I spend most of my radio-listening time left of the dial, tuned in to the college and public stations down at the lower end of the FM dial. But when college radio gets to be just a little too much, it's fun to bop on over to oldies radio for a little palette-cleanser. And one of the coolest time-traveling diversions on the local dial right now is at 850-AM, where Curtis Media Group is reviving the long-ago powerhouse WKIX as an oldies station.
That particular frequency has gone through a number of formats in recent years, including sports-talk. But in its initial relaunch, WKIX is playing vintage station-ID promos (which never fail to induce giggles) and a wonderfully strange assortment of oldies. It's great to hear Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly on a commercial station; I can't even remember how long it's been since I encountered them there, in fact.
Of course, it's not perfect. There's some playlist crossover between WKIX and Curtis' other oldies station, which makes for a schizophrenic mix -- especially when WKIX ventures into more recent times. Over the weekend, I heard plenty of songs that had me lunging for the dial to change the channel, including "(You're) Having My Baby." Still, the occasional cringe-inducer is a small price to pay for the chance to hear Clarence "Frogman" Henry croaking away.
Check it out before they screw it up.
