Question... Former chr stations in central florida

[Mid West Clubber]

Back when I was a kid and we used to go to Disney World and over to Tampa to go swiming I had fond memories of listening to stations like flz in Tampa, but back then it was called Power 933 I think, I even listened to flz on a boombox in a high rise motel in Orlando with little trouble. I also sometimes listened to what is now xl 106.7, but it wasnt called xl 106.7 back then, it was still a chr but seemed to have more of a rhythmic dance lean, this was around 87-88, I remember them playing a song called Living in a box, and the glamourous life and stuff like that. What I am trying to remember is what xl 106.7 was called back then, what were the calls and when did they change to xl? Im sure somebody here knows. THANKS...

Second question, in Tampa I always listened to Power 93 flz, but I also remember another chr or kinda adult top 40 station somewhere around 105, probably 105.1 or 105.3, maybe even 104.9, we only had analog radio's back then so I dont know the exact frequency. Back then I paid no mind to the 105 station because I loved flz and flz was considered the cool station to listen to for the young people. So my question is, does anyone know exactly what the 105 station in Tampa was, and when did they go off the air, or change format cause I know it isnt there anymore, at least not as a chr, and was it an actual chr, or an adult chr cause it seemed pretty tame compared to flz at the time, I think they were one of those Hits without the hard rock and rap kinda stations but I never listened to it long enough to get much of a feel for it, I was only like 10 yrs old, I was too obsessed with flz and tried to listen to it as much as I could.... Im not sure if this question is better suited for the Florida board, but im pretty sure chrles or someone can answer this question, chrles is like a chr radio history book or chr search engine..lol Not to put chrles on the spot, if he cant answer my question I understand. Any help from anyone is much appreciated...Thanks.. 8)

 

[CHRles]

Clubber, you've got your years a bit off I'm afraid. 93.3 FLZ was still an Oldies station back in 87-88. I think that before it flipped to a Dance CHR in the late late 80s, it was a recurrent/Gold leaning AC/CHR for a while as I seem to recall songs like "Wishing Well" by Terrence Trent D'arby being played.
XL 106.7 was known as The Cat, and before that was Y-106. The best CHR in Orlando back then though was BJ 105. It was located at 105.1 on the FM dial, and had a monster signal that covered all of Orlando, Daytona, and the Melbourne metro areas. At the time Miami had a CHR at 105.1 called Hot 105 (my favorite CHR in 88), and sometimes on the Turnpike halfway between Miami and Orlando it was hard to tell which one of these CHRs you were listening to. In Tampa you had the legendary Q-105 at 104.7 FM. It was indeed Adult friendly, and was sometimes late on adding records, but they did play some Rap at night. Q-105 was VERY successful - always the top ranked station in Tampa by far with a good 15-20 shares in the ratings 12+. It was the most listened to CHR in the state if I'm not mistaken. Scott Shannon was the biggest name at the station in the early 80s before he moved to NYC to launch Z-100.
BJ 105 Orlando was much more youth friendly then Q-105, and played a lot of reaction records before going Adult CHR as Mix 105 in 1990. Because of its huge coverage area it too was one of the most listened to CHRs not just in the state, but also in the country. 107.1 A1A Melbourne didn't become a CHR until BJ 105 was gone.
Other CHRs you could pick up in the Disney World area were I-100 out of Daytona Beach (though it was actually from Palatka), which was usually Rock friendly and recurrent friendly. One of their slogans was "The boss of Daytona". There was also Z-93.7 out of Gainesville, which played some Country crossovers - rare for CHRs to do back then. It was fun going to Lake Buena Vista and being able to pick up so many CHRs

The other CHRs of the time in FL that I remember: Miami's Power 96 and Y-100. Wink 97 did CHR for the Ft. Myers-Naples market, and Naples had another CHR called Laser 104.7. Wink 97 pretty much played only the songs that made the Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100. They never took a chance on records, but at the same time they were fun to listen to cuz the CHRs in Miami ignored many of the hits on the Top 40 that were Midwestern favorites (like "Electric Blue" by Icehouse, a number 4 hit). Key West had Wail 99 as well as 107.1 WIIS, West Palm had 95.5 WOVV, nearby Ft. Pierece had its own CHR called Z-93, and Jacksonville of course had Power 95 (WAPE). Oh, and I think Sebring had C-105.

 

[pbf1]

Z93 (Tampa) flipped from Oldies to CHR (as the Power Pig) in October 1989.

 

[pbf1]

Wasn't it Q105 on 104.7?

Yes. (And it's known as that again today.)

 

[Mid West Clubber]

Okay guys, thanks so much for your help. I could have indeed been off on the years a little, cause we went to Disney pretty much every summer between like 86 and 93, and then we would go down to miami, and sometimes to Tampa, Jacksonville and Daytona. Y-106 or y-107 sounds about right for the name of the Orlando station. Also, if there was indeed a chr on 105.1 in Orlando, and one in Tampa at 104.7, its quit possible that I wasnt able to seperate the two. I definately dont remember the BJ-105 station name, I would have definately remembered a name like that...lol, but that doesnt mean that I didnt tune it in a few times. Also, I think I would have remembered THE cat too, but its possible that I didnt pay much attention back then, as I was young and just looking across the dial for some familier tunes. I do remember hearing alot of chrs in Orlando, I actually do remember the z-937, if I would have had a more sensative digital car radio, instead of an analog boombox and an old Sanyo cassete walkman I could have probably picked up more stations and noticed what frequency they were. Of course I remember Wape in Jacksonville, I could start picking up that monster signal in Georgia, even on an old boombox. I remember 107.1 in melbourne has always been around, and the 107.1 always had, and still has those strange calls A1A,, How did 107.1 in melbourne aquire such strange calls,,, and I remember there was always a chr on 95.5 Ft Peirce-Palm beach area but it wasnt called Wild back then. In miami I always listened to Power 96 and Y-100, I loved both stations and both had a monster signal so I didnt really search across the dial for anything else. I think in like 1990 or maybe 91 Y-100 shifted to an Adult chr for a while, so I listened to Power 96 the most cause they played alot of Dance, Freestyle, Rap, and Bass records that I couldnt here back in Indiana, Y-100 seemed to be heavily into stuff like Phil colins and micheal Bolton back then. I remember when we were in Fort myers in like 93 I couldnt find a local chr in that town at the time, not saying there wasnt one, but I just didnt find it, maybe it was always on a comericial or playing an unfamilier song,,, Was there a chr in Fort myers between like 92 and 94??? So anyway I attempted to try to listen to Power 96 and Y-100 there, which on the east side of Fort myers was possible, but I couldnt get them along the Fort myers beaches on my portable radio back then, I finally found a good Rock station in Fort myers called 96 K-rock, I think it was a hybrid of Active Rock and Alternative cause they played stuff like Nirvana-Heart Shaped Box, but also played Pink Floyd and Ac-Dc.... I think 96.1 in Fort myers is still some kind of Rock format with a different name. I remember miami had quite a few good Rock stations back then, 94.9 zeta was there of course, but I remember 103.5 in miami called She Rocks, and I think there was a 97.1 or 97.3 that was also Rock back then, I cant remember the 97 stations name, but I know it had a G in the calls.

 

[pbf1]

That 97 was WGTR (now WFLC, "Coast").

Ft. Myers: I want to say B103.7 -> B103.9 (not sure when it changed freq's) was...WINK was at one time, too, but I think may have been AC by that time.

Z93.7 was in Gainesville, IIRC.

BJ105 became Mix 105.1 in the early 90's.

107.1 was actually WAIA...they referred to themselves as "A-1-A"

And yes, Y100 went thru an "adult" period.

(Hope this helps!)

 

[CHRles]

The reason 107.1 WAOA calls itself A1A, and pbf can prolly back me up on this one, is b/c there's a very famous road on Flordida's east coast called A1A situated around the beaches. It runs north to South. In Miami Beach you'd know it as Collins Avenue. Its name changes to Ocean Drive in the Hallandale-Ft. Lauderdale area, not to be confused with the Ocean Dr. on South Beach (which runs parallel to Collins/A1A). By the time you get to Boca and Palm Beach it's known as Ocean Blvd.

 

[jsu5381m]

The reason 107.1 WAOA calls itself A1A, and pbf can prolly back me up on this one, is b/c there's a very famous road on Flordida's east coast called A1A situated around the beaches. It runs north to South. In Miami Beach you'd know it as Collins Avenue. Its name changes to Ocean Drive in the Hallandale-Ft. Lauderdale area, not to be confused with the Ocean Dr. on South Beach (which runs parallel to Collins/A1A). By the time you get to Boca and Palm Beach it's known as Ocean Blvd.

Isn't Ocean Boulevard by Yellowcard named after A1A?

 

[pbf1]

CHRles - you're right...107.1 WAOA. WAIA was in Miami. My bad...

 

[CHRles]

Well Yellowcard are from FL (Jacksonville) so it would make sense

 

[RMarino]

Clubber, you've got your years a bit off I'm afraid. 93.3 FLZ was still an Oldies station back in 87-88. I think that before it flipped to a Dance CHR in the late late 80s, it was a recurrent/Gold leaning AC/CHR for a while as I seem to recall songs like "Wishing Well" by Terrence Trent D'arby being played.
XL 106.7 was known as The Cat, and before that was Y-106. The best CHR in Orlando back then though was BJ 105. It was located at 105.1 on the FM dial, and had a monster signal that covered all of Orlando, Daytona, and the Melbourne metro areas. At the time Miami had a CHR at 105.1 called Hot 105 (my favorite CHR in 88), and sometimes on the Turnpike halfway between Miami and Orlando it was hard to tell which one of these CHRs you were listening to. In Tampa you had the legendary Q-105 at 104.7 FM. It was indeed Adult friendly, and was sometimes late on adding records, but they did play some Rap at night. Q-105 was VERY successful - always the top ranked station in Tampa by far with a good 15-20 shares in the ratings 12+. It was the most listened to CHR in the state if I'm not mistaken. Scott Shannon was the biggest name at the station in the early 80s before he moved to NYC to launch Z-100.
BJ 105 Orlando was much more youth friendly then Q-105, and played a lot of reaction records before going Adult CHR as Mix 105 in 1990. Because of its huge coverage area it too was one of the most listened to CHRs not just in the state, but also in the country. 107.1 A1A Melbourne didn't become a CHR until BJ 105 was gone.
Other CHRs you could pick up in the Disney World area were I-100 out of Daytona Beach (though it was actually from Palatka), which was usually Rock friendly and recurrent friendly. One of their slogans was "The boss of Daytona". There was also Z-93.7 out of Gainesville, which played some Country crossovers - rare for CHRs to do back then. It was fun going to Lake Buena Vista and being able to pick up so many CHRs

The other CHRs of the time in FL that I remember: Miami's Power 96 and Y-100. Wink 97 did CHR for the Ft. Myers-Naples market, and Naples had another CHR called Laser 104.7. Wink 97 pretty much played only the songs that made the Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100. They never took a chance on records, but at the same time they were fun to listen to cuz the CHRs in Miami ignored many of the hits on the Top 40 that were Midwestern favorites (like "Electric Blue" by Icehouse, a number 4 hit). Key West had Wail 99 as well as 107.1 WIIS, West Palm had 95.5 WOVV, nearby Ft. Pierece had its own CHR called Z-93, and Jacksonville of course had Power 95 (WAPE). Oh, and I think Sebring had C-105.

CHRles, this is a very accurate description of what was going on back then, with just one minor change. WINK-FM 97 did take many chances on records.. maybe not compared to Miami stations, but they definately did compared to gulf coast stations. When a new hit would come out, WINK-FM would usually be on it first. One song in particular I remember, since it was my favorite group at the time, was "Pop Goes The World" by Men Without Hats. WINK was on it pretty much right away, WSRZ Z-106 in Sarasota spun it as soon as it hit the Top 40, while Tampa's Q105 didn't play it until the week it hit #20 on Billboard. Of course the song stalled right there at #20 and Q105 dropped it the very next week.

Q105 did take chances on records, but they were more on the AC-leaning hits, such as Johnny Hates Jazz "Turn Back the Clock", James Taylor "Everyday", and Honeymoon Suite "What Does It Take."

 

[NoWayNoCC]

One song in particular I remember, since it was my favorite group at the time, was "Pop Goes The World" by Men Without Hats. WINK was on it pretty much right away, WSRZ Z-106 in Sarasota spun it as soon as it hit the Top 40, while Tampa's Q105 didn't play it until the week it hit #20 on Billboard.

That's weird, because I don't think Q-102 Cincinnati ever touched this song. If they did, I never heard it there.

I think this was right after Cincinnati's other, "secret" top 40 station (WCLU-AM) went away, but it's the type of song WCLU would have played a lot. Cincinnati radio was very stodgy after the loss of WCLU.

 

[CHRles]

One song in particular I remember, since it was my favorite group at the time, was "Pop Goes The World" by Men Without Hats. WINK was on it pretty much right away, WSRZ Z-106 in Sarasota spun it as soon as it hit the Top 40, while Tampa's Q105 didn't play it until the week it hit #20 on Billboard.

That's weird, because I don't think Q-102 Cincinnati ever touched this song. If they did, I never heard it there.

I think this was right after Cincinnati's other, "secret" top 40 station (WCLU-AM) went away, but it's the type of song WCLU would have played a lot. Cincinnati radio was very stodgy after the loss of WCLU.

Why are you bringing up WKRQ Q-102 Cincy into this thread, which is about radio stations in FL? Q-105 WRBQ is in Tampa, not in Cincinnati

 

[NoWayNoCC]

Why are you bringing up WKRQ Q-102 Cincy into this thread, which is about radio stations in FL? Q-105 WRBQ is in Tampa, not in Cincinnati

I was just making a comparison: What was considered stodgy in Florida back then would have been considered hip by Cincinnati standards.

 

[KarsonWithaK]

"So we continued to A1A, Beachfront Avenue"

Vanilla Ice - Ice Ice Baby

K~

 

[CHRles]

Why are you bringing up WKRQ Q-102 Cincy into this thread, which is about radio stations in FL? Q-105 WRBQ is in Tampa, not in Cincinnati

I was just making a comparison: What was considered stodgy in Florida back then would have been considered hip by Cincinnati standards.

Oh, my bad. Looking at old playlists of Q-102 Cincinnati from the late 80s and early 90s, I know the station was very late on adding records, and had a lot of records in its Top 20 that had already fallen off the playlist of most of the big CHRs.

 

[Mid West Clubber]

One thing I always hated about Q-102 in Cinci during the late 80s and most of the 90s, they always made their own home made edits of songs and really chopped up alot of songs, and they were usually pretty sloppy home made edits too. I think they did this to play more songs in a set and get more ads in. Too me this is much worse than pitching the music up faster. Q-102 was also always really recurrent leaning, sometimes 6 months behind most other stations and im not even exagerating.

WZPL was always late on new music if they even added it at all, but this changed around mid 1993 when they became Rhythmic Dance leaned for a few years as Party Radio. At least WZPL never chopped their songs up like Q-102 did.

 

[NoWayNoCC]

Q-102 Cincinnati cut some of Tears For Fears' songs down to about 2 minutes. It was either "Sowing The Seeds Of Love" or "Break It Down Again", but I think it was both.

Also, there was a song by Inner Circle that I think was called "Sweat (La La La Long Song)" or something. In the chorus, it said, "I'm gonna push it, push it some more." Q-102 censored this line and replaced it with, "I'm gonna make you dance some more." I'm pretty sure Q-102 still played this version once in a while in the early 2000s.

Needless to say, Q-102 was one of those rare stations that cut George Michael's "I Want Your Sex" out of 'American Top 40'. While Q-102 did not play this song as a current, it did finally add it as an oldie (uncensored) 2 years later.

 

[indebiz]

The reason 107.1 WAOA calls itself A1A, and pbf can prolly back me up on this one, is b/c there's a very famous road on Flordida's east coast called A1A situated around the beaches. It runs north to South. In Miami Beach you'd know it as Collins Avenue. Its name changes to Ocean Drive in the Hallandale-Ft. Lauderdale area, not to be confused with the Ocean Dr. on South Beach (which runs parallel to Collins/A1A). By the time you get to Boca and Palm Beach it's known as Ocean Blvd.

Isn't Ocean Boulevard by Yellowcard named after A1A?

Minor point... the song is Ocean AVENUE, not Boulevard.