Favorite former formats

[Soon Yi CIV.V]

• My first favorite station was Hot Hits 98. It flipped on my birthday. LOL. I was still in elementary school. When I got to school the next day, everyone was just bewildered looking. No one understood why such a thing would happen. haha.
• Eagle 106 was my shizzle, yo. Although I was much older by the time it flipped away, I was just as devastated.
• Boss 97, where I spent so many hours of my life and where I actually did on-air bits more times than I can count, is my hands-down favorite-ever station. And since its demise, I have yet to hear of a real, fun, Top 40 station with personality. By the way, if you want to feel old, think about this: Halloween was the 13th anniversary of the death of Boss 97!
• I miss Star 104.5 and Sunny 104.5.
• Oh, New Jersey 101.5 during the mid-to-late '90s (Jay & Hillarie, Roberta Gayle, Cathy Donnelly) was like my second-best friend!
• I wish there were still a Smooth Jazz station in town.

Other than those, I haven't really become attached to any stations since. Nothing these days sticks around long enough to build an allegiance. And radio stations today certainly aren't compelling enough to make me feel like I'd lose a friend if they went away.

 

[Rockin Rob]

6) 92X - the short-lived rhythmic CHR format on 92.5

I don't think it was ever called "92-X". I recall it being called 92-WXTU during this period. With jocks like Dr, Perry Johnson and "Dangerous" Doug Weldon.

Too bad I do not have an aircheck to reference, but I specifically recall on-air mentions to both "92-X" as well as "92WXTU".

One thing that IS true is the WXTU calls were selected to mimick NYC's WKTU...

 

[MsMusicRadio]

Summer of '62 on the Jersey Shore with WMID and WOND
WMCA Good Guys. Especially BMR.
WCAO---Baltimore

 

[Soon Yi CIV.V]

6) 92X - the short-lived rhythmic CHR format on 92.5

I don't think it was ever called "92-X". I recall it being called 92-WXTU during this period. With jocks like Dr, Perry Johnson and "Dangerous" Doug Weldon.

Too bad I do not have an aircheck to reference, but I specifically recall on-air mentions to both "92-X" as well as "92WXTU".

One thing that IS true is the WXTU calls were selected to mimick NYC's WKTU...

When Beasley bought 92.5 WIFI in 1983, they changed the calls to WXTU and flipped it to Urban to compete with WDAS and WUSL. Urban only lasted til the beginning of 1984 but guess what the station was called during that time? 92-X.

 

[DStroyer]

1) WCAU-FM Hot Hits.

2) Alice 104.5 - both the "Rockin' Hits" version (blasting Van Halen "You Really Got Me" while tuned in to the 104.5 frequency was a bit surreal), and the straight-ahead Hot AC version that they shifted to in Spring 2001.

3) WMWX - Most versions of the station were great, while just a few were not (like the version that ran Delilah at night, or when the jocks had to read liners like, "Our name is Mix, and we're at 95.7. That makes us Mix 95.7.")

4) Anything and everything that was on 106.1 from 1985 to 2006.

5) 97.5 WJJZ.

6) The last 6 months of 96.5 The Point - when they were doing Hot AC.

7) The near-top 40 format on Star 104.5, Spring 1996.

8) Star 104.5 - all Hot AC years, except the ones where they were doing "The New Sound Of Philadelphia".

9) Power 99 - the Stanley T / Golden Boy / Colby Colb / DC Todd / Don Juan years.

10) WYSP - Stern/D&M/O&A, Fall 2001 to Summer 2002.

11) I would put Y100 (1995-2005) here, but Radio 104.5 does the job just fine now as a slightly more "grown-up" Y100.

12) "WDRE" - 1992-95. There are a few records I (rarely) hear today that take me right back to my college years listening to 'DRE... Shamen "Ebenezer Goode", Information Society "Peace & Love, Inc.", Talk Talk "It's My Life", and Shakespear's Sister "I Don't Care", to name a few.

13) Maxx 95.7.

14) Not a "format" per se, but just remembering the "Y100 All-Disco Weekend" in the Summer of 1993 makes me giggle a little.

 

[JH_Radio]

I don't remember hearing much of alice during there Hot AC days. I thought there Rock AC format was just nah. "She's Ready to Rock... And her name is Alice. Alice 104-5"
I also liked WBUX 1670 (I remember hearing Scott Loe on there at one point?)
That's what I remember the most about that station.
John
Bensalem, PA

 

[MikefromDelaware]

When WUSL was "US1" and played standards and pop music, sort of a MOR format

 

[rich610]

Some of my favorites:

1) WIP during its glory years-1964-82. It may have been the best station in Philadelphia radio history.
2) WEGX 1991-93. "today's best mix-the new sound of Eagle 106." The John Lander, Cadillac Jack era.
3) WCAU-FM 1981-87.
4) WDRE-FM-1992-97. Great radio, with the simulcast from New York, and then the local presentation.
Great local line-up, including Sarah Clark in the morning, Brett Hamilton, and Preston Elliot.
5) Y-100, 1996-98 era. Barsky, Brett, Preston, LeAnn Curtis, Couzin Ed.
6) WIOQ-1980-81. This was the era of David Dye, Ed Sciaky, Harvey, and Helen Leicht.
7) WPEN during the brief period in 2000-01 when they played lots of MOR/AC from the 1960s and 1970s. Sounded like the old WIP.
8) WOGL-AM. Oldies 1210. I think I'm the only one who actually liked this format.
9) WABC-1970-79. It came in loud and clear in Northeast Philadelphia. Ingram, Cousin Brucie, Jim Nettleton, Ron Lundy, George Michael.

 

[jimwalsh2001]

Here are some of mine, in no particular order:

WIP, mid-seventies.
WPST, circa 1980 (Tom Taylor, Big Jay, etc.)
WMMR, Jeff Wyatt era
WWDB, late seventies (Bob Grant, Jerry Williams, Irv, Quinn, etc.)
NJ 101.5, early nineties (John & Ken/Brooke & Roberta/Big Jay & Hilarie).
Eagle 106, under Charlie Quinn
WMID, mid-seventies (WABC clone with TONS of reverb - a lot of fun)
KISS-100 early nineties - tail end of the AC era (Hey, I worked there, so sue me)... ;D

 

[JH_Radio]

I also liked Oldies 1210. I also liked WOGL better during that time.
The jocks, the Presentation, the music. The Oldies that Oldies stations played in the 90's, are what I consider Oldies, (That's how I grew up with the format, and what I have on 45, etc.)
I think every generation misses out on some form of radio (Those of you who grew up in the 60's, 70's, and 80's had the Progressive sound, fun Jocks with more DX opertunity, better quolity radio's, more ownership in the radio landscape, Mike Joseph's "Hot Hits" format and AM Stereo being more available . Kids today won't get to hear what Beautiful Music sounds like. Oldies is a dieing breed. Anyone who is old enough to start aprisheateing radio of any kind may be on the tail end of Smooz Jazz, won't've heard the likes of Jammin Oldies, 80's Rock or Dance. There can never be enough unscoped airchecks IMO.
Then again the world changes with every generation too, and not just with radio.
Just sayin'...
John
Bensalem, PA

Some of my favorites:


8) WOGL-AM. Oldies 1210. I think I'm the only one who actually liked this format.

 

[fennessy]

I miss W102 The Nicest Music...I'm still looking for a lot of the titles they played there. I also remember WMGK's first two years as " Magic 103". Also, does anyone remember WHAT, when they brought in a new PD from NYC, and added PAMS jingles and made WHAT slick. Summer '68 to Summer '69.

 

[8638]

WOW! Between Rockin' Rob and John1, just about every one I listened to and liked was mentioned. I'll just highlight the dearly departed I'd like to have back:

AM

Famous 56, WFIL, the Drake station that wasn't programmed by Bill Drake (RIP).
Tickle Tickle, 610 WIP. MOR personality radio at its very finest. Loved Nat Wright and the Dawn Patrol!
Double U ENNNNBEEECEEE in the 80's
MusicRadio77, WABC. Incomparable!
WPEN 950, as MOR
95 'PEN as rock n roll oldies
The Big 99, Wibbage. Great in the 60's, even better, IMHO, during the "WIBG, Where your Friends Are" era of the early 70's.
Radio 121, WCAU. Joel A. Spivak, Dominic Quinn et al
1540 WPGR, pre Geator gold.
1570 WBUX, another good MOR operation

FM

WIFI 92...PLAYS THE HITS!
95.7 WFLN-FM Still greatly missed here!
WFPG-FM in AC, "the station with the chimes" back when it was easy listening up to midnight, then the Budweiser Beachcomber overnights.
The original Solid Gold Oldies 98 WCAU-FM
WUSL in its 'adult stereo US1' days
WDVR, an easy listening icon
Popular 102, WFIL-FM
Progressive WIOQ, spent many a weekend afternoon with them
WMGK, when 'the magic was the music'
WRCP-FM Real Country Power
"FM 105" 104.9 WRDR
WWSH 106 as easy listening
Eagle 106, the last time Top 40 was done properly in Philadelphia
WSNJ 107.7

That's all, folks!

 

[Starbucks]

WHAAAATT!!! I glanced through all these posts....and not one mention for Powered Brokered DJ AM 1360 Mike Phillips. Not one of uuu's of mentioned him, does anybody have good taste in radio listening at all? I'm disgusted.

 

[kfitz]

On my first trip to Philly from the northern tier of PA I'll never forget how blown away I was by hearing WMMR in May of 1978 when I came to get my 3rd Class License in Philly. I can still remember hearing UK "In the Dead of Night" Wow!! Later, in the summer of 1983 I visited WMMR and sat in on John Debella's morning show for an hour. That Rittenhouse Square studio still ranks number 1 to me as the best radio studio facility I have ever been at, I loved looking out of that studio window on to the square. John was so nice to me...I met Charlie Kendall too....everybody there was terrific and the station sounded great. WMMR was really great through much of the 80's. During the 90's I really loved WIBF/WDRE when it was doing the Alt thing with their Long Island facility. My favorite station for that decade. On a side note....I was donated the original WIBF transmitter a couple of years ago. I'm sure it was the original transmitter in the early days of the Alt format....even when a new transmitter was purchased the old one was often used as it was the standby. It was in really fine condition when I got it a couple of years back. Its now in great working order and is the standby for WGMF in Tunkhannock, PA. That transmitter was always a good luck charm!! Its certainly has brought WGMF a lot of good luck. My favorite station for the 2000's has to be WOGL....I got to meet Big Ron before he passed away, super guy and a great station.

Kevin

 

[BlueHen]

I guess my favorite all-time format was WIOQ from my school days in the '70s and extending into the early '80s. It was somewhat on the progressive side, not as hard as WMMR, but definitely not Top 40. An eclectic mix for sure by today's standards... from new-age ("In Collaboration With The Gods" by Michael Quattro) to the mellow ("Heaven" by Carl Wilson) and just about everything in between... reggae ("Try Jah Love" by Third World) to pure pop ("State Of Independence" by Donna Summer).

Another one from that same period but on the easy listening side... the aforementioned U.S. 1 WUSL on 98.9. I remember Jim Gearhart's Tales of the Unexplained in the mornings and soft adult contemporary hits not heard anywhere else... "Silver Dreams" by The Babys, "The Light Of My Life" Starland Vocal Band, "Gladiola" Helen Reddy, "So Sad The Song" Gladys Knight.

As I've gotten older, more recently in the '90s I found myself listening to the now defunct Unforgettable 104.9 WRDR out of Egg Harbor and Wilmington's AM 1290 WJBR, which carried the Westwood One (now Dial Global) Adult Standards format - not really standards, but more of a MOR format.