Hawiian Music on the main land

Once, long ago, Hawiian music was more popular in america than classical, rock or blues. hard to imagine slide guitar and ukelele in the top ten but it was so. It was a breif abberation in the late 40s that defies any explaination so far as I can tell.

Today you dont hear much of it outside Hawaii.

Last year 104.7 KAPU-LP decided that they wanted to play hawaiian music 24/7. If they were in hawii this would make perfect sense. But they're in Watonville, CA. So in response a group of residents in Watsonville, CA filed their own informal objection to the license grant for KAPU-LP, Watsonville. (apparently they wanted yet more spanish outlets in the Monterey market?)

They claim that licensee “Ohana de Watsonville” made a verbal commitment that the station’s programming would serve the city’s Hispanic community. Watsonville is about 80% Hispanic. (and less than 1% Hawaiian). But the FCC does not render judgments over programming and its renewal was granted post haste.

Interestingly enough "Kapu" is a hawiian word meaning "forbidden." In it's most common usage on road signs it means "no trespassing." To me, this story has foreshadowing....

At KAPU.org they continue to brag that they are the only all-Hawaiian station anywhere on the American mainland. Probably the entire continent... actualy I'd bet it's the only one off the island period.

WDZ Was Number Three

Everybody argues on who was the first. The first license, the first broadcast, the first Fm , the first 24 hour operation, the first to run ads the first to whatever... WDZ stands up and proudly states that they are number three. More here.

WDZ is also known as Illinois' first commercial radio station. It began broadcasting from Tuscola, Illinois as experimental station 9JR. But this first licensed station is somewhat lesser known. They went live on March 17, 1921 with a schedule grain market reports for the agricultural community running twice an hour ...between long stretches of dead air. Anecdotally it has been reported that there were a total of two receivers in the area to actually hear the original broadcast on 883 AM. Their slogan was "The Buckle of the Corn Belt." More here.

The original station broadcast from an antenna that was a simple wire strung between a couple of buildings in Tuscola. The station changed frequency to 1080 AM as power output was reduced to 10-watts in 1923. It was a slow year. By that date there were only three radio stations on the air in America. These were KDKA in Pittsburgh and WGY in Schenectady, New Jersey. I think that WDZ got him more often with legislated license changes than any of them.

In 1927 the station was given a full time license to broadcast at 100-watts. But then The Radio Act of 1927 changed to license of WDZ to broadcast only during the daytime at 1070 kc. Then in 1936 the power increased to 250-watts, and the frequency to 1020am. Knowing that there were only three other stations when they started, it seems like their being singled out...

By 1941, WDZ had a fairly stable home on 1050 AM but still was broadcasting mostly Agricultural news but thankfully with more continuity than twice an hour. They began to add entertainment programming drawing performers from the southern hot beds of blues and country music. In 2006 they ran a dull Urban AC format as "Magic 1050."

NOT ABOUT RADIO AT ALL

it's been a prolific month for me online. Those of you that enjoy my radio ranting are welcome to read further unrelated ranting elsewhere at your leisure. I am as opinionated about music as radio and politics; meus vocabulary est ignotus, vereor is.

My last batch of reviews is up on Stranded in stereo.
(please excuse the delay)
http://www.strandedinstereo.com/music.shtml

We are Scientists - With Love and Squalor
Ike Reilly –Junkie Faithful
Killing Joke -Hosannas from the Basement of Hell
(...and more impending)


and a concert review at Kochalkaholic
http://kochalkaholic.blogspot.com/2006/08/kochalka-concert-review-philidelphia.html

Vote for Net Neutrality

If you enjoy reading this blog, or any other blog or usee any online service except those of large multinational corporations you should be concerned. I am certain by now some of you have heard the term "Net Neutraility." You probably also are now familiar with the various descriptions of the "two-tier" system. If you cant guess... I would be in the bottom tier.

Please go here: http://www.savetheinternet.com/=senatemap

These kind folks have done the hard work of determining your Senators current position on Net Neutraility. Maybe you dont need to do anything, maybe your senator already has decided the free exchange of ideas is more important than the big fat check they might have written him/her in the fall. Click the link, then Click your state.

Or maybe not, maybe their on the fence or maybe they've already cached the check. Click the link and find out.

The last AM dayshare

I read that 1450 WVON-AM in chicago LMA'd 1690 WRLL-AM. It went without notice in most rags but it was also the end of the only AM share-time in Chicago. WVON who's stick is actually in Cicero, IL has signed off at 1:00 PM every day so that WCEV can use the frequency until 10:00 pm. This arrangement has been going on for decades and will only end this September. http://www.wvon.com/

In this LMA deal WVON brings its Urban talk programming to Chicago 24/7. Clear Channel owns the stick but WVON has an option to buy the expanded-band signal outright after five years. its a pretty good deal really. WRLL-AM drops their flagging oldies format WCEV presumably takes over the 1450 stick and WVON goes full-time. http://www.realoldies1690.com/

But it leaves us with only one remaining AM share-time: KWLC/KDEC on 1240 in Decorah, Iowa. It's a particularly odd deal. The commercial station KDEC shares the channel with Luther College’s KWLC. The college kids get overnights the weekdnds. KDEC gets everything else. But KDEC runs an Adult Standards format http://www.kdecradio.com/home.htm
and KWLC runs an eclectic mix of even more eclectic block programs. http://kwlc.luther.edu/

KWLC was founded 1926 , and inaugerated with a spirited reading of the Gettysburg Address. It is said to be the oldest continually operating radio station in Iowa. They began their share time agreement in the great depression as a money saving manuver which was very common then. They rode out the hard times where many others were not savvy enough to survive. But then they did something that the others did not. They stuck with the share time deal. While other broadcasters moved frequency, changed city of license or bought out their partner trying to provide full service, KWLC sat there quietly doing it's own thing. ...And now, they are the last of their kind.