KLTH 97.1 (now KFTK) when it was a new age format

[dgendvil]

I've been listening to airchecks of 97.1 when it was a new age station back in the late 80's when it was called "The Breeze", now it's KFTK. I know it changed to a CHR format when the Frischlings of Pittsburgh took over the station in mid-89 & changed it's format to "Hot 97" & the call letters to back to KXOK-FM, which was a great powerhouse on the AM dial for many years in St. Louis. I know KLTH used a satellite system from Dallas (I think). Do you know when it had started being a new age format at first & why did "The Breeze" fail as a station? Tell us what you think.

 

[Kent]

Actually, KLTH 97.1 became KHTK "Hot 97" when the Frischlings took the station over. It didn't become KXOK-FM for a couple more years, and the format went to urban AC. I remember the promos quite well around Christmas '92, "Soul 63 is now Mix 97.1. Set a preset, before you forget, to the new Mix 97.1." It seems like that happened when WKBQ came in to run their show in a short-lived LMA. KXOK 630 was sold to Crawford shortly afterward.

As for KLTH, I remember hearing KLTH 97.1 was new AC, but I never listened to it. If it was running "The Wave" satellite format out of Dallas, it would have been forced to change formats because SMN pulled the plug on "The Wave" and replaced it with classic rock. Derek Gilbert at KSSZ 93.9 in Columbia might have more information. I know he worked at the old Hot 97.

 

[spiritof67]

I can answer that one, as I posted the airchecks--and I'm glad you're enjoying them! KLTH used a satellite service based in Minneapolis, which was called "The Breeze," and its parent company was called The Progressive Music Network. After two years as a "Light Rock" station, which had the formatics of Beautiful Music but used standard vocals, KLTH first put The Breeze network on in the evenings and weekends in February 1988. In September of that year, they went with the network full time (with a local morning show). KLTH stayed with this format until the end of July 1989, and Hot 97 started on the 2'nd of August after stunting with Christmas music.

The Breeze failed locally because of a poor market signal (which has affected most of the formats this frequency has hosted over the years), low ratings, and poor management. At the time, both KLTH and its sister station KXOK (which had a talk format) sounded like a station in anarchy. KXOK had plenty of dead air, and the FM often cut into and out of network programming at odd times, with jocks playing music of their choosing that fit the format. The owners were in the process of selling the station for well over a year, and I suspect the morale there had to be very low.

Nationally, The Breeze network lasted until January 1991, and it failed as well. For a satellite network, it was more of a mom & pop operation. They were not able to pay for satellite time, and they folded on a Friday afternoon and in several cases failed to notify their affiliates.

With all of their problems, I liked the programming The Breeze network provided. It was an eclectic mix of music on a radio station (even by NAC formatted stations at the time), and I knew it was probably not going to last. I rolled a lot of tape, and I'm glad I did so.

On a side note, SMN's version of The Wave continued until 1990, when it morphed into Classic Rock. The Wave had a Kansas City affiliate in 1989.