Hartford-related

[Howard Glazer]

A note and an observation:

-- For those of you with XM, the Sixties on 6 channel will be
"recreating" WPOP Hartford on Friday from 4 to 9 p.m. These shows aren't
all that good -- generally, they consist of old jingles and whatever
vintage airchecks are available, with the rest of the voicing being done
by XM's Terry Young -- but occasionally Terry gets one of the featured
station's former DJs on the phone for some nostalgic talk. Might be
worth a listen for fans of Hartford Top 40 radio.

-- WDRC-FM has plunged headlong into a modified "Jack" format: hits (and
even some non-hits and album tracks) of the '60s through '80s. The DJs
-- yes, they've kept the DJs -- talk about "building Connecticut's
biggest music library" and say DRC-FM is "like your iPod on shuffle."

The discussion board at radio-info.com seems to be totally negative on
this, but I kind of like what I'm hearing. The transitions can be kind
of jarring -- I heard the Rascals' "A Girl Like You" followed by the
Village People's "YMCA" this afternoon, followed a few minutes later by
an even more unlikely pairing: the Outsiders' "Time Won't Let Me" and
David Bowie's "Golden Years." A few nights ago, during the overnight
(which appears to be staffed by interns and/or Conn School of
Broadcasting students), the Ohio Express' "Beg Borrow and Steal" and
Donovan's "Season of the Witch" aired back to back. But the way I see
it, it beats "Monday Monday" into "Brown-Eyed Girl" for the gazillionth
time.

What do you radio pros make of this apparently home-grown variation of
"Jack"? Will the playlist tighten back up with the first bad book? Will
outside consultants be hired?

Howard