Radio This Week Back Then #24: June 30-July 6
Early KDGE D/FW, KULF flip to top 40 “79Q” Houston, WPOW Miami two-for (2004 and 2017), WHQT Miami, WKSI and WKZL Greensboro, KZZB and KIOC Beaumont, KBIU Lake Charles
What was on the radio this week…back then. This is a weekly visit back to radio audio from this week in past years for those that enjoy radio history or those working in radio looking for promotional ideas, etc. If you enjoy these weekly audio rewinds, they take a lot of time to put together, so please do me a favor, subscribe, and share and pass it on. Thank you!
In case you missed, it split up this week’s edition with a post earlier in the week with Washington DC July 4th holiday airchecks from the 1990s from top 40 WWZZ 104.1/WWVZ 103.9 “Z104” and a top 40 you don’t remember.
In this usual end of week dispatch, this week:
Dallas/Fort Worth: Modern rock KDGE 94.5 “the Edge,” 3 July 1989
Houston: AC KLULF flip to top 40 “79Q,” 2 July 1982
Maimi: WPOW 96.5 “Power 96,” 3 July 2004 (R&B) and 3 July 2017 (top 40)
Miami: Adult R&B WHQT 105.1 “Hot 105,” 3 July 2004
Greensboro/Winston-Salem: Top 40 WKSI 98.7 “98.7 Kiss FM,” 30 June 1991
Greensboro/Winston-Salem: Top 40 WKZL 107.5, 30 June 1991
Beaumont/Port Arthur/Orange: Top 40 KZZB-FM/AM 95.1/990 “B95,” 6 July 1991
Beaumont/Port Arthur/Orange: Top 40-rock KIOC 106.1 “K106,” 30 June 1995
Lake Charles: Top 40-classic rock KBIU 103.7 “Bayou 104,” 30 June 1995
Happy reading — and listening!
For the summer of 1989, I was off working on my Computer Science degree — and using a lot of profanity working on assignments for an assembly language class. Fortunately, that was the only time in my life I had to do low level programming on a mainframe. Alas, I was not back in Dallas to get the switchover of SMN Z-Rock affiliate KZRK 94.5 to modern rock KDGE “94.5 the Edge,” but I did get home a few days after the format flip, which is this audio from 35 years ago this week.
“94.5 the Edge, the Cutting Edge of Rock” Date: Monday, 3 July 1989 Format: Modern rock
As it is a couple of days into the new format, the station was still running without DJs on the air…just the music and very early imaging. For comparison, I posted a 1999 aircheck of KDGE way back in RTWBT #3. It’s hard to believe it has been 35 years since this aircheck. The Edge would have a 27 year run between its time on 94.5 and later on the better 102.1 facility. The Edge brand is owned by consultants Jacobs Media; they put up some of the background history of KDGE and the brand in a post after KDGE changed formats in 2016. Presently, the 94.5 facility is adult R&B KZMJ “Majic 94.5.”
Robbie Robertson/”Sweet Fire Of Love”
The The/”The Beat(en) Generation”
The Surfaris/”Wipe Out”
Depeche Mode/”Everything Counts”
The Smiths/”The Headmaster Ritual”
Love And Rockets/”So Alive”
Blondie/”Heart Of Glass”
The Proclaimers/”I’m On My Way”
Ziggy Marley & The Melody Makers/“Tomorrow People”
Squeeze/”Cool For Cats”
Legal ID: KDGE 94.5 Gainesville-Dallas-Fort Worth
The B-52s/”Cosmic Thing”
Talking Heads/”Making Flippy Floppy”
The Cure/”Fascination Street”
In the fall of 1981, when KRBE-FM 104.1 shifted from top 40 to AC, it left Houston without a CHR. In 1982, both KYST 920 and KULF 790 flipped to CHR, creating a new major market AM vs AM CHR battle more reminiscent of the 1960s rather than the early 1980s when FM CHRs had already begun been dislodging longtime AM outlets out of the format.
Back in 1982, this was the week AC KULF became 79Q, the predecessor to the format later adding a FM simulcast under the better known KKBQ-FM calls and “93Q” branding.
Date: Friday, 2 July 1982 5:30AM Format: Format change to top 40 “79Q” DJs: John Lander, Scott Shannon, Charlie Van Dyke, Brad Edwards, John Garcia (Flash Gordan))
I was sent this nicely scoped aircheck more than 20 years ago of the sign off of KULF, format flip, and launch of 79Q and the Q Morning Zoo helmed by John Lander. The aircheck starts at 5:30AM to sign off KULF and then start the new format at 6AM with guests like Scott Shannon dialed in. Good stuff with all that talent. Today, 790 is now home to sports KBME “Sportstalk 790.”
I have traveled to South Florida twice for the 4th of July holiday; one in 2004 and one in 2017. WPOW was recently in the news for flipping to 1990s/2000s hip hop six weeks ago. As I happened to have recorded WPOW on both trips, I pulled them to allows us to see how the station has evolved over time.
“Power 96” Date: Saturday, 3 July 2004 Format: R&B DJ: Baby Bree
WPOW may now be running 2000s throwbacks today, but how did it actually sound in the 2000s? Well, here is one auditory snapshot from 2004. At this point, WPOW was pretty much hip hop and R&B records.
The Notorious B.I.G./”Big Poppa”
Krayzie Bone/”2 Many Freaks”
KINSU/”I Hate My Baby Daddy”
Usher (Featuring Lil Jon & Ludacris)/”Yeah!”
Ying Yang Twins & Trick Daddy/”What’s Happnin!”
Kevin Lyttle/”Turn Me On”
Luddy (Featuring Timbaland)/“Home Tonight”
Legal ID: WPOW 96.5 Miami-Fort Lauderdale-“the Palm Beaches”
Usher/”Burn”
Terror Squad/”Lean Back”
Mario Winans/”I Don’t Wanna Know”
“Power 96, Miami's Party Station” Date: Monday, 3 July 2017 6:19PM Format: Top 40 DJ: Jay and mixmaster DJ JPS
At the time of this second aircheck, WPOW had recently moved to a more mainstream top 40 format approach. Although, since it was the 4th of July holiday weekend, they were running an all-weekend "4th of July Mixmaster Weekend" of dance and club mixes of current and throwback hits. It’s definitely a more pop/dance vibe and imagining versus the aircheck above from 2004.
(Sorry, I am being lazy and did not make a music log for this one…it was exceedingly difficult to log a lot of songs intermixed and overlapping and some megamixes just featuring brief segments of songs).
After recording the 2004 WPOW aircheck above, I flipped over the cassette tape and recorded WHQT. Still in the format today, WHQT has been running an adult R&B format now for over 30 years. Even in my much younger years, in 2004, I would rather have heard the theme from “Shaft” and Gladys Knight over most of what WPOW was spinning above in 2004.
“Hot 105, Today’s R&B Hits & Oldies” Date: Saturday, 3 July 2004 (evening) Format: adult R&B DJ: Rob O'Snap
As most adult R&Bs have a fair amount of gold content, the format has naturally evolved over time. For the 4th of July on this weekend back in 2004, Hot 105 was running a “70s soul weekend.” By and large today, most adult R&B outlets have jettisoned most of their 1970s library. So, this is truly old school throwbacks by today’s standards…
The Isley Brothers/”Take Me To The Next Phase”
Isaac Hayes/”Shaft”
Herman Kelly & Life/”Dance To The Drummer’s Beat”
Gladys Knight & The Pips/”I’ve Got To Use My Imagination”
Ashford & Simpson/”It Seems To Hang On”
Sly & The Family Stone/”Family Affair”
Legal ID: WHQT 105.1 Coral Gables
Dwight Pickney/”Sattamassagana”
To see how times have changed, this is what WHQT played at 4PM on July 4 this year:
Usher & Summer Walker/”Good Good”
Prince/”Do Me Baby”
Mystikal/”Danger (Been So Long)”
Boyz II Men/”Doin’ Just Fine”
Tems/”Free Mind”
Akon & Snoop Dogg/”I Wanna Love You”
Deele/”Two Occasions”
Silk Sonic (Featuring Thundercat & Boots)/”After Last Night”
Michael Jackson/”Don’t Srop ‘Till You Get Enough”
Ja Rule & Ashanti/”Always On Time”
Off to the Piedmont Triad and this week back in 1991 for the CHR battle between WKSI and WKZL. Up first is WKSI, which initially outlasted WKZL in the format battle. WKZL would flip the following year to hot AC, though it would return to CHR in 1999, which it remains today. WKSI followed the industry format trends…it abandoned CHR for country briefly in 1995 and then to modern AC and hot AC as “the Point” and WOZN “the Zone.” In 2005, it moved to the next trendy format, adult hits, as WSMW “Simon,” which it remains today.
“98.7 Kiss FM” Date: Sunday, 30 June 30 Format: Top 40 DJ: Tim
Station contests do not have to be too complicated. Case in point, WKSI’s contest at this time was to hand out $1 for each time the 10th caller could say “Kiss FM” in 10 seconds. Of all the callers, whoever says “Kiss FM” the most times in 10 seconds wins a trip to the Bahamas.
Sometimes rehearing these old tapes causes me to learn new things. The original cassette recording of this includes the beginning of the syndicated “Direct Hits” show. I had no idea that Color Me Badd “installed a certain amount of class” in their one hit wonder “I Wanna Sex You Up.” The “more you know…”
Rhythm Syndicate/”P.A.S.S.I.O.N.”
INXS/”Disappear”
EMF/”Unbelievable”
Level 42/”Something About You”
Marc Cohn/”Walking In Memphis”
Wilson Phillips/”The Dream Is Still Alive”
Nelson/”More Than Ever”
The Escape Club/”I Will Be There”
Legal ID: WKSI 98.7 Greensboro-High Point-Winston-Salem
As noted above, WKZL would flip to hot AC “107.5 the Eagle” in the following year. It returned to CHR as “107.5KZL” in 1999, which it remains today.
“WKZL” Date: Sunday, 30 June 30 Format: Top 40 DJ: Chris Kelly
Generally, some songs played on top 40 outlets but not AC stations at the time eventually find there way years later to AC stations as top 40 listeners age and shift to other formats and AC outlets ingest those old familiar top 40 hits to their libraries. So, it can seem when re-listening to old airchecks from decades ago now, that the stations feel “softer” than they actually were. However, this is the early 1990s and there was an emerging “wimpification” of pop music on CHR radio —”Too Many Walls,” “You’re In Love,” “Love Is A Wonderful Thing,” being examples. So, some airchecks from this era really sound “lite rock” heavy now.
Timmy T/”One More Try”
The Black Crowes/”Hard To Handle”
Fine Young Cannibals/”She Drives Me Crazy”
Cathy Dennis/”Too Many Walls”
Jesus Jones/”Right Here Right Now”
Wilson Phillips/”You’re In Love”
UB40/”Here I Am (Come And Take Me)”
Michael Bolton/”Love Is A Wonderful Thing”
Poison/”Something To Believe In”
After 7/”Nights Like This”
Legal ID: WKZL 107.5 Winston-Salem-High Point-Greensboro
Steelheart/”I’ll Never Let You Go”
To date, I have posted two airchecks from Beaumont/Port Arthur/Orange, both of which were of top 40 KIOC 106.1 “Power Hits K106” during its top 40-rock days in the 1990s, with a third one right below. This week brings the opportunity to post one of its primary challenger during the 1980s through 1991: KZZB-FM 95.1 “B95.”
“B95” Date: Saturday, 6 July 1991 Format: Top 40
At this point, KZZB-FM/AM’s days were numbered as its owners would soon file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, forcing the pair off the air in November. Under new ownership (one of the companies to eventually fold into iHeart), 95.1 would return in 1992 as country KYKR, taking the format and calls from its previous 93.3 Port Arthur home. It remains KYKR today.
Paula Abdul/”Opposites Attract”
The Escape Club/”I Will Be There”
Salt-N-Pepa/”Push It”
Céline Dion/”Where Does My Heart Beat Now”
Steelheart/”I’ll Never Let You Go”
Amy Grant/”Every Heartbeat”
Cheap Trick/”Don’t Be Cruel”
The Black Crowes/“She Talks To Angels”
Cher/”Love And Understanding”
Rhythm Syndicate/”P.A.S.S.I.O.N.”
Don Henley/”Dirty Laundry”
As mentioned above in the KZZB section, KIOC was its primary CHR rival for the years they overlapped in the format for much of the 1980s and into 1991. I posted airchecks from its rock-leaning CHR days in previous editions — a June 15 1994 aircheck in RTWBT #21 and a February 17 1995 one in RTWBT #4. I really liked KIOC, so I made a habit of recording them on trips to Houston. As I had posted a few before, I had not planned to include this one this week, but I changed my mind since it compares and contrasts with the KBIU 103.7 Lake Charles aircheck below recorded on the same day.
To reset the stage for newer readers, CHR as a format was struggling in the early 1990s. Nationally, the number of CHR outlets dropped by more than half due to a down cycle in quality hits and new emerging formats syphoning off stations (modern rock and, particularly, hot AC that popped with converts from 1989 and on). In the Beaumont market’s case, B95 went off the air due to bankruptcy, leaving KIOC as the lone CHR. At the time, KIOC was owned by a small operator that owned only them and CHR KTUX 98.9 “Tux 99” in the Shreveport market. Both KTUX and KIOC shifted towards rock … with KTUX moving all the way to AOR and KIOC spending several years as a rock-leaning top 40.
KIOC’s rock CHR days were not atypical from others at that time (KEGL 97.1 Dallas/Fort Worth 1992-1993, KMYZ-FM/AM 104.5/1570 “Hot New Z104.5” Tulsa until its conversion to modern rock, or even WHTZ 100.3 New York’s mid-1990s rock-leaning days). Generally, CHRs of this ilk mixed pop, rock, some modern rock, and a few 80s throwbacks and current R&B and hip hop tracks were excluded.
“Power Hits K106” Date: Friday, 30 June 1995 (midday) Format: Top 40-rock DJ: Chris Chambers
I have no idea why the “Power Rangers” song clips were being used…some sort of bit or contest, I guess…
Legal ID: KIOC 106.1 Orange-Beaumont-Port Arthur-Lake Charles
Collective Soul/”December”
Scandal Featuring Patty Smyth/”The Warrior”
Blues Traveler/”Run-Around”
Hootie & The Blowfish/”Hold My Hand”
New Order/”World In Motion”
Dave Matthews Band/”What Would You Say”
INXS/”Bitter Tears”
Van Halen/”Can’t Stop Lovin’ You”
Letters To Cleo/”Here And Now”
There was a time when putting the bumper sticker of your favorite radio station on the back of your car was a thing. Growing up, we lived briefly in Lake Charles in 1984. When we moved there, there were “Nova 104” bumper stickers on a lot of cars. It took me a little while to figure out that Nova was the previous format on 103.7 before it flipped to top 40 KBIU “Bayou 104” three years before I moved there. It must have had some amount of following for the number of cars still with old stickers on it back then. Though, it turned out that “Bayou 104” had more than twice the lifespan of Nova.
Before it was neutered, downgraded, and required to move to another frequency (the present day 103.3) to make way for another Houston rimshot signal in 2005, KBIU was a 100 kw C1. As they are adjacent radio markets, there was quite a bit of signal overlap with KIOC above at the time as KBIU’s primary contour extended west to include part of the Beaumont/Port Arthur/Orange market. In the other direction, KIOC’s signal contour included Lake Charles and they used to include Lake Charles in their hourly legal ID back then (as in the aircheck above).
Like KIOC, KBIU decided to make a mid-1990s tilt towards rock. So, for a while, the area had two rock-leaning top 40 outlets, but they had different formulations. KBIU’s music mix included a decent amount of classic rock tracks and a playlist — and imaging — not very typical of any other rock-leaning CHR variant of the time.
“Bayou 104, All Hits, More Rock” Date: Friday, 30 June 1995 Format: Top 40-classic rock DJ: Justin Kase
Bruce Springsteen/”Glory Days”
Des’ree/”You Gotta Be”
The Who/”Who Are You”
Legal ID: KBIU 103.7 Lake Charles-Maplewood LA-Hayes LA
Blues Traveler/”Run-Around”
Aerosmith/”What It Takes”
Eagles/”Learn To Be Still”
Fine Young Cannibals/”She Drives Me Crazy”
The Rembrandts/”I’ll Be There For You”
Lynyrd Skynyrd/”What’s Your Name”
Gin Blossoms/”Allison Road”
Stevie Nicks & Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers/”Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around”
Eddie Money/”After This Love Is Gone”
Paul McCartney & Wings/”Band On The Run”
Rod Stewart/”Leave Virginia Alone”
John Cougar Mellencamp/”Small Town”
Nicki French/”Total Eclipse Of The Heart”
Legal ID: KBIU 103.7 Lake Charles-Sulphur
Dire Straits/”Sultans Of Swing”
The Cranberries/”Linger”
Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band/”The Fire Down Below”
Hootie & The Blowfish/”Only Wanna Be With You”
As always, the logos and other intellectual property belong to the stations. The recordings were made from over the air broadcasts.