Thursday, March 22, 2007

BREAKING: Quiet Riot to play Woodlands in honor of Rock 107 birthday

Erstwhile friend and CV radio "columnist" Mary Ondrako reports that Rock 107 (also owned by CV owner Times Shamrock) will be throwing a big party at the Woodlands to mark the station's 27th birthday. Except that it's not really the station's 27th birthday, or something like that.

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

it's probably one of the biggest things that Rock 107 plays up is their birthday bash. if this is "Breaking News" and she's able to get away with this and expect readers to say - really? no shit!? then I am going back to school to take up a journalism class.

hey - in case you haven't heard - dewey defeats truman....

Anonymous said...

107's Webster's blog has had this "breaking news" up for over a month. So much for snark towards other local news outlets when you can't even bother to research your own fluff pieces!

Anonymous said...

F*** yeah! I'm clearing my calendar for this one! A night rockin' out with a has-been hair band! Can I use by Treo for the singalong or do I have to bring a lighter?

*throws rock hands*

Anonymous said...

Once again 107 proves they are the dung heap of classic rock...wow Quiet Riot whats a matter was Ratt all booked up....

Anonymous said...

I apologize for that last comment ...there are a few (2 or 3) djs that try to interject a fresher flow of music (Mike Evans for one) at 107 but overall its the same repetive song cycle and a bunch of dullards behind the mics..especially the woman at the 10am slot...tune in for a couple of days..and its the same 3-4 ACDC/CCR/BOSTON/ROLLING STONES songs etc..and if i have to hear the Hollies Long Cool Woman..one more time well you get the idea..Hey 102.3 isnt perfect either but they really try harder...also the best thing about D/W anymore is the addition of Ruthie.

John said...

I couldn't agree more about Ruthie. She and Dave Dirienzo, our producer, have become integral parts of the show and without them it would suffer.

As far as the CV, the Birthday Bash, and Mary's column, remember it's a column. Neither the paper nor Mary characterized it as "breaking news." It's been on my blog for a month, yes...and on the air for just as long. Mary's column, at least in reference to the Birthday Bash, think press release.

And as far as the music goes on Rock107, everyone's entitled to an opinion. That you perceive a station to be "trying harder" or that a particular DJ has anything to do with a "fresher flow" is amusing though.

Anonymous said...

If you've traveled a bit and listen to music, you know that The Mountain is one of the very best radio stations in America. It's consistently interesting and surprising and respects the listener's intelligence.

As for Rock 107, it is what it is...There's a Rock 107 in just about every city in America, cranking out the zillionth rendition of Dream On and Panama and Stairway to Heaven and Start Me Up.

I think of it as exactly the kind of station Dwight Kurt Schrute III would listen to.

Anonymous said...

Daniels and Webster are has-beens. Just play music and shut the F^%$ up in the morning.

Anonymous said...

Boy you're dumb.

No DJ "tries harder" to play better music.

Every DJ at 107, the Mountain, etc. is handed a play-list and they play what's on it. To think anything else is just saying you either don't know or never worked in the business.

FU Mitchell. The Mountain is no different than 107, They may play a hundred different songs, but any way you cut it it's still old music. Best in the country my ass.

Anonymous said...

I may be dumb, but I don't listen to Boston or "Framptom Comes Alive" anymore.

I know very little about the radio business, except that it's become a lot more corporate and restricted than it used to be. Just like newspapers, I guess.

But if the people at The Mountain are just playing off a playlist just like 107, then I guess that means the people making up their playlist are smarter.

12:00 a.m. hit it on the head: They may play 100 different songs.
To pick an example close to my heart, if they play a Springsteen song, it probably won't be Born To Run or Born in the USA or Hungry Heart or Glory Days like you would inevitably hear on 107; it will be one of several dozen others. You say The Mountain's no different, but that variety is exactly what makes it different (and better).
Some with REM, U2, Stones, Dylan (whom you'll never hear on 107, no matter how great his last three albums have been), etc.
It may be older stuff, usually, but it's seldom the three or four songs that Rock 107 has to play.

And yes, they do play new music and even new local music. To go back to Springsteen, they played cuts from his Seeger Sessions album last year that barely surfaced anywhere else in the commercial radio world. Yeah, you could have played Born to Run again instead, but play the new stuff and let the listener decide whether they like it or not.

That's what I mean about respecting people's intelligence.

Or play some other great artists who are seldom if ever heard on the Rock 107s of the world: Warren Zevon, Graham Parker, Steve Earle. Yeah, none of them are exactly Justin Timberlake in terms of buzz and commercial appeal in 2007, but it's all about taste.

And like the Jesuits taught us, "De gustibus non est disputandum."

Also, shouldn't that be "FY"?

John said...

John Mitchell,

As I said above, everyone's entitled to their opinion.

As far as a radio station and/or radio programmers respecting people's intelligence, that simply is not a consideration. It doesn't occur to anyone at all, not at the station(s) you don't like and not at the station(s) you do.

If you happen to like the playlist of a certain radio station because you think they're respecting your intelligence by playing songs you happen to like you're free to think that way but it's nothing more a coincidence. They're playing what you like and that then is a good radio station for you. That there is some higher calling or awareness on the part of programmers that is reaching a select group of listeners is a by-product, not a goal.

People who love pumpernickel bread really love it. Most people don't care for it and just go with plain old white, maybe rye once in awhile.

All that said I'm sure your favorite radio station is thrilled to have a listener like you. But they also wish that listeners like you were not such a small minority.

I like what I like. Is it the same four Springsteen tracks or the same three Billy Joel songs? Doesn't matter. The guy who drives the orange juice truck may not like orange juice, he may even be allergic to orange juice. Doesn't mean he can't drive the truck to where it's supposed to be.

Lighten up. You have a radio station you like, great. If they can remain commercially viable playing what you like, better yet. But know that in the end it's about nothing more than commercial viability and respect for your intelligence is way far down the list if it appears there at all.

Anonymous said...

Well put John.

Mitchell is an idiot. If smarter means better ratings than the smart guys work at 107, KRZ, Froggy, M93 and ESPN Radio. Thos are the top 5 stations in the market. You need to keep going waaaaay down that list to get to the Mt.

Anonymous said...

D&W are has-beens? Christ, they have one of the highest rated morning shows in the market, their numbers are sensational, and they are also dead on with their demos.

And always remember that in order to be a "has-been," you had to have been "someone" at one time. And that is a claim very few here can make.

Anonymous said...

Cum on and feel the noize

Anonymous said...

Local radio here is a vast wasteland of nothingness. You want smart, savvy radio, listen to WHYY in Philly or QED in Pittsburgh.

Anonymous said...

...girls rock your boys. we get wild, wild wild...

Anonymous said...

More geezer rock. Oh boy!

Anonymous said...

The best classical rock station is WAAL, 99,1 FM, in Binghamton. You can pick it up in many places in the Wilkes-Barre area. It rocks.

Anonymous said...

Gee...when i made my comment on march 23/4:12..i didnt realize what a pissfire it would start...it did show me that the guys from rock 107 are alright...especially in their replies...i was very impressed by johns cool determination to get his ideas across when the natural reaction would have been to say.....well you know ....kudos john..i have new found repect for you guys...and the other idea is that 107 is just a reflection of us or at least a percentage of us..