Re: Joe McCoy speaks
Thank you, your reply was very informative to me.
> > I don't like a lot of things Joe McCoy did at CBS-FM
> though
> > he was better than the last PD.
> >
> > He cut the playlist from 3000 songs in 1979 to about 1200
> in
> > 2002.
>
> Actually the playlist was closer to 2000 songs in 1979. The
> station was at about 1500 during the day and 2000 on
> overnights by 1989. In 1993 he actually cut the playlist
> down to 1000-1200 songs and thinned out the playlist deeply.
> By 1995 though the playlist was back to about 1500 songs. It
> was in early 2001 when he took more songs out and reduced
> the playlist to about 1200 songs again. In 2002 he cut down
> to even less songs. They were down to about 800 in 2002. In
> early 2003 they went as far down as 500 songs but by the
> summer were back to about 800 songs adding alot of 70's and
> 80's songs they had not played since the 80's. They held at
> about 800 songs until March of 2003 when they abruptly cut
> down to 450 to 500 songs which they played until the end.
>
> > He fired Dick Heatherton, the best jock ever on CBS-FM
>
> Am unsure Joe McCoy made this decision.
>
> > I don't know about Max Kinkel's departure, if he was
> fired.
>
> Actually he was "let go" but not by Joe McCoy on his own.
> Upper management contributed greatly to this decision. I am
> unsure of the true reason but have heard a few rumors. Still
> I would rather not gossip about others. Max Kinkle in my
> dealings with him have always been very positive. He seems
> like a true pro. What I do know contributed to the decision
> was the fact they indeed wanted to bring back Norm N Nite
> full time with a 6 day work week and Norm N Nite wanted the
> work. But there was no room for him. In order to bring him
> back they had to let someone go and Max was the odd man out.
> Still getting rid of Don K or Bobby Jay would also not be
> right. They had to consider a bunch of factors and go from
> there. It would cost less to make this change than to keep
> things as they were. Also the plugged Norm N Nite into Bobby
> Jay's 6 shifts with Wednesday off (Bobby Jay worked
> Mon-Tues-Thurs-Fri-Sat-Sun - Brucie did Wednesday
> Yearbooks). Bobby Jay moved to Don K Reed's 11 PM - 2 AM M-F
> shift but for a 6th day he took Max Kinkle's Saturday Night
> 12-3 AM shift (eventually it was 11 PM-4 AM). Don K Reed was
> moved to Max Kinkle's old shifts except for his Friday
> Night/Saturday Morning Shift 2-6 AM. Gary Clark took that
> one. Don K Reed had Early Tues-Early Fri 2-5:30 AM. For a
> 5th shift he kept the Doo Wop Shop. This all took place in
> 1995.
>
>
> Personally I think they should have just kept Norm N Nite
> part time or given him full time swing. He ended up retiring
> to part time 2 years later (the same time Ron Lundy
> retired). But this decision would come from above Joe.
>
> > Was it Joe that axed the Doo Wop Shop
>
> Actually Joe was forced to by upper management. This
> happened August 25, 2002.
>
> > And took Doo Wop and fifties out of the playlist?
>
> Actually he took most of the Doo Wop out back in 2001 and
> even some of it out as far back as 1993 and 1986. Still he
> held on to the bigger doo wop hits.
>
> He gradually reduced the frequency of playing 50's as far
> back as the 80's but reduced the ammount of songs in 2001
> and 2002. Still when he left the station they were playing
> about 30 songs from the 50's.
>
> > And played few pre-1964 songs.
>
> He played plenty but reduced them slightly in 1999, a bit
> more in 2001, and a bit more in 2002. By the end of 2002
> they were down to about 50 pre 64 songs. So after 2002 is
> when that happened.
>
> > And few that peeked below the top 10?
>
> Well where a song peeks does not mean everything. Some
> former #1 songs do not test well and are therefore not
> played much on radio while some songs that barely chart
> build a following and wind up being radio only hits while
> never charting high (all My Loving/Beatles, Everyday/Buddy
> holly, Shout/Isley Brothers, Tonight Tonight/Mellow
> Kings..to name a few low charting songs that did well on
> radio)
>
> > And kept Don K. Reed overnight instead of during the day?
>
> He was not right for a midday shift. His soft spoken tone
> worked better at night. Still he should have been at least
> kept at 11-2 and not 2-530. Even when Norm N Nite did retire
> Don K should have been reinstated to late nights.
>
>
> > And played too many songs from the eighties?
>
> Lets see...they may have played too many songs in the
> rotation but certainly did not play them often. In the 80's
> besides currents they played one 80's song every 90 minutes
> on the average. Not exactly alot.
>
> In the early 90's they went up to one an hour during the day
> and 2 or 3 an hour on overnights. In 1993 they cut to one
> 80's every 3 hours during the day and one every other hour
> at night. By 1995 they were up to one every 90 minutes
> during the day and one an hour at night. By 1999 they were
> playing one an hour. In 2001 they were playing 2 80's an
> hour day and night. They kept at this ammount until March
> 2004 where they reduced 80's to one every 3 hours. By 2005
> they pretty much only played a few a day at most.
>
> > I think the station sounded much better when Bill Brown
> was
> > the PD.
>
> Could be
>
> Actually Joe took songs like Again/Concords, Shaboom/Crew
> Cuts, Wizard Of Love/Lydels out in 1985. It was Bill Brown
> in the mid 70's that took most of the Johnny mathis, Frank
> Sinatra, Pat Boone songs, and Our Winter Love/Bill Purcell
> out of the regular format.
>
> >
>
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