DRC-FM: Sedaille bringing in his own CDs?

[CTListener]

I understand through postings on this board and others that WDRC-FM's music is supposedly all on hard drive. However, during Ron Sedaille's request show last night, a caller asked for Peter McCann's "Do You Wanna Make Love" and was told "I didn't bring that one in this week. We'll get it for you next week." Another caller, who had requested Mama Cass's "New World Coming" for two straight weeks only to be blown off on-air with "That's a stiff. We don't play stiffs. What else do you want?", called in for the same song AGAIN this week and Ron responded, "Guess what? It's still a stiff, but we've got it this week!" And the song was played.

So what's going on? Sedaille having fun in an oddball sort of way, or do he, Mike Stevens and Rob Ray (who also play the occasional "stiff"/lesser hit during their shifts) actually bring their own music into the station?

 

[GlennO]

Yes to your first question. Most likely to your second. Some time ago when digital audio space was at a premium, many forgotten 45's had to be stored in hard drives that wouldn't play in the main studio. When in doubt, it made sense to use the CD.

 

[FlatTop]

It's obvious that Sedaille enjoys having fun with his listeners, making the show quite entertaining. It seems that they know that it's "schtick" and they play along with him, or they wouldn't call back every week.... I've even heard listeners razz him and he still puts them on.

 

[PaulBWalkerJr]

I've known Ron on and off since I was in middle school as a frequent caller, wanting to hear Hard Days Night.

Yes, he does have alot of fun and bring his own CD's. I got to have lunch with him one day and talk about the station and the business, he's a great guy.

 

[CTListener]

I've known Ron on and off since I was in middle school as a frequent caller, wanting to hear Hard Days Night.

Yes, he does have alot of fun and bring his own CD's. I got to have lunch with him one day and talk about the station and the business, he's a great guy.

Nice to hear that. I've enjoyed the request show for years and it's good to know that he's really having as much fun on the air as he appears to be having. I work Saturday nights and that show makes them a lot easier to get through.

I get the same vibe from Mike Stevens' and Rob Ray's shows, too. That they don't have to recycle the same 400 or so songs day after day, as is the case on so many other oldies stations, makes that vibe easier to buy into, at least for me.

This past "one-hit wonders weekend" was terrific -- amazing to hear stuff like "Liar, Liar," "Stay Awhile" and "Born Too Late" on the radio again. If the oldies format is dying, DRC-FM sure is giving it a hell of a funeral!

 

[PaulBWalkerJr]

Ron works another job during the week outside of broadcasting so I guess Saturday night is fun for him and he certianly makes it sound like that. What you hear on the air is the personality you get off the air.

And to the best of my knowledge, it literally is ALL request.. every single song.

And I once asked Ron how he ended up hosting the show..

He told me that he was assisting Frank Holler when it was JukeBox Saturday Night...... and during a bad snowstorm Ron was thrust into being on the air.. and when Frank left... well there you have it........

 

[RadioMan203]

This past "one-hit wonders weekend" was terrific -- amazing to hear stuff like "Liar, Liar," "Stay Awhile" and "Born Too Late" on the radio again. If the oldies format is dying, DRC-FM sure is giving it a hell of a funeral!

You guys have got to be kidding me, right? Gawd, I've been playing those in regular rotation since I started my web stream nearly 6 years ago!

Also, someone mentioned "stiffs" and how Ron would toy with listeners about playing them. I'm proud to play the deeper tracks of the Top 40, Hot 100 and those that have "bubbled under" the Hot 100. Sure, there are some songs better left unplayed, but this is considered musical history. Some were actually regional hits that didn't go far nationally while others were decent tunes that just didn't catch the attention of the PR machine. I wonder how people listen to the same old stations beating the same 400 to 600 songs to death and accept that as being what an oldies station is suppose to be? While my current playlist has about 6000 songs once the new automation goes in in a month or so I'll be close to the 13,000 track goal.

On a side note, I caught Ron's show coming home from dinner and it actually sounded good for a change ... including the audio quality. I'm curious if they're finally going to get their act together or it was just a fluke (and if Ron does bring in his own material maybe that's why the audio actually sounded half way decent for a change).

Bill
CapitalRadio.us

 

[CTListener]

This past "one-hit wonders weekend" was terrific -- amazing to hear stuff like "Liar, Liar," "Stay Awhile" and "Born Too Late" on the radio again. If the oldies format is dying, DRC-FM sure is giving it a hell of a funeral!

You guys have got to be kidding me, right? Gawd, I've been playing those in regular rotation since I started my web stream nearly 6 years ago!

Also, someone mentioned "stiffs" and how Ron would toy with listeners about playing them. I'm proud to play the deeper tracks of the Top 40, Hot 100 and those that have "bubbled under" the Hot 100. (snip) While my current playlist has about 6000 songs once the new automation goes in in a month or so I'll be close to the 13,000 track goal.

My comparison was with standard FM oldies stations, not with a museum-quality Internet stream. No market could sustain an oldies station with a 6,000-song playlist; it would frustrate most of the target demographic -- they'd go weeks without hearing "My Girl" or "Satisfaction" or "Unchained Melody," while just about every time they tuned in, they'd hear either a song they don't remember or a song they didn't like when it was new.

I've got a soft spot for a couple of "stiffs" from my childhood: the Tremeloes' "Even the Bad Times Are Good" and Jackie Wilson's version of "Chain Gang." Jackie's terrific remake never made it out of the 80s in Billboard, but I remember hearing it once or twice on WRKO in Boston during the one or two weeks it was being played and absolutely loved it. The Tremeloes song was a flop follow-up (peaking in the mid 30s) to "Here Comes My Baby." Again, WRKO played it for a few weeks and it stuck in my memory. Should DRC-FM be playing these songs? I don't think so, if only because there are many more songs with chart histories like them than there are songs that became Top 15 hits. They'd overrun the format, even if placed in light rotation. Even satellite radio knows it can't use too much deep-chart stuff on its decade channels.

So yes, three cheers for your Web stream and preserving all that great pop music history. And yes, its playlist beats the pants off DRC-FM's; I never implied that it didn't. Can we at least agree that America's First FM (cough, cough) deserves some credit for allowing its sound to go beyond that of, say, WODS Boston or WOGL Philadelphia?

And Paul Walker wrote:
Ron works another job during the week outside of broadcasting so I guess Saturday night is fun for him and he certianly makes it sound like that. What you hear on the air is the personality you get off the air.

Well, he's got a full week to moonlight this week. John and Beth's vacations have caused a chain reaction in the lineup, with Larry Wells now doing mornings, Mike Stevens middays and Sedaille nights. (For some reason, Dave Nagel is on right now instead of Doug Taylor, making the entire schedule a jumble.)

 

[PaulBWalkerJr]

Maybe things have changed since he and I last spoke, but he had a day job with the state so im surprised to see him doing nights...

 

[GlennO]

My comparison was with standard FM oldies stations, not with a museum-quality Internet stream. No market could sustain an oldies station with a 6,000-song playlist; it would frustrate most of the target demographic -- they'd go weeks without hearing "My Girl" or "Satisfaction" or "Unchained Melody," while just about every time they tuned in, they'd hear either a song they don't remember or a song they didn't like when it was new.

The above is one of the more astute observations I've read by someone on the "listener" side of the radio or even many people in the business. FYI, summer and winter are when on-air full-timers get their vacation time, since spring and fall are seen as more important ratings periods that determine media buys. Ron has occasionally filled in weeknights for people on vacation in past years, so that's nothing new. I doubt anyone's ever had to fill in for him on Saturday night since he took that show over ten years ago.

 

[RadioMan203]

My comparison was with standard FM oldies stations, not with a museum-quality Internet stream. No market could sustain an oldies station with a 6,000-song playlist; it would frustrate most of the target demographic -- they'd go weeks without hearing "My Girl" or "Satisfaction" or "Unchained Melody," while just about every time they tuned in, they'd hear either a song they don't remember or a song they didn't like when it was new.

I beg to differ, but I think a well executed oldies format could survive terrestrial radio if done right. I know one of the guys who helped program Real Oldies 1250 WARE. Granted, they are an AM station, but with a deeper playlist than typical oldies and yes, I've heard the argument about oldies and AM radio. I still think there's enough of a market that oldies could very well be successful on FM and still offer listeners variety. I remember when CBS-FM was a well-tuned machine and would be peppered with "oh-wow" tracks along with the usual fare. The trick is to program the format to keep the favorite "pet tunes" not too far out of a listener's comfort zone. As long as listeners have their favorites tunes played often enough I think they will tend to stick and not channel change on a whim.

I've got a soft spot for a couple of "stiffs" from my childhood: the Tremeloes' "Even the Bad Times Are Good" and Jackie Wilson's version of "Chain Gang." Jackie's terrific remake never made it out of the 80s in Billboard, but I remember hearing it once or twice on WRKO in Boston during the one or two weeks it was being played and absolutely loved it. The Tremeloes song was a flop follow-up (peaking in the mid 30s) to "Here Comes My Baby." Again, WRKO played it for a few weeks and it stuck in my memory. Should DRC-FM be playing these songs? I don't think so, if only because there are many more songs with chart histories like them than there are songs that became Top 15 hits. They'd overrun the format, even if placed in light rotation. Even satellite radio knows it can't use too much deep-chart stuff on its decade channels.

Your stiffs are three great songs, at least in my own opinion. I think DRC-FM could very well play these without missing a beat and give people that wow factor. A programmer should know the format's limits as well as the audience and perhaps their own research shows that their core base of listeners are just the folks who are pleased with the familiar.

So yes, three cheers for your Web stream and preserving all that great pop music history. And yes, its playlist beats the pants off DRC-FM's; I never implied that it didn't. Can we at least agree that America's First FM (cough, cough) deserves some credit for allowing its sound to go beyond that of, say, WODS Boston or WOGL Philadelphia?

I remember when I first heard WODS that I thought they did a bang-up job of playing oldies, but this was many, many years ago. I haven't heard them in some time so I don't know how they're doing (or if they're even doing oldies anymore). I will give you the admission that DRC-FM does do an ok job as far as music (nothing spectactular but ok), but there are some elements of the station that certainly need work. Heaven knows we've beaten the audio quality issue to death here in the forums.

Bill
CapitalRadio.us

 

[CTListener]

I remember when I first heard WODS that I thought they did a bang-up job of playing oldies, but this was many, many years ago. I haven't heard them in some time so I don't know how they're doing (or if they're even doing oldies anymore). I will give you the admission that DRC-FM does do an ok job as far as music (nothing spectactular but ok), but there are some elements of the station that certainly need work. Heaven knows we've beaten the audio quality issue to death here in the forums.

Time to beat it to death again. It's been sounding muffled and fuzzy most of the time since Tuesday afternoon. I had it on on the car radio last night and thought something was wrong with the radio, it was so bad. The past hour, there've been drop-outs, level drops, and ridiculous variations in audio quality. Earlier this morning, there was dead air for about two minutes. Larry came out of it with a joke, of course: "We had to pay our electric bill, but we're back now."

Sounds like major trouble, whatever it is. When "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" sounds no better than "See You Later, Alligator," you've got one hurtin' signal. Hope it gets cleared up soon.

 

[RadioMan203]

I remember when I first heard WODS that I thought they did a bang-up job of playing oldies, but this was many, many years ago. I haven't heard them in some time so I don't know how they're doing (or if they're even doing oldies anymore). I will give you the admission that DRC-FM does do an ok job as far as music (nothing spectactular but ok), but there are some elements of the station that certainly need work. Heaven knows we've beaten the audio quality issue to death here in the forums.

Time to beat it to death again. It's been sounding muffled and fuzzy most of the time since Tuesday afternoon. I had it on on the car radio last night and thought something was wrong with the radio, it was so bad. The past hour, there've been drop-outs, level drops, and ridiculous variations in audio quality. Earlier this morning, there was dead air for about two minutes. Larry came out of it with a joke, of course: "We had to pay our electric bill, but we're back now."

Sounds like major trouble, whatever it is. When "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" sounds no better than "See You Later, Alligator," you've got one hurtin' signal. Hope it gets cleared up soon.

I would be they must either have suffered a lightning strike or maybe a heat related transmitter issue. I noticed the same problem and dial hopped to make sure it wasn't the car radio or the blend circuit enabling itself and turning the signal to mono. I laugh every time I hear audio problems with DRC-FM as Buckley has some very knowledgeable engineers ... except they're in the New York cluster. Too bad they don't moonlight to fix things at 102.9!

I bet they're on the backup which, if I recall past conversations corrrectly, is fed via a phone line STL.

Bill
CapitalRadio.us