AM Top 40, The End

[mmnassour]

To drag up something from deep south Texas:

KRGV 1290 and KRIO 910 dominated the Brownsville/McAllen/Harlingen market for years and years, right up to the early 80s. They held on forever, then quickly collapsed as one FM practically took over. Today KRIO and KRGV (now KRGE) are both non-profit religious broadcasters in Spanish.

Gosh, I miss KRGV-AM. There were some excellent folks who worked down there. I remember actual vinyl being played there as late as 82!

 

[LKellerIII]

To drag up something from deep south Texas:

KRGV 1290 and KRIO 910 dominated the Brownsville/McAllen/Harlingen market for years and years, right up to the early 80s. They held on forever, then quickly collapsed as one FM practically took over. Today KRIO and KRGV (now KRGE) are both non-profit religious broadcasters in Spanish.

Gosh, I miss KRGV-AM. There were some excellent folks who worked down there. I remember actual vinyl being played there as late as 82!

That seems to be an odd pattern with old Top 40 frequencies. Even in the San Francisco Bay Area market, The once dominant Big 610 (formely KFRC) is a religious station, and once second place KYA is now "Catholic Radio 1260."

 

[davideduardo]

KRGV 1290 and KRIO 910 dominated the Brownsville/McAllen/Harlingen market for years and years, right up to the early 80s.

You are forgetting the total dominator of the market, KGBT, with its consistent over-30-share position right into the early 90's.

 

[mmnassour]

Absolutely, I was thinking English Top 40 only. IIRC KGBT could be heard down into South America with the right skip!

 

[radiolistener66]

Very interesting thread. Let me toss in several comments.

If I recall correctly...

1130/WCAR, Detroit. In the early seventies, 'CAR was an AC but never a Top 40. The Big 8 was still the Top 40 gun (Gary Burbank in mornings), though everyone was WAYYYY behind WJR. WCAR was indeed a very good AC--fairly close to what we would call a Hot AC. Very much Full Service with all the bells & whistles. Major League Radio. But, an AC.

1580/WPGC, Morningside-Washington. Even during the early seventies, WPGC-FM carried the ball for the AM, and by the early eighties 95.5 had simply reached a point where 1580 was superfluous. FWIW, during AM's heyday of the late 60's and early 70's, the DC market had a raft of AM Top 40 stations beyond WPGC: 1390/WEAM, 1310/WEEL, 1600/WINX, and for a few years (too late) 980/WRC. But WPGC ruled Top 40 for decades--and continued in the format throughout the eighties and well into the nineties on FM before morphing very gradually into a sort of Churban--where they continue to do extremely well. The old-timers among us may not think of WPGC as Top 40, but many of today's programmers would beg to disagree.

1380/WMEE, Fort Wayne. I've always given this station the top prize for playing its cards exactly right. After decades as a dominant Top 40 (well, "dominant" if you don't count WOWO)--okay, dominant in younger demos--these guys understood what was happening and flipped 1380's Top 40 format over to the FM lock, stock & barrell and just kept on rolling. In the years since, WMEE-FM has continued to do very well as the market's Hot AC--arguably the conceptual successor to Top 40. The key is that while ABC was screwing things up royally with WLS and WABC... while the RKO chain of great Top 40s (CKLW, KHJ, WHBQ, WRKO) was falling apart... these guys in Fort Wayne got it right.

And, finally, my own interpretation of What Happened: A true variety format--the place where you could conceivably have heard Led Zeppelin, Dolly Parton, James Brown & Air Supply back-to-back-to-back-to-back--Top 40 got picked apart as the music genres splintered off into their own formats: AOR, Urban, Country, AC... beginning probably in the seventies, picking up steam in the eighties, and full speed ahead in the nineties.

The rise of FM effectively doubled the number of competitive sticks and they all needed something to fill 168 hours a week...

 

[radiorob2.0]

1580/WPGC, Morningside-Washington. Even during the early seventies, WPGC-FM carried the ball for the AM, and by the early eighties 95.5 had simply reached a point where 1580 was superfluous. FWIW, during AM's heyday of the late 60's and early 70's, the DC market had a raft of AM Top 40 stations beyond WPGC: 1390/WEAM, 1310/WEEL, 1600/WINX, and for a few years (too late) 980/WRC. But WPGC ruled Top 40 for decades--and continued in the format throughout the eighties and well into the nineties on FM before morphing very gradually into a sort of Churban--where they continue to do extremely well. The old-timers among us may not think of WPGC as Top 40, but many of today's programmers would beg to disagree.

WPGC was a daytimer so that is a major shortcoming right there. However, that proved to be an advantage since WPGC was a major factor for pushing DC listeners to FM. The other factor involved signal. With the exception of WRC, the AM signals you mentioned could not cover the modern DC market. The only other AM covers DC market is WMAL.

Also, WPGC changed formats and call letters in the early 80's. New owners returned the WPGC call letter and began the Churban format that evolved to Hip Hip. You are right, there was many who argued the new WPGC was not "Top 40" (or CHR). I remember a full page ad in R & R that was a letter from WPGC management explaining the product was "Top 40" (or CHR) because what they played a mass appeal representation of the DC market. The Top 40 (or CHR) controversy with WPGC died down when the trades splintered off CHR to subformats.

 

[Corky Marlowe]

1380/WMEE, Fort Wayne. I've always given this station the top prize for playing its cards exactly right. After decades as a dominant Top 40 (well, "dominant" if you don't count WOWO)--okay, dominant in younger demos--these guys understood what was happening and flipped 1380's Top 40 format over to the FM lock, stock & barrell and just kept on rolling. In the years since, WMEE-FM has continued to do very well as the market's Hot AC--arguably the conceptual successor to Top 40. The key is that while ABC was screwing things up royally with WLS and WABC... while the RKO chain of great Top 40s (CKLW, KHJ, WHBQ, WRKO) was falling apart... these guys in Fort Wayne got it right.

And, finally, my own interpretation of What Happened: A true variety format--the place where you could conceivably have heard Led Zeppelin, Dolly Parton, James Brown & Air Supply back-to-back-to-back-to-back--Top 40 got picked apart as the music genres splintered off into their own formats: AOR, Urban, Country, AC... beginning probably in the seventies, picking up steam in the eighties, and full speed ahead in the nineties.

'MEE came to life in the fall of '71, replacing the old WKJG-AM (MOR, lots of NBC stuff including Monitor). It took them 13 years to beat WOWO overall, but they had the kids right away, blowing the doors off of WLYV in pretty short order. Also, as far as the death of true variety radio, that's pretty accurate. Maybe it happened earlier in some cities, but that's how it did happen.

 

[MsMusicRadio]

I could hear WOWO clear as a ringin a bell in Pittsburgh. Never heard WMEE. I thought WOWO was better than KDKA, but not as good as WKYC or WBZ.

 

[gr8oldies]

I remember reading that WCAR did make a brief run at top 40, bringing Steve Hunter (exCKLW) back from Cleveland.

 

[davideduardo]

Absolutely, I was thinking English Top 40 only. IIRC KGBT could be heard down into South America with the right skip!

I was simply taking exception to the idea the either of the Top 40's dominated the market, since that was KGBT.

But KGBT was not Top 40, ever.

And it had a hard time getting into central Mexico, and definitely could not be heard in South America at night. South America is southeast of McAllen, and the signal went SSW, mostly over Mexico and out to the Pacific. But signals like XEUR in Mexico City on 1530 prevented it from doing much at night other than in the northern areas of Mexico.

 

[NoWayNoCC]

Why did Cincinnati lose all its major AM top 40's so early?

(WCLU went top 40 in the '80s, but it had a bad signal and no promotional budget.)

 

[gr8oldies]

"All" was only one. WUBE pretty much went down in flames very early. WSAI flipped in the late 70s, no doubt because of Q102 being an early entry into the Top 40 wars.

 

[MsMusicRadio]

When did WKRP give up Top 40? Was it the turkey stunt?

 

[Icangelp]

"All" was only one. WUBE pretty much went down in flames very early. WSAI flipped in the late 70s, no doubt because of Q102 being an early entry into the Top 40 wars.

I'm guessing in the early 70's, WEBN being a pioneer in album rock, really took a large share of the coveted age/Sex group that had been listening to WSAI & WUBE. I know that when I moved to Cincy in 1970, I went right to WEBN, ignoring WSAI, one of the stations I had listened to in the eary 60's while growing up in Indianapolis.

 

[HadYourPhil]

Here's one for the books: In (I believe) 1983 or late '82, Houston had no CHR/Top-40. Jon Lander came in and flipped KKBQ 790 to CHR. They actually had a couple of good books before they flipped the FM to CHR. That easily has to be the last AM to flip to Top-40/CHR!

 

[BIG APE]

I remember when we lost it, and pardon me if this has already been answered, but, when did the WFIL Famous 56 jocks go silent..Wasn't WCAU across the street Rocknroll at one time?
BIGAPE!

 

[radiorob2.0]

I remember when we lost it, and pardon me if this has already been answered, but, when did the WFIL Famous 56 jocks go silent..Wasn't WCAU across the street Rocknroll at one time?
BIGAPE!

WFIL drifted to AC by the late seventies and changed to country in late 1981. Two years later, Famous 56 returned as an oldies station.

WCAU was never current rock. However, CBS gave up and flipped the station to oldies in 1990. It was a partial simulcast with FM WOGL. That format lasted a few years before the switch to sports then talk.

 

[boppinvinnieb]

IIRC, WCAO in Baltimore had no real Top 40 competition from any of the FMs until B104 came along in 1980. WITH-FM (Muuuuuusic 104!) tried CHR a couple of times during the '70s but met with little success (ironically WITH was on 104.3, which later became the legendary B104!) WPGC covered the western and southern suburbs of Baltimore pretty well but not the city or north and east, and besides, was programming to a DC audience.

WCAO's flip to Country was in the fall of 1982. I remember because the Orioles were playing the Brewers for the AL championship, and I called the station to win a prize by "booing the Brewers out of town" (with several of my co-workers chiming in.) The jock doing the contest (it may have been Johnny Dark, IMHO one of the greatest DJs of all time) admitted that the station would be switching to Country in a couple of weeks. I vividly remember the sick feeling in the pit of my stomach when I heard that. 'CAO actually did well playing Country for a few years, but was no match for powerhouse WPOC which had been the de facto Country station since 1973. I'm not sure when the flip to Gospel happened, but in a way I am glad they have kept the same call letters through all the changes. I guess that's the traditionalist in me.

While not a Top 40 station, it's interesting to note that the "mainstream" AOR in Baltimore, at least through the mid-'70s, was a 1000 watt AM daytimer! 86 WAYE was where I first heard the likes of Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd. Until 98 Rock started in 1977, the FM rock stations (WLPL, WKTK) were playing the "underground"/alternative stuff. WMAL-FM was AOR, but again, programming to the DC market.

 

[mleach]

IIRC, WCAO in Baltimore had no real Top 40 competition from any of the FMs until B104 came along in 1980. WITH-FM (Muuuuuusic 104!) tried CHR a couple of times during the '70s but met with little success (ironically WITH was on 104.3, which later became the legendary B104!) WPGC covered the western and southern suburbs of Baltimore pretty well but not the city or north and east, and besides, was programming to a DC audience.

How did WLPL "Stereo 92" do in the 70's when they were going up against WCAO? Reason I ask some years back I was checking out Gary Michaels when he was on the air in Martinsburg, WV at then WKMZ-FM. Gary made some claim on the air that he had the Baltimore top 40 crowd all to himself in the mid 70's when he was on WLPL-FM.

In my collection of books I used to have the book "Top 40 Radio Guide of 1980". While they had WCAO listed of course they also listed WFBR-AM 1300 as well as being Top 40 even though WFBR did air local talk with Charlie Donovan in the evenings while then afternoon drive jock Bob Bolton, I seem to remember he was playing more oldies than the current hits even though the book listed them as being "top 40".

WCAO's flip to Country was in the fall of 1982. I remember because the Orioles were playing the Brewers for the AL championship, and I called the station to win a prize by "booing the Brewers out of town" (with several of my co-workers chiming in.) The jock doing the contest (it may have been Johnny Dark, IMHO one of the greatest DJs of all time) admitted that the station would be switching to Country in a couple of weeks. I vividly remember the sick feeling in the pit of my stomach when I heard that.

Well at least Johnny Dark was being honest. In the summer of 1982 I was in Virginia Beach listening to then WQRK-FM "104 and a Half" when at the time they were playing your average rock. Don't know who I was listening to that night but whoever he was said that WQRK would soon be giving up rock and roll in favor of..Music of Your Life. Well WQRK would soon change format but not to the sounds of Sinatra or Deno but rather to a full blown CHR station as WNVZ-FM "Z104".

 

[MsMusicRadio]

Norfolk had a truly legendary TOP 40 in WGH . Their AM competition was WNOR at 1230 and a station at 1350 ( forget the calls) . When did the music die on this trio?