Mary Brace gone from Lightning 100

[roadrunner]

I used to listen to her in the morning all the time. Moved to NJ about a year ago but I still keep up with Nashville radio since I lived there about 20 years.

Sorry to hear she's gone.

http://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/119735/rare-morning-slot-opening-at-wrlt

 

[firepoint525]

Lightning 100 must be a sinking ship. The death of David Hall, the loss of Fred Buc and the Retro Lightning program, losing Music City Roots to Hippie Radio, and now Mary Brace leaving? What is left for them? Mary would have made an excellent host for a continued Retro Lightning program, albeit with more recent past years, but for whatever reason, they chose to discontinue it. :'(

 

[roadrunner]

Lightning 100 must be a sinking ship. The death of David Hall, the loss of Fred Buc and the Retro Lightning program, losing Music City Roots to Hippie Radio, and now Mary Brace leaving? What is left for them? Mary would have made an excellent host for a continued Retro Lightning program, albeit with more recent past years, but for whatever reason, they chose to discontinue it. :'(

That was a Saturday morning ritual for me (retro lightning) ....I remember flipping back
and forth from Kim Komando on 99.7 with her tech talk and then hearing something like
"Freeway of Love" on Lightning thinking they changed their format. Then remembering it was
"Retro Lightning". I hope Lightning doesn't sink... Wells would make a good morning host. He's
filled in for Mary several times. Mary always got me through morning traffic jams and kept me
from panicking on the road!

 

[onetake]

While they have some fans, they've never been on the radar at the agencies in a big way. I don't think they've ever made money, have they?

 

[jwk1979]

Lightning 100 must be a sinking ship. The death of David Hall, the loss of Fred Buc and the Retro Lightning program, losing Music City Roots to Hippie Radio, and now Mary Brace leaving? What is left for them? Mary would have made an excellent host for a continued Retro Lightning program, albeit with more recent past years, but for whatever reason, they chose to discontinue it. :'(

From what am told from a friend that knew one of the previous owners, since Retro Lightning was Fred Buc's idea and he was the only host for the first several years it was on the air(at the beginning, the early 80s was as far as the Retro Lightning covered), it was considered Fred Buc's intellectual property and would always be associated with Fred Buc. Even with a name change to the show, most listeners was continue to associate the show with Fred Buc.

 

[jwk1979]

While they have some fans, they've never been on the radar at the agencies in a big way. I don't think they've ever made money, have they?

I don't know about now, but during the 90s and the ealy 2000s, the station didn't make any money at all. I use to hear about how the employees of Lightning 100 would rush to the bank after they got their paychecks so they could cash their checks while their was still money in the bank. Those that were late getting to the bank were often turned away because of insufficient funds. It was amazing what Fred Buc and David Hall were able to do with the station considering the shoestring budget they were on duirng that time period.

 

[deltas69]

While having a large audience of what I would describe as eclectic fans of music, I can see where mainstream buyers would not take a second...or even first look at a buy there. Radio is in such a dull-stream in Nashville...I understand why many listeners would gravitate to Lightning...but ad dollars are what pay the bills...Personally I never listened to it as it didn't appeal to my tastes..but then again I'm the guy watching " F Troop' on my hard drive.. ...what's the power of that station..any coverage ??

 

[jetfli]

While they have some fans, they've never been on the radar at the agencies in a big way. I don't think they've ever made money, have they?

I've long thought of Lightning as a religious station, narrowcasting to its faithful disciples of eclecticism, as they listen barefoot in their hybrids or local coffee houses or Hillsboro Village area homes. These are the people I always see in 12 South eateries or at Trader Joe's (who should be their biggest advertisers, given their customer base). This is the station that has the ears of the creative advertising crowd, who, because they look down their noses at the unwashed Nashvillians they sell to, would never think of advertising on "their own" station in order to reach the plebeian population... so they don't advertise there.

The station has been operated over the years with the same kind of zeal as many of the other religious stations in the area, in that they are in the business to deliver their message, and only their message. You will never see them changing format to reach a wider or different audience, no matter how much more money they could make, because they believe in their message to the cores of their being. It's the message and the lifestyle that is important to them, not the money.

I think some of Lightning's recent changes are evidence that they too are vulnerable to the same youth disease that's hit every other business out there.

 

[courier37027]

I think Lightning 100 was the second station to take a chance with the old SM95 format. 106 WLAC was the first, but quickly took a mainstream AC turn. I liked Rebel 100 as alternative rock, turned off station during the short-lived "Lite 100...with Nashville Sounds baseball". Lightning 100 and Phoenix 94 seem the only stations daring enough to deliver to a niche audience (well, maybe toss Big Band WAMB into that classification). Sadly for them that niche audience can afford other custom listening devices and satellite radio.

 

[Rocker62]

Several years ago, i called her one morning while she was hosting Retro Lightning, and she was the rudest DJ i have spoken to in my life. Lost my respect for her after that, so good riddance to her.

 

[firepoint525]

Retro Lightning (as others have said here) was not her baby, so I am wondering if maybe she was resentful about having to work Saturdays. (Some comments that she made on air (about wanting to sleep in) a time or two left me with that impression.) I usually didn't listen when she hosted the program, because she would play too much "college radio" type stuff when she hosted.

 

[Tibbs4]

Looks like a fan club wasn't a strong point for her. I think she may have been a bit out of the listener demographic for the normal format, but retro should have been a project she should have, uh, embraced? Never met her. Never heard anything about her until these last few comments.

 

[Nock]

The best retro lightning shows were when Mary hosted! Talked to her many times about the music and she was more than cordial and played requests. Big difference between the 70's and 80's. When Fred hosted an early 80's show he was missing the good stuff p0laying pop rock. Mary nailed it!

Nock

 

[radio guy 1951]

Several years ago, i called her one morning while she was hosting Retro Lightning, and she was the rudest DJ i have spoken to in my life. Lost my respect for her after that, so good riddance to her.

Sadly, there are many like her in broadcasting.

 

[firepoint525]

The best retro lightning shows were when Mary hosted! Talked to her many times about the music and she was more than cordial and played requests. Big difference between the 70's and 80's. When Fred hosted an early 80's show he was missing the good stuff playing pop rock. Mary nailed it!

UGH! Mary often didn't have a clue what year something came out (once played something TWO YEARS before it came out) and at least once played the same song twice within the same program.

I could accept that Mary knew the '80s (and onward) better than Fred did, and that if the program had continued with her, it would likely have been from about 1985 onward. The earliest year that she ever did (that I heard, anyway) was 1979.

That college radio stuff just wasn't my cup of tea.

 

[jwk1979]

UGH! Mary often didn't have a clue what year something came out (once played something TWO YEARS before it came out) and at least once played the same song twice within the same program.

I could accept that Mary knew the '80s (and onward) better than Fred did, and that if the program had continued with her, it would likely have been from about 1985 onward. The earliest year that she ever did (that I heard, anyway) was 1979.

Frec was just as bad at times. I've heard several of his shows that he would play tracks that was released in one year but really didn't become a hit or recieve much radio airplay until the following year. Also, when he featured certain years in the 70s, you could almost guarantee that certain songs would always get played while other songs would never get played. And when he did the local feature, you always knew which artists and which songs by those artists would get played during that featured year (i.e, 1978 was always going to feature "Magnet and Steel" - Walter Egan and 1976 was going to feature something from "Frampton Comes Alive", even after Peter Frampton was no longer living in the Nashville area.).

 

[firepoint525]

All good points, but you forgot to mention that Fred would find SOMETHING by Jethro Tull to play every weekend. They must have put out an album every year!

 

[firepoint525]

UGH! Mary often didn't have a clue what year something came out (once played something TWO YEARS before it came out) and at least once played the same song twice within the same program.
I could accept that Mary knew the '80s (and onward) better than Fred did, and that if the program had continued with her, it would likely have been from about 1985 onward. The earliest year that she ever did (that I heard, anyway) was 1979.

Frec was just as bad at times. I've heard several of his shows that he would play tracks that was released in one year but really didn't become a hit or recieve much radio airplay until the following year. Also, when he featured certain years in the 70s, you could almost guarantee that certain songs would always get played while other songs would never get played. And when he did the local feature, you always knew which artists and which songs by those artists would get played during that featured year (i.e, 1978 was always going to feature "Magnet and Steel" - Walter Egan and 1976 was going to feature something from "Frampton Comes Alive", even after Peter Frampton was no longer living in the Nashville area.).

All good points, but you forgot to mention that Fred would find SOMETHING by Jethro Tull to play every weekend. They must have put out an album every year!

To add to what I posted earlier, Fred definitely had his "default songs" that he would fall back on and play if he did not receive a request for something else. I gather that Walter Egan is probably a friend of his. Didn't Egan do a Retro Lightning liner? For the local feature, Fred would indeed play former Nashville residents, as well as deceased performers who resided in Nashville during their lifetimes. He also included Memphis artists in the local feature, which is cool for me, since I am originally from Memphis.

His default for something Beatle-related to close out 1978 was always "London Town" by Wings. The London Town album must have been the only Beatle-related release during '78, but I was occasionally able to get him to play something else from that album. Mary's default for something Beatle-related to close out her programs (and I would indeed listen for this, even if I missed the rest of her program) was almost always something from the Traveling Wilburys. She defaulted to them even in years in which there was something else available.

 

[jwk1979]

I have heard Fred play a Doobie Brothers song as the local feature from years before Michael McDonald joined the band, which he joined in 1976 for the "Taking It To The Streets" album. I heard "Long Train Running" and "China Grove" in 1973, "Listen To The Music" and "Jesus Is Just Alright" from 1972, " BlackWater" from 1974 played during the local feature during those years, even though Michael McDonald wasn't in the band yet. The only Doobie Brothers songs that were played during the Local Lightning portion of the shows should have been those song that Michael McDonald sang lead on since he was the only member of the Doobie Brothers that actually had ties to the Nashville area.