Songs that no longer fit the format?

[101tm]

I’ve been thinking after looking at playlists for a number of classic hits stations, the once staple 70s tunes that seem to be aging out of the format. Classic hits stations still will go back early in the 70s (think “Take it Easy”, “Tiny Dancer”) but there are a lot of 70s tracks that classic hits used to play to death that I’ve noticed have been dropped, primarily from Audacy’s classic hits stations (iHeart and Cumulus still have a more varied variety of 70s tunes on their classic hits stations).

Anything by the Eagles other than “Hotel California” and “Take it Easy” (no “Lyin’ Eyes”, Take it to the Limit”, etc)
“Let’s Stay Together” by Al Green
Anything by Paul McCartney other than “Maybe I’m Amazed” and “Live and Let Die”
Doobie Brothers
Steely Dan
Bachman-Turner Overdrive
“You’re So Vain” by Carly Simon
“Maggie May”, “Tonight’s The Night”, etc by Rod Stewart
Jackson Browne
“Hollywood Nights”, “Night Moves” “We’ve Got Tonight” by Bob Seger
“We Are Family” by Sister Sledge
Chicago from the 70s
“Good Times” by Chic
“Boogie Nights” by Heatwave
“Free Ride” by Edgar Winter
Grand Funk Railroad
America
Bad Company
“Say You Love Me”, “You Make Lovin’ Fun” by Fleetwood Mac
“Philadelphia Freedom”, “Daniel”, “Levon”, “Your Song” by Elton John
“Baby Come Back” by Player
“Fame” by David Bowie
“This Will Be” by Natalie Cole
Bee Gees other than “Stayin’ Alive” or possibly “Night fever”

Again, this is just a rough list of songs that used to be staples A handful of years ago that the format has moved on from, at least on the large market stations like WCBS, KRTH, KLUV. WOGL, KXSN etc mostly owned by Audacy. Of course there is still 70s music - “Play That Funky Music”, “Low Rider”, and “More Than a Feeling”, and of course Queen (which it took a while for classic hits to fully embrace like they do now) still get multiple spins per day on many stations - but it’s just interesting to look back and see what’s changed. Some of these songs are still played as I said on most Cumulus and iHeart stations to a degree, but are on their way out and Audacy seems to have moved on from them entirely. Perhaps the Cumulus and iHeart stations are primarily in non-“top” markets (other than Chicago, Seattle, etc) and there’s less pressure to evolve.

This isn’t a critical post regarding any of the stations that no longer play said songs, not a complaint, just more of an observation.

I assume songs such as the above are no longer titles they can pull from the 70s library that test well with the target demo. I just find it interesting which ones still get airplay due to research and the ones that have been relegated to the vault. Most adult hits stations are down to the same rotation of 70s tunes overall as classic hits stations but probably tighter.

 

[TheBigA]

Again, this is just a rough list of songs that used to be staples A handful of years ago that the format has moved on from, at least on the large market stations

The format hasn't moved. The audience has aged. That's the problem. It would be easier to program radio if people didn't age. But when they do, they take their favorites with them. That's what's happened to that batch of songs. Play them, and the audience instantly becomes 65. It's amazing. So classic hits has to decide if it wants to keep playing songs for an aging audience, or play songs that reach 35 to 55. If it's the latter, then you want to be in the 80s. The goal of format radio is to deliver a specific audience, not play a particular era of music. That era is now in a different box.

 

[kevtronics]

iHeart's "Sunny" and "Breeze" soft AC streams play many of those artists and titles, at least the softer-sounding ones. And my local AC station, Magic 98.3 (not soft AC or classic hits -- regular, mainstream AC) plays Queen and David Bowie -- an odd choice for the format.

 

[firepoint525]

I have noticed for quite a while now that the "'50s" channel on Sirius XM plays quite a few songs from the early '60s.

 

[tall_guy1]

Kckc plays those artists and is an ac station in KC. It's one of the few acs which play artists from the 70s. I've even heard suspicious minds by Elvis on there!

 

[AceBiscuits]

A lot of these songs/artists I agree with but some I've definitely seen lightly or frequently played on the aforementioned Audacy stations.
I've heard Take It To The Limit on WCBS-FM recently, as well as 80's Jackson Browne, Rod Stewart ("Do You Think I'm Sexy?" and his 80's/90's hits of note), and "You Make Loving Fun" by Fleetwood Mac (and a handful of tracks off Rumours, testament to the success of that album).

I will note that especially at WCBS-FM the playlist seems to have tightened up a lot recently.

 

[TheBigA]

Kckc plays those artists and is an ac station in KC. It's one of the few acs which play artists from the 70s. I've even heard suspicious minds by Elvis on there!

It's an interesting playlist. The oldest song I see is American Pie from 1971, and they also play a lot of currents, including The Weekend and Dua Lupa. Fifty years of music all on the same station. The library has about 850 songs.

 

[101tm]

iHeart's "Sunny" and "Breeze" soft AC streams play many of those artists and titles, at least the softer-sounding ones. And my local AC station, Magic 98.3 (not soft AC or classic hits -- regular, mainstream AC) plays Queen and David Bowie -- an odd choice for the format.

IHeart’s Cool Oldies stream which has DJ’s (and Martha Quinn) still plays most of these songs. It’s strictly 70s and 80s with some 60s. 70s and 80s are pretty even. This is heard on a few terrestrial stations.

The format hasn't moved. The audience has aged. That's the problem. It would be easier to program radio if people didn't age. But when they do, they take their favorites with them. That's what's happened to that batch of songs. Play them, and the audience instantly becomes 65. It's amazing. So classic hits has to decide if it wants to keep playing songs for an aging audience, or play songs that reach 35 to 55. If it's the latter, then you want to be in the 80s. The goal of format radio is to deliver a specific audience, not play a particular era of music. That era is now in a different box.

Agree, I just find what “holds up” and what doesn’t interesting, and trying to figure out why some songs I didn’t think were that big are still hanging around and others have pretty much vanished. I can’t get in to the sample audience’s mind though, so not going to be too successful there.

I should have noted “Somebody’s Baby” by Jackson Browne still gets a bit of airplay. “Running on Empty” is primarily the one I was thinking of that’s not played as much now. CBS-FM is still one of the more 70s friendly Audacy classic hits stations.

 

[TheBigA]

I should have noted “Somebody’s Baby” by Jackson Browne still gets a bit of airplay.

Top 10 pop in 1982. Also Top 5 mainstream rock. That rock airplay then may help it now.

 

[oldies76]

I have noticed for quite a while now that the "'50s" channel on Sirius XM plays quite a few songs from the early '60s.

Hey Firepoint, to many, the sounds of pre 1964 fits in perfectly with the sounds of the mid-late 50's. I swear when I heard some songs on oldies radio decades ago, I assumed they were 50's music by their sound and style, only to find out later that they were hits from 1961 or 1963.

Kind of like some stations including "Old Time Rock & Roll" on their 80's weekends. I knew there was a revival of that song in Risky Business, but for all intents and purposes, that song is from 1979.

 

[101tm]

One thing that’s notable is the evolution of the classic hits format is a testament to the fact that generally, pop music ages much more poorly than rock. When classic hits stations started moving more out of the 70s in the early-mid 2010s, the 70s soul, disco, and some pop was the first to go, then the more AC stuff followed a few years later. There’s still a tiny bit of disco on classic hits in the top markets (“Le Freak”, “Get Down Tonight”, “I Will Survive”, “Hot Stuff”, “Play That Funky Music”).

I notice that the classic hits stations in some larger markets like Chicago, Kansas City, St. Louis, Cincinnati, Boston, Cleveland, Indianapolis, Seattle, and ESPECIALLY Portland (KLTH still goes back to the 60s!) are still heavy on 70s music vs the larger market stations primarily owned by Audacy. Do these stations overall perform more poorly in the target demo, or does the demo in the market have more of a preference for older music?

Here in SC, 3 of the classic hits stations - WOMG, WIWF, and WSYN - are all still quite friendly to 70s music. Coincidentally or not, all are owned by Cumulus.

 

[TheBigA]

One thing that’s notable is the evolution of the classic hits format is a testament to the fact that generally, pop music ages much more poorly than rock.

Then again, pop music of the 60s and 70s was primarily produced for AM radio, while rock music of that same era was mainly heard on FM. So there is another factor in the mix besides strictly genre.

 

[AceBiscuits]

A lot of these songs/artists I agree with but some I've definitely seen lightly or frequently played on the aforementioned Audacy stations.

To add: WCBS-FM spun today, mind you at 4:48, "Your Song" by Elton John, which I had thought was out of the rotation, but isn't. Some interesting 70's spins: Orleans "Still The One" which isn't very surprising, and yesterday with Tavares "Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel", which I've not seen played on any other Audacy classic hits station.

 

[TheBigA]

To add: WCBS-FM spun today, mind you at 4:48, "Your Song" by Elton John, which I had thought was out of the rotation, but isn't.

They played it once this week. As I said, these classic hits stations will do that, cycle in some songs they don't normally play, and just play it once. They do that with about different 50 songs every week. I see several old Elton John songs, and a couple Taveres songs, including the one you mention. One spin, and it's gone.

 

[101tm]

To add: WCBS-FM spun today, mind you at 4:48, "Your Song" by Elton John, which I had thought was out of the rotation, but isn't. Some interesting 70's spins: Orleans "Still The One" which isn't very surprising, and yesterday with Tavares "Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel", which I've not seen played on any other Audacy classic hits station.

I know “Your Song” is still in the rotation at Lite FM. A lot of AC’s wouldn’t play it anymore…it’s also Elton John’s oldest song that has ever gotten regular radio airplay, from 1970.

“Still the One” has been in the regular rotation for a while. I believe CBS-FM is the only Audacy classic hits station still playing it (WOLX might).

KOOL-FM in Phoenix has “Le Freak” by Chic in the regular rotation, another Audacy 70s one off.

 

[semoochie]

I know “Your Song” is still in the rotation at Lite FM. A lot of AC’s wouldn’t play it anymore…it’s also Elton John’s oldest song that has ever gotten regular radio airplay, from 1970.

“Still the One” has been in the regular rotation for a while. I believe CBS-FM is the only Audacy classic hits station still playing it (WOLX might).

KOOL-FM in Phoenix has “Le Freak” by Chic in the regular rotation, another Audacy 70s one off.

"Still the One" was ABC's promo song the year after they first won the primetime ratings, 1976-77.

 

[CTListener]

"Still the One" was ABC's promo song the year after they first won the primetime ratings, 1976-77.

And people who remember that aren't in the demo CBS-FM wants to reach in 2022. If it's still being played daily instead of once in a blue moon, I'm surprised. But then, one moldy oldie that will get a 70-year-old's feet tapping isn't going to push the whole station into 55+ territory all by itself.

 

[davideduardo]

They played it once this week. As I said, these classic hits stations will do that, cycle in some songs they don't normally play, and just play it once. They do that with about different 50 songs every week. I see several old Elton John songs, and a couple Taveres songs, including the one you mention. One spin, and it's gone.

Usually, in both Selector or MusicMaster, songs will be rotated in and out. When cycled in, they will sometimes play at least once per station-created time period (might be two, three, four hour slices of the day) and then rest again. But usually they will stay in very light rotation for a period of weeks or even months.

Spaced resting is often done with very secondary songs by core artists, too; each of several cuts is packaged as if it were one song, and then each time the packet plays, it is a different one of two, three or even more cuts.

 

[101tm]

And people who remember that aren't in the demo CBS-FM wants to reach in 2022. If it's still being played daily instead of once in a blue moon, I'm surprised. But then, one moldy oldie that will get a 70-year-old's feet tapping isn't going to push the whole station into 55+ territory all by itself.

Considering the heavy airplay it gets on other classic hits stations (non Audacy owned) and CBS-FM, it’s still testing well with someone they’re trying to reach.

 

[CTListener]

Considering the heavy airplay it gets on other classic hits stations (non Audacy owned) and CBS-FM, it’s still testing well with someone they’re trying to reach.

As I said, one song really doesn't threaten to torpedo the station's demographics. Chances are, though, that the mid-'70s, other than core rock-based staples like "Hotel California," is not long for big-market FM playlists. Pop confections like "Still the One" will very soon go the way of early '70s comparables like "I Can See Clearly Now" and "Gypsys (sic) Tramps and Thieves."