Oldies is a dirty word
Since Christmas, at least five radio stations have flipped to "Classic Hits". I heard WKQL's switch to The Eagle brand in Jacksonville on Christmas night. Add Utica, Pensacola, Charleston, Tucson and Spokane. The majority have ditched Oldies and if rumors prove true, more will follow.
Why? One programmer says, "The reason is simple: Oldies has become a dirty word. Tougher and tougher sell to advertisers, and today ratings points don't count if the sellers can't sell 'em, so today formats are flipped in deference to sales. "
Let's think this through. Oldies stations in the time of corporate programming are unimaginative, and over exposed. I'm so sick of the phrase "good times and great oldies". Nobody on Keener or CK ever said that. And the playlists are so tight that hearing a deep cut from Bob Seger's Cameo Parkway days is about as unlikely as hearing The Rationals during an all-request lunch hour. Even getting these tunes into the testing rotations is nearly impossible. And the most die-hard fans tire of hearing My Girl, Pretty Woman and Louie Louie after years of power rotation.
If you turned 20 in 1970 you are approaching your 55th birthday and will soon be beyond the target demographic that advertisers want. That's why the Kool stations were playing Olivia Newton John and pushing the Oldies definition into the late 70s. For a lot of folks, anything before 1985 is an Oldie and anything before 1975 (except the evergreen stuff) is as relevant as Begin the Beguine.
Juxtapose this with the popularity of Little Steven's Underground Garage, where a whole new generation is learning to love the likes of Dick Dale, The Arrows, The Last Heard and yes, even Soupy Sales. Great music spans generations if people who believe share the magic.
I heard this week on NPR that there is great fear in the Fine Arts community that classical music is a dying art. So we shouldn't be surprised that the cookie cutters who package commercial radio are abandoning the 60s. The formula for financial success in the new millennium is simplicity, scalability and high margin. Creating audio art that connects with a community's cultural history is complex, unique and expensive.
Classic 60s radio done right has been a rarity since the instant the Hues Corporation first charted Rock the Boat. XM and Sirius are among the very few that come anywhere near to replicating the feel. As the terrestrial oldies brands continue to drop like flies, more and more of us will look to other sources for our rock and roll fix.
Why? One programmer says, "The reason is simple: Oldies has become a dirty word. Tougher and tougher sell to advertisers, and today ratings points don't count if the sellers can't sell 'em, so today formats are flipped in deference to sales. "
Let's think this through. Oldies stations in the time of corporate programming are unimaginative, and over exposed. I'm so sick of the phrase "good times and great oldies". Nobody on Keener or CK ever said that. And the playlists are so tight that hearing a deep cut from Bob Seger's Cameo Parkway days is about as unlikely as hearing The Rationals during an all-request lunch hour. Even getting these tunes into the testing rotations is nearly impossible. And the most die-hard fans tire of hearing My Girl, Pretty Woman and Louie Louie after years of power rotation.
If you turned 20 in 1970 you are approaching your 55th birthday and will soon be beyond the target demographic that advertisers want. That's why the Kool stations were playing Olivia Newton John and pushing the Oldies definition into the late 70s. For a lot of folks, anything before 1985 is an Oldie and anything before 1975 (except the evergreen stuff) is as relevant as Begin the Beguine.
Juxtapose this with the popularity of Little Steven's Underground Garage, where a whole new generation is learning to love the likes of Dick Dale, The Arrows, The Last Heard and yes, even Soupy Sales. Great music spans generations if people who believe share the magic.
I heard this week on NPR that there is great fear in the Fine Arts community that classical music is a dying art. So we shouldn't be surprised that the cookie cutters who package commercial radio are abandoning the 60s. The formula for financial success in the new millennium is simplicity, scalability and high margin. Creating audio art that connects with a community's cultural history is complex, unique and expensive.
Classic 60s radio done right has been a rarity since the instant the Hues Corporation first charted Rock the Boat. XM and Sirius are among the very few that come anywhere near to replicating the feel. As the terrestrial oldies brands continue to drop like flies, more and more of us will look to other sources for our rock and roll fix.
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