Spring Numbers + Chicago's WDRV Big Winner in PPM

60° - sunny/wonderful at 8:13am

Spring numbers - along with new PPM data beginning to roll out. Classic rock and classic hits continue to show strength in the money demos. Some of the highlights so far:

Chicago: Bonneville's WDRV up a half point to to hit a 3 share 12+. Very nice! The station performing quite well 25-54 - good #7.

But there's more to the Drive story: This morning, Radio-Info's Tom Taylor reported Chicago's "unofficial early-early PPMs" - and as we've seen in other markets, classic rock/classic hits benefits. WDRV #2 in 12+ PPM rankers.

In LA - KLOS shows its best numbers in recent books. The classic rock station up 4/10 of a point 12+. Saga's WKLH/Milwaukee up nearly a point with its best numbers in recent times; 'KLH ties at #6 12+.

In Allentown, the staff of classic hits WODE (99.9 The Hawk) has to be on a high as the station captures the #1 12+ spot with its best showing in recent history. WBAB on Long Island also scores big...up 3/10 of a point, good for #4 12+.

Congrats to the winners...more props here as the books roll out.

Sunday Morning Odds & Sods

67° - mix of clouds & sun at 10:47am

Good Morning from Okemos, Michigan. And welcome to June.

I love this logo. Too cool. From San Diego's new classic hits XHPRS 105.7 - my old bud Dave Mason apparently doing mornings there. Listening online this morning; Dave to celebrate the anniversary of Sgt. Peppers on his long-running Sunday Morning Beatles Show, formerly heard on KGB-FM.

Classic Randy Michaels. The above-mentioned Mr. Mason interviewed in a recent Chicago Business story on Randy:

"As a radio programmer in Cincinnati in the early 1980s, Mr. Michaels once used the airwaves to label a programmer at a rival radio station a "spineless, gutless wimp" for refusing to talk to him when he dialed in to the rival's live talk show, recalls Dave Mason, the target of the vitriol and now the morning man at San Diego radio station 105.7 FM, who counts himself an admirer of Mr. Michaels'."

More here. I might add that Dave (pictured left) did wind up as a PD/Morning man for Jacor/Clear Channel under Michaels in San Diego.

When yours truly did mornings on a classic rock station in New Mexico tormenting a AMD jock/PD at the crosstown alternative station. The reality is I admired his talent and wanted him to work for me. I finally succeeded - though it took several years.

This is a free concert? Wow! WDRV/Chicago will be celebrating its 7th birthday on date with a free listener concert featuring Crosby, Stills and Nash. Score another one for Greg Solk and company.

Speaking of numbers: WDRV scores big in latest Chicago trend released this past week #7 to #9 25-54. My source for the numbers also says Steve Dahl's AMD performance on WJMK is no fluke. Mr. Dahl is solid.

Other Arbitron trend successes: In LA, KLOS up a few clicks 12+; likewise in San Diego with KGB-FM. WKLH/Milwaukee flat but solid. Same story with WCSX/Detroit and KUFX/San Jose.

Website Review. Jaye Albright looks at a couple of country radio station websites and opines here.

"Radio is doomed" - headline from Look Magazine, April 26, 1949. Courtesy of Dave Martin. More quotes here.

Rick Kaempfer Update: Rick catches up with Greg Brown (WZZN), Phil Manicki (WDRV), Cara Carriveau (WTMX) on his weekly Chicago Radio Spotlight post here.

Working on "the station". My internet hobby station. Yesterday spent with more ripping; registered a few URLs; and put the automation "online" with my home wireless network. Can listen via my laptop anywhere in the house; love it!

There's something I'm forgetting. More later if/when it comes to mind. Enjoy your Sunday!

Memorial Day Programming

58° - sunny/clear at 9:45am

Hello from Michigan. Home today with a sore sinus/throat thing. My 9-year old had something similar for the past few days - so I be thinkin' that I got it from him.

Memorial Day. See lots of stations getting ready to hit Memorial Day Weekend with Top 500 Countdowns. KUFX/San Jose is soliciting listener votes for their countdown with a chance to win Police tix. Here.

KCFX/Kansas City now collecting votes for their Memorial 500 here.

KSAN/San Francisco also compiling listener votes; though its limited to their "Bonehead" club members.

In Fort Myers, WARO is doing a "Top 400" for Memorial Day weekend - with a list to vote from online here.

In Philadelphia, WMGK has started the voting process for its "Philly 500" with a complete (?) list of titles, plus an opportunity to "write in" a vote. See how they're doing it here.

WAQY/Springfield also with the Top 500 this Memorial Day. Here. Kudos to them on a great graphic:

KLOS/LA is spending the long weekend with listener-suggested sets of music as a "My Tunes" weekend. Very cool. See the entry process here. In the Windy City, Mainstream rocker WLUP is doing a "Loyal Looper 500". See here.

One of my favorite stations - WGRF/Buffalo is letting the listeners vote - and discuss their Memorial Day 500 list.

Incentive for voting is a chance at a trip to the Hard Rock Park. Schweet! See the layout and listener comments here.

More Memorial Day Programming as I come across it.

Follow-up file: This morning I did spot one station doing "The Harley Days of May". Here.

More Fall Numbers

36° - drizzle at 7:25am

Happy Friday.

Yesterday on All Access - consultant Anthony Acampora broke down the Fall numbers released for New York and LA. In the 25-54 demo - classic rocker WAXQ is #7 with classic hits/oldies WCBS-FM #9.

Acampora notes that WCBS-FM did dip slightly in the demo.

In LA - classic rock KLOS ranks #12 25-54. The station up slightly overall 12+. Also in LA: noted that "Movin' 93.9" doesn't appear to be moving anywhere in the numbers - even after some hefty marketing efforts.

Looking forward to more of Anthony Acampora's analysis in the days to come. Thanks to Anthony and Joel Denver again!

Chicago: WDRV dips slightly (again) 12+. WLUP up just a couple tenths. In Milwaukee: WKLH showing consistent performance and ranked #9 12+. WQBW (The Brew) off over a half point.

Classic rock KYYS/Kansas City going away. Tom Taylor reporting this morning that the veteran air staff including the legendary Max Floyd are out.

Station has been plugging "A to Z" to start Monday - assuming that will not happen. The rumored shift is to AAA as "The Boulevard". Details to be released later today.

More tonight. Have a great Friday.

The New Year

26° - overcast at 9:26am
Left: looking west; downtown Lansing this AM.
current image

Lots of snow overnight here to bring in the New Year. I'm working up the desire to dress warm and fire up the snow thrower. The kids actually put down their video games to go outside and play. Score one for Mother Nature.

Last Night: Ended the night watching Dick Clark, Ryan Seacrest and Carrie Underwood bring in the New Year. Didn't stay up much past midnight.

Listening: This morning to WDRV/Chicago. Just came out of the 9am (eastern) Legal ID into "Pure & Easy" by The Who. Surprise deep track outside the Mediabase Top 500. Very cool.

The New Year. McVay Media's Dave Lange sums up the first priority in 2008 for program directors in this paragraph:

"The first is making our products exciting again. That goes back to the basics of ENTERTAINING THE AUDIENCE. We are not going to do much entertaining with another list of 400 songs to spin and a big voiced announcer hyping it up between every song over and over till we pound it into their heads. We need to get close to the community and the target audience in the streets and in their computers."

Dave's complete post here.

Reading: Consultant Harve Alan's recollection of his AOR days at WBAB/Long Island. The tail end of the "progressive rock" era - and before the era of Selector and music on hard-drive.

"4 categories of currents rotated with index cards and everything else was "on the back wall" with songs rotated by tracking sheets taped to the album jacket".

Ah...the good old days when it was difficult not to be just a tad bit self-indulgent. Cue up and start one record then turn around in your chair and stare at a wall of albums to pick the next perfect segue. Check out Harve's post here.

Thanks: To reader Gary Moore (KLOS/LA) for the kind words on this blog in the last few days. Gary working on his own blog to debut soon. Looking forward to his thoughts, ideas and POV. KLOS currently in the middle of an A to Z presentation.

Enjoy the day.

Late "Monday Monday" Update

58° - clear at 8:38pm

Good evening from Okemos.

Summer Arbitrons. First reports this afternoon. 12+ showing show classic rock remaining stable in the top three markets.

New York's WAXQ is flat; likewise in LA with KLOS - and in Chicago the WDRV/WWDV simulcast dips slightly 12+ from spring - but ahead of the prior winter and fall books.

The big story is New York with great numbers for oldies/classic hits WCBS-FM (welcome back) and erosion for AC WLTW. Catch the numbers in the usual places.

Dave Lange. Dave has some suggestions for Arbitron on reaching and recruiting those problem 18-34 year olds; still a big trouble area for the folks in Columbia. Dave's thoughts go beyond cell phones. Read here.

Bruce. Streetpulse reporting via All Access that Mr. Springsteen's new CD "Magic" remains #1 on the sales chart for a second week. Think its classic rock demos driving these sales?

HD Radio. More committment from the HD Radio Alliance to promote hardware and programming. Read R&R here.

Kudos to those efforts - and especially to those broadcasters investing dollars in HD2 programming.

That said - I still agree with Mark Ramsey - his comment quoted here last week - and repeated here:

"HD must transparently appear everywhere. And the only way that will happen is if it's feasible to build it into a $15 dollar clock radio. The "HD advantage" must be free and invisible to consumers."

Jaye Albright: "If you're not talking about what's going on in your local community right now, someone else is." And Jaye asks: "Shouldn't we be doing this?

More tomorrow.