Radio Waves Podcast #378

Radio Waves: June 30, 2023

Remembering John Felz

John Felz began his radio career in 1971, working in the mail room of KMPC (now KSPN, 710 AM). In the small-world department, one of his colleagues in the mail room was future KMET (now KTWV, 94.7 FM) newscaster and personality Pat “Paraquat” Kelley, whose father Bob Kelley was the play-by-play announcer for the Los Angeles Rams.

After a time, Felz was moved to the newsroom as an assistant, supporting the newsroom staff by sorting and compiling stories that came across the teletype machines from the various news services of the time, including the Associated Press and United Press International. His duties also included writing sports and weather reports for the news anchors and station personalities such as Dick Whittinghill, Ira Cook, Johnny Grant, Gary Owens, Geoff Edwards, Johnny Magnus, Wink Martindale and Robert W. Morgan.

Eventually he expanded into more programming elements both within the station and as part of the Golden West Broadcasters Radio Network — Golden West owned KMPC and the station was its flagship — which carried games for the California Angels, the Rams, and UCLA football and basketball. Felz was in charge of producing in-studio and in-stadium broadcasts for the network affiliates.

He moved on — and up — to hold positions in management, including Operations Director, Assistant Programmer, and producer for the morning show.

He left KMPC in 1995 and worked at a few stations, notably KRTH (101.1 FM), KIEV (now KRLA, 870 AM), and the Music of Your Life Radio Network. 

Felz passed away on June 11th at the age of 78; no details on the cause of his death were released but friends say he had been having a series of health complications that most likely played a role. Friends and family will gather for a remembrance of his life on July 1st in Sherman Oaks.

Bebop Deluxe

No, not the band. After a year of preparations, KKJZ (88.1 FM) has launched a full-time bebop jazz sub-station, which can be heard online (look for the special button at jazzandblues.org) or on a digital HD radio tuner on 88.1 HD2.

While I am certainly not an expert, I do know that bebop is a style of jazz music that is generally fast-tempo, uses many chord changes and even key changes … and a lot of improvisation. This came about due to a younger generation of jazz musicians pushing the creative boundaries of the genre in the early to mid 1940s. Unlike much of the music of the time, bebop was not intended as being danceable; instead it was to be heard. Charlie Parker, Sonny Rollins and Miles Davis are among the influential bebop artists and composers.

Station consultant Saul Levine says that the music is being compiled by the KKJZ staff, directed by Jose Rizo. “We are fulfilling a need for jazz lovers, and we thank the California State University, Long Beach — owner of the station — for its support of our efforts.”

“We are doing this in honor if Chuck Miles and the great bebop music of the past.” he said.

Hayes Out

The rumors proved to be true … I had heard rumors from absolutely reliable sources that KABC (790 AM) programmer and market manager Drew Hayes had parted ways with the station and owner Cumulus Media, but I could not get confirmation from any of the players involved. 

Turns out the rumors were true. AllAccess.Com confirmed that Hayes left the station in earlier June after many years with the station … this being his second stint.

Hayes has extensive experience in the format and in radio, having worked at WLS/Chicago, ESPN Radio, and KABC itself the last ten years in addition to his first time at the helm back in the late 1990s.

Where this takes the station is unknown. It has been years since KABC has been any type of force in the market, and conditions have gotten worse as owner Cumulus continues to shed costs .. and stations. I cannot even remember the last time I saw an ad for KABC … the last one I can remember featured Ken (Minyard) and Bob (Arthur) … meaning it was decades ago.

With all the choices for stations and non-radio entertainment, a marketing plan is imperative. KABC has had none, and the results speak for themselves.

And rumors continue to swirl regarding Cumulus simply selling the station, so perhaps Hayes dodged a proverbial bullet.

Radio Waves: June 23, 2023

Where’s My Oldies?

I received more than a few emails regarding the loss of the LA Oldies (aka K-SURF) stream. While the station can still be heard over the airwaves if you have an HD radio and are able to clearly tune in 105.1 HD4, many listeners used the internet or smartphone apps to listen, and that’s what had been turned off due to the costs involved. The financial burden for streaming rights has been an issue for many stations, especially in smaller markets and niche formats.

Station owner Saul Levine knew that people liked the station and listened through the stream, but he didn’t realize just how many. And it caught him somewhat off guard when he started receiving calls and emails from around the world asking what happened.

“I was amazed at the response and the size of the audience,” he told me in early June. “We are reviewing the potential to bring it back, especially if we can cover the costs to stream it.”

Then, last week, the good news: “K-SURF is making its way back on the air,” Levine told me. “The outpouring of excitement for the format surprised me. K-SURF is truly America’s Oldies station.”

It is taking time to get things going, but it will be back, he says, with an even better experience on the apps. That’s music to many ears.

Legend Sold

The original KRLA (now KRDC, 1110 AM) has been sold. Unfortunately not to anyone who will play top-40 or oldies as I would have done. Perhaps bring back some of the magic that once propelled the station to the top of the ratings in the 1960s or even as HitRadio 11 in the 1970s.

Disney sold its last remaining radio property to Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa for $5 million. Calvary also owns KWVE/San Clemente (107.9 FM) … Southern California’s other Wave (K-Wave), not to be confused with KTWV (94.7 FM – The Wave).

Not that I expect anyone to confuse K-Wave with The Wave, but it is interesting that both stations serve much of the same area. 

I am a little surprised that Calvary bought KRDC as they already own a very powerful FM station, while KRDC’s signal is hampered with an odd transmitting pattern that seems to send much of the signal over the ocean. Perhaps they have plans to put some money into refurbishing the transmitter site. 

Nominating Class of ’23

The Museum of Broadcast Communications — part of the Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago — received over 2500 suggestions for new inductees into the Radio Hall of Fame. In the end they whittled the list down to 24 candidates.

Among the nominees is our own John and Ken (currently heard 1-4 p.m. on KFI 640 AM), former local talk host Larry Elder, and Shadoe Stevens (KRLA, KMET, KROQ). You may also remember Stevens as Fred Rated, the “spokesman” for the now defunct Federated Group, and the voice of also defunct University Stereo among his popular voiceover work.

The full list, in alphabetical order by first name — for whatever reason — as presented on the website radiohalloffame.com/2023-nominees: 

Bert Weiss, Bob Rivers, Charles Laquidara, Dyana Williams, Gerry House, Jaime Jarrin, John & Ken, John DeBella, Johnny Magic, Kevin Matthews, Kid Leo (Lawrence Travagliante), Larry Elder, Laurie DeYoung, Lee Harris, Rev. Louise Williams Bishop, Mark Simone, Mary McCoy, Matt Siegel, Mojo in the Morning, Monica May, Nina Totenberg, Pat St. John, Shadoe Stevens, and Shelley “The Playboy” Stewart.

Voting among 800 specially selected industry insiders will run through the end of the month; this year’s inductees will be announced on July 24th.

Playback

Just a few comments from recent columns …

“I read your column this morning and I sure agree with you regarding KABC. The station could be so much, but it has just become plain awful lately. The presentation is just terrible.

“I would hate to see one of the last stations to leave talk radio. I disagree with you in that it should be converted to music. Don’t we have enough music stations already?” — Mike Skibba

Not on AM … and that is a concern for me. Some owners are turning in licenses because the land they sit on is worth more than the station itself. Not enough listeners (and those that do listen are old like me or older, so advertisers don’t want them) because there is too much political talk, sports, etc. … there needs ti be something that attracts younger listeners before the band disappears completely, perhaps as soon as one more generation.

“I used to listen to KABC all day but not anymore.  It is all politics and especially LA politics and I live in the OC. I would LOVE to find an oldies station (50’s 60’s 70’s) and see John Phillips on TV or on another stronger station. He is the only one I listen to now. — Lin Akins

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Radio Waves: June 16, 2023

Goodbye, Jeff Baugh

These are getting difficult to write: we lost another good one last week.

Jeff Baugh, who reported on traffic conditions and major news stories from the air for almost 40 years, passed away June 6th due to lung cancer. He was 81.

Baugh was with only three stations his entire Los Angeles radio career: KFWB (980 AM) starting in 1986, followed by KNX (1070 AM … the FM simulcast did not exist at the time) in 2008, and KFI from 2017 until his death. His approach to traffic reporting was listener-driven – he didn’t believe it was enough to report on an incident, he understood the importance of making the reports relevant and useful by explaining, whenever possible, how to get around the problem.

LARadio.Com’s Don Barrett was a friend of Baugh’s; he says that Baugh’s smile was contagious … one “that you would never forget – a smile that would light up the dreariest of skies.” 

Born in Brooklyn on November 15, 1942, Baugh was a Marine who served two tours in Vietnam. After the war he eventually found himself in Los Angeles where he became a DJ at Carlos and Charlie’s on the Sunset Strip until he landed at KFWB. As an airborne reporter, he was the recipient of numerous awards including multiple Golden Mikes, the award of awards for local news reporting.

Back Live

Live 105 (KITS/San Francisco) was the Bay Area’s alternative music source for over 30 years before first switching its name to “Alt 105.3” in 2017 and then changing its name and format to the soul-less adult hits Jack-FM clone called “Dave FM” just under two years ago.

Well, that didn’t work, so Live 105 is back. The switch happened on June 2nd and included a fairly creative pre-recorded promo announcing the change, including a short portion of the classic Cheech and Chong routine stating that “Dave’s not here!” 

The change back has caused quite a buzz throughout the area, including coverage from local newspapers and television stations, as well as posts all over social media and studies from industry observers. Headlines such as “Listeners rejoice as Live 105 returns to the airwaves” are common.

Currently the station is running jockless; DJs are expected on the air in the coming weeks. As I tuned in on the internet stream, though, one thing stuck out … in its current form — like our own KROQ (106.7 FM) — it is basically an oldies station. I listened for an hour earlier in the day before writing this and heard only a few songs released in the pasts three years.

Perhaps it is by design; Live 105 and KROQ are both owned by the same company — Audacy — so perhaps copying KROQ is policy. Or it could be that the play list was still filled by many of the former Dave-FM songs … as so many semi-alternative songs can also be found on Jack-FM right here … also owned by Audacy.

My hope, though, is that new songs will become more prevalent and help make the format a success, which may help spread the idea to here.

Overall, I’d say this is a tremendously positive move. Now we just need to get the big 610 KFRC back on the air … Live trivia: Alt 98.7’s “The Woody Show” originated at Live 105 and was heard there until it was removed from the air for reasons that still are not totally clear. Their loss is our gain, of course.

Changes at KABC

Host Leo Terrell and programmer Drew Hayes are both out at KABC (790 AM). It appears that Hayes was let go and that Terrell left on his own terms in response. Left unsaid is what will happen with the rest of the station. For now, no one is talking.

But something does need to be done. It has been decades since KABC was truly relevant; too many syndicated programs and a woeful lack of promotion left the station so low in the ratings that many industry watchers were wondering when, not if, a change would come.

Personally, if I owned the station, I’d switch it to music. Perhaps a full service format backed by the oldies — or mellow rock — that you no longer hear on the radio.

But if management wants to keep it talk, start with the strengths, primarily mid-day son John Phillips. Phillips has a way of making politics and local issues entertaining and informative without preaching to the choir, and is definitely, by far, the best show on the station. 

Once the hosts are chosen, it is imperative to clean up the on-air presentation. Too many programs sound like a bad college or high-school station, with volume levels uneven, unclear sound, music played too loud over the host making it difficult to hear, and an overall sound that screams low-budget. Additionally, promotional announcements sound too much like they are talking at listeners not to listeners.

Strange that the station that launched full-time talk in Los Angeles does it so badly today.

It could work, though. Once mostly live and local hosts are in place — you can keep a few of the syndicated podcast shows  — then it’s time to clean up the sound by dumping all pre-recorded promos and make them all read by the hosts themselves. I don’t need to hear the deep-voice guy say “Dan – Bon – Gino” exactly the same way multiple times each day, every day.

Just a thought, anyway. Let me ask you this – what would you do with KABC?

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Radio Waves: June 9, 2023

No Surf?

For a station with little exposure, LA Oldies — also known as K-SURF —  has quite a following. At one time available on the AM band at 1260 kHZ, it moved off the band to make way for K-Mozart, relegating it to the HD4 digital radio stream tied to KKGO (105.1 FM) but still available world-wide on the internet, smart phone apps and smart speakers.

No longer. Station owner Saul Levine confirmed that the station stoped streaming as of May 22nd, a victim of increased streaming and licensing costs.

It’s not necessarily gone forever, and is still available on the HD stream if you own an HD Radio-capable receiver. Many cars have them as standard or available equipment, and aftermarket radios often include HD standard as well.

Keep in mind, Levine is a radio guy at heart and indicated that if he could figure out a way to at least cover the costs — via a new marketing plan, for example — it could very well return. In that vein, if you or someone you know wants to become an LA Oldies sponsor, you might consider contacting him. Just sayin’ …

But that doesn’t help now … where can former LA Oldies listeners find the music they like? Luckily, there are some alternatives that might not be exactly like the old K-Surf, but are quite good in their own approach. Some initial suggestions:

• Big 8 Radio, a tribute to CKLW, which still broadcasts from Windsor/Ontario but basically serves The Motor City Detroit. The broadcast station runs talk now, but was a Boss Radio station in the 1960s, and that is the focus of this tribute. You can tune in on various apps (I recommend StreamS HiFi Audio and MyTunerRadio) or at the website big8radio.com. It’s the Detroit version of Boss Radio, and noncommercial as well. 

The station plays primarily hits of the 1960s but dips into the ‘50s and ‘70s as well. As I write this, they are presenting a Million Dollar Weekend, which fans of RKO top-40 and Boss Radio stations (KHJ, KGB, KFRC, CKLW, and more) will remember well. 

• The Eagle, playing non-stop ‘70s music. I wouldn’t call it a station tribute; more like an era-tribute, but remarkably well-produced. The Eagle, like Big 8 Radio, has stunning sound quality (especially using StreamS) and has a format that runs the full decade of 1970-1979 (or is it 1971-1980?) give or take a year or so. Find it on the apps as well as TheEagle.FM

• Top 40 Hit Clock, which plays clusters of songs by year, and covers the 1950s through the ‘70s. It’s a tough find and doesn’t always show on the app searches; the best way to hear it is to use the online stream link, which is https://la2.indexcom.com/player/6. Fidelity of this is also remarkably good, and can be configured on the apps … I just can’t remember how. It definitely took some experimentation.

You can also find a ton of streaming internet-only as well as broadcast stations using the apps; just search by genre and decade. The good news for LA Oldies fans? Levine told me that he was “amazed at the national response and national audience.” He has been receiving emails from fans around the country. As we speak, he is reviewing ways to make it work.

Feedback Loop

“The main thing I don’t like about local radio is there are just too many commercials. Once when I was in my car, all the radio stations I had on my presets had commercials … at the same time! The other issue I have is the repetition of the music that is being played, especially on the classic hits and classic rock stations I listen to.

“The main thing I really enjoy about local radio is the DJs I listen to. It is so good to actually hear a live voice talking to you. I like DJs that announce the songs, tell you the time, and the weather. I also enjoy hearing people winning contests on the radio and the voice of the DJs showing how happy they are for the listener who won. You just don’t get that same feeling when you listen to a radio station that is automated, with no one there. The best part is you are truly never really alone, it is like having a dear friend over to your place to visit with you.  — Russ, Glendale

“I usually find your takes spot on, but as a former Woody listener, I am now back on KROQ (106.7 FM) with Kline and Ally. Show is so much more So Cal, and actually find myself laughing a lot more without all the old sounding ‘radio bits.’

“I get an authentic early Stern vibe but with modern humor from Kline. Ally has grown on me a lot. I hear a lot of people talking about that ‘morning show on KROQ’ and talking about what they heard. I always think good radio (and TV) does that. Make people think and tell others. I think they are doing it better than most right now.” — Troy Grasso

You definitely hit the nail … word of mouth and a positive “vibe” are definitely the ways to go. Definitely.