Highlights from the author’s week of (always decidedly random) listening and the week’s radio headlines, ending December 1, 2011. Stations I’ve worked with recently in my Edison Research (or any other) capacity are asterisked.*

Station (FM)

KMCQ Seattle – For nearly two years, they’ve broadcast a mostly commercial-free Oldies/Greatest Hits format with little publicity, not even encoding in PPM initially. Now that they're rated, however, they have a 2.6 share, compared to rival KJR-FM’s 4.1. KMCQ is finally streaming and, as one friend put it, is “like no other Oldies station.” There’s a deep list—all hits, but not all hits that you still hear on the radio—and a stager about playing “all the great Northwest artists.” (When I heard them, that was Paul Revere & the Raiders’ “Hungry,” which is just fine, but there’s also album artwork from the Kingsmen and the early Seattle band, the Wailers). So not surprisingly, they’ll reappear below for our “Oh Wow Oldie.”

Station (Online)

Black Planet Radio’s Cosmic Funk – A lot of creativity has gone into some of the recently unveiled Web radio channels, including this new suite of online stations from Radio One. The mellow/jazzy side of ’70s funk (think Kool & the Gang’s “Summer Madness”) seems like the narrowest possible niche, but there’s a surprising amount of music, much of which seems like a precursor to the downtempo electronica (aka “chillout music”) of 25 years later.

Format Change

WDAS-AM Philadelphia – They’re running R&B Christmas music now, but they’ll emerge after the holiday under WDAS-FM PD Ken Johnson as “The Soul of Philadelphia” with “the best [R&B] oldies from the late ’50s, ’60s and early ’70s” from artists including the Temptations, Sam Cooke, Jerry Butler, the Drifters, Etta James, Isaac Hayes, Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin and Little Richard. It’s an older-than-usual take on the format, presumably to keep them out of the way of Urban AC sister WDAS-FM, and a unique offering for a large-group-owned major-market AM.

Ratings Story

WMGF-HD-2 (102.5 WLOQ) Orlando, Fla., Clear Channel’s Smooth Jazz FM translator, launched in August, was up 0.4–1.0 in the October PPM. The former WLOQ, now bilingual Tropical Latin/CHR hybrid WHKQ (KQ103), isn’t doing so badly, either, up 2.4–3.7–3.8 in the last three months.

Station Wars

Rhythmic KAGM (Power 106) Albuquerque, N.M., attacks rival KKSS (Kiss 97.3) for playing Ke$ha, Britney Spears, Maroon 5, Dev, Cobra Starship and other “pop artists.” “We’re on a mission to get Whack 97.3 to change their moniker from ‘Hip-Hop and R&B’ to ‘Hip-Pop and R&B,’” declares the Website. It’s the second market we know of (Ft. Wayne, Ind., being the other) where one Rhythmic has gone after another for exposing the poppier product that many Rhythmic outlets are playing now. KKSS was up 4.5–4.9 and leading the market in the summer book.

Best Press

Richard Pegue’s “Eccentric Soul: The Nickel & Penny Labels” is one of the albums featured in this year’s New York Times rundown of boxed sets. The late Pegue was a colleague at WGCI-AM (Dustyradio 1390) in the mid-’90s, and one of the underrated legends of Chicago R&B radio. He was also a record producer whose late ’60s/early ’70s productions are the latest in Numero Group’s “Eccentric Soul” series.

Best Station Positioner

“Your Old School New School Station” – Urban AC WAKB (Magic 100.9) Augusta, Ga., with a different way of describing the best mix of yesterday and today.

Best Country Promotion

Frampton Goes Country – Country CJWF (Country 95.9) Windsor, Ontario sends an e-mail database blast on behalf of the upcoming Peter Frampton 35th anniversary of the “Frampton Comes Alive” concert. Just in case you’re wondering if there’s any spillover between the Country and Classic Rock audiences.

Best Promotion Names

WJLB Detroit's “Occupy Front Row” – They are the 97.9 (FM) and they’re giving away Jay-Z and Kanye West tickets.

“Show Me How To Live” – Modern Rock WBTZ (The Buzz) Burlington, Vt., finds a clever way to position a straightforward VIP package (dinner, front-row tickets) for an upcoming Chris Cornell show.

Kenny Conga Line – Other CBS stations have used the “remember the name of the last winner” contest, but this one for WDSY (Y108) Pittsburgh rebrands a Kenny Chesney ticket giveaway as “Kenny’s Conga Line.”

Best Promotion Sounder

“Tom The Exploding Ticket Turkey” – Alternative WMRQ (Radio 104.1) Hartford, Conn.’s Thanksgiving weekend cue to win tickets for an upcoming Aaron Lewis show.

Web Disclaimer

"Guys, you may not submit a picture of your wife or girlfriend. She must submit it herself." Modern Rock WEND Charlotte, N.C., tries to prevent family squabbles on “Thongsgiving.”

Website Copy

“Christmas is thoughts of peace, comfort, and beautiful Christmas music. Well, screw that!” – Active Rock WTPT (New Rock 93.3) Greenville, S.C., promoting its “Not So Silent Night” show with Chevelle on Dec. 2.

Worst Reason To Buy A Car

“The Mitsubishi warranty could be around longer than my dog.” – A buyer does the math on the 10-year-warranty on a Canadian ad for the automaker, before reducing himself to sobs.

Oh Wow Concert Bill

B.J. Thomas & Kinky Friedman join forces on a Thanksgiving weekend double-bill to benefit Texas' Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch.

Segue

Jerry Lee Lewis, “Great Balls Of Fire” into Bruno Mars, “Grenade” – Did it shake your nerves? Rattle your brain? It was just “A to Z Week” last week at Adult Hits WARH (106.5 The Arch) St. Louis.

Least-Likely Song To Hear Twice

Debarge, “Stay With Me” – Heard within hours of each other on Urban ACs WRKS (Kiss 98.7) New York and the aforementioned WAKB (Magic 100.9) Augusta, Ga. The sample that drove Notorious B.I.G.’s “One More Chance” has become an Urban AC staple, ironic because it wasn’t a big radio record at the time.

Oh Wow Oldie

Billy Ocean, “Love Really Hurts Without You” – It should always have been a perfect record for Oldies PDs who were looking to modernize: a 1976 R&B/pop record that sounded like a mid-’60s Four Tops record. In the U.K., it remains an Oldies radio staple, but in the U.S., it was never a big enough hit. But in the Carolinas, it fit well enough into the “beach music” canon to show up occasionally over the years, as it did recently on WNCT-FM Greenville, N.C. It’s still a treasured record among certain PDs and oldies fans, and still Ocean’s best, most impassioned performance. And you would hardly expect to hear it on a mainstream Oldies/Greatest Hits FM on the same weekend as…

Polly Brown, “Up In A Puff Of Smoke” – From the same British label responsible for “Love Really Hurts Without You.” When I first heard this song in spring ’75 without knowing what it was, I momentarily thought Diana Ross & the Supremes were somehow back together. And I still regard it as a better Supremes homage than “Chain Reaction,” the one that the Bee Gees eventually wrote for Ross. It disappeared instantly from the radio; hearing it on the aforementioned KMCQ Seattle may be the first time I’ve heard it on a large-market FM, even a quirky one, since 1975.

Really Oh Wow Oldies

Culture Club, “The War Song” – The kickoff single from Culture Club's third album, it immediately halted the momentum of “Karma Chameleon” (just 10 months), and two successful follow-ups. Detractors (and there were a growing number by fall ’84) weren’t ready for Boy George to get political. Supporters wished he had something more profound to say than "war is stupid/and people are stupid." Heard on the broad ’80s/’90s-based format of WOYE (Magic 97.3) San Juan, P.R.

LaRissa, “I Do Both Jay & Jane” – In 1999, the novelty value of that title alone was enough to get at least some airplay for an indie dance reaction record. And the topic, or at least a toned-down version, didn’t lose potency, when Katy Perry floated it 3-1/2 years ago. Encountered recently on WPGC-HD-2 (Area 95.5) Washington, D.C.’s dance format.

Out Of Office Message

"In this holiday season, one of the many things I’m thankful for is that I have the entire week off… In case of panic, contact Maria Alva. In case of the final apocalypse, call Tim Johnson." – Neil Harrison, Content Director, The Exchange, Clear Channel Radio