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It's 2015! Time to get rid of the '70s.

Avid Listener said:
Clearly, you've never worked as a stand-up comic.
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I have hired quite a number of them, mostly to do vacation fill or to do occasional appearances. None of them can come up with enough material to get through a week, and some are at a loss to get through a day.

In 50 years of programming or managing, I found only one stand-up comedian who could do a daily show and not burn out. But it turned out he had learned his craft at his father's radio station many years before and he understood the medium and was not frightened by it.

The ones who make it a whole week are able to tell stories rather than make jokes. Their humor is anecdotal rather than "scripted" and they do better. But they all complain that it is very hard to do radio because it is not the same as what they are used to. The hardest thing for them is not having a live audience for feedback and to bounce jokes off of.
 
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oldies76 said:
I think "Hotel California" has probably been played more times just this past year on certain stations, than Debby Boone since 1977.
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I see you have taken Mr. Avid's license to engage in "hyperbole" to heart.
 
DavidEduardo said:
I have hired quite a number of them, mostly to do vacation fill or to do occasional appearances. None of them can come up with enough material to get through a week, and some are at a loss to get through a day.
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Just consider that you hired stand-up comedians so desperate for work that they'd take a job as a disc jockey!
 
Avid Listener said:
Just consider that you hired stand-up comedians so desperate for work that they'd take a job as a disc jockey!
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Not.

They have mostly been some of the most famous comedians known, hired to do anything from a day to a week while the star morning talent was on vacation. A few have done it for the fun and to promote their club or showroom dates.

And they were no more "disk jockeys" than Howard Stern was.
 
Avid Listener said:
Just consider that you hired stand-up comedians so desperate for work that they'd take a job as a disc jockey!
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Depends...I know a few who took radio jobs specifically because they were tired of the endless travel, and wanted to sleep in their own bed for once. Also, if you work stand up, you don't get regular benefits or health care.

They're very good, very smart, and their stations are lucky to have them.
 
Music Lover said:
Eagles rock! :cool:
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Yeah, they rock alright. Radio has played them for decades now, some songs more than others. "Hotel California" is just a huge song, reaching #1 in 1977, that it still rotates heavily, even to this day!!

Although I enjoy hearing "Hotel California" and the rest of their hit singles, I really like hearing a softer tune from 1980 "I Can't Tell You Why". It reminds me of a time in Southern California as a kid. Great, great song! Just not played nearly as often as others.
 
gr8oldies said:
Not hearing Debby Boone since 1977 is fine with nearly everyone
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Frankly I'd rather listen to her hit single, than some of the junk that was out a few years ago. Heck when I was at KWVE, I even played some of her Contemporary Christian songs, along with Amy Grant. She's actually a very good singer and a lot more talented than most current artists. Adele and Celine Dion could compare to her.
 
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"I Can't Tell You Why" is hardly aired anywhere anymore. I'm shocked by that.
Most of these reasons are why I avoid most stations in top 25 markets. Most are owned by big shot corporations that have tight playlists on every station. Even Jack FMs have 800 songs if that nowadays - used to be well above 1000.
It seems like I have the most luck with small-town western stations. I've been pleased with KSRW-92.5 Bishop, KLAN-93.5 Glasgow, KDXN-105.7 Dickinson, KQEZ-106.3 Idaho Falls etc. All 4 have wide playlists - ranging from adult hits to Hot AC to even smooth jazz cuts on the Bishop station at times.

-crainbebo
 
Just a couple of thoughts, as I was perusing here: It occurred to me that when Top 40 stations were heavily teen based that it probably wasn't that bad an idea to play requests because there was a commonality among the kids listening. This would be when audiences were mostly 12-24. I have heard it stated that the advertiser is the customer and the listener is the product. I haven't heard this for awhile, probably because it riles up too many products. :)
 
DavidEduardo said:
Good. Then listen to them, if you like them better. But you do need to understand that the classic hits station from Dubuque or Jackson, TN or St. Joseph, MO would be massacred in a larger market because most listeners, when given a choice, go for the station that plays their favorite songs every time they tune in.
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I don't understand why all you corporate elitist big-city snobs look down your noses at small towns like Jackson, TN. Did you know that Kool 103 has had the same format since the late '80s? That is what I like about such stations. They are COMMITTED to the format. A big city corporate flip-flopper would go through DOZENS of format changes during the same time! Memphis had a great one in 'KQK, but they flipped it country to compete with KIX106; never mind that KIX has been country for years, thus whatever 'KQK is calling themselves now probably won't even be able to make a dent in KIX. Other stations have tried.

But please keep up that "every time they tune in" bit, because that argues AGAINST music stations airing college football on Saturday afternoons. I liked board-op-ing the games because it was easy money, but the listener in me preferred the music.
 
crainbebo said:
"I Can't Tell You Why" is hardly aired anywhere anymore. I'm shocked by that.
Most of these reasons are why I avoid most stations in top 25 markets. Most are owned by big shot corporations that have tight playlists on every station. Even Jack FMs have 800 songs if that nowadays - used to be well above 1000.
It seems like I have the most luck with small-town western stations. I've been pleased with KSRW-92.5 Bishop, KLAN-93.5 Glasgow, KDXN-105.7 Dickinson, KQEZ-106.3 Idaho Falls etc. All 4 have wide playlists - ranging from adult hits to Hot AC to even smooth jazz cuts on the Bishop station at times.

-crainbebo
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Small town FM's and even some AM's are the way to go these days if you want far more variety and selection.
Seems I've heard "I Can't Tell You Why" more on AT40's than in regular rotations (at least around here). Crazy Huh?
 
firepoint525 said:
I don't understand why all you corporate elitist big-city snobs look down your noses at small towns like Jackson, TN. Did you know that Kool 103 has had the same format since the late '80s? That is what I like about such stations. They are COMMITTED to the format. A big city corporate flip-flopper would go through DOZENS of format changes during the same time! Memphis had a great one in 'KQK, but they flipped it country to compete with KIX106; never mind that KIX has been country for years, thus whatever 'KQK is calling themselves now probably won't even be able to make a dent in KIX. Other stations have tried.

But please keep up that "every time they tune in" bit, because that argues AGAINST music stations airing college football on Saturday afternoons. I liked board-op-ing the games because it was easy money, but the listener in me preferred the music.
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And like these small town radio stations really have serious competition. David says they would get "massacred" in large markets. But either way, they'll never get "massacred" because they AREN'T in direct competition. Many of them will actually be around longer than some big city hot shots than seem to change formats every few years. Look what happened to KTWV and KBIG recently.

Firepoint, add Hippie and Dubuque's 106 to your list of long-lasting small classic hits stations. There's also KFXM in the California desert. They're out there.
 
Sarah McLachlan has a new album out called Shine On. According to her discography info on Wikipedia, the first single from the album, In Your Shoes, didn't even chart. If a song gets little to no airplay, how are people who aren't die-hard fans supposed to know she has any new music out?
 
Music Lover said:
Sarah McLachlan has a new album out called Shine On. According to her discography info on Wikipedia, the first single from the album, In Your Shoes, didn't even chart. If a song gets little to no airplay, how are people who aren't die-hard fans supposed to know she has any new music out?
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Sarah had some soft singles in the late 90's, including "Adia" which peaked at #3 and "Angel" which got to #4. She's a great singer.

That has always been a problem with radio playing new music. There are so many musical acts out there, especially from Europe that will never be heard here, but yet they are really good.

Have you ever heard of Royksopp (From Norway)?

Check this out, heard it once in an Express clothing store back in '09. Really catchy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51Bpx63wkbA
 
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Avid Listener said:
But Eduardo said that they couldn't last more than a week. Which is it?
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He's talking about the comedians he knows. I'm talking about the ones I know. Two different groups. The ones I know quit the road to get married, stay at home, and do morning radio every day. But I also know stations that use celebrity fill-ins for a week.
 
Music Lover said:
If a song gets little to no airplay, how are people who aren't die-hard fans supposed to know she has any new music out?
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Radio stations are not in the music business. They're in the radio business. Musicians and record labels can use radio to publicize their music, but it's not their only avenue. Sarah is at a point in her career when she can do the Tonight Show, or Ellen, or Sirius, or any other form of media. She's also difficult to categorize. Typically she gets airplay on AAA stations, but there are fewer of those around. So that's why artists and labels are encouraged to use social media, build fan data bases, and do group tours like Lilith Fair so they can go directly to their fans and other people pre-disposed to like their music.
 
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