K-Surf 1260 growing playlist

[michael hagerty]

How could such an obscure song then reach the KRTH surveys that year? Which would imply, since it was in their top 20 songs for that week, it would have gotten airplay on KRTH back in 1981. Do you really think it did? The higher ranking songs by Joe Dolce or Air Supply did under the AC format back then. Interesting.

As I said in my post, Oldies, Hamilton decided to stretch. He ended up losing.

 

[davideduardo]

David:

No, it was "Jugando". I believe it coincided with Arbitron weighting ethnic diaries.

"Jugando" means "playing" in the sense of soccer or baseball.

"Tocando" means spinning a record.

"Jugando" is a literal translation out of context. It has no meaning anywhere in Latin America in reference to reproduction of recorded content.

I'm amazed that such a misuse got all the way to a real billboard.

 

[davideduardo]

As I said in my post, Oldies, Hamilton decided to stretch. He ended up losing.

And he took the office couch with him on the way out...

 

[michael hagerty]

"Jugando" means "playing" in the sense of soccer or baseball.

"Tocando" means spinning a record.

"Jugando" is a literal translation out of context. It has no meaning anywhere in Latin America in reference to reproduction of recorded content.

I'm amazed that such a misuse got all the way to a real billboard.

Off-topic, but my first wife worked for the Elections Department in Maricopa County, Arizona in the 1980s. The first year they were mandated to have voting instructions in Spanish as well as English, the translation went well until the very last bit. The English told people to insert their ballot (into the ballot box). The Spanish told them to eat the ballot.

 

[davideduardo]

Off-topic, but my first wife worked for the Elections Department in Maricopa County, Arizona in the 1980s. The first year they were mandated to have voting instructions in Spanish as well as English, the translation went well until the very last bit. The English told people to insert their ballot (into the ballot box). The Spanish told them to eat the ballot.

For quite a few election cycles the California mail in ballots had the Spanish heading of "Balota".

There is no such word. It is a corruption of the English term, just as "yarda" or "rufo" are corruptions of "yard" and "roof" and are not acceptable.

They finally changed the term in the 2016 elections. It now reads “boleto” which is universally correct and understandable.

I wish I had saved one... it was a favorite joke subject on many Spanish language morning shows, were they would parody a "gringo" making up Spanish words out of English ones.

 

[oldies76]

Back to the topic at hand...... Quite a few "rarely played" songs and some "oh wows" on KSUR of late....

Examples just from today:

Not Fade Away - Rolling Stones
Beth - Kiss
Baby Workout - Jackie Wilson
Please Mr. Postman - Carpenters
Something in the Air - Thunderclap Newman
Help Me - Joni Mitchell
So Into You - Atlanta Rhythm Section
Afternoon Delight - Starland Vocal Band
Going In Circles - Friends of Distinction

 

[AbrahamJSimpson]

Back to the topic at hand...... Quite a few "rarely played" songs and some "oh wows" on KSUR of late....

Examples just from today:

Not Fade Away - Rolling Stones
Beth - Kiss
Baby Workout - Jackie Wilson
Please Mr. Postman - Carpenters
Something in the Air - Thunderclap Newman
Help Me - Joni Mitchell
So Into You - Atlanta Rhythm Section
Afternoon Delight - Starland Vocal Band
Going In Circles - Friends of Distinction

Yikes.

 

[John Gallagher]

Just did a playlist search on their site. Looks like the 80s songs were last played on the 25th. It's back to the 50s, 60s and 70s.

 

[jbl]

Just took a trip to Vegas and I wanted to see ow far the day time signal could be picked up in my car going through Palmdale toward Victorville Got it all the way to Victorville and started to loose it on the 15 fwy going toward Barstow.

 

[michael hagerty]

Proof that even Saul sweats the money: Don Barrett reports that Larry Van Nuys is out at KSUR after this morning. Quote from Saul: "Our plan is to keep KSUR going for long term success with the format. but cut the overhead and rely on existing staff to program. So far there has not been enough revenue to pay the power bill. When we tried to expand the audience, and hopefully revenue by making KSUR more contemporary, you know that ran into a brick wall with our audience."

So, no---Saul won't just let KKGO carry the AM.

 

[ChannelFlipper]

So, no---Saul won't just let KKGO carry the AM.

But, yes, by his own admission, that is what he has been doing.

 

[davideduardo]

Proof that even Saul sweats the money: Don Barrett reports that Larry Van Nuys is out at KSUR after this morning. Quote from Saul: "Our plan is to keep KSUR going for long term success with the format. but cut the overhead and rely on existing staff to program. So far there has not been enough revenue to pay the power bill. When we tried to expand the audience, and hopefully revenue by making KSUR more contemporary, you know that ran into a brick wall with our audience."

So, no---Saul won't just let KKGO carry the AM.

And, were it not for Saul, there would be no such format. The "not... enough revenue to pay to power bill" means the billing is only a thousand or so a month.

And here the issue is more being a music AM than the choice of format.

 

[TheBigA]

Quote from Saul: "Our plan is to keep KSUR going for long term success with the format. but cut the overhead and rely on existing staff to program. So far there has not been enough revenue to pay the power bill.

That quote is very telling. I keep reading how big corporate radio devalues talent and runs on VT. But here's a guy with no debt and no corporate overlords, and he's running his stations the exact same way. Anyone who thinks small local owners will bring back full local staffs aren't looking at Saul Levine.

 

[CTListener]

And, were it not for Saul, there would be no such format. The "not... enough revenue to pay to power bill" means the billing is only a thousand or so a month.

And here the issue is more being a music AM than the choice of format.

I'll bet that was at least part of the reason Quinnipiac University here in Connecticut decided to let its WQUN just go dark and turn in the license this year. For public consumption, the school said it was being done because its students had no interest in radio anymore, but that never really washed with me since WQUN used adult, non-student talent on-air and played mainly satellite-delivered music, mostly from the '60s through the '80s. The students weren't involved with the station to any significant degree. The problem was that it was playing music on AM and there was nothing else for it to do that would attract any kind of audience. Southern Connecticut/Eastern Long Island is loaded with college, community and NPR stations on FM playing all sorts of music and doing all sorts of talk (except conservative, of course). And for listeners who want oldies and/or softer classic hits, there was always WJMJ Hartford or WLNG Sag Harbor, depending on which part of WQUN's coverage area you lived in. Going dark made perfect sense. I just don't know why QU used the "students don't care about radio" excuse to justify it to the public.

 

[TheBigA]

I just don't know why QU used the "students don't care about radio" excuse to justify it to the public.

Because that's what the adult administrators always say. They never ask the students.

 

[ChannelFlipper]

Because that's what the adult administrators always say. They never ask the students.

I guarantee there would be plenty of student interest to both run and program the station. But they would have to be supervised and the station would be a cost and not a revenue generator, so at that point it is the administration that wouldn't be interested.

 

[CTListener]

I guarantee there would be plenty of student interest to both run and program the station. But they would have to be supervised and the station would be a cost and not a revenue generator, so at that point it is the administration that wouldn't be interested.

Right. WUMB, UMass-Boston's FM station, programs a folk-leaning AAA format with a professional staff and no student input or on-air presence, and apparently gets enough money donated by its devoted fan base to keep it going. It's doubtful that the mostly elderly listeners to WQUN's AM nostalgia were either numerous enough or so inclined to write checks to the station in support of its low-fi music format. Would such a format work on FM? Since WQUN never applied for a translator, the question remains unanswered unless some noncommercial FM (or AM with a translator) tries it.

I've heard pop nostalgia/oldies specialty shows on several Connecticut noncommercial FMs, but always as weekend or nighttime specialty programming, never at times when a significant number of the stations' regular listeners might be tuned in.

 

[TheBigA]

I guarantee there would be plenty of student interest to both run and program the station. But they would have to be supervised and the station would be a cost and not a revenue generator, so at that point it is the administration that wouldn't be interested.

Ah yes, the money. That's Saul's problem too apparently. So he has cut the costs to the bone, has his kids working for him, and hopes things will turn around by playing 50 and 60 year old songs. At some point, the only way to do this will be for the listeners to pay for it, because no one else will. Saul knows all about that with KKJZ in Long Beach. Maybe he will get ideas from there.

 

[ATSFGuy]

I like KSUR, Was listening in my car driving to and from work today, it's mainly 60's, 70's, and 80's with a pre-64 song thrown in occasionally. I wonder how long Saul can keep this station running. I call it a "Variety Hits" format instead of oldies since the playlist now includes tracks from the early to late 80's.

 

[radio128]

Ah yes, the money. That's Saul's problem too apparently. So he has cut the costs to the bone, has his kids working for him, and hopes things will turn around by playing 50 and 60 year old songs. At some point, the only way to do this will be for the listeners to pay for it, because no one else will. Saul knows all about that with KKJZ in Long Beach. Maybe he will get ideas from there.

Are there any legal issues involved in a commercial station asking its listeners for donations to keep the station afloat?