WCBS-FM Trades In Golden Oldies for Beastie Boys (101.1 FM in NY); aka the Jack Format C/D

Message Bookmarked

Bookmark Removed

WCBS-FM Trades In Golden Oldies for Beastie Boys

WCBS-FM (101.1), the New York radio station that for three decades has served as a purveyor of frozen-in-time golden oldies, jumped on radio's latest trend yesterday, dumping its genre for the "Jack format," which runs off a broader list of mainstream hits from the 1970's through the 90's. At 5 p.m. yesterday, the station largely abandoned acts like Tom Jones, the Four Tops and the Supremes in favor of the Beastie Boys, No Doubt, Tom Petty and Duran Duran. Analysts say the change by WCBS's corporate parent, Infinity Broadcasting, reflects demographic shifts and a gradual redefinition of what constitutes oldies for today's radio listeners. The Jack format, devised by a Canadian company, Rogers Media, is playing on a growing number of stations in the United States. Programmers have been adopting the format, which is built from a bigger-than-usual music library and results in odd mixes of songs from various eras and genres, partly as a response to the popularity of iPods and satellite radio, which offer deep playlists with no commercials. WCBS had been playing the oldies format since 1972. Infinity said its program director, Dave Logan, and its morning host, Micky Dolenz, of the 1960's made-for-television band the Monkees, had left the station. The company said the oldies format continues at www.wcbsfm.com. Infinity's Chicago oldies station, WJMK-FM, is also changing to the Jack format.

I'm in shock! I can't even picture the FM band without this station. It was always comforting to put it on and hear the Turtles, Motown, and all those great one-hit wonders from the 60s-70s. Not to mention Cousin Brucey's reverb-laden shout.

So is this "Jack Format" any good? Where does it pull this list of tunes from and what does it include/exclude? It sounds like listening to shuffle on someone's iPod who doesn't know JACK SHIT about good tunes.

― Keith C (kcraw916), Saturday, 4 June 2005 15:53 (twenty years ago)

Happened upon it yesterday. A truly mixed bag (C+C Music Factory followed by AC/DC followed by James Brown followed by CCR followed by En Vogue. etc.) The station ID's are annoying and smug, but I respect the idea of a formatless format.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Saturday, 4 June 2005 16:07 (twenty years ago)

I believe that Chicago's sole FM oldies station WJMK 104.3 has done this too, fairly recently, perhaps giving longtime Chicago DJ Dick Biondi the final sendoff.

― Baked Bean Teeth (Baked Bean Teeth), Saturday, 4 June 2005 16:47 (twenty years ago)

!!!

this is kinda sad -- not that i often willingly listened to CBS 101.1 FM oldies, but it was kinda nice to know that it was around in its old format.

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Saturday, 4 June 2005 17:24 (twenty years ago)

The Jack format has been running in LA for a while now (but you people didn't pay attention because you're bigoted against the West Coast -- I'm joking of course ;-) ) as well as elsewhere in Canada and the US. It's proven thoroughly popular in that it gives you obvious hits and no DJs, with a specific emphasis on the Top 40 back catalog all over the place. Therefore it is the strangest of beasts, an anti-rockist but canonical station. ;-) *flees*

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Saturday, 4 June 2005 17:27 (twenty years ago)

why is it called the "jack" format?

― That One Guy (That One Guy), Saturday, 4 June 2005 17:30 (twenty years ago)

I think the "Jack" name is supposed to signify some kind of everyman. I heard of a station in some other city which switched to the same format, called "Doug".

I haven't heard the format yet but nothing I've read makes me want to seek it out. I'd rather have an oldies option over the air, and I'd prefer a live person saying the annoying smug quips about songs than some recording.

The number of songs in rotation is supposed to be larger than other formats, so that's a good thing, but I'm still probably not going to hear something great that I haven't already heard when it first came out.

― Michelle, Saturday, 4 June 2005 18:01 (twenty years ago)

They make it seem like the Jack catalog is so huge, but I think that's just the press release talking. WCBS-FM played a *lot* of unobvious tunes, mostly stuff that had charted only for a brief moment or two way back when. I would hear stuff on there I didn't know all the time.

Article on the format: http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/apr2005/nf2005048_4639_db042.htm

― Keith C (kcraw916), Saturday, 4 June 2005 18:28 (twenty years ago)

whoa! wcbs was one of the first stations i ever listened to -- i can't imagine it being anything other than oldies.

― to let - flats (Jody Beth Rosen), Saturday, 4 June 2005 18:40 (twenty years ago)

Analysts say the change by WCBS's corporate parent, Infinity Broadcasting, reflects demographic shifts and a gradual redefinition of what constitutes oldies for today's radio listeners.

Unkind translation: the people who originally bought all those records by Elvis/Chuck Berry/The Platters etc. back in the fifties are now DEAD or DYING.

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Saturday, 4 June 2005 18:40 (twenty years ago)

It sounds like listening to shuffle on someone's iPod who doesn't know JACK SHIT about good tunes.

My father heard it and said it was kind of condescending to the audience at times. Something about, "We only play commercials to pay the bills, but when we're not doing that we play whatever we feel like playing"

O RLY?

I knew something was up when 93.1 in L.A. (formerly a Classic Rock station) had Dave Matthews Band playing.

― Cunga (Cunga), Saturday, 4 June 2005 18:41 (twenty years ago)

when we're not doing that we play whatever we feel like playing

...because our market research has determined that our target demographic like to think they were rebels in high school.

― Michelle, Saturday, 4 June 2005 18:51 (twenty years ago)

BTW WCBS-FM has been a long-time-dyin'. Useta to listen to the station a lot as a wee one, and later, as an actual teenage rock fan for whom rock seemed new. I remember they tried balancing the oldies with the newies throughout the eighties (memory: a commercial boasting they played the hits of yesterday...and today!, with "today" being represented by Matthew Wilder and new wavers in the park with pastel poodle hair), which more or less meant they played Billy Idol’s version of “Mony Mony” waaaay more than was warranted. (I remember them actually playing Cameo's "Word Up" a couple times, which is DEEPLY bizarre to me, like someone forgot to tell them about the post-sixties audience fragmentation thing, God love ‘em.)

They tweaked the format slightly in the last few years to almost totally exclude the music of the earliest rock hits. The station is famous and storied for having these yearly TOP 500 SONGS OF ALL TIME countdowns for decades, almost always topped by "In the Still of the Nite," but a month or two ago I checked their last countdown, and there was a TOTAL of maybe ten or so hits from the fifties. So, basically, classically “oldies” stations are undergoing the kind of cultural reaping that stations with "The Music of Your Life" or "Beautiful Music" formats underwent throughout the eighties. What this says about the growing irrelevance of “the fifties” to your average relatively clued-up American; how this stuff becomes less a part of the common culture and more the domain of the academic, or a kind of open secret. It’s sorta sad, sorta inevitable.

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Saturday, 4 June 2005 18:54 (twenty years ago)

(I say all this right before catching a movie at the MoMa, home to one of the most glorious repertory theaters in the country. My Neighbor Totoro, if you must know. "Trash" culture will never really die, rah!)

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Saturday, 4 June 2005 18:58 (twenty years ago)

not as bad as when we lost WDRE/WLIR, but still very sad. loved WCBS.

― cutty (mcutt), Saturday, 4 June 2005 19:00 (twenty years ago)

Man, WCBS-FM was probably the best radio station in the NY/NJ area and now they suck.

First K-Rock changed their format into New and Classic Rock (which was a better change) and now CBS is too?

Fuckin' Britches.

― That One Guy (That One Guy), Saturday, 4 June 2005 19:14 (twenty years ago)

Michael, "Word Up" *was* Top Five pop.

― Rickey Wright (Rrrickey), Saturday, 4 June 2005 20:32 (twenty years ago)

And you're right, it is *really* sad to see so much '50s music disappearing from the radio. Seems it's been happening for the better part of a decade.

― Rickey Wright (Rrrickey), Saturday, 4 June 2005 20:35 (twenty years ago)

The whole "Jack" schtick gets old VERY quickly (okay, we get it, you're a wiseass!) That all said, it's still kinda "oldies". The most recent thing I've heard on it in two days of listening was......er....Nickelback (hardly a recommendation).

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Saturday, 4 June 2005 21:43 (twenty years ago)

one month passes...

Does their logo/mascot remind anyone else of the IRS records guy?

http://www.ilikejack.com/images/ads/jack-ads-big.jpg ihttp://www.darryl.com/images/irs2.jpg

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 22 July 2005 00:33 (twenty years ago)

him or Bart Simpson.

― Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Friday, 22 July 2005 00:41 (twenty years ago)

The biggest lost for nyc radio audience is even fewer outlets for classic soul/r&b music. 98.7 plays too much new stuff and 105.1 got the "Power" 2 years ago. Although the fantastic Rhythm Revue is now on Kiss on Sundays.

http://www.classicsoul.com/

― burna (burna), Friday, 22 July 2005 03:02 (twenty years ago)

It's called 'Jack' to make it sound like a satellite station... y'know. Or the managers watched MST3K a lot (Turn your crank to Frank!). I doubt the second, but suspect the first.

― Jimmy Mod Is Sick of Being The Best At Everything (ModJ), Friday, 22 July 2005 03:05 (twenty years ago)

Felix Hernandez is a god and I listen to his Rhythm Revues whenever I get the chance -- but as sad as NYC's lack of classic soul is its lack of modern rock. Were I more objective I'd be wail its lack of country & western at the same time. (As an aside, I have *never* found a format in any city, or even on Net radio, that includes countrypolitan pop hits from the early '70s like Charlie Rich's "Most Beautiful Girl in the World" and B.J. Thomas's "Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song.")

― Joseph McCombs (Joseph McCombs), Friday, 22 July 2005 03:47 (twenty years ago)

Or the managers watched MST3K a lot (Turn your crank to Frank!).

IIRC, that skit was inspired by a Minneapolis radio station that changed its name to "Bob" ("turn your knob to Bob!").

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Friday, 22 July 2005 10:14 (twenty years ago)

"Jack" is now in Chicago and unbelievably dreadful. I have yet to discern any difference between it and "The Lite," "The Mix" or any other grocery store stations.

I would have just preferred to keep on hearing Dick Biondi speaking at absurd volumes every now and then.

― Sparkle Motion's Rising Force, Friday, 22 July 2005 17:59 (twenty years ago)

(As an aside, I have *never* found a format in any city, or even on Net radio, that includes countrypolitan pop hits from the early '70s like Charlie Rich's "Most Beautiful Girl in the World" and B.J. Thomas's "Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song.")

Because this station, if it did exist, would be so awesome and powerful that the Illuminati would have to destroy it.

― Keith C (kcraw916), Friday, 22 July 2005 19:17 (twenty years ago)

Or maybe the Illuminati would buy and run it!

― Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Friday, 22 July 2005 19:37 (twenty years ago)

seven months pass...

Are these stations just getting better and better all the time or what?

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Saturday, 18 March 2006 20:39 (twenty years ago)

or what

― account settings (account), Sunday, 19 March 2006 01:58 (twenty years ago)

Marshall Jefferson is thrilled with this new jack format.

― meth lab for doug flutie (sanskrit), Sunday, 19 March 2006 02:37 (twenty years ago)

FMU on my FM dial = no other radio matters

― cdwill (cdwill), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:13 (twenty years ago)

The thrill is gone, Jack

― Keith C (lync0), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:19 (twenty years ago)

Wikipedia: According to Arbitrends stats released after the change that covered the first three months of the summer ratings period, which was half Jack and half Oldies, WCBS-FM was in 17th place among New York stations with a 2.5 rating 12+. Their ratings would fall even further in the June-July-August ratings period (the station's first full period with a Jack format), as they ended up in 22nd place among New York stations with a 1.7 rating 12+. In the overall summer 2005 ratings period, the station had a 1.5 rating 12+, which was the lowest of any commercial FM station in New York. This decline is even more staggering considering that the station had a 3.6 rating 12+ in the summer 2004 ratings period. The station also had been ranked in ninth place as recently as winter 2004-2005.

Youch.

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:26 (twenty years ago)

this proves -- trends come and go but classic oldies rock will never die.

― Sterling Clover (s_clover), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:33 (twenty years ago)

Last 20 songs on San Diego station:

You Can't Hurry Love Phil Collins
Coudln't Get It Right The Climax Blues Band
Middle Of The Road The Pretenders
Mexico James Taylor
Train in Vain The Clash
Praise You Fatboy Slim
It's Only Rock N' Roll (But I Lke It) The Rolling Stones
Catch Me I'm Falling Pretty Poison
The Night Chicago Died Paper Lace
You Spin Me 'Round (Like A Record) Dead Or Alive
I Can't Stand It Eric Clapton
Into The Groove Madonna
You'll Think Of Me Keith Urban
Swingtown The Steve Miller Band
Hit Me With Your Best Shot Pat Benatar
What I Got Sublime
That's The Way (I Like It) KC & THE Sunshine Band
Smokin' In The Boys Room Motley Crue

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:35 (twenty years ago)

jack radio reads like it's painfully anthemic.

― Sterling Clover (s_clover), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:37 (twenty years ago)

HOW DU U LEIK YR WHITE PPL MUSICS?

― Jimmy Mod: GRILL ENSPEKTOR (The Famous Jimmy Mod), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:40 (twenty years ago)

Radio is just painful, period. It's like watching a once majestic deer die slowly on a remote highway in slow motion after something hit it.

― Yoo Doo Nut (donut), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:43 (twenty years ago)

Remember when the dude from Dazed and Confused gets knifed in Saving Private Ryan? I'd say it's more like that.

― Jimmy Mod: GRILL ENSPEKTOR (The Famous Jimmy Mod), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:44 (twenty years ago)

x-post -- And then feasting on the corpse with a white wine sauce.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:44 (twenty years ago)

HOW DU U LEIK YR WHITE PPL MUSICS?

yeah, really -- the common link in that "eclectic" playlist is that all of the music thereupon is whiter than a klansman's sheet.

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:47 (twenty years ago)

maybe they should change the format's name to BUBBA FM or 'BRO RADIO -- either would be much more representative than "jack."

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:48 (twenty years ago)

The Baltimore station just played "Hey Ya" followed by "Something in the Air" by Thunderclap Newman. They played "Amie" by Pure Prairie League a couple of songs before that.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:50 (twenty years ago)

xpost

jack is already a totally white name though. BRODIO would be awesome however.

on the other hand, eric clapton is the SOUL of the BLUES man, so there is that.

― Sterling Clover (s_clover), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:52 (twenty years ago)

jack is already a totally white name though

Even with new jack swing and jack yr body and all?

― Michael Daddino (epicharmus), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:53 (twenty years ago)

Yes

― Jimmy Mod: GRILL ENSPEKTOR (The Famous Jimmy Mod), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:55 (twenty years ago)

BUBBA radio would just be "Ms. New Booty" over and over again.. not sure if that's an improvement or not.

― Yoo Doo Nut (donut), Sunday, 19 March 2006 04:56 (twenty years ago)

I sort of like Jack, but that it replaced such a venerable and undeniably great station here is what bothers me. As an addition to the roster it would have been fine, but as a trade for a beloved veteran it comes up short.

― Keith C (lync0), Sunday, 19 March 2006 05:00 (twenty years ago)

Jack is unlistenable. It's like they cull the absolute worst of Top 40 history and throw out anything that might even be remotely interesting. And yeah, totally crackerific.

A world without oldies stations playing doo-wop and Buddy Holly makes me sad.

― Erick Dampier is better than Shaq (miloaukerman), Sunday, 19 March 2006 05:06 (twenty years ago)

http://www.mypage.bluewin.ch/Autogramme/Will.h16.jpg

Hi! I'm Jack! Do you like the station I made?

― Sterling Clover (s_clover), Sunday, 19 March 2006 05:11 (twenty years ago)

They're called Jack because they JACK U UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Regular radio is dying anyway, so thank goodness for internet radio (Pandora, Yahoo Launch, Last.fm) and XM radio (which you get for free via Winamp and AIM, and is awesome).

― musically (musically), Sunday, 19 March 2006 05:20 (twenty years ago)

OK, here's a bigger list from the San Diego station site - "some of Jack's music":

To Sir With Love Lulu
Love Bites Def Leppard
Get It On (bang A Gong) Power Station
The Rockford Files Mike Post
9 To 5 Dolly Parton
Brand New Lover Dead Or Alive
Josie Steely Dan
Head Over Heals Go-gos
Against The Wind Bob Seger & Silver Bullet
Shake Shake Shake (shake Y0ur Booty) Kc & The Sunshine Band
The Way I Feel About You Karyn White
Closer To Fine Indigo Girls
Sunday Papers Joe Jackson
Angel Eyes Jeff Healey Band
Amie Pure Prairie League
Rockafeller Skank Fatboy Slim
Head Over Heals Go-gos
"short Skirt, Long Jacket" Cake
Wild Thing Tone Loc
One More Night Phil Collins
Mind Games John Lennon
Spirits In The Material World Police
Absolutely (story Of A Girl) Ninedays
"gypsys, Tramps & Thieves" Cher
"get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car" Billy Ocean
Killer Queen Queen
Lay Down Sally Eric Clapton
Streets Of Philadelphia Bruce Springsteen
Blue Jean David Bowie
You Are The Sunshine Of My Life Stevie Wonder
Walk On U2
Get Back Beatles
Bittersweet Symphony Verve
This Is It Kenny Loggins
Closer To Free Bodeans
Rhiannon Fleetwood Mac
Carribbean Queen Billy Ocean
Who Will Save Your Soul Jewel
Forever Young Rod Stewart
Already Gone Eagles
All I Wanna Do Is Make Love To You Heart
Synchronicity Ii Police
My Christmas List Simple Plan
1999 Prince
Space Age Love Song A Flock Of Seagulls
Digging Your Scene Blow Monkeys
Adia Sarah Mclachlan
The Old Apartment Barenaked Ladies
Stay/the Loadout Jackson Browne
Under The Bridge Red Hot Chili Peppers
Breakaway Kelly Clarkson
Lonely Boy Andrew Gold
Walking On A Thin Line Huey Lewis & The News
Breathless Corrs
I Can See Clearly Now Jimmy Cliff
Everybody Dance Chic
Cisco Kid War
No One Is To Blame Howard Jones
Feels Good Tony Toni Tone
Car Wash Rose Royce
Every Breath You Take Police
Hold My Hand Hootie & The Blowfish
Honky Tonk Women Rolling Stones
Desire (hollywood Remix) U2
Eight Days A Week Beatles
Me And You And A Dog Named Boo Lobo
Faithful Go West
Lovefool Cardigans
After Midnight Eric Clapton
One Way Or Another Blondie
Copacabana Barry Manilow
Jump Kriss Kross
Spiderwebs No Doubt
Bright Lights Matchbox 20
Come As You Are Nirvana
Like A Prayer Madonna
Panama Van Halen
The Devil Went Down To Georgia Charlie Daniels
1985 Bowling For Soup
I Need Love Ll Cool J
Double Vision Foreigner
Go Your Own Way Fleetwood Mac
Everybody Have Fun Tonight Wang Chung
"de Do Do Do, De Da Da Da" Police
Wild Wild West Escape Club
Rhythim Of The Night Corona
You Really Got Me Kinks
So In Love O.m.d.
Wild Thing Tone Loc
Dig In Lenny Kravitz
I Heard It Through The Grapevine Marvin Gaye
Call Me Blondie
Disco Inferno Trammps
Hello Again Cars
Blasphemous Rumours Depeche Mode
Pump Up The Volume Marrs

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Sunday, 19 March 2006 05:25 (twenty years ago)

It'd be more fun if it was the KCAJ format, where they play all these songs backwards.

― Yoo Doo Nut (donut), Sunday, 19 March 2006 05:43 (twenty years ago)

i mean jack's not terrible in the selection (more terrible in the concept of eliminating djs entirely) but considering that (i'd be willing to bet) most of these markets have similar stations already (NYC eg WPLJ "best of the 80s 90s and today, no rap") i'd like there to be room for a "golden oldies" station SOMEWHERE. now what am i supposed to listen to when hot97 and power105 are both playing MJB?

― nervous (cochere), Sunday, 19 March 2006 06:32 (twenty years ago)

Wow, I never realized this happened. Derrr. The old station was great at times but I could never handle the unholy amount of reverb they put the DJs' voices through!! It was outta hand. They'd be reading some Pampers advertisement and it sounded like they were in the bottom of some gigantic battleship.

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Sunday, 19 March 2006 08:48 (twenty years ago)

which was AWESOME

― nervous (cochere), Sunday, 19 March 2006 10:21 (twenty years ago)

hmmm I tune in the Jag when NPR is fundraising or boring, usually around lunchtime, and I hear tons of repeats. "Just playing what we want" = Van Hagar, grunge lite, third-rate power balladry plus that stupid song by 4 Non Blondes every damn day. Ughhh.

― m coleman (lovebug starski), Sunday, 19 March 2006 12:42 (twenty years ago)

Last ten on Chicago's "9 FM"
Eric Clapton - Forever Man
Hall & Oates - Private Eyes
Ratt - In Your Direction
Government Issue - Jaded Eyes
Burzum - Frijäs Goldene Tr¤nen
Lupe Fiasco - Mean & Vicious
Misfits - Skulls
Earth - Like Gold and Faceted
South Filthy - Brand New Way of Living
Bon Jovi - Wanted Dead of Alive

― Mike Dixn (Mike Dixon), Sunday, 19 March 2006 20:37 (twenty years ago)

Seattle's JACK site doesn't even publish the name of the song they're currently playing, let alone the last ten songs. I guess they are so cool that sharing that information would totally cramp their style. Aw shucks!

― musically (musically), Sunday, 19 March 2006 20:45 (twenty years ago)

YES!!! I THOUGHT IT WAS ME!!!!

― Jimmy Mod: GRILL ENSPEKTOR (The Famous Jimmy Mod), Sunday, 19 March 2006 23:59 (twenty years ago)

Last twenty (San Diego):

One Toke Over The Line Brewer & Shipley
Eternal Flame The Bangles
Photograph Nickelback
I Am The Walrus The Beatles
Take Me Home Tonight Eddie Money
Amber 311
Disco Inferno The Trammps
Right Now Van Halen
Listen To The Music the Doobie Brothers
Little Girls Oingo Boingo
Tom's Diner Suzanne Vega
Jet Paul McCartney & Wings
Friday I'm In Love The Cure
It Don't Come Easy Ringo Starr
Super Freak Rick James
In The City the Eagles
Hit Me With Your Best Shot Pat Benatar
Drive Incubus
Whatcha' Gonna Do? Pable Cruise

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Thursday, 23 March 2006 19:02 (twenty years ago)

Blogging about Jack.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Thursday, 23 March 2006 19:55 (twenty years ago)

Mike Dixn...are you joking? Are you not? Please, tell me you're not.

That kinda programming would eliminate all fights regarding travellin' soundtrack between me & my wife (or at least cause shorter fights more often)

― matt the queeg, Thursday, 23 March 2006 21:36 (twenty years ago)

You know what station I like, or liked, on a road trip about two years ago? THE RIVER. That was some good shit!

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Friday, 24 March 2006 01:35 (twenty years ago)

Actually I thought that was a sort of "syndicated" station but now that I google it, I turn up a whole bunch of diconnected sites...? What gives? Why are so many stations called "The River"?

― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Friday, 24 March 2006 01:36 (twenty years ago)

oh god, the WCBS reverb....

― tokyo nursery school: afternoon session (rosemary), Friday, 24 March 2006 02:50 (twenty years ago)

My only fear is that these stations will end up replacing old-school classic rock stations and you'll never hear like Jethro Tull on the radio again. (I realize that not everyone fears this.) That said, the actual content of what they play is usually not bad at all, if homogenously single-length and verse-chorus (and certainly less racially pure than old classic rock stations). I'm a little amazed at how much people seem to love the 80s though. I mean, 80s music has gone from a lunch hour to basically being the bread and butter for stations like this. (When did Motley Crue become classic rock? etc.)

The soft rock station here also has these kinds of seemingly bizarre, but ultimately kind of logical, playlists. A typical list might go something like: Fleetwood Mac, Celine Dion, Ne-Yo, Styx, Diana Ross, Mary J Blige, Carole King, Whitney Houston, Fleetwood Mac, John Denver, Fleetwood Mac,...

― Sundar (sundar), Friday, 24 March 2006 17:07 (twenty years ago)

"the actual content of what they play is usually not bad at all, if homogenously single-length and verse-chorus"

I think part of the premise of the format, though, Sundar, is that it's only songs that went top forty.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Friday, 24 March 2006 17:58 (twenty years ago)

one year passes...

HIT THE ROAD, JACK!!!

WCBS-FM Reconsiders, Deciding Oldies Are Goodies Again
By BEN SISARIO
Published: July 7, 2007

Two years after an unceremonious dismissal that drew street protests and appeals from figures like Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Senator Charles E. Schumer, the oldies radio format is returning to WCBS-FM.

The New York City station, owned by CBS Radio, is expected to switch back to oldies next week from the Jack format, a broad mix from the 1980s and ’90s, with irreverent, prerecorded sound bites instead of live disc jockeys, according to a person who was briefed on the situation but who was not authorized to speak publicly. A report on the switch was posted this week on Radio Business Report’s online newsletter.

WCBS, which first switched to an oldies format 35 years ago today, changed to the Jack format on June 3, 2005. At that time, the station dismissed longtime D.J.’s who had been familiar to New York listeners since the early days of rock ’n’ roll, like Cousin Brucie (a k a Bruce Morrow), Dan Ingram and Harry Harrison.

“There was a lot of resentment when they fired Cousin Brucie,” said Paul Heine of Billboard Radio Monitor. “And they replaced it with something where the appeal is that it essentially doesn’t have a personality. It’s a jukebox with some attitude between the songs.”

The Jack format began five years ago in Canada as a looser, younger variation on the traditional oldies format, with a much wider playlist than is usual in commercial radio. Aiming to recreate the experience of an iPod set to shuffle, the creators of Jack cultivated the sometimes jarring juxtapositions long derided in the radio industry as “train wrecks” — Bon Jovi following Whitney Houston, for example, or Pearl Jam abutting Ricky Martin.

The format spread quickly throughout North America and has been successful in many markets; besides WCBS, CBS Radio has eight Jack stations. But Jack failed to attract much listener attention or advertising revenue in New York.

WCBS had a reliable audience as an oldies station, hovering near the bottom of the Top 10 ranked stations in the New York metropolitan region before the 2005 switch. The Jack format was introduced to attract the younger listeners more prized by advertisers, but WCBS’s ratings dropped precipitously after the format change. It lost more than half its audience share, and its ranking fell as low as 22, according to Arbitron. Recently its ratings have improved slightly, but have remained far behind its pre-Jack level.

The station’s advertising revenues also dropped. Revenue fell almost 30 percent, to $16.1 million for 2006, from 2005, according to estimates by BIA Financial Network.

Though WCBS is to return to oldies, it will probably be a new variation on the format, with more music from the 1970s and ’80s and less from the ’50s and ’60s, radio analysts said. It is also likely that some personalities from the old station could return.

Mr. Morrow was hired by Sirius Satellite Radio shortly after the switch; phone messages left at his home were not returned yesterday.

Figures like Mr. Morrow were missed by listeners, who protested loudly in the wake of the format switch two years ago. Jack uses a professional voice-over artist in Canada to supply prerecorded quips and slogans with only the slightest connection to a local market.

The personal touch was also missed by advertisers, some analysts said.

“With the oldies format, you’ve got more revenue opportunities,” said Tom Taylor, the news editor of Radio-Info.com, a trade Web site.

Advertising spots read by disc jockeys generate more money, he said.

“It’s a result of the general halo that people feel when listening to well-loved personalities on the radio,” he said. “Jack doesn’t read spots. Jack is pretty much jack in the box.”

― Johnny Hotcox, Saturday, 7 July 2007 14:43 (eighteen years ago)

good riddance. occ I'd get bored w/NPR and try a half-hour of Jack at lunchtime and somehow amazingly always managed to hear the same songs.

too much 80s hairmetal and 90s cookie-cutter grunge.

― m coleman, Saturday, 7 July 2007 15:38 (eighteen years ago)

yay! pre-jack cbs-fm was one of new york's best and most reliable car-radio stations, and they played music that nobody else played, and it was usually good music.

― fact checking cuz, Saturday, 7 July 2007 15:49 (eighteen years ago)

IT'S BACK TODAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAAYAYAY!

― Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved, Monday, 16 July 2007 14:02 (eighteen years ago)

WCBS, which first switched to an oldies format 35 years ago today

were they already called oldies in 1972?

― BIG HOOS aka the steendriver, Monday, 16 July 2007 14:11 (eighteen years ago)

BUT WHAT OF THE REVERB??

― Tracer Hand, Monday, 16 July 2007 14:14 (eighteen years ago)

GONE!

TEHY ARE PLAYING BRANDY!

― Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved, Monday, 16 July 2007 14:17 (eighteen years ago)

;_;

― BIG HOOS aka the steendriver, Monday, 16 July 2007 14:18 (eighteen years ago)

DO DO DO DODO DO DO DO DOOOOOO DO

― Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved, Monday, 16 July 2007 14:19 (eighteen years ago)

oh noes

― Tracer Hand, Monday, 16 July 2007 14:24 (eighteen years ago)

Jimmy The Mod Loves ~~Mary-Anne~~ Brandy

― James Redd and the Blecchs, Monday, 16 July 2007 14:48 (eighteen years ago)

first tune heard when I tuned back in: "mellow yellow"

― Johnny Hotcox, Tuesday, 17 July 2007 01:06 (eighteen years ago)

last night i was in malibu on the beach listening to jack and it was awesome. roxy music into heart.

― chaki, Tuesday, 17 July 2007 01:36 (eighteen years ago)

"Brandy" is totally a song you'd hear on Jack!

― Tim Ellison, Tuesday, 17 July 2007 03:36 (eighteen years ago)

The thing the people who came up with Jack never understood is that an iPod has a skip function.

― Hurting 2, Tuesday, 17 July 2007 04:29 (eighteen years ago)

The California Jack stations, judging from what Tim & Chaki & others have posted seem to be way more varied than the NYC outlet ever was.

― m coleman, Tuesday, 17 July 2007 10:04 (eighteen years ago)

how could that be? i thought they all ran off the same iPod (with a splitter "jack")

― Tracer Hand, Tuesday, 17 July 2007 10:06 (eighteen years ago)

ah you're prob right -- my sample was cursory & non-representative

― m coleman, Tuesday, 17 July 2007 10:29 (eighteen years ago)

The new CBS is not the same oldies it was pre-Jack. All those people were hired away anyway. So far it's like, the greatest hits of the 60s, 70s, and 80s and pretty middle of the road.

― dan selzer, Tuesday, 17 July 2007 17:01 (eighteen years ago)

You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.