Five-part series on station/
wcbsfm.com
Earlier this month, WCBS-FM quietly held its second anniversary since returning to oldies. In the first of a week-long series of articles commemorating that event, we’ll examine CBS-FM’s rise, fall and rise again to an oldies powerhouse.
It all started on July 7, 1972. On that date, WCBS-FM would forever change the radio landscape, not just in New York but market by market across the country.
CBS-FM became one of the nation’s first oldies stations. But unlike most other formats, it wasn’t just about the music. It was always about who spun the records. The station incorporated a radio all-star roster, especially once Joe McCoy was brought in as program director in 1981. Playing the same songs they did at their height on WABC and WMCA in the 1950s and 1960s, CBS-FM treated its listeners to the likes of Dan Ingram, Harry Harrison, Ron Lundy and Cousin Brucie, just to name a few.
The station didn’t just find a niche, it found a huge following. In fact, by the 1990s, it would hit number one overall on several occasions.
But as the audience began to age, the classic doo-wop sounds of the 50s were aging too.
That meant the focus switched to 1970s and 1980s music. Longtime listener favorite “The Doo-Wop Shop” with Don K. Reed was a casualty, cut from the station line-up in 2001.
Ultimately, CBS-FM modernized right before our ears in the most drastic of circumstances.
On June 3, 2005, at precisely 5 p.m., WCBS-FM turned its airwaves at 101.1 over to Jack-FM. In the process, the station’s sound was altered. The memorable DJs gave way to one “Jack” voice for all of the station’s liners and promos. Without a live announcer to crack open the mic, immediacy, for the first time in WCBS-FM’s history, was gone.
The call letters remained WCBS-FM, but the new slogan was “101.1 Jack-FM: Playing What We Want.” And they did for just over 25 months. But as the ratings faltered and listeners got more frustrated, “Jack’s” days were numbered.
Arguably, as surprising as the flip to “Jack” was, the flip back to oldies was even more unexpected.
But nevertheless, the unthinkable happened---again--- when CBS-FM returned in full voice with some of its friends coming along for the ride. Former Mayor Ed Koch in welcoming back CBS-FM on July 12, 2007, said in a taped message, it had been a “mistake” to ever let it leave.
The CBS-owned station has experienced rejuvenation, regularly pushing Top 5 ratings.
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