WOGL is not doing an Memorial Day Countdown this Year

Unless they decide at the last minute, it sounds like WOGL for the first time in years is not going to do a countdown over the Memorial Day Weekend. Instead their competitor BEN-FM is doing "A Totally Beachin' Weekend". They are playing 1500 songs with 0 Repeats. They are taking the baton. Normally WOGL would do their A-Z library of songs on Memorial Day. Then they would do the top 1000 songs on the 4th of July, 1 Hits of the 70s, 80s and 90s on Labor Day and the same between Christmas and New Years.

Do you think they are no longer doing this, because this has been played out??? Is Entercom being cost effective? I always seem to like them as the Memorial Day could showcase new songs added to the library...whether they are 80s song they have not played and will introduce or 90s songs.

That also marks a departure for Ben, which ran a countdown (SPF 500 or some such name) over the holiday weekend. Both now with new folks in charge.

As a listener, just one voice, I would prefer WOGL’s regular playlist to those A-Z stunts. When I would tune in during one of those weeks, I’d hear so much dreck that I ended up tuning out more quickly and not coming back until it was over.

Stunt weekends may have been a good idea in the old days, giving a station an air of coolness. But the days of coolness being important are over. In our PPM world, all that matters is getting as many listeners as possible, practically every minute of every day (mild hyperbole). These days in the majors, the only reason to go off-format is Christmas.

Specialty shows in general are fading away, not just in classic hits. This process has been going on for about ten years, as TSL declines for certain formats.

People don't leave the radio on all day any more. They have other things to do, and if they have guests, they will likely use a different source for music.

TheBigA said:

Specialty shows in general are fading away, not just in classic hits. This process has been going on for about ten years, as TSL declines for certain formats.

People don't leave the radio on all day any more. They have other things to do, and if they have guests, they will likely use a different source for music.

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Oddly, though, Sirius XM seems to be in love with specialty shows, running them on several channels with "encores" (SXM-ese for reruns) at least four times a week. One of my favorite channels is '60s on 6, but I often find it unlistenable because the third rerun of Peter Noone's hour of personal favorites is on, or the fourth rerun of the top 30 songs of that week in 1962 is on. Symphony Hall is torture. Instead of a consistent blend of music from all over classical music, the flow is far too often interrupted for four hours of nothing but choral music, two hours of movie soundtrack music, an hour of music by unknown American contemporary composers, and hour of string quartets from New York City's Lincoln Center, etc. Do most satellite listeners actually like this approach to radio, or is it just a case of satellite wanting to be "different."?

CTListener said:

Do most satellite listeners actually like this approach to radio, or is it just a case of satellite wanting to be "different."?

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I don't know the answer to this, but yes you are correct. I think it's based on the concept of providing exclusive content for subscribers, rather than simply being a music distribution service like Pandora and the other streaming platforms. It's about providing value to people who pay for the service. In OTA, it's similar to the view in public radio, for the same reason.

Once again, the Sirius music channels are commercial free. That makes formatting on those channels very different because they're not built around achieving certain quarter-hours for Nielsen or breaks for spots. My sense is that TSL for Sirius is a lot longer than OTA radio, and is part of why their churn rate has leveled off. So if TSL is longer, those specialty shows are potentially more effective on Sirius than OTA.

I do agree about the number of repeats on XM, most noticeable to me on the 80s channel. I believe the countdown repeats something like 8 times—filling the equivalent of a full day. At one point, it airs back to back.

But if that works for them, so be it. It’s a different model.

AM/FMRAINMAN said:

Unless they decide at the last minute, it sounds like WOGL for the first time in years is not going to do a countdown over the Memorial Day Weekend. Instead their competitor BEN-FM is doing "A Totally Beachin' Weekend". They are playing 1500 songs with 0 Repeats. They are taking the baton. Normally WOGL would do their A-Z library of songs on Memorial Day. Then they would do the top 1000 songs on the 4th of July, 1 Hits of the 70s, 80s and 90s on Labor Day and the same between Christmas and New Years.

Do you think they are no longer doing this, because this has been played out??? Is Entercom being cost effective? I always seem to like them as the Memorial Day could showcase new songs added to the library...whether they are 80s song they have not played and will introduce or 90s songs.

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It figured this would come about some day, and it did. Fortunate enough to have listened to radio stations that did specials like this, WOGL, WCBS, KRTH and so forth. I'm sure the loyal listeners of CBS-FM are cringing, like I did back in 1991, finding out that KRTH ended theirs as well. Hopefully WOGL continues theirs, but I won't count on it anymore. I've heard plenty over the years.......years ago. An era has ended in NYC.

Correction to my original post above...


It figured this would come about some day, and it did. Fortunate enough to have listened to radio stations that did specials like this, WOGL, WCBS, KRTH and so forth. I'm sure the loyal listeners of WOGL are cringing, like I did back in 1991, finding out that KRTH ended theirs as well. An era has ended in Philly. Unfortunate.

What was unfortunate was that in the final years of the countdown, people were griping about the songs that were either IN the countdown or left OUT of the countdown, with a lot of unnecessary complaints about something that was just supposed to be fun. Instead, people took it all way too seriously.

There would be too many songs in the A-Z that wouldn't be part of the current format. Before they moved forward towards almost all 80's, it was still a valid special.
That's just my opinion.

TheBigA said:

What was unfortunate was that in the final years of the countdown, people were griping about the songs that were either IN the countdown or left OUT of the countdown, with a lot of unnecessary complaints about something that was just supposed to be fun. Instead, people took it all way too seriously.

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Always bad apples in a bunch. I'm sure the majority still enjoyed it. Another era down the tubes. Maybe the complaints will be significant enough to overturn their decision to cancel the specials.

oldies76 said:

Always bad apples in a bunch. I'm sure the majority still enjoyed it. Another era down the tubes. Maybe the complaints will be significant enough to overturn their decision to cancel the specials.

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Has that happened in any of the other cities?

oldies76 said:

Always bad apples in a bunch. I'm sure the majority still enjoyed it. Another era down the tubes. Maybe the complaints will be significant enough to overturn their decision to cancel the specials.

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That assumes there will be some vast number of complaints.

AbrahamJSimpson said:

That assumes there will be some vast number of complaints.

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Indeed. We notice things like this; "regular people" don't. I'm sure there are some people who listen to it every year...but even they won't likely be firing off angry missives to Entercom (not that they know who or what an Entercom is).

And always good to keep in mind those who are happy seldom make a point of saying so—the squeaky wheel and all that.

It'll be interesting to see what they do with the upcoming 80's weekend. They say 1980-1989 songs will be played, but will it be the same highly tested ones that are played everywhere, or a holiday weekend featuring some really good nuggets.

The A to Z will be missed, but this new approach (dependent on the songs chosen) could be the start of a new tradition on WOGL. Only time will tell.....(now's there an 80's gem that should be played!)

https://wogl.radio.com/blogs/shannon-greenstein/nobody-plays-more-80s-holiday-block-party

Good nuggets being....what?

They know what their audience wants to hear. The data tells them. Playing a bunch of dreck serves no useful purpose.

So, yeah, plenty of Don’t Stop Believin’, Livin’ on a Prayer and Dancing in the Dark should be on tap.

oldies76 said:

It'll be interesting to see what they do with the upcoming 80's weekend. They say 1980-1989 songs will be played, but will it be the same highly tested ones that are played everywhere, or a holiday weekend featuring some really good nuggets.

The A to Z will be missed, but this new approach (dependent on the songs chosen) could be the start of a new tradition on WOGL. Only time will tell.....(now's there an 80's gem that should be played!)

https://wogl.radio.com/blogs/shannon-greenstein/nobody-plays-more-80s-holiday-block-party

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"Physical" / Olivia Newton-John
"Bette Davis Eyes" / Kim Carnes
"Every Breath You Take" / The Police
"I Love Rock 'n' Roll" / Joan Jett and the Blackhearts
"Billie Jean" / Michael Jackson
"Call Me" / Blondie
"Centerfold" / The J. Geils Band
"Eye of the Tiger" / Survivor
"Flashdance... What a Feeling" / Irene Cara
"Like a Virgin" / Madonna
"Jump" / Van Halen
"When Doves Cry" / Prince
"Rock with You" / Michael Jackson
"Crazy Little Thing Called Love" / Queen
"Funkytown" / Lipps Inc
"Upside Down" / Diana Ross
"Jack and Diane" / John Cougar
"Maneater" / Daryl Hall and John Oates
"Down Under" / Men at Work
"Total Eclipse of the Heart" / Bonnie Tyler
"Walk Like an Egyptian" / The Bangles
"Livin' on a Prayer" / Bon Jovi
"Faith" / George Michael
"Miss You Much" / Janet Jackson
"Another Day in Paradise" / Phil Collins
"Another One Bites the Dust" / Queen
"Kiss on My List" / Daryl Hall and John Oates
"Don't You Want Me" / The Human League
"Beat It" / Michael Jackson
"Karma Chameleon" / Culture Club
"Footloose" / Kenny Loggins
"Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)" / Phil Collins
"Ghostbusters" / Ray Parker, Jr.
"What's Love Got to Do with It" / Tina Turner
"Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" / Wham!
"Can't Fight This Feeling" / REO Speedwagon
"Shout" / Tears for Fears
"Money for Nothing" / Dire Straits
"Greatest Love of All" / Whitney Houston
"Straight Up" / Paula Abdul
"Like a Prayer" / Madonna
"It's Still Rock and Roll to Me" / Billy Joel
"Celebration" / Kool & the Gang
"Rapture" / Blondie
"Jessie's Girl" / Rick Springfield
"Private Eyes" / Daryl Hall and John Oates
"Abracadabra" / Steve Miller Band
"Maniac" / Michael Sembello
"Owner of a Lonely Heart" / Yes
"Let's Hear It for the Boy" / Deniece Williams
"Time After Time" / Cyndi Lauper
"Let's Go Crazy" / Prince and The Revolution
"Out of Touch" / Daryl Hall and John Oates
"Everybody Wants to Rule the World" / Tears for Fears
"We Built This City" / Starship
"How Will I Know" / Whitney Houston
"Kiss" / Prince and the Revolution
"Papa Don't Preach" / Madonna
"When I Think of You" / Janet Jackson
"Lean on Me" / Club Nouveau
"(I Just) Died in Your Arms" / Cutting Crew
"I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" / Whitney Houston
"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" / U2
"Didn't We Almost Have It All" / Whitney Houston
"Bad" / Michael Jackson
"I Think We're Alone Now" / Tiffany
"Never Gonna Give You Up" / Rick Astley
"Get Outta My Dreams, Get into My Car" / Billy Ocean
"Where Do Broken Hearts Go" / Whitney Houston
"Sweet Child o' Mine" / Guns N' Roses
"Forever Your Girl" / Paula Abdul
"Blame It on the Rain" / Milli Vanilli
"We Didn't Start the Fire" / Billy Joel
"The Tide Is High" / Blondie
"Keep On Loving You" / REO Speedwagon
"I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)" / Daryl Hall and John Oates
"Who Can It Be Now" / Men at Work
"Mickey" / Toni Basil
"Africa" / Toto
"Come On Eileen" / Dexys Midnight Runners
"Let's Dance" / David Bowie
"Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" / Eurythmics
"Tell Her About It" / Billy Joel
"Crazy for You" / Madonna
"Don't You (Forget About Me)" / Simple Minds
"Sussudio" / Phil Collins
"Everytime You Go Away" / Paul Young
"Take On Me" / a-ha
"Saving All My Love for You" / Whitney Houston
"Addicted to Love" / Robert Palmer
"Sledgehammer" / Peter Gabriel
"Venus" / Bananarama
"You Give Love a Bad Name" / Bon Jovi
"Open Your Heart" / Madonna
"You Keep Me Hangin' On" / Kim Wilde
"Who's That Girl" / Madonna
"Here I Go Again" / Whitesnake
"Lost in Emotion" / Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam
"Heaven Is a Place on Earth" / Belinda Carlisle
"So Emotional" / Whitney Houston
"Need You Tonight" / INXS
"My Prerogative" / Bobby Brown
"Eternal Flame" / The Bangles
"The Look" / Roxette
"She Drives Me Crazy" / Fine Young Cannibals
"Cold Hearted" / Paula Abdul
"Hangin' Tough" / New Kids on the Block