Jack Off

[BulkEraser]

I know this post is from March, but I need to tell you that WRRK-FM (Bob-FM) here in Pittsburgh is ranked in the top 5 in the market now, with steady numbers. I personally don't listen to it, but the format works here, and WRRK has never had the numbers they do now, nor did they ever crack the top 10. I think a JACK-FM is overdue in the York/Lancaster/Harrisburg area.

Maybe the future new owners of WLAN will give it go... but I doubt it. I know this market very well, and I would not bet on a station that tried it here.

 

[hellskitchen85]

If I had my own JACK station this would be my first hour of programming, of course it would be typical with the Hot AC top 10 being played only for currents. Of course, I haven't had to listen to one of these since I found the best station in the country 101 The Rose!!!( :-* 8))

Pink Floyd-Another Brick In The Wall (1980)
Avril Lavigne-My Happy Ending (2005)
Steely Dan-Do It Again (1972)
Rod Stewart-The Motown Song (1991)
Toto-Africa (1983)
The Fray-Over My Head (Cable Car) (2006)
Peaches And Herb-Shake Your Groove Thing (1979)
Stone Temple Pilots-Plush (1992)
Rob Thomas-Streetcorner Symphony (2006)
The Clash-Rock The Casbah (1982)
Gerry Rafeerty-Baker Street (1978)
Toad The Wet Sprocket-All I Want (1991)

And most of these songs you can hear on 101 The Rose which is pretty cool!!! Except for Peaches and Herb and the Steely Dan, that is my funky side!!!

 

[SteelRocker]

Hellskitchen85, do you know Jack about this format? It sounds like you're all but programming a classic rock station. You might want to look at the playlist of a JACK-FM type station before posting this list....YUCK.

 

[kenhawk1160]

Maybe the future new owners of WLAN will give it go... but I doubt it. I know this market very well, and I would not bet on a station that tried it here.

There's a few small market stations that I know of that are trying the Jack format, but it's the automated Westwood One version they call "SAM". When it goes away (and it will) they'll replace it with a more mainstream one.

This format is nothing different than "Jammin' Oldies", smooth jazz, or all 80's. They're gimmick formats that can bring you a brief spike in the Arbitrons that you may not have had in a while, but the novelty eventually wears off.

 

[SteelRocker]

When BOB-FM signed on last November, its format wasn't to last for more than 6 months...now its a top 5. A couple of years ago when the urban station at 104.7 went to Talk radio, FM talk couldn't survive in Pittsburgh....now its top 5 and came out of nowhere. Some JACK and BOB formats have peaked and declined, but not in all markets.

Station Group Owner Format Wi'05 Sp'06 Su'06 Fa'06 P1 Fa'06 P2
WDVE-FM Clear Channel Classic Rock 9.9 9.7 9.1 9.2 9.6
WDSY-FM CBS Radio Country 7.3 6.8 7.4 7.0 7.3
KDKA-AM CBS Radio News/Talk 9.0 8.4 7.9 7.3 7.2
WPGB-FM Clear Channel Talk 4.8 4.8 4.9 5.4 5.7
WRRK-FM Frischling, Saul Adult Hits 4.5 4.6 5.2 5.2 5.2

 

[kenhawk1160]

When BOB-FM signed on last November, its format wasn't to last for more than 6 months...now its a top 5. A couple of years ago when the urban station at 104.7 went to Talk radio, FM talk couldn't survive in Pittsburgh....now its top 5 and came out of nowhere. Some JACK and BOB formats have peaked and declined, but not in all markets.

Station Group Owner Format Wi'05 Sp'06 Su'06 Fa'06 P1 Fa'06 P2
WDVE-FM Clear Channel Classic Rock 9.9 9.7 9.1 9.2 9.6
WDSY-FM CBS Radio Country 7.3 6.8 7.4 7.0 7.3
KDKA-AM CBS Radio News/Talk 9.0 8.4 7.9 7.3 7.2
WPGB-FM Clear Channel Talk 4.8 4.8 4.9 5.4 5.7
WRRK-FM Frischling, Saul Adult Hits 4.5 4.6 5.2 5.2 5.2

Give Bob another year and then we'll see if it has real staying power.

 

[SteelRocker]

Some JACK and BOB formats have peaked and declined, but not in all markets.

Give Bob another year and then we'll see if it has real staying power.

My original quote alludes to that fact. WRRK (BOB) was out of the top 10 a year ago; two years ago WPGB was out of the top 10. Amazing turnaround for both, but especially BOB.

I remember several years ago while living in EPA when WRVV-FM became The River....nobody thought they'd survive either.

 

[kenhawk1160]

My original quote alludes to that fact. WRRK (BOB) was out of the top 10 a year ago; two years ago WPGB was out of the top 10. Amazing turnaround for both, but especially BOB.

I remember several years ago while living in EPA when WRVV-FM became The River....nobody thought they'd survive either.

Let's get the perspective from someone who's inside a "Bob" or "Jack" station...if anyone works for WRRK or any of the other stations, maybe you can shed some light on this.

When these stations first signed on the air, their slogan was "We Play Anything". Is that still the case, or are the playlists getting tighter as they are with just about every other format out there, thus maybe artificially creating the spike we're now seeing?