Beautiful Music in Buffalo

[mrswarts]

I thought I’d start a new thread based on “KAHM is running "beautiful music", a/k/a elevator music or muzak.” from another post. In checking out the playlist (http://tunein.com/radio/KAHM-1021-s31384/), it doesn’t look like the old WJYE format of elevator music we all knew. It looks similar to the six-month trial of 104.1 WACJ sometime around 1980 – 82. The format was from FM-100 out of Chicago which included the famous FM-100 beautiful string orchestra and chorus. The KAHM format has a lot more “modern” vocals whereas WACJ played mostly crooners like Matt Monroe, Perry Como, Al Martino and, of course the FM-100 chorus. At the time, it was a livelier, more interesting blend of music than JOY had. And, with the beautiful, smooth voice of Keith Luke hosting in the morning, along with the FM-100 string orchestra, I thought it was a sure winner. So did my mother. But, management thought otherwise.

I remember we had to ride the commercial levels lower than the music. And FM-100 advised that our spots not be too rocky/loud/obnoxious, doing a straight read, no music background whenever possible. As a young buck, know-it-all production guy, I almost lost the Stereo Advantage account when I offended the owner by telling him our own produced spot would be better than his amateur, cassette recorded version. When he got angry and started to head for the door, I quickly back-pedaled and saved the account. I don’t know if I ever told Ron Rice about that.

 

[Joe in Prescott]

WOW,,,, Perhaps there IS a spot for Easy Listening in W.N.Y. and/or Southern Ontario!!!
Lets face it, the same people that listen to stations like KAHM, FM 102.1 or online at
KAHM.Info, are the ones who really have most, if not all, of the disposable spending....
The owners at KAHM actually own much of the music they play.... There are many
versions of songs you'll hear nowhere else and they mention this, from time to time.
Before you condemn, you might just actually want to listen................

 

[Mike Sheridan]

I used to see that ads for "The FM-100 Plan" all the time. I seem to remember it was based on a station in Chicago. Is that right? Never heard it in South Florida.

Miami had the giant WLYF (Life) running live with Shulke matched flow beautiful music tapes. It was the number 1 station in Miami and Fort Lauderdale for a long time. All this in a hut at the base of the Channel 10 TV tower. It was so bad that when it rained and the announcer opened the mic you could hear the rain hitting the roof on the air! The announcers had to fight the urge to be tight and count 1-2 before hitting the Scully decks. The board was a 5 pot Gates Stereo Statesman, nothing fancy.

The challengers were nowhere near as successful WOCN (Ocean) in Miami and WGLO (Glow) in Fort Lauderdale, both were automated and yours truly changed the tapes and programmed the WGLO automation all while doing a live show on the AM sister....those were the days!

 

[Mike Sheridan]

I thought I’d start a new thread based on “KAHM is running "beautiful music", a/k/a elevator music or muzak.” from another post. In checking out the playlist (http://tunein.com/radio/KAHM-1021-s31384/), it doesn’t look like the old WJYE format of elevator music we all knew. It looks similar to the six-month trial of 104.1 WACJ sometime around 1980 – 82. The format was from FM-100 out of Chicago which included the famous FM-100 beautiful string orchestra and chorus. The KAHM format has a lot more “modern” vocals whereas WACJ played mostly crooners like Matt Monroe, Perry Como, Al Martino and, of course the FM-100 chorus. At the time, it was a livelier, more interesting blend of music than JOY had. And, with the beautiful, smooth voice of Keith Luke hosting in the morning, along with the FM-100 string orchestra, I thought it was a sure winner. So did my mother. But, management thought otherwise.

I remember we had to ride the commercial levels lower than the music. And FM-100 advised that our spots not be too rocky/loud/obnoxious, doing a straight read, no music background whenever possible. As a young buck, know-it-all production guy, I almost lost the Stereo Advantage account when I offended the owner by telling him our own produced spot would be better than his amateur, cassette recorded version. When he got angry and started to head for the door, I quickly back-pedaled and saved the account. I don’t know if I ever told Ron Rice about that.

Thinking about 1980-1982 might have been a little late to start that format. Most of the really popular Beautiful Music stations started around 1970 from what I remember.

I'm surprised a Stereo store would give you a spot on cassette. Sure money talks but you were right. As we all know it takes ratings to win that fight!

 

[Kal]

At the time, it was a livelier, more interesting blend of music than JOY had. And, with the beautiful, smooth voice of Keith Luke hosting in the morning, along with the FM-100 string orchestra, I thought it was a sure winner. So did my mother. But, management thought otherwise.

Thank you kind sir! I liked the 'Al Martino' format as well, but then we DID try an awful (... and I DO mean AWFUL!!) lot of formats at 104, back in the day! LOL

Kal
~

 

[mrswarts]

Thinking about 1980-1982 might have been a little late to start that format. Most of the really popular Beautiful Music stations started around 1970 from what I remember.

I always wondered why WJYE dumped their beautiful music format at the time they did. I know they were rated "#1" overall for quite a while and, I thought, their numbers were still up there when they changed.

 

[Mike Sheridan]

Thinking about 1980-1982 might have been a little late to start that format. Most of the really popular Beautiful Music stations started around 1970 from what I remember.

I always wondered why WJYE dumped their beautiful music format at the time they did. I know they were rated "#1" overall for quite a while and, I thought, their numbers were still up there when they changed.

What year did they change. Most did a slow slide into soft A/C...probably in search of younger demographics.

 

[SirRoxalot]

I can't believe that we're talking about "Beautiful Music" as a viable format in 2012 in WNY.

 

[yugoidar]

Agreed, Rox!

It was more than 20 years ago that WJYE got out of the beautiful music business.

John Casciani had a go at the BM format after that previous to his move to "New Country" at WNUC, IIRC. That, too, was more than 20 years ago.

 

[JakeLongwell]

I don't mind admitting that I very much enjoy Beautiful Music, and I commend stations like KAHM, WGCY, WKTZ, and KNCT for keeping the format alive in the 21st century.

The history of the format in Western New York is of great interest to me. I grew up in the Southern Tier in the 80s, and my town had a cable system that offered great FM reception if you connected the cable to your stereo's antenna jack. I remember WJYE, and WEZQ (107.7). By the time I started really listening to the radio,. 104.1 was doing Classic Hits.

Depending on where you lived and reception conditions, you had several choices for Beautiful Music in the region in the 1980s. This, at a time when the format was very much in its declining years. In addition to the Buffalo stations I mentioned, I also remember hearing:
WZSH (Wish 95), South Bristol/Rochester
WEBF (95.7), Olean (I especially recall this station didn't sign on until 8:00 A.M. on Sundays!)
CHRE (105.7) (I want to say this station programmed Beautiful Music at some point, though I am not 100% sure).
WRRN (92.3), Warren, PA (This station was truly the last hold out for the format in the region, finally making the switch to soft AC in the late 90s. This would be replaced with an Oldies format just a few years later).

I know there were many other stations in the region programming this music before my time, such as the stations in the Empire State FM Network. I would love to hear about other stations in Western NY and vicinity which carried the format at some point in time.

 

[bmcglynn]

I know there were many other stations in the region programming this music before my time, such as the stations in the Empire State FM Network. I would love to hear about other stations in Western NY and vicinity which carried the format at some point in time.

B/EZ was never killed for ratings. When alive, it was often #1 in the market. To this day, it is still legendary for TSL numbers. Mostly because it was left on in the background. Demographics was the major factor. There was a book I read called "Elevator Music" which described the format's evolution and unfortunate decline.

Back in the 80's there were a few others that I recall:
98.1 WQYT Binghamton "The Quiet Island"
107.9 WRHP Syracuse - Basically a satellite of WPAT's program in in NY
101.3 WEZO
WEZG 100.9, Syracuse
CHFI 98.1 Toronto
CFMO 93.9, then 101.1 - Ottawa
WROW 95.5 then AM 590 - Albany

People liked the format. Outside of the challenge of selling an upper demographic, the music format was also challenges on that most of the music was custom recorded for Schulke, Bonneville, and other syndicators thus making it unavailable for the public to buy.

 

[fybush]

I know there were many other stations in the region programming this music before my time, such as the stations in the Empire State FM Network. I would love to hear about other stations in Western NY and vicinity which carried the format at some point in time.

Youngster... ;D

Here in Rochester, the original beautiful music FMs were WVOR 100.5 (1963-64 until the early 1970s) and WROC-FM/WPXY 97.9 (on air in 1959, but not doing beautiful music right away; the beautiful music lasted until the late 1970s). In 1971, WNYR-FM 101.3 flipped from country to beautiful music as WEZO, and that's the station I remember as being the dominant one in the format during my childhood. It wasn't until 1988 or thereabouts that WEZO went to AC as WRMM, "Warm 101," sending the WEZO calls and beautiful music to a short stay on AM 990. WEZO came back for one more try in the early 1990s, on the new 93.3 Avon rimshot, but that lasted only a year or two before 93.3 became "The River," WHRR (and then WQRV).

 

[Nick Gerard]

I, too, enjoy this music sometimes, but I would never expect of suggest that some station operator adopt it as an over-the-air format.

For those who lament its disappearance, remember that there is this little ol' thing called the Internet with plenty of beautiful music streamers. Notably:

AirstreamFM.com

CrystalRadio.ca

Seeburg1000.com

Nick Seneca

 

[Joe in Prescott]

Thanks for the info on: airstreamfm, crystalradio and seeburg100. Have listened to all of them for hours rather than local KAHM FM 102.1/KAHM.info and they do offer additional choice.... I also compared some of my old recordings and find that none of the current offerings, including KAHM, offer nearly as many instrumentals as in the past. To the list of stations I add: WREO 97.1 Ashtabula, WBIV 107.7 Weathersfield, CHSC 105.7, CKDS Toronto, WLVU 99.9 Erie, CKQS Oshawa and of course, WBNY. All
receivable from my parents home in Orchard Park. To those that say, "Beautiful Music's demograhics are for those 70 to dead," I say to you, show this to your parents, if they are still alive or better yet,
keep this for yourself and read it in another 20-30 years........ You'll find you're not quite as smart as you think....... I'm 55, have listened to Easy Listening all my life, since I was a teenager. I like rock, now and then but I always go back....to Easy Listening.

 

[Yeziknoradio]

"CKDS TORONTO" was actually Hamilton, Ontario, unless you meant CKQT, which was Oshawa Ontario.
CJEZ was the Toronto station...(long before Boom)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbeYldXtDbs

 

[Yeziknoradio]

I can't believe that we're talking about "Beautiful Music" as a viable format in 2012 in WNY.

In the States, because you're allowed to own up to 60% of a market, this format still serves well as security for the idea that a specific station is not competing with sister stations. Therefore, while it might not be viable, it's still doable, and yes, I DO have solid faith in the idea that it would work in it's own unique way.
It also needs to be 100% instrumental! Get rid of all that classic singing crap! Leave that for the standards stations.

 

[bmcglynn]

I can't believe that we're talking about "Beautiful Music" as a viable format in 2012 in WNY.

In the States, because you're allowed to own up to 60% of a market, this format still serves well as security for the idea that a specific station is not competing with sister stations. Therefore, while it might not be viable, it's still doable, and yes, I DO have solid faith in the idea that it would work in it's own unique way.
It also needs to be 100% instrumental! Get rid of all that classic singing crap! Leave that for the standards stations.

When I ran a set of Internet radio stations, our Beautiful Music station had the largest audience. The biggest problem with the format programmatically today is the dearth of material. B/EZ instrumentals were predominately orchestral renditions of pop tunes. The closest thing today would be Smooth Jazz, although that format is not nearly as broad as B/EZ in its musical coverage, and most of the cover tunes are R&B based versus mainstream pop.

To do B/EZ, you'd really be starting from scratch like Schulke did back in the 60's before there was the focus on custom recording. To be true to the format, you'd need to program pop tunes up until now; yet, it would be a very big challenge to find much of anything pop orchestral recorded after the early 1990's.

 

[fybush]

May I direct your attention to the Vitamin String Quartet? They've single-handedly carried on the work of creating orchestral (or at least classical-style) versions of current songs. I heard a few of their tunes playing in Barnes & Noble this morning...is "Titanium" by David Guetta current enough? ;D

 

[JustPastBuffalo]

Classic Hits and Classic Rock are cruising down Upper Demo Boulevard approaching the same speed bumps and rumble strips that slowed Oldies and we're talking Beautiful Music here?! I gotta admit, it's kind of kitschy cool; recollections of 106.5 WADV First In Stereo and 96.1 WBNY Stereo for Moderns. The big GE living room Hi-Fi. Ray Conniff Singers and George Shearing LPs. Wait. Somebody's at the door. Hey, it's Mr. Reality. Crash.

Anybody remember a few years back when an FM in St. Louis did a Sammy Davis-Sinatra-Dean Martin-Rat Pack Format? I think it was called Red 104. Kinda cool, but eventually just a bit too hip for the room, even in St. Louis, just up the river from N'Orlins and Memphis. The 1001 Strings doing Black Keys, Rihanna and Linkin Park sounds like a format that would attract twenty eight (mostly radio) people. For a few minutes. Then we'd have a field day with it on this board.

 

[cyberdad]

There are several beautiful musical streams on Live 365. The "Orchestral Pop" sub-group under the main group "Beautiful Music" brings up several that sound quite a bit like the old Shulke stuff. Lots of instrumental covers of vintage top 40 and older standards. A few have no vocals whatsoever.

I used to pretty much have a dim view of Live 365, but to my surprise with a paid subscription, I've found quite a few professional-sounding streams with high bit rate audio quality. Ad free. Who knew?

There are also several "lounge" streams that range from "Vegas Rat Pack" style pop with instrumentals to
exotica "Tiki Lounge" type stuff. (Martin Denny, Les Baxter, Arthur Lyman, etc.)

I also like the Airstream, Crystal, and Seeburg streams that have been mentioned previously. The first two are basically "relaxing" beautiful music (IMHO), but the intent of the Seeburg music wasn't intended to promote relaxation.....it was basically slightly uptempo background custom-produced instrumental music designed to increase productivity in the workplace. (As a competitor to Muzak and the 3M "Sound of Music" system_/