunes yet - they were all new to us.

I actually would have kept listening to COZ for a while too, if they hadn't switched formats so fast. I think they gave up too quickly, though I guess the whole JAMN thing ended up working eventually.

 

[Neanderpaul]

Remember the "walk-a-thon"s to Paragon Park?

I did one. Recalled when Cindy Bailen was looked upon as a goddess while she sat at the table outside Quincy Voc-Tech.

WCOZ was also the first time I heard "Kick Ass Rock & Roll" and the old animated TV commercial where the guy spelled out WCOZ with the laser sword, and then disappeared like a comet was wicked cool!

Then we got F-105..that brief VBF Rock phase. And of course Rock 92.9 WBOS, and Hit Rock Radio WHTT!

Come to think of it..Vig might be right. Maybe it was better back then?

Nah...none of them had Billy West doing parodies with Eddie G. Or Bob & Zip's "Just A Big Ego".

Those are the things I remember. I couldn't name two jocks from WHTT, or WBOS back then.

 

[Mickey37]

WCOZ was also the first time I heard "Kick Ass Rock & Roll" and the old animated TV commercial where the guy spelled out WCOZ with the laser sword, and then disappeared like a comet was wicked cool!

Then we got F-105..that brief VBF Rock phase. And of course Rock 92.9 WBOS, and Hit Rock Radio WHTT!
.

Wow! I'd forgotten about COZ's light sword ad. That was indeed "wicked cool."

Did they do the Stairway To Heaven thing at 10 PM in the F-105 days? That's what I remember about 'VBF.

One reason why WHTT will always have a place in my heart: I was run over by a car in '82. During the long recovery over the next year, I listened to that station religiously. Somehow, word got back to them. One of the biggest trills I got back then was receiving a copy of The Police's Synchronicity LP, autographed by the 'HTT jocks. I've still got it somewhere.

 

[Varulven]

Neanderpaul, it was only better back then because there were more owners. Competition is a healthy thing, that is my argument and it is a good one. There is a good 70 % chance that you would have remained in this market at WCGY or PIXIE on the Cape if things went back just 15 years. Those are huge odds in your favor, an opportunity for you to make a name in the community over years, not just months in prime time. People would have then had a better opportunity to love you or hate you. With Nik Carter they got many years - there are friends of mine who really liked Nik, and other friends of mine who couldn't stand him. So he did strike a chord with some people (though the friends of mine who enjoyed him, naturally, got a good ribbing from me.)

WBCN was a station that, like George W. Bush, had too much time with a "Republican Congress". There were too many people who were ruled by fear. Competition would've made the General Manager and Program Director more paranoid, more things may have allegedly got flung around the station (look out for that alleged flying lamp...), but the staff would have had OPTIONS to go elsewhere.

For those of you who have stayed in the business, some advice. Work to get more independent stations into the mix. This will help WBCN in the long run. No matter what you think of AM 1430/AM 1400, get those signals away from Clear Channel. Clear Channel didn't care about the "Progressive Talk" (anyone who reads the Yahoogroup in detail can see that)

An example:
Now that I've settled my differences with TV 3 (we've dropped four of the five cases!) and will be back on the air I am simultaneously creating a new TV station for Medford. I have also invited other people to create a community station so the mayor will have 3 or 4 options. What I'm suggesting to you radio people is nothing I'm not doing myself for my chosen field. We already have for MICTV (my new station) a veteran station manager, veteran board of directors, and I've copied TV3's by-laws for us to create our own. Why reinvent the wheel when I can just take what exists and make it better?

Steve Provizer had the right idea with Allston Brighton Free Radio, he just didn't have the financing.
You can put a Part 15 station up AND broadcast on the web and Public Access. We did a Trimulcast with
Allston Brighton Free Radio, the internet (live 365 or something, I forget) and TV 3 Medford back in 2000.
It got written up somewhere. Read Bob Hilliard's THE HIDDEN SCREEN. (Howie Carr eat your heart out; even used copies of Bob's somewhat recent book go for 20.00 on Amazon!)

http://www.amazon.com/Hidden-Screen-Power-Television-America/dp/0765604205


But putting a functional station up, even a small one, and broadcasting on cable, you can build an audience...and advertisers or sponsors.

If there were 5 stations in Boston around WBCN blasting on the internet, cable and with a series of Part 15 transmitters put in key sections of the community, it would be a story and would build some name recognition.

There are lots of people who could broadcast music that is more appealing than WFNX, WBCN, WAAF, because all those stations - including the independent Phoenix/WFNX - are still coloring by the numbers, still behaving with a Corporate Mentality instead of having the listener in mind. That's my slightly different perspective on
WBCN today, that instead of one or two "kings" ruling the roost you have a New York mantra that must be adhered to. New York isn't Boston and all politics IS local.

just my thoughts. Watch as our internet station unleashes hundreds of hours of community programming.
It will be in a few months but it is in the works right now, announced at a City Council meeting a few weeks ago by yours truly

DO THE MATH:

Bob Hilliard's book from September 1999 20.99 and up

Howie Carr's book from February 3, 2006 42 used & new available from $4.96

http://www.amazon.com/Brothers-Bulg..._bbs_sr_2/104-9003117-9197546?ie=UTF8&s=books

 

[TowerBuzz]

Varulven complains that competiton is healthy and I agree but then complains about oedipus's "fixation' with WFNX and Waaf? that's called competition!. What do you think comptition IS? it is not usually duels at twenty paces where gentlemen fight by a set of rules that are governed by Emily Post like guidelines. You asked for competition and you got it. WFNX was never in any position to compete with wbcn but Oedipus also made sure that no one was, that is competition so what are you whining about?. Your only experience in radio has been at meaningless enitities. WCGY never a threat or competition to ANYONE in Boston, ever, so you have no idea what it actually takes to "compete", none.
Sunny Joe white and Oedipus were different sides of the same coin, Sunny employed many tactics against his competitors which gave Kiss a virtual monopoly on top 40 music in boston which remains to this day, WZOU was never any cometition until they got serious and hired Steve Rivers who put on a bland, safe version of forumlaic CHR complete with the same liners that he used at KIIS LA but it worked and he toppled the mighty kiss. Matter of fact many say that Oedipus learned his techniquie FROM watching Sunny Joe WHite crush his competition. So why is one a legend and the other a villian?. You cannot have it both ways, as always.

By the way Steve N, Mix is not and never was an "alternative rock" station, they played a few alt bands that crossed over to AC and some that eventually even ended up on Magic, Dave Matthews for example is about as far from "alternative" as one can get. Your perceptions are not very accurate. More importantly Im shocked that nobody else took exception to the depiction of Jamn as "Gang banger music". So you dont like hip hop that is your perogative but that statement is INCREDIBLY RACIST, and equally ignorant seeing as Jamn's audience is 90% FEMALE, WHITE, and SUBURBAN.. A little research before posting would be a good idea for you.

 

[Varulven]

how coincidental that we're on this subject, WBCN etc.

http://www.radio-info.com/smf/index.php/topic,61538.0.html

 

[Brooklyndon]

90% FEMALE, WHITE, and SUBURBAN..


Which explains why they don't even play rap music. Give them a listen, I bet it'll be Nelly Furtado, Justin Timberlake, Young Lloyd, Beyonce, Puff Daddy, Cassie, Sharifa, and maybe, maybe some Jay-Z and like Nellie.

JMN better be a girls station becasue it plays the corniest music out there. the only real gangsta station was WBOT and it wasn't even that gangsta too long. Point is, Boston need another rap outlet that isn't corny.

 

[TowerBuzz]

Brooklyndon, at last check Jay Z, P Diddy, Young Lloyd were all RAPPERS!. To begin with Hip Hop is not strictly limited to "rap" it is a umbrella genre, and a culture. If Timberland produces Nelly Furtado, guess what? IT's HIP HOP!. Guess what? Urban stations and BET are playing Justin Timberlake! also produced by Timberland. Nobody ever said Jamn was a "rap" station. Stop getting your own taste mixed up with what the rest of the world likes. You claim to be in sales but have no idea about demographics. Which do you think is smarter: To be number one 12+ and in virtually all young adult demos male and persons 18-34, in Boston and be thought of as "corny" by some twenty something poseour who thinks he's a "hipster", or to try to appeal to said "hipster" and not have much of an audience at all?. Stop hatin'!

WBOT was far from"Gangsta" they were owned by a corporation, how gantsta could they be?.They were owned by a poorly run corporation and they weere a very pooly programmed radio station which is why you are hearing what you hear on that frequency today. NOBODY LISTENED. Gansta is BS. Gangsta is part of what has ruined hip hop to begin with becuase half of the clowns yelling about how gangsta they are dont even live that life!. They only get signed by the white owned and operated labels (which almost every hip hop label is) if they go the gangsta route because that is what sells to the vanilla suburbs I.E guys like you. . [EDIT]



[EDIT-inflammatory]