Standards/Oldies Survey for KZQX

[Chuck]

We're doing something a bit daring... actually asking our listeners what they think, and asking for musical and programming suggestions. There is a quick survey on our web site, www.qx-fm.com or www.kzqx.com . There are only ten multiple choice questions and there are no wrong answers. Several have places for comments and suggestions, which are optional but encouraged.

While we are most interested in what our local listeners have to say – they are the ones who are paying the bills - we're happy to get suggestions from anywhere. You never know where a good idea might come from. You are all invited to participate.

 

[EZway2go]

Uh-oh. Does this mean Chuck is contemplating a format change? A listener survey is often the first sign of an upheaval.

I took the survey. But I sometimes wonder how effective these things are. WEZV had one around 4 or 5 years ago; it wasn't long afterwards that I noticed the disappearance of the instrumentals. Of course, I voted to keep them. B101 in Philly has a Christmas music survey every year where you rate snippets of about 50 songs from 1 to 5. Naturally, their playlist is saturated with all the songs I rated a 1 or 2. Maybe I should stay away from these surveys since I'm obviously at odds with what the general public wants.

 

[Chuck]

Uh-oh. Does this mean Chuck is contemplating a format change?

Not at all. It's more of a reality check than anything else. Besides, a lot of our very best programming ideas have come from listeners. Every now and then someone will state the obvious, and it is something we’ve completely overlooked. Listener feedback is great.

For what it's worth, about 97% of respondents say they like the station the way it is. Most of the "improvements" They’d like have to do with a weak signal wherever they are listening. It seems we have some long distance listeners, and tropospheric ducting has been a real problem this summer. Unfortunately, there isn't much we can do about that. The FCC would take a very dim view of us doubling our power.

One person really doesn't like Chickenman, and a couple more would like live announcers. At least two people said they don't like commercials, but I don't know how to pay the electric bill, ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, Sound Exchange, Worker's Comp, Liability Insurance, employee salaries, and all the other stuff that seems to empty out the check book.

All-in-all , the survey has been a big success. Thanks for taking the time to participate.

 

[Chuck]

I've posted the "comments" on our web site, completely unedited, except for obvious misspellings and deleting any personal information. You can find it at www.qx-fm.com Just click on the "Survey Results" link. It's interesting stuff. Thanks to all who participated. I've left the survey open for now, so it isn't too late to participate.

 

[Whiplash]

Chuck, your station is outstanding. Great facility, and mobile unit. Quality on air processing and streaming. While the format is a little old for me, you've done a great job all the way around. Add some announcers and really take it to the next level! But a salute to you and everything you've done!

 

[EZway2go]

Well, let's all support the Internet Fairness Act.

All my music radio listening is now exclusively over the internet. The only thing I listen to local radio for anymore is weather, traffic, and when there's a big sports story in town. Where I live, we have absolutely no stations that appeal to me musically.

So I have my favorites from all over the country... some direct internet streams as well as about 5 stations on iHeartRadio and as many as 20 or so on TuneIn. They're mostly of the Easy Listening variety, but I also listen to a lot of Classic Country, and I rotate among them all. This weekend it was KZQX's turn and was I in for a surprise. It's too costly to stream so it was discontinued on January 1. Their website explains why.

BTW, Chuck, what kind of songs do you play on that KDOK?

 

[radioboy]

I used to listen to Chuck's station occasionally, and agree that is is top notch.

At present I have a variety country/soft AC/oldies station on the Internet and am planning to make a run for an LPFM when that time arrives.

In all honesty, I don't quite know what this format would be called. Here is a sample of songs that you might hear on any given day:

Dionne Warwick - No Night So Long
Barbara Mandrell- Years
Nicolette Larson - Back in My Arms
Dirt Band - An American Dream
Bob Seger - You'll Accomp'ny Me
Leblanc and Carr - Falling
Olivia Newton-John - Come On Over
John Denver - Some Days Are Diamonds
Carrie Underwood - Mama's Song
Petula Clark - Downtown
Melissa Manchester - If This is Love
Anne Murray - Broken Hearted Me
Natalie Cole - The Winner
Crystal Gayle - Somebody Loves You
LeRoux - New Orleans Ladies
Linda Ronstadt - Hurt So Bad
Tommy Roe - Dizzy
Kenny Rogers - You Decorated My Life
ELO - Confusion
Neil Diamond - September Morn
Mickey Gilley - Stand By Me
Jo Stafford - Shrimp Boats
Zac Brown Band - No Hurry
Lobo - Where were You When I Was Falling in Love
Helen Reddy - Killer Baracuda


There are roughly 1100 active titles at any given time, and I have plenty more to rotate in as to keep the playlist fresh.

It is not a commercially viable format, and that is OK. There are some spots in the stream (and they are real) but about the best it does is break even. Average is 30 to 50 listeners per day.

Our market does not have classic country, soft AC, oldies, or standards stations. I have some big holes to fill to help fill the void - so this is being programmed largely to a local/ regional market.

Didn't intend to hijack Chuck's thread - was responding to EZway2go's last post!

 

[michael hagerty]

I used to listen to Chuck's station occasionally, and agree that is is top notch.

At present I have a variety country/soft AC/oldies station on the Internet and am planning to make a run for an LPFM when that time arrives.

In all honesty, I don't quite know what this format would be called. Here is a sample of songs that you might hear on any given day:

Dionne Warwick - No Night So Long
Barbara Mandrell- Years
Nicolette Larson - Back in My Arms
Dirt Band - An American Dream
Bob Seger - You'll Accomp'ny Me
Leblanc and Carr - Falling
Olivia Newton-John - Come On Over
John Denver - Some Days Are Diamonds
Carrie Underwood - Mama's Song
Petula Clark - Downtown
Melissa Manchester - If This is Love
Anne Murray - Broken Hearted Me
Natalie Cole - The Winner
Crystal Gayle - Somebody Loves You
LeRoux - New Orleans Ladies
Linda Ronstadt - Hurt So Bad
Tommy Roe - Dizzy
Kenny Rogers - You Decorated My Life
ELO - Confusion
Neil Diamond - September Morn
Mickey Gilley - Stand By Me
Jo Stafford - Shrimp Boats
Zac Brown Band - No Hurry
Lobo - Where were You When I Was Falling in Love
Helen Reddy - Killer Baracuda


There are roughly 1100 active titles at any given time, and I have plenty more to rotate in as to keep the playlist fresh.

It is not a commercially viable format, and that is OK. There are some spots in the stream (and they are real) but about the best it does is break even. Average is 30 to 50 listeners per day.

Our market does not have classic country, soft AC, oldies, or standards stations. I have some big holes to fill to help fill the void - so this is being programmed largely to a local/ regional market.

Didn't intend to hijack Chuck's thread - was responding to EZway2go's last post!

In the late 70s, that would have been mainstream Adult Contemporary. There really hasn't been anything like it since AC became "Continuous Soft Hits" in the early 80s.

 

[Whiplash]

Its now called Soft AC, and some companies consider it the new adult standards.

 

[Chuck]

If you want to hear KZQX, we had to set up a new web site for the purpose. it's www.qx-fm.com

 

[Chuck]

Oh, I forgot to add that KDOK is a "Classic Hits" format. That is basically 60's, 70's and 80's, mostly rock, music. Think Beatles, Rolling Stones, Steely Dan, Doobie Brothers, Little River Band, Dire Straits, Billy Joel, etc. It certainly isn't standards, but it is some pretty good music from that era. At this time, there are no plans to stream it. The Sound Exchange fees make it impractical. Instead, we'll try to make it a really good LOCAL radio station.

 

[michael hagerty]

Its now called Soft AC, and some companies consider it the new adult standards.

Makes sense. I was an AC programmer in the 70s, and we targeted and got 40 year olds with most of the songs on that list. The 40 year olds from 1978 are 75 now.

 

[Chuck]

The reality is someone who graduated from High School in 1970 is now over 60 years old. They probably didn't start to have a serious interest in music until about the British Invasion. That certainly wasn't what we call "Standards." The good news is some of these folks have become musically adventurous enough look for other alternatives. How many times can you enjoy listening to Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven???" The popularity of Rap and Hip-Hop, hasn't hurt either. Most people of that age have a great dislike for it, in a similar fashion that our parents didn't like Rock & Roll.

To attract these listeners you have to lure them in with some music that is familiar to them. For a long time, my station was a very strict Standards station. While the critics liked it, I found that our audience share went up a lot by simply loosening up the play list. Sometimes you play what you want, sometimes you play what your audience wants. Hopefully, those two trains of thought will merge most of the time.

 

[radioboy]

I agree about merging the two trains of thought, Chuck.

As a nonprofit station, my playlist is definitely looser than it would be if I were programming
a commercial station (which I have done in the past).

 

[vchimpanzee]

Its now called Soft AC, and some companies consider it the new adult standards.

I don't care for those companies. And the two trains aren't merging. What else happens when you try to put two trains on one track?

 

[EZway2go]

In all honesty, I don't quite know what this format would be called. Here is a sample of songs that you might hear on any given day:

Jo Stafford - Shrimp Boats
Zac Brown Band - No Hurry

Hmmm, Jo Stafford and Zac Brown on the same station... Now that's what I would call "Real Variety For The Ages!"

 

[radioboy]

generally not played right next to each other, though! LOL.

I'm in a market where almost everything is syndicated, including the morning shows. We have
no classic country, no standards, no soft AC and no oldies stations. I will admit the playlist is looser on the Internet station than it would be if I were trying to "sell" it to advertisers. Earlier I had a tight country playlist and did try selling it without much success as web-only.

Even with such a broad playlist, my listenership has doubled over the past few months, with over 202,000 streams launched. Folks donate albums and I play quite a bit of that material on the air.

 

[EZway2go]

The reality is someone who graduated from High School in 1970 is now over 60 years old. They probably didn't start to have a serious interest in music until about the British Invasion. That certainly wasn't what we call "Standards." The good news is some of these folks have become musically adventurous enough look for other alternatives. How many times can you enjoy listening to Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven???" The popularity of Rap and Hip-Hop, hasn't hurt either. Most people of that age have a great dislike for it, in a similar fashion that our parents didn't like Rock & Roll.

To attract these listeners you have to lure them in with some music that is familiar to them. For a long time, my station was a very strict Standards station. While the critics liked it, I found that our audience share went up a lot by simply loosening up the play list. Sometimes you play what you want, sometimes you play what your audience wants. Hopefully, those two trains of thought will merge most of the time.

Alan McCall's sample playlist included "Come On Over" by Olivia Newton-John, which I'll come to in a moment. That's a perfect example for how to answer Chuck's question on how many times can you enjoy hearing "Stairway To Heaven." For me, I can't. "Stairway To Heaven" is beyond the saturation point, yet it remains the quintessential song from my youth. (Come to think of it, I even think it was the theme for our prom, but I digress).

To attract listeners, yes, you do need to lure them in with something familiar... but not over-familiar. That's a fine line. Were I to scan the radio dial in my car and hear "Stairway To Heaven," I would continue scanning. However, something like "Over The Hills and Far Away" would get me to stop and give a listen.

The Bee Gees-penned "Come On Over" is a great song which was a bigger country hit for Olivia than it was pop. But I never hear it anywhere. It all goes back to lazy programming. Music directors need to shelve "I Honestly Love You" and start digging out some of these other gems. "Don't Stop Believin'"... another forgotten one. Olivia released a CD last year called Portraits which contains nice renditions of soft hits from the '60s and '70s. I've never heard anything from that on the radio either. My favorite track is the old Kingston Trio hit "Where Have All The Flowers Gone." It's a familiar song, but hearing Olivia's version brings a freshness to it.

 

[ronald54321]

The trouble with music after the midsixties is that obscenity was legalized. Thus, most music from then on advocates free sex, adultery, and drugs. While 95% of the public is in favor of this, there should be something for the other 5%.

 

[Chuck]

The trouble with music after the midsixties is that obscenity was legalized. Thus, most music from then on advocates free sex, adultery, and drugs. While 95% of the public is in favor of this, there should be something for the other 5%.

Actually, it is nothing new. Most popular songs are about love and most likely sex. The even got into drugs. They were just a little more discrete about it, or perhaps the audience was a bit more naive.