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History of Music of Your Life

V

vchimpanzee

I don't know where I got this information, or even if it is right. Maybe someone here can confirm what I say here and give sources.

The satellite format was begun around 1984, and WBIG Greensboro, N. C. had it. Later, it was switched to a tape service. At some point, someone decided to bring it back to satellite. Jones Radio Networks saw the potential and made this a hot format by hiring Gary Owens and Wink Martindale, and featuring some of the singers as DJs on weekends. Somewhere I also heard they made it more contemporary, but for those who wanted the traditional sound, they kept that as a tape service without DJs.

This is what someone told me they did on WTLT Charlotte, N. C. in early 1998. After dropping their local talk show hosts, the station needed to fill time between the syndicated hosts who the station had to air as long as they had contracts. The music sounded so much better than Stardust affiliate Mix 106, whose programming WTLT had aired before going all-talk. And I knew it had to be satellite or something like that because the music was so carefully coordinated with network news at the top of the hour.
 
I don't know much about the history of it, but it existed as a tape service in 1980, when WTAL in Tallahassee
was sold to new owners in October of that year.

They used local DJs on it, and it was on reel-to-reel tapes.

A gentleman named Al Ham originated it, but that's about all I know.

I left WTAL for another job about a week before they began Music of Your Life. I still have a lot of those albums and 45s from there with light AC and some oldies. Once I can afford another computer (my second stream computer crashed and lost everything) I'd like to bring back the nostalgia/oldies/MOR hybrid format on my currently unused second stream on Live365. We have no oldies, standards or similar in the market now.
 
It actually debuted back in 1978.I forgot which station,it was first aired on.I've got some of the old WTAL carts.It was a trip,putting that station back on the air,after it went silent.We actually had more response from the adult standards,that we played at night,and on weekends than the news/talk in the day.
 
fwillis,

When did you work there? I was there from 1979 (under Tom Derzypolski aka Tommy Dee) until Octover of 1980.

I was at WTAL during their hybrid AC/MOR/oldies format days..actually it still had a good bit of disco still on the playlist at that time. I started as the Larry King Show overnight board op but was promoted to a music shift as well within a couple of months. I worked with Ray Slaton, the blind DJ; Jim Tatum; Paul Williams; Wiley James and Tommy. Also Sandi Flanders, the office manager..I loved that job!

This was before their red-carpet studios in the then Northwood Mall. They were in a house out on North Monroe Street next to Christian Heritage Church while I was there. Mr Keyes brought in Music of Your Life and moved the studios, I believe.

I went to work for the state in October of 1980 and also returned to FSU in January of '81. Went to my next radio gig in '83..
 
Alan McCall said:
I don't know much about the history of it, but it existed as a tape service in 1980, when WTAL in Tallahassee
was sold to new owners in October of that year.
Click to expand...
Thanks for your comments. I know I read it was satellite at some point before it went to tape, but perhaps it went back to tape.
 
I hadn't seen this on the format's site.

Music Of Your LifeTM burst upon the radio landscape in 1978, created and developed by music executive Al Ham. In 1996, Kerry Fink, and his wife, Tammy Fink, joined with Al Ham and Music Of Your LifeTM caught on like wildfire, catching the ear of millions of listeners hungry to hear 20th century classics.

At the approach of the millennium, Music Of Your LifeTM has built upon these classics, moving beyond "Big Band" to the present Adult Pop Standards ("APS") - providing fresh material for those who have always loved the form, and reaching a new generation coming home to the timeless sound.

The greatest artists of all time with the greatest melodies of all time .... that's what Music Of Your LifeTM is all about!

Take a moment to learn more about us and thanks for visiting our Website!
 
MOYL was on satellite before the present satellite format distributed by Jones. I'm not sure when... maybe the late 80s or early 90s... but it was distributed by Unistar or Transtar, whichever name they were using at that point before becoming Westwood One.

I don't think it lasted very long. As I recall, it wasn't quite the same as the music on the original tape service, as they had eliminated most or all of the big band music on the satellite. When it was discontinued (possibly because it was too similiar to the existing AM Only/Adult Standards satellite format) stations either went back to running the MOYL tapes or switched to AM Only off satellite.

The MOYL tape service eventually went out of business, but some stations had purchased the right to use the term "Music of Your Life" on their own standards programming.
 
jh said:
MOYL was on satellite before the present satellite format distributed by Jones. I'm not sure when... maybe the late 80s or early 90s... but it was distributed by Unistar or Transtar, whichever name they were using at that point before becoming Westwood One.

I don't think it lasted very long. As I recall, it wasn't quite the same as the music on the original tape service, as they had eliminated most or all of the big band music on the satellite. When it was discontinued (possibly because it was too similiar to the existing AM Only/Adult Standards satellite format) stations either went back to running the MOYL tapes or switched to AM Only off satellite.

The MOYL tape service eventually went out of business, but some stations had purchased the right to use the term "Music of Your Life" on their own standards programming.
Click to expand...
I found a link that confimed all of this. I didn't think Unistar did two satellite formats.
 
Found it! It's amazing that I found this by doing a search for the history of AM Only, but this is the history of Music of Your Life. There was no link that I saw on the Music of Your Life site. There should be. This is fascinating.

http://www.musicofyourlife.com/history.cfm

Here's what it says about AM Only:

The dawn of the satellite age came to radio, and two competitors began operation...one called Stardust and one called AM Only. Stardust eventually became part of ABC and followed the standard of generic satellite broadcasts that local station owners could use to pretend a local announcer was being in the local studio while enjoying the savings of not carrying a local staff. AM Only became part of Westwood One and eventually changed its name to the more descriptive Adult Standards.
---
However, they did deal with Unistar (it's not clear how they resolved the problem of two standards services with the same company) and they did use satellite delivery:

At that time, Al had an opportunity to sell out the majority of the company to a group that wanted to make a satellite deal with Unistar, then one of the satellite players who eventually became part of Westwood One. The new owners of Music Of Your LifeTM made their deal and, in 1990, Music Of Your LifeTM went on the air via satellite.

Artistically a success, Music Of Your LifeTM found its way onto even more stations than before, but after its initial year, the Music Of Your LifeTM stopped on satellite. It appeared that the story was over. The initial deal had been based on delivery of 25-54 adult listeners, rather at odds with Music Of Your LifeTM ’s focus on the 50+ listener, and it seems that the program did not live up to financial expectations.
---
And here's more on AM Only.

From WDRC's web site:
September 15, 1991 - WDRC AM switched to Unistar's "AM Only" format with standards from the 40s, 50s and 60s.

From Wikipedia (WEOK):
Two years later, this format was replaced when WEOK flipped to pop standards as a charter affiliate of Unistar's "AM Only" format, better known today as Westwood One's "Popular Standards" while retaining local programming drivetimes and parts of weekends.

From Wikipedia (Westwood One):
Until 2006, Westwood One distributed a number of 24-hour radio formats via satellite to affiliate stations. These formats included:

...

Adult Standards (middle-of-the-road/easy listening oldies; formerly called "AM Only")

...

The 24 hour formats, originally acquired through Westwood One's purchase of Unistar in 1993, were sold in 2006 to Excelsior Radio Network and are now distributed under the Dial Global brand.

From http://www.manfrommars.com/wfea90s.html:
In May 1991, WFEA made another major change in direction. Saga chose to implement a live, satellite-delivered nostalgia format featuring artists like Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett and the Glenn Miller Orchestra. The new on-air positioning statement was Great Songs, Great Memories.

The satellite syndication service that provided WFEA's music was called Transtar. In 1989 it merged with another syndicator to become Unistar. In 1993, Unistar merged with the Westwood One Radio Network. The product they sold WFEA was a format called AM Only. While most of the programs came from California, live via satellite, careful use of prerecorded station identifications and promos made it sound like the hosts were in Manchester.

...

On March 8, 1995, Talknet disappeared from WFEA's airwaves, replaced by additional hours of AM Only from Westwood One.
 
I managed WTAL,WJHW/WBGE Bainbridge 2001,after they lost the tower site/studio to development.I had to move all the equipment out of storage to put it back on the air.It was fun.
 
The Music Of Your Life web site has been revised, so the link above doesn't work, but the site still has that historical background. I contributed a summary of what was said there to Wikipedia, and those of you who have responded who know anything at all, please add to what I did. And provide sources if you can.
 
The satellite service was more "contemporary" than the tape service. CKLW aired the tape service with live jocks (including Tom Shannon, who had a couple of tenures at CKLW in the Top 40 days). I also remember a request show on Saturday mornings, with songs going back to the 30s.

When I worked at a Westwood One adult standards station, their positioner mentioned the 40s, 50s and 60s, but I don't know that i ever heard a 40s song (maybe "In the Mood" if anything).

What were some other "big" MOYL affiliates?
 
gr8oldies said:
When I worked at a Westwood One adult standards station, their positioner mentioned the 40s, 50s and 60s, but I don't know that i ever heard a 40s song (maybe "In the Mood" if anything).
Click to expand...
I know. A lot of 40s-style songs were new recordings.

They played Glenn Miller a lot. I heard Benny Goodman once.
 
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