Globe: Met Opera out at WBOQ

[Dan Strassberg]

I did actually hear a song/group that I like on WBOQ post flip. This may
actually be the ONLY album cut that works for both formats: Manhattan
Transfer: "Boy from New York City." I think it's a great send-up of doo-wop
and, as done by M-T, it's also quite musical. (And I think Janice Segal, who
sings lead on "Boy," is really HOT.) I understand that she is now recording
solo. I haven't heard any of her solo recordings and I don't know whether
she is still performing with the group. An interesting trivia item about
M-T: all four members are left-handed (at least they were when Janice was in
the group). This is NOT a comment on the group members' politics ;>). I do
wonder however, if they must replace Janice, is left-handedness a selection
criterion.

Dan Strassberg
dan.strassberg@att.net
Fax: 1-707-215-6367

----- Original Message -----
From: Bob Nelson <raccoonradio@yahoo.com>
To: <brian_vita@cssinc.com>; <boston-radio-interest@bostonradio.org>
Sent: Friday, January 02, 2004 1:41 AM
Subject: RE: Globe: Met Opera out at WBOQ


> --- Brian Vita <brian_vita@cssinc.com> wrote:
>
> > What justification to they need?  They own the
> > station.  They can do
> > whatever they want, regardless of marketablility.
> > Until they sell, or
> > otherwise lose the license, they could broadcast
> > dialtone and be within
> > their rights.
>
> I've mentioned the first episode of "WKRP in
> Cincinnati" before. IIRC, the second episode featured
> a man who was upset that the station changed from
> beautiful music to raucous rock, and he brought in
> some protestors-- who looked like they were from a
> nearby rest home-- with picket signs. I'm sure WBOQ
> got many emails and phone calls of protest but that
> won't do any good now.
>
> I just got an email from someone who must have read
> one of my posts and thought I worked for WBOQ. (Maybe
> the one where I looked up their phone numbers...)
> Nope, I don't work for them (though their studios
> and my house are both in Beverly!)...I did respond
> to the man's concerns and said that I approach it
> from two viewpoints:
>
> As a listener, it's sad to note that they changed a
> unique format to something that's pretty similar
> to what's heard on WODS, WROR, and WMJX. I personally
> DO like _some_ of what they're playing now (in that
> they've played some cuts the other stations don't
> play) and I am right in their age demo...but it's
> still regrettable that they've changed. But if you
> look at it from a business standpoint, you might say
> that they felt they could "serve the community better"
> (read: Make More Money) with 60s/70s pop.
>
> Then again, I'm sure a station like WOCN down on the
> Cape can do well with jazzy standards (then again,
> you wonder if that's because many older people are
> living on the Cape, retired folks like my Dad,
> who loves the station. I think it's pretty good as a
> change of pace.) Could WBOQ do as well with that here,
> if it's presented well? (Or does WOCN work because
> of the older demo down on Olde Cape Cod...)
>
> > A common misconceived thread on this list is that
> > stations have some
> > obligation to serve a particular audience.  The days
> > of the FCC considering
> > that a license is "held in the public trust" are
> > gone.  Radio is strictly a
> > commodity at this point.
>
> Remember when there was a big fuss to put country
> music back on the dial when WCOP dumped it? Somehow
> a court settlement led to some "brokered time"
> country on WDLW. And then there was Grandbanke
> which challenged WV-as-in-Victor, WVCA, saying they
> weren't doing enough public service, IIRC...
> That was THEN...
>
>
> > I personally don't think that the switch was a good
> > idea either and I think
> > that the idea of local focus is ridiculous.  How
> > many folks on the North
> > Shore listened to them anyway and how many more will
> > they gain with the
> > format switch.  At least with the old format, they
> > had a niche in the
> > background clutter of the other commercial stations.
>
> True. As for the local focus, the one thing in their
> defense is the fact that the signal pretty much IS
> confined to the North Shore... Who knows, they may
> gain SOME listeners, though. You could say, "the
> old WBOQ had a niche, giving people something
> different". But you could also say that (I hate to
> say "lowest common denominator) the new format
> might attract at least a few more new listeners--
> and maybe more advertisers. It could be that they
> will pick up _slightly_ more of both, but who knows
> if this will REALLY make a difference in the
> _business_ of radio...