The old Z!04 WZYQ

[soundblast]

In the 70's and some of the early 80's I heard airchecks of WZYQ Z104 in Fredrick
The station was the first with Bill Gamble as PD and then Kemosoby (sorry for the misspelling)Joe Johnson, It was one of the few if not only station I ever heard using a high energy presentation with real content and humor. It had a good vibe. It radiated an energy or atmosphere like I have never heard

I am wondering what happened to it. With the major market sounding jocks, major market promos and major market types of contest I can't see it ever doing bad enough to change formates.

I heard the station is back with some kind of contemporary format but I want to know what happened to the original top 40 format and where is Joe Johnson now.?

 

[amfmxm]

In the 70's and some of the early 80's I heard airchecks of WZYQ Z104 in Fredrick
The station was the first with Bill Gamble as PD and then Kemosoby (sorry for the misspelling)Joe Johnson, It was one of the few if not only station I ever heard using a high energy presentation with real content and humor. It had a good vibe. It radiated an energy or atmosphere like I have never heard

I am wondering what happened to it. With the major market sounding jocks, major market promos and major market types of contest I can't see it ever doing bad enough to change formates.

I heard the station is back with some kind of contemporary format but I want to know what happened to the original top 40 format and where is Joe Johnson now.?

Hey, Jeff. What gives? This is at least the third thread you've started--and participated in--over the past few years, asking pretty much the same questions. The thread below (WZYQ Z104 & Today's Top 40) generated a lot of response and answered those questions--I think. I am one of the original staffers of WZYQ--I was there for the official change from WMHI in 1975, and I certainly like to reminisce (sp?). But I am curious. The way you describe your career is sort of a parallel to Shotgun Mark Rivers aka Mike Lamb, probably the key air talent to that original bunch, along with PD Denny Carpenter. Is this you, Mike? I do know that he's (also) in the ecommerce biz...

 

[soundblast]

Well I never got a answer that really explained what happen to the station until my most recent post about Z104. I figured that I would eventually get an answer that was really clear and posting again I hoped to get an answer by posting again to reach a new set of readers which would increase the chances of finding our what really happened to the station. I can say that I do now have a satisfactory answer so you will not read about his again. If I was doing something wrong then I apolijize.

 

[amfmxm]

No need to apologize. Probably the easiest way to think about what happened was that the people who conceived and built WZYQ into the remarkable station it was eventually moved on and were replaced with other people who had their own--different--ideas. And while that was happening, the Top 40/CHR format underwent tremendous change, making that style of radio anachronistic--that is, out of sync with the style of the times.

Like you (I believe), I'm one who thinks that the Z104 style could again be a big hit in radio... in the right circumstances. I do believe that Howard Johnson, Dennis Carpenter and Mike Lamb--the three guys truly responsible for creating Z104--were geniuses, and I continue to hold all three in the highest regard.

 

[shadough]

I was passing thru Frederick county today an said to myself, Danm, I really miss Z104.

I think you pretty much hit the nail on the head there "amf", those who started it, moved on, it was after all a small town station, w/ a low power signal. As the staion drifted toward 1995, it splintered itself, daytime it was like a HotAC station, and was only a CHR at night. Which tells me they were desperatly trying to pull in higher ratings. Bonneville is the company that purchased Z104 in 1995, in their continuing efforts to xpand and expand. They did try to bring Z104 back, and finally all of DC was able to hear Z104, but the ratings really went in to the crapper when Hot99.5 burst onto the scene. And so now, the Z is gone. ;( ANd we get a simulcast of ALL NEWS WTOP on 103.9, and some spirtual station on 104.1. (although I hear thats just a rental).

 

[trefdawg]

Kemosabe is on the oldies station in Ocean City MD doing morning drive.

 

[bk77]

I was passing thru Frederick county today an said to myself, Danm, I really miss Z104.

I think you pretty much hit the nail on the head there "amf", those who started it, moved on, it was after all a small town station, w/ a low power signal. As the staion drifted toward 1995, it splintered itself, daytime it was like a HotAC station, and was only a CHR at night. Which tells me they were desperatly trying to pull in higher ratings. Bonneville is the company that purchased Z104 in 1995, in their continuing efforts to xpand and expand. They did try to bring Z104 back, and finally all of DC was able to hear Z104, but the ratings really went in to the crapper when Hot99.5 burst onto the scene. And so now, the Z is gone. ;( ANd we get a simulcast of ALL NEWS WTOP on 103.9, and some spirtual station on 104.1. (although I hear thats just a rental).

Small town station...while that is true, the times I can remember listening to Z104 in the early 80s sure made Frederick sound like this "big city". Come to think of it., even WFMD did this. Calling Fredierck a "metroplex", the local police "metro police" and so forth. Then again Frederick always did have this "big city" feel to it. Retail is a great example of that. Between having TWO malls ( though a bit on the small side ) it does seem just about every retail chain out there does open up shop in Frederick.

On a similar level is Martinsburg, West Virginia now-defunct WKMZ-FM "Power 97 Five". When they were top 40 back in the mid-late 80's, they painted Martinsburg as this "big city". Of course that failed since no matter how once slices it, Martinsburg really is just a small town in West Virginia.

 

[amfmxm]

Small town station...while that is true, the times I can remember listening to Z104 in the early 80s sure made Frederick sound like this "big city". Come to think of it., even WFMD did this. Calling Fredierck a "metroplex", the local police "metro police" and so forth. Then again Frederick always did have this "big city" feel to it. Retail is a great example of that. Between having TWO malls ( though a bit on the small side ) it does seem just about every retail chain out there does open up shop in Frederick.

On a similar level is Martinsburg, West Virginia now-defunct WKMZ-FM "Power 97 Five". When they were top 40 back in the mid-late 80's, they painted Martinsburg as this "big city". Of course that failed since no matter how once slices it, Martinsburg really is just a small town in West Virginia.

Frederick has been Suburban DC for nearly 40 years now, and that was certainly part of Z104's charm for the tons-o-jox who whisked through their revolving door back in the Glory Days. And many did make the next step to either Baltimore or DC radio--or other major markets. Martinsburg has been DC's Last Suburb for about 20 years now. Berkeley County's population doubled over that period. Boom towns are cool--so much growth, so much new stuff. In KMZ's case, the 50-kw FM signal held special charm, too. Both ZYQ & KMZ at their height have a place in the pantheon of great Top 40 stations of that era and a host of alums who used those springboards to leap to bigger things.

 

[bk77]

Small town station...while that is true, the times I can remember listening to Z104 in the early 80s sure made Frederick sound like this "big city". Come to think of it., even WFMD did this. Calling Fredierck a "metroplex", the local police "metro police" and so forth. Then again Frederick always did have this "big city" feel to it. Retail is a great example of that. Between having TWO malls ( though a bit on the small side ) it does seem just about every retail chain out there does open up shop in Frederick.

On a similar level is Martinsburg, West Virginia now-defunct WKMZ-FM "Power 97 Five". When they were top 40 back in the mid-late 80's, they painted Martinsburg as this "big city". Of course that failed since no matter how once slices it, Martinsburg really is just a small town in West Virginia.

Frederick has been Suburban DC for nearly 40 years now, and that was certainly part of Z104's charm for the tons-o-jox who whisked through their revolving door back in the Glory Days. And many did make the next step to either Baltimore or DC radio--or other major markets. Martinsburg has been DC's Last Suburb for about 20 years now. Berkeley County's population doubled over that period. Boom towns are cool--so much growth, so much new stuff. In KMZ's case, the 50-kw FM signal held special charm, too. Both ZYQ & KMZ at their height have a place in the pantheon of great Top 40 stations of that era and a host of alums who used those springboards to leap to bigger things.

Very true abut Berkeley County's growth but I am not so sure if Martinsburg has seen much in the way of "new stuff" other than lots of new houses and a handful of small businesses. Well northern Berkeley recently got a new Wal-Mart however with that being said Martinsburg is home of West Virginia's most deadest mall..Martinsburg Mall. Unless it has changed within the last year a lot of retail chains and restaurants like Target, Toys R US, Kohls and Red Lobster simply refuse to do business in Martinsburg ( I have heard its due to local politics ). But then again Martinsburg is between two much bigger cities ( Hagerstown to the north and Winchester to the south ) and those cities have the bulk of the retail and restaurants in the region so its not like those who live in Berkeley County have this "shortage" of places to shop anyway.

 

[amfmxm]

Mmmmmm, uh, you haven't really thought all this through, have you? Martinsburg is nowhere near the backwater you portray--and I'm not exactly sure how to step you through the process of recognizing it. My guess is that you formed an opinion of the place quite a few years ago and are reluctant to give it up, regardless of the changed reality. FWIW, today's official designation is the Hagerstown-Martinsburg Metropolitan Statistical Area--it's one market. I bounce back and forth between the two cities on a regular basis, and generally think of it that way.

Reminds me of the old joke:

Q: What's the difference between a West Virginian and an A-hole?
A: The Potomac River.

 

[bk77]

Mmmmmm, uh, you haven't really thought all this through, have you? Martinsburg is nowhere near the backwater you portray--and I'm not exactly sure how to step you through the process of recognizing it. My guess is that you formed an opinion of the place quite a few years ago and are reluctant to give it up, regardless of the changed reality. FWIW, today's official designation is the Hagerstown-Martinsburg Metropolitan Statistical Area--it's one market. I bounce back and forth between the two cities on a regular basis, and generally think of it that way.

Reminds me of the old joke:

Q: What's the difference between a West Virginian and an A-hole?
A: The Potomac River.

Of course..Martinsburg is hardly backwater country...just that with so much growth going on there, for some reason it seems many of the retail chains haven't noticed it or don't want too. Until last year I worked for the Martinsburg Journal newspaper and quite often we would get letters from so many people in the area saying "..hey we have the houses and the people...but where is our Best Buy? Macys? Olive Garden? Target?". While the other cities in the region such as Hagerstown and Winchester, even Chambersburg have had no problem getting many of those chains over the years, for some reason Martinsburg can't and/or won't. Hopefully history will change soon for them.

 

[RockofHBG]

Don't compare ZYQ to KMZ! KMZ was a joke. All they had was a big signal. They played stiffs and never had ratings.

 

[amfmxm]

Don't compare ZYQ to KMZ! KMZ was a joke. All they had was a big signal. They played stiffs and never had ratings.

Your memory's playing tricks on you, man. Even in their heyday, Z104 was never a ratings winner. As terrific as we all remember the station sounding, WZYQ never--as in ***never*** beat WFMD(AM) in 12+ or 25-54 or anything else meaningful. Adults 18-34? Probably. But they were never (NEVER) able to translate that into money, which--of course--is why Z104 disappeared from the ol' FM dial a couple of decades ago. WZYQ was usually third in billing, following WFMD and WFRE--individually. The FMD/FRE combo out-billed WZYQ-AM/FM about 3-to-1. Oops.

KMZ, on the other hand, was huge in its home county (Berkeley County, WV) and West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle. We're talking (12+) shares in the 25 to 35 range in the late eighties. Whatever KMZ pulled in the outside markets--Hagerstown and Winchester--was strictly gravy, just as it continues to be for present-day WLTF. But judging that station on the basis of what it does outside its home market is nonsense. Kind of like bashing WHUR because they're only #13 in Baltimore--hey, it's a DC station! Show up at all in a market other than your own is a great accomplishment.

 

[RockofHBG]

Wow! Number one in Berkley County :-[!! If they weren't they'd be some kind of problem. By the way, they aren't always, either. 97.5 had and still has a signal capable of competing in the Hagerstown Market. They just don't know what to do with it. Every incarnation of WKMZ and WLTF has been a joke (however in the last 3 months they sound the best they ever have). WZYQ, while handicapped by their bug zapper signal, was far more professionally done. Great jocks, great jingles, great production. KMZ couldn't have shined ZYQ's shoes. KMZ jocks were a bunch of yokels. All they had was a great signal, decent processing, and a good jingle package...one package that is. ZYQ had every jingle recorded in modern times! Don't even try to compare on-air talent.

 

[amfmxm]

Every incarnation of WKMZ and WLTF has been a joke (however in the last 3 months they sound the best they ever have).

Oh, so you're the new PD at WLTF. Congratulations! Good outfit.

 

[RockofHBG]

No I'm not the PD at prettyman. Just someone who's been around enough to know the history of a radio station that's always been a loser. What a waste of a frequency!

 

[amfmxm]

No I'm not the PD at prettyman. Just someone who's been around enough to know the history of a radio station that's always been a loser. What a waste of a frequency!

LOL! You just wish you had the money that "wasted frequency" generates. You're sounding more foolish the deeper you get, man. Time to go bash another successful station elsewhere.

 

[RockofHBG]

Of course they make money! Any idiot that has no debt, pays their people crap and sells 18 units an hour at cheap rates can make money. If they did all the crap they do and didn't make money, then they'd really be crazy. Try playing at the level of Nassau, Main Line or even Verstandig. Then we'll talk. I'm talking totally about the bush-league, unfocused programing they've saturated the airwaves with over the years. Who in their right mind would let Stacy Drake turn on a radio, let alone program a radio station for over 8 years? Did he ever prepared a break?

 

[amfmxm]

Of course they make money! Any idiot that has no debt, pays their people crap and sells 18 units an hour at cheap rates can make money. If they did all the crap they do and didn't make money, then they'd really be crazy. Try playing at the level of Nassau, Main Line or even Verstandig. Then we'll talk. I'm talking totally about the bush-league, unfocused programing they've saturated the airwaves with over the years. Who in their right mind would let Stacy Drake turn on a radio, let alone program a radio station for over 8 years? Did he ever prepared a break?

By "Nassau" you mean Goldman Sachs, right--the bankers who took over the company in May?

Maybe not the best example...

 

[RockofHBG]

I'm referring only to the programming. Because Prettyman hires either really green people or those on their last radio legs ('cause of the pay), the programming ain't the most professional. The way you defend KMZ/LTF you must either work for or have worked for them in the past. It's obvious in the way you lose focus easily.