Classic Hits Vs Classic Rock

[gcc83j]

Just spent the better part of two days listening to 100.1,
The PIKE in Worcester. I get that they go to great lengths
to use the term Classic Hits rather than Classic Rock. But
what is the difference? OK, I heard slightly lighter fare
than WZLX, but I thought maybe Classic Hits might mean a little
R&B every now and then. I might have missed them, but I don't
think I heard a single black artist in two days! Not even
Hendrix, and he's the exception to the rule. It's not that I
didn't enjoy what I was hearing, it's just seems to be 'ZLX-lite.
It seems to be basically Classic Top Forty (white) hits.
The variety was OK and even an "oldie" or two like Roy Orbison,
but again, the question is what really is the difference between
Classic Hits and Classic Rock, at least as far as the PIKE is
concerned?

 

[Eli Polonsky]

> Just spent the better part of two days listening to 100.1,
> The PIKE in Worcester. I get that they go to great lengths
> to use the term Classic Hits rather than Classic Rock. But
> what is the difference? OK, I heard slightly lighter fare
> than WZLX, but I thought maybe Classic Hits might mean a little
> R&B every now and then. I might have missed them, but I don't
> think I heard a single black artist in two days! Not even
> Hendrix, and he's the exception to the rule. It's not that I
> didn't enjoy what I was hearing, it's just seems to be 'ZLX-lite.
> It seems to be basically Classic Top Forty (white) hits.
> The variety was OK and even an "oldie" or two like Roy Orbison,
> but again, the question is what really is the difference between
> Classic Hits and Classic Rock, at least as far as the PIKE
> is concerned?

Classic Rock stations play some of the album-only tracks of the era that were popular on FM AOR (Album-Oriented Rock) stations back in the day. Classic Hits stations play only rock/pop hits that were hit singles. (The one exception may be The Beatles, who were so huge that many of their non-single album tracks have the same hit "value" as their singles).

Classic Hits stations, as you mentioned, also include some lighter pop hits and less hard rock than Classic Rock stations.

"The Pike" may not, but some Classic Hits stations do include some big R&B hits in their rotation. WROR Boston no longer uses the phrase Classic Hits (perhaps to avoid ratings diary confusion with WZLX), but they are listed as a Classic Hits format in Arbitron, Radio-Locator, etc...

WROR's positioner is "The Songs You Grew Up With", and they do include a small selection of 70's hits by big Motown artists such as Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder, dance hits by groups like Earth Wind & Fire and The Commodores, and a few big 60's soul hit classics by artists like Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding and Sam & Dave in the mix along with the usual rock/pop hits... whatever they feel their audience identifies with and makes them feel good. It also may help them be more competitive against WODS, who are heavy on big 60's/70's R&B hits in their rotation.

 

[JustinT]

> "The Pike" may not, but some Classic Hits stations do
> include some big R&B hits in their rotation. WROR Boston no
> longer uses the phrase Classic Hits (perhaps to avoid
> ratings diary confusion with WZLX), but they are listed as a
> Classic Hits format in Arbitron, Radio-Locator, etc...
>
> WROR's positioner is "The Songs You Grew Up With", and they
> do include a small selection of 70's hits by big Motown
> artists such as Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder, dance hits by
> groups like Earth Wind & Fire and The Commodores, and a few
> big 60's soul hit classics by artists like Wilson Pickett,
> Otis Redding and Sam & Dave in the mix along with the usual
> rock/pop hits... whatever they feel their audience
> identifies with and makes them feel good. It also may help
> them be more competitive against WODS, who are heavy on big
> 60's/70's R&B hits in their rotation.

The Pike might also be looking out for its oldies sister station, 98.9 WORC-FM, which despite being a rimshot, actually managed to pull a no-show on the latest Arbitrons.

 

[gcc83j]

>
> The Pike might also be looking out for its oldies sister
> station, 98.9 WORC-FM, which despite being a rimshot,
> actually managed to pull a no-show on the latest Arbitrons.

Actually, that's a good point about protecting 98.9. But,
assuming you're talking about the Worcester book, I'm
not quite clear what's meant by the phrase, "despite being a
rimshot". Wouldn't being a rimshot "decrease" the chances of
showing up in the ratings? I have trouble picking up that
station when I'm in and around Worcester, especially heading
down route 146. So, I'm not surprised to hear they didn't
fare well in Arbitron.

 

[JustinT]

> >
> > The Pike might also be looking out for its oldies sister
> > station, 98.9 WORC-FM, which despite being a rimshot,
> > actually managed to pull a no-show on the latest
> Arbitrons.
>
> Actually, that's a good point about protecting 98.9. But,
> assuming you're talking about the Worcester book, I'm
> not quite clear what's meant by the phrase, "despite being a
>
> rimshot". Wouldn't being a rimshot "decrease" the chances of
>
> showing up in the ratings? I have trouble picking up that
> station when I'm in and around Worcester, especially heading
>
> down route 146. So, I'm not surprised to hear they didn't
> fare well in Arbitron.

In retrospect, my sentence makes no sense. I should have said "although being a rimshot".

98.9 has an audible signal in Worcester, but it's not great. In the eastern suburbs of Worcester (Shrewsbury, Auburn), the signal is really lacking. I can occasionally pick it up here in Framingham, but my antenna needs to be set just right to hear it. WORC-FM planned to upgrade some years ago, moving in to Spencer, but as Citadel could not find any land to build new towers, the station just stayed where it was.

The fact that the station didn't even show up should be a hint to Citadel to change the format. Although WQVR 100.1 didn't fare well many years ago, WKLB has gotten fairly decent ratings in the Worcester book. Perhaps if Citadel tried country on WORC-FM, it would not only show up, but would also give "The Pike" the freedom to play the classic hits that they want.

 

[Eli Polonsky]

> >
> > The Pike might also be looking out for its oldies sister
> > station, 98.9 WORC-FM, which despite being a rimshot,
> > actually managed to pull a no-show on the latest
> Arbitrons.
>
> Actually, that's a good point about protecting 98.9. But,
> assuming you're talking about the Worcester book, I'm
> not quite clear what's meant by the phrase, "despite being a
> rimshot". Wouldn't being a rimshot "decrease" the chances of
> showing up in the ratings? I have trouble picking up that
> station when I'm in and around Worcester, especially heading
> down route 146. So, I'm not surprised to hear they didn't
> fare well in Arbitron.

I've heard that WORC-FM has most of it's listeners in the small towns south of Worcester near the Connecticut line (Webster, Southbridge, Sturbridge, etc...) where it's signal is strongest, but that area in itself is not a rated market.

 

[Oldbones]

> The fact that the station didn't even show up should be a
> hint to Citadel to change the format. Although WQVR 100.1
> didn't fare well many years ago, WKLB has gotten fairly
> decent ratings in the Worcester book. Perhaps if Citadel
> tried country on WORC-FM, it would not only show up, but
> would also give "The Pike" the freedom to play the classic
> hits that they want.

Is the reason they do poorly because of programming or signal? As you mentioned, the signal leaves something to be desired in the metro.

 

[JustinT]

> > The fact that the station didn't even show up should be a
> > hint to Citadel to change the format. Although WQVR 100.1
> > didn't fare well many years ago, WKLB has gotten fairly
> > decent ratings in the Worcester book. Perhaps if Citadel
> > tried country on WORC-FM, it would not only show up, but
> > would also give "The Pike" the freedom to play the classic
>
> > hits that they want.
>
> Is the reason they do poorly because of programming or
> signal? As you mentioned, the signal leaves something to be
> desired in the metro.

Signal is probably the largest issue; though as Eli said elsewhere in the thread, the station likely gets most of its listeners from areas that can hear it.

However, regarding format, WORC-FM competes not only with Boston oldies powerhouse 103.3 WODS, but also with 830 WCRN, which runs ABC's True Oldies feed most of the day with a local morning show. The playlist on WORC-FM is your typical 60's/70's oldies station, with staffed AM drive, PM drive, and middays. Frankly, if the station flipped to country, it would almost seem to better serve the towns along the MA/CT border.