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Nobody's Home

A

AndrewLawson

Guest
Not many days ago, I was listening to a certain FM station and heard a song I'd not heard in many years. I called the station only to tell the DJ jow much I appreciated hearing the song. After a few minutes of letting the phone ring and getting no answer, I felt like a fool. I'd been had by what you folks here call voice-tracking. Nobody home. This lead me to think about some of the issues that are debated here and the troubled times radio seems to be enduring these days. I recalled a saying my grandfather often used when he talked about visiting neighbors and folks on his street, "Nobody pays a visit to a house that's vacant."
 
Maybe so, maybe not...

Without knowing the particulars of the situation, I can tell you that many live announcers get sidetracked these days and don't pay as much attention to the request line as they once did. Bathroom break, actually taking (not faking) readings, a trip to the lunch room, a visit to another studio to help a rookie run an EAS test, researching an upcoming bit on the Internet, setting up a remote with an on-site tech, or even a long conversation on another line could account for more than a few minutes of ignoring the request line.

Since nobody really takes requests anymore, the request line is not of prime importance to many jocks - especially for wily old vets who are married (and serious about it). I've called the Hot Line and waited for what seemed to be forever to get a response - and that's got a much bigger flashing light attached to it. Back in the day, when the phone was in the line of sight as you cued records or carts, the phone was more visible. Now, the computer is more likely to be the center of attention, not the phone.

Most of the time the wait is not enormous, but shi- uh, stuff happens. If you heard weather with an actual current temperature, you more likely heard a live jock who was slacking - or busy. If the guy made an error - no matter how small - I'd bet he/she was live, not Memorex.

PS - E-mail feedback via the station website sometimes has a positive effect on the PD who schedules that song.
 
"The more things change, the more......" ....well, you know.

I remember CKLW's Bell System Call Director in each studio, going back now a generation. There were six Detroit lines and six Windsor (Canadian) lines. They never stopped ringing....24-7, 365, Christmas, New Year's, 4th of July. As soon as you finished one call and punched the next line the first one resumed ringing. Same deal at WIBG, KB, WENE, WAXC, WBBF. Most of these stations had phone greebs who answered and tried to track some requests. But much of the time the lines simply rang or, if the system and management permitted, were busied out to keep them from ringing. The jocks would answer when they could.

"Nobody really takes requests any more?" I would suggest that we never did, at least not in any meaningful sense, compared with the vast audience (many of whom had just tuned in and were passionately in need of hearing the song you played two records ago.) Of those who wanted to hear the Blue Danube Waltz for grandpop's birthday or a Sousa march.

One exception - you'd hunt up any horrible stiff for that particularly hot-sounding babe on line 4 - that explains The Balloon Farm at 3am with the cryptic personal intro...... ;) :D
 
Stiffed

Savage said:
One exception - you'd hunt up any horrible stiff for that particularly hot-sounding babe on line 4 - that explains The Balloon Farm at 3am with the cryptic personal intro...... ;) :D
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The Balloon Farm? NOBODY dredges that up from the recesses of their ancient memories without a deeply personal experience involved...
 
The Balloon Farm. "A Question of Temperature." Early summer '67, on Laurie Records, about 2:35ish, big psychadelic fuzz guitar hook. Utterly zero demographic appeal past age 22 or so. Soft Laurie pressing didn't hold up well to slip-cueing. But then again, the disc didn't wear fast because nobody bothered to actually play it....except in SPECIAL circumstances.

Not that anybody's keeping track or anything.... ::)
 
Wow, the only song I remember on Laurie Records would be "Snoopy's Christmas" by the Royal Guardsmen.

If anyone from Legends is reading, I plan to request that song in December, so consider this a Distant Early Warning :D
 
Uh-oh...

Savage said:
The Balloon Farm. "A Question of Temperature." Early summer '67, on Laurie Records, about 2:35ish, big psychadelic fuzz guitar hook. Utterly zero demographic appeal past age 22 or so. Soft Laurie pressing didn't hold up well to slip-cueing. But then again, the disc didn't wear fast because nobody bothered to actually play it....except in SPECIAL circumstances.

Not that anybody's keeping track or anything.... ::)
Click to expand...


She must have had a VERY sexy voice...
 
Jeez, has there ever been an instance of some on-air outrage being perpetrated by a testosterone-addled overgrown teenage jock (or in some cases ACTUAL chronological teenage jock) ??

As in: "Watch me get away with THIS!!!" (Followed, in nanoseconds, by the ominous floodlit flash of the Batphone. Have I got that right, Sherlock??)

BTW, Sherlock: you made a big generous salute to your WAXC airstaff of Black, Ryan, Mason, Savage, Grease, Birch et al referring to the "perfect storm" of on-air people who made the station legendary, and said something like "thanks for making me look good."

Very nice, but who's to say? Maybe those jocks never would have attained their stature had their paths not crossed yours - in other words, it could be the other way around! On a personal note I know I've used things I learned at WAXC for decades, long after the actual radio station faded into history. So: thanks to YOU, from us!
 
Hey Savage! Play "Ben"!

Bob, nice of you to say but I think I had it right the first time. We had great staff and a good time. I was blessed and I'm thankful for the opportunity those many years ago. Maybe the best part is that many of those friendships, like yours and mine, endure today.

Thanks, again.

Larry
 
Balloon Farm? How did I miss that one? I'll have to look it up on Youtube.

The jock giving the current temp is not always a good indicator he's there. I have caught jocks using the Accuweather predicted hourly temperature. Not a cool thing to do in my book.

My experience with the request line....the longer it rings the more you DON'T want to answer it. I did play requests as long as it wasn't for the same worn out songs and I could fit it into the format. Such was the flexability of MOR radio.

Darn kids, one time while working at a top 40 station some kid called up to request the song that I was playing. I told her, "I'm playing it now".... she said "who cares!" and hung up on me. :mad:
 
Call Me Sherlock said:
Hey Savage! Play "Ben"!

Bob, nice of you to say but I think I had it right the first time. We had great staff and a good time. I was blessed and I'm thankful for the opportunity those many years ago. Maybe the best part is that many of those friendships, like yours and mine, endure today.

Thanks, again.

Larry
Click to expand...

Nice! But you guys better stop right now! Rox is this close to posting a message suggesting the two of you get a room.
 
yugoidar said:
Nice! But you guys better stop right now! Rox is this close to posting a message suggesting the two of you get a room.
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Thanks for putting THAT image in everyone's head - at dinnertime no less...
 
You boys are getting very close to the "Play Misty For Me" zone. Worse, The "I won't be ignored, Dan.." zone. Cue the violins from Psycho.
 
Request line true story: as was the custom at WKBW, the NABET engineers would fight boredom by leaving the request line audio in cue on the control room RCA consolette. I heard this exchange one night while I was yakking with Jim Adler prior to my shift.

Sub-teen caller: Could....you....ummmm....um.....uh....please.....play....ummmmmmmm...."Sugar, Sugar?"

KB jock who will remain nameless: Hey, kid, where does your father work??

Caller: Uhhhhhmmmmm.......Lackawanna Steel. Why?

KB jock: Well, DO YOU F**KING CALL HIM AND UP BUG HIM AT WORK ???!!??? (Hangs up phone)
 
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