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Why I Like WEZV Easy Radio in Myrtle Beach

Yeah, Andy Williams is standards. I like him, and Sinatra, and Perry Como. I like a lot of Olivia's stuff. I couldn't understand Joy 92 playing "A Little More Love" but I heard it on Dial Global. That was actually a time when the automation didn't work and I didn't hear ABC News like I was supposed to. The same format used to be on 1050 in myrtle Beach.
 
I just made a terrible discovery. Since I've had to change the site where I look up Arbitron ratings, I found WEZV listed as soft AC. I succeeded in getting that chnaged, as the man in charge of it seems convinced some mainstream ACs are still soft AC. He sure couldn't argue that the station sounded like WEZV.

But I hadn't looked at the Wikipedia article since at least last November, which is when the format was changed to soft AC. I contacted the Sun News when one of their articles called the station soft AC and I explained the situation. I was told the Arbitron record showed it as soft AC. I didn't bother contacting the station to get that changed, but I guess I should have. Because the person who changed Wikipedia's article on WEZV said the Arbitron record showed it as soft AC. I said well, Arbitron is wrong, and I've changed the article back. The person wanted me to prove it, though so far he/she is willing to wait for that proof. Arbitron will only accept corrections from the station, so I contacted the station but I haven't heard back. I also don't know if Arbitron has been corrected, but no one in their right mind could classify WEZV as soft AC.
 
I am still enjoying this station. I just heard them play two of my favorites that you rarely hear on the radio anymore... Maxine Nightingale-Lead Me On into Paul Anka-Times Of Your Life.
 
I'd like to side with those who enjoy the personalities on this station... Jim Morgan's cooking, Kelli's daughter Abby, Scott's movie reviews, Bob's anniversary announcements...
It seems like you're listening to a friend, unlike some personality-driven radio (especially those morning shows with annoying sidekicks) where I feel like I'm intruding on their conversation.

I think this station gets decent ratings, too. I wonder if that's because it's on FM.
 
Jay F said:
I am still enjoying this station. I just heard them play two of my favorites that you rarely hear on the radio anymore... Maxine Nightingale-Lead Me On into Paul Anka-Times Of Your Life.
I like these, but I'd like to hear more real standards and, of course, instrumentals.
 
Paige Turner said:
I'd like to side with those who enjoy the personalities on this station... Jim Morgan's cooking, Kelli's daughter Abby, Scott's movie reviews, Bob's anniversary announcements...
It seems like you're listening to a friend, unlike some personality-driven radio (especially those morning shows with annoying sidekicks) where I feel like I'm intruding on their conversation.

I think this station gets decent ratings, too. I wonder if that's because it's on FM.
Why would I care about Jim Morgan's cooking and Kelli's Dixon's daughter? I want to hear MUSIC. When I lose this station's signal, I have to put up with really loud static to hear anything worth hearing. I was about to lose the signal one year and Kelli was running her mouth for the longest time. That's music I'm not hearing!
 
I had a long talk with the general manager of this station last week while I was in Myrtle Beach. The news isn't that good.

While there are times this station sounds very good and it even plays several songs in a row that are real standards, the instrumentals have pretty much disappeared. You get fooled by a lot of songs which start with such gorgeous instrumentals and they end up with a fine vocal performance--but still, not instrumental. They call the station "Easy". They promote it on-air and in the newspaper as "the relaxation station".

A lot of the songs fit into that gray area between real standards and AC. Most ACs aren't playing the songs any more. Then there are the real AC songs, many of which I could do without. Some aren't even on standards stations that I've heard. One was "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?" by Bryan Adams. One of the last people I would want to listen to, although it's one of his least objectionable songs.

The first thing I said to the man was that The Sun News had messed up twice, calling WEZV soft AC. He said it was soft AC. He didn't give me any of that garbage about how the station didn't really fit any category, which is what I was expecting. I said no, Yes 94.5 was soft AC. Easy 105.9 was easy listening.

Regarding WEZV, he said that it was not easy listening because it didn't have instrumentals. I didn't tell him I heard "Nadia's Theme", but he's pretty much correct and that's a shame. I said the defintion of easy listening had evolved. He said no one calls their station easy listening any more. Soft AC is what this is. I said no, a lot of stations are easy listening. Most are in Florida. Okay, that wasn't true, but my Yahoo groups know there are easy listening stations, even some with the classic definition. He mentioned how WDUV in the Tampa area (which he said has 80 percent of their playlist) is considered soft AC. Well, I would have to agree, because the last few times I've looked at their playlist, pretty much everything was AC at one time, even if a few songs have been rejected by AC.

And of course we discussed what soft AC really is. No, he said, Yes 94.5 was mainstream AC. Now the Wikipedia article says the station changed. I don't know if that's true, although Yes 94.5 in October 2007 certainly wasn't the station I had seen described earlier in The Sun News. Actually, according to the Wikipedia article the station went mainstream in March 2008 but switched to oldies in September, before I heard it again. . I wonder if that could be what he meant. Amazingly, as the man described how AC had a wide range, he said a lot of people don't think Star 92.1 is AC, but it is. Excuse me? That's not helping your case. That's not what I said to him but I should have.

I never used the word standards but based on the way that format has changed he would never have found it acceptable as a description of his station. Luckily, the man who keeps formats up-to-date for the Arbitron section of this site agreed with me that it was. I certainly didn't tell the man from WEZV this! I explained what that man said about soft AC being the description of some of the Delilah stations (I didn't call them that) and he said once again, those were mainstream. And whether WEZV is standards or not, Westwood One was calling their format "adult standards" even when it was more AC than WEZV is.

As he was talking about how formats had evolved, he tried to claim Sunny is now classic hits. I disagree. Its format is called "true oldies". Therefore the defintion of oldies has evolved. No, it hasn't, he said. I suppose he could be right, because stations such as WNMB need to distinguish themselves.

He had to leave to go on the air. I read somewhere he calls himself Scott Richards on the air. I found out Kelli Dixon was on vacation, which was a nice relief.

This man is crazy. You need to label your station correctly or people will get the wrong idea.
 
Trinitrotoluene is a chemical explosive better known as TNT. No one calls it by its proper name, let alone even knows that it has a proper name. I think the same can be said about the AC format.

Joel Whitburn prefaces his Billboard Top Adult Contemporary book with the definition of 'adult' as grown-up or mature and 'contemporary' as living or happening in the same period. In music, he says these two words together make up "current music that appeals to adults" and goes on to define 'Adult Contemporary' music as "melodies that are easy on the ears and gentle on the nerves."

Joel Whitburn uses Adult Contemporary to describe this brand of music because he is providing a history of the Billboard Adult Contemporary music chart. Billboard has called it that since 1979; in fact, for a period of about 9 years in the '80s and '90s, it was called the Hot Adult Contemporary chart. Its origin was the Easy Listening chart in 1961 and, for brief periods in the early '60s, went through a couple name changes to Middle-of-Road and Pop-Standard Singles before reverting back to Easy Listening.

What's wrong with this? Well, while this music is indeed "easy on the ears and gentle on the nerves," that certainly does not describe what's on today's mainstream AC stations. As for stations like WEZV and the Dial Global and Music Of Your Life services, it does appeal to adults, but the majority of the music is not current. So this is why I think AC has taken on a sort of TNT designation. No one really says 'adult contemporary' anymore; it's simply AC. In the early days of FM progressive rock stations, AOR or AAA was often used as a general category, although I seldom, if ever, heard their full names Album Oriented Radio and Adult Album Alternative. How many people actually call CBS the Columbia Broadcasting System or RCA the Radio Corporation of America?

This is how I see AC... easier on the ears and gentler on the nerves than today's Contemporary Hits stations, for sure. So, a Soft AC is even easier and gentler, while a Hot AC goes in the other direction.
 
vchimpanzee said:
While there are times this station sounds very good and it even plays several songs in a row that are real standards, the instrumentals have pretty much disappeared. They call the station "Easy". They promote it on-air and in the newspaper as "the relaxation station".

A lot of the songs fit into that gray area between real standards and AC. Most ACs aren't playing the songs any more.

The Sun News had messed up twice, calling WEZV soft AC. He said it was soft AC. He didn't give me any of that garbage about how the station didn't really fit any category, which is what I was expecting. I said no, Yes 94.5 was soft AC. Easy 105.9 was easy listening.

Regarding WEZV, he said that it was not easy listening because it didn't have instrumentals.

I never used the word standards but based on the way that format has changed he would never have found it acceptable as a description of his station. And whether WEZV is standards or not, Westwood One was calling their format "adult standards" even when it was more AC than WEZV is.

I think WEZV is smart in its positioning as "Easy Radio" and "Relaxation Station" which is completely accurate. While I agree with you that, for all intents and purposes, WEZV is an easy listening station (compared to everything else on the air today), I'm sure it's a business decision why the GM refers to his station as Soft AC. Advertisers just stay away from stations labeled as Easy Listening or Standards. And let's face it, Easy Listening still invokes images of those old beautiful music stations even though they all but disappeared 20 years ago.

I wouldn't call WEZV strictly Standards either. Yes, we know it's a hybrid of true standards, soft pop hits of the last 50 years, and the new traditionalists such as Buble and Groban, but I think that's what Soft AC is in the industry today. The point I was trying to make in my previous post is that the 'AC' in Soft AC can no longer mean Adult Contemporary. It's simply a generic term for pop music with a mass appeal, and 'Soft' defines which side of the spectrum that music falls under.

Regardless of how WEZV is labeled, they must be doing something right. The latest ratings show them at No. 2. By the way, if you want some instrumentals mixed in, try KMGR in Manti, Utah: http://midutahradio.com/kmgr
It's virtually the same playlist as WEZV, but they haven't totally abandoned the instrumentals.

vchimpanzee said:
You need to label your station correctly or people will get the wrong idea.

Don't worry about the people. If they haven't totally given up on radio, those that like this music will find you. I'd say it's more about labeling your station correctly to get the most from advertisers.
 
I gave WEZV another listen today. The usual weekend guy, Bob Natale, had a bad case of laryngitis, so his wife Janet helped out. One of the things they mentioned was that they both worked together years ago at the former Joy 92, and that Jim Morgan and Kelli Dixon were also on that station.

Now, from what I remember, Joy 92 (WJYR?) was a beautiful music station into the early '90s. Is that true? If so, would Jim Morgan, Kelli Dixon, and Bob & Janet Natale have been there then? I just didn't think beautiful music stations had any on-air personalities. Does anyone know the history of this station and how it evolved into WEZV if there is any connection?

The earliest I can remember WEZV was probably around 2002 and the sound seemed to be more of a smooth-jazz oriented format than what it is today. (I should say, true smooth jazz - Tony Bennett, Ella Fitzgerald - not the Urban stuff). The mix was more standards and MOR hits; not many of the soft pop hits that are on there today.
 
WJYR was easy listening all the way through the 1990s. They didn't switch to 105.9 until September 2000, when WNMB's format ended, and that wacky switch occurred, with WMYB going from 99.5, briefly to 94.5, then over to 92.1, while WRNN went to 99.5 from 94.5, and Easy started the simulcast at 94.5 and 105.9.
 
charlestondxman said:
WJYR was easy listening all the way through the 1990s. They didn't switch to 105.9 until September 2000, when WNMB's format ended, and that wacky switch occurred, with WMYB going from 99.5, briefly to 94.5, then over to 92.1, while WRNN went to 99.5 from 94.5, and Easy started the simulcast at 94.5 and 105.9.
It's a little more complicated than that. Here's what I read in the Sun News online or wherever back in the day.

First of all, to answer the question about Jim Morgan, The Sun News did say Jim Morgan was at WJYR. And he was the no. 1 morning host. I don't know about the others.

Second, Next Media took over several stations and moved around their frequencies. They were actually ignorant enough to believe that people would listen to WJYR on a tiny AM station when AM has never done well in Myrtle Beach. And there was the attitude that changing 92.1 FM to the Star format wasn't that drastic. The only thing that didn't change was Delilah. The Sun News got numerous letters to the editor about that. Furthermore, they merely moved the call letters. They changed the music completely and got rid of the personalities that had been there, if any. It was the one time Myrtle Beach had "Music of Your Life". And if that's not bad enough, the sports talk shows and play-by-play stayed around at night and on weekends.

WNMB had been doing really poorly since Star 99.5 became popular. One reason was that they had tried "hot adult contemporary" and the listeners were confused. When they went mainstream again, the audience didn't come back. So there was this obvious hole in the market and Jim Morgan was unemployed. They took advantage of a situation that has benefitted them enormously.

Furthermore, when the shuffling of frequencies was complete, 94.5 was without a format and Next Media had too many stations. They had to sell at least one.

WEZV also didn't do what WJYR had. They said their music would be better. There were lots of instrumentals, and many of them were traditional. While WJYR had added a lot of vocals and what few instrumentals they had were too contemporary. They did have more instrumentals at night, but then they went and added Delilah. Big mistake, if you ask me.

Oh, yeah, WJYR on AM never even showed up in the ratings. I think they went all-sports again.

One thing I noticed when I was in the area a couple of weeks ago: there were a lot of commercials relating to Georgetown. So they really need that 100.7 frequency.
 
Paige Turner said:
I think WEZV is smart in its positioning as "Easy Radio" and "Relaxation Station" which is completely accurate. While I agree with you that, for all intents and purposes, WEZV is an easy listening station (compared to everything else on the air today), I'm sure it's a business decision why the GM refers to his station as Soft AC. Advertisers just stay away from stations labeled as Easy Listening or Standards. And let's face it, Easy Listening still invokes images of those old beautiful music stations even though they all but disappeared 20 years ago.

I wouldn't call WEZV strictly Standards either. Yes, we know it's a hybrid of true standards, soft pop hits of the last 50 years, and the new traditionalists such as Buble and Groban, but I think that's what Soft AC is in the industry today. The point I was trying to make in my previous post is that the 'AC' in Soft AC can no longer mean Adult Contemporary. It's simply a generic term for pop music with a mass appeal, and 'Soft' defines which side of the spectrum that music falls under.
When people are trying to use the term soft AC to refer to Delilah stations, that's where the logic falls apart. I did persuade the man who was doing this on his web site to call WEZV adult standards. Because he did say that if you see two different stations called such and such, they are going to sound alike.

I haven't gotten through to him that Jack stations are not classic hits. When oldies stations are using the term to keep from being perceived the way oldies stations once were, something's wrong.

One thing concerns me: one web site (probably not his) calls WDUV "AC". Not soft AC. AC. While WDUV is pretty bad, it has little in common with true ACs.
 
Another enjoyable session listening to WEZV. The highlight was when they played R.B Greaves-Always Something There To Remind Me. I have heard the Naked Eyes cover version milllions of times in my life but this was the first time I ever heard the original. It was delightful, I enjoyed every second of it. This was also the first time I ever heard an R.B Greaves song other than "Take A Letter Maria".

I previously posted that I heard them play Michael Johnson-Bluer Than Blue. This morning they played another great Michael Johnson song "This Night Won't Last Forever". It's good to know there is a radio station that remembers Michael Johnson and recognizes his underrated talent.

Now they are playing the Fortunes-Here Comes That Rainy Day Feeling Again. It's always a treat to hear that song. It's sounds like something Frankie Valli should have recorded,

Thank you EZ105.9 for all that you do. You truly are the "relaxation station". Please don't change and harden up on us.
 
Jay F said:
Another enjoyable session listening to WEZV. The highlight was when they played R.B Greaves-Always Something There To Remind Me. I have heard the Naked Eyes cover version milllions of times in my life but this was the first time I ever heard the original. It was delightful, I enjoyed every second of it. This was also the first time I ever heard an R.B Greaves song other than "Take A Letter Maria".

I previously posted that I heard them play Michael Johnson-Bluer Than Blue. This morning they played another great Michael Johnson song "This Night Won't Last Forever". It's good to know there is a radio station that remembers Michael Johnson and recognizes his underrated talent.

Now they are playing the Fortunes-Here Comes That Rainy Day Feeling Again. It's always a treat to hear that song. It's sounds like something Frankie Valli should have recorded,

Thank you EZ105.9 for all that you do. You truly are the "relaxation station". Please don't change and harden up on us.
Better yet, play more of the really old stuff and bring back the instrumentals. There's some real gold on Dial Global standards that you just don't want to play.

I do agree about the songs mentioned in this post, except there's some screaming in that rainy day song. Just keep it nice and relaxing.
 
One more thing.

I have said I'd like more instrumentals on WEZV, but I mean the good ones.

WLGI plays smooth jazz, although I don't know how much. I heard it during the evening and early in the morning. It would make a good full-time format, although I'm sure they have to promote their religious agenda from time to time.
 
Their website shows Phil Thompson as the midday personality. Does anyone know what happened to Kelli Dixon? Did she leave on her own?
 
EZway2go said:
Their website shows Phil Thompson as the midday personality. Does anyone know what happened to Kelli Dixon? Did she leave on her own?
I don't know but I'm glad she's gone. She had the most irritating voice. I may not have had the right to complain since I only hear the station a few days a year, but she wrote me an angry postcard after seeing the letter I wrote the station which mentioned how annoying she was.

They had a female announcer doing commercials who was much easier to take.
 
Oh I see the Chimp is as classy as ever. For the record, I left on my own. Thanks for wondering.
 
Hey, Kelli -- Used to listen all the time at work, but now they block the WEZV stream, so I didn't get to hear when your last day was. Hope you didn't defect to another station -- you're great doing this format. Enjoyed hearing the stories of your family and stupid criminal of the day, also the small-talk with Jim Morgan at the end of his show. Good old-fashioned personality radio. Anyone who doesn't like it should just stick to CDs or get satellite.

All the best to you!
 
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