WZLX (100.7 FM, Boston) is a prominent
classic rockClassic rock was originally conceived as a radio station programming format which evolved from the album oriented rock format in the early-1980s...
radio station in the Boston market. WZLX was one of the first
classic rockClassic rock was originally conceived as a radio station programming format which evolved from the album oriented rock format in the early-1980s...
FM stations in America. It is known as "The Mother of Classic Rock" since it is the original classic rock station in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
History
What is now WZLX was originally WCOP-FM, notable for being one of the first FM stations to break simulcasting with its AM partner. WCOP-FM's separate programming was initially classical music and was one of the first FM stations in the region to (briefly) broadcast in FM Stereo (the station would resume stereo programming in the early 1970s).
In 1965, WCOP (AM) had become Boston's affiliate for the NBC Radio Network, and WCOP-FM would often simulcast the hourly NBC Radio newscasts. By 1969, NBC Radio's weekend series
MonitorNBC Monitor was a weekend radio program broadcast which ran from June 12, 1955 until January 26, 1975. Airing live and nationwide on NBC Radio, it originally aired beginning Saturday morning at 8:00 AM and continuing through the weekend until 12:00 Midnight on Sunday...
had moved from WCOP to WCOP-FM, to allow the former to broadcast more hours of country music on the weekends.
The station went through a number of format changes (and later callsign changes), including
beautiful musicBeautiful music is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in American radio from the 1960s through the 1980s...
in the late 60s until 1973,
oldiesOldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on a period 15 to 55 years before the present day.In the 1980s and 1990s, "oldies" meant the 15 years from the birth of rock n roll to the beginning of the singer-songwriter era of the early 1970s, or about 1955 to 1972.In...
(as “Total Gold 101, WCOP-FM”, 1973-74),
countryCountry music is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States and the Appalachian Mountains...
1974-76), AOR (as WTTK "TK101" 1976-78),
beautiful musicBeautiful music is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in American radio from the 1960s through the 1980s...
(as WHUE, 1979-85), and Top 40 (as WKKT "The Cat", for a few months in 1985).
100.7 FM adopted its current format and callsign, WZLX, in October 1985. The station owners at that time, First Media Corporation, hired Gary Guthrie to design and implement a format aimed at people who experienced
adolescenceAdolescence Adolescence Adolescence (lat adolescere, (to grow) is a transitional stage of physical and mental human development that occurs between childhood and adulthood. This transition involves biological (i.e. pubertal), social, and psychological changes, though the biological or...
in either the 1960s and 1970s and enjoyed the music of those eras, but did not care for the then current
heavy metalHeavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in England and the United States...
or top 40 'hot hits' of the 1980s. These were people whose mindset was getting too old for AOR and top 40
radio formatA radio format or programming format describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. Radio formats are frequently employed as a marketing tool, and constantly evolve...
s, but were too young for or not interested in the
oldiesOldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on a period 15 to 55 years before the present day.In the 1980s and 1990s, "oldies" meant the 15 years from the birth of rock n roll to the beginning of the singer-songwriter era of the early 1970s, or about 1955 to 1972.In...
radio formatA radio format or programming format describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. Radio formats are frequently employed as a marketing tool, and constantly evolve...
. WZLX was one of the first
classic rockClassic rock was originally conceived as a radio station programming format which evolved from the album oriented rock format in the early-1980s...
radio formatA radio format or programming format describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. Radio formats are frequently employed as a marketing tool, and constantly evolve...
stations to made its debut, becoming quite popular throughout the Boston area.
WZLX's first program director was Boston radio veteran Bill Smith, who also did the Morning Show from 1985 to 1990. Bill expanded on Gary's basic idea and in two short years grew the station into what it is today. He hired Harvey Warfield (afternoons), Tony Mathes (middays), Anne Cody (evenings), and musicologist Jeff Allen in a prominent position for weekends.
Bill Smith also worked for
WRKOWRKO is a radio station based in Boston, Massachusetts, currently owned by Entercom. Its transmitter is located in Burlington, Massachusetts, next to the Burlington Mall.-1920-1940:...
,
WBZWBZ is the callsign for an AM radio station in Boston, Massachusetts which is owned by CBS Radio , which itself is owned by the CBS Corporation...
,
WBOSWBOS is a commercial radio station located in Brookline, Massachusetts, broadcasting to the Greater Boston area on 92.9 FM. The station airs an alternative music format branded as "Radio 92.9". WBOS is owned and operated by Greater Media...
,
WEEI-FMWODS, known on-air as "103.3 WODS" is a radio station in Boston, Massachusetts. WODS has a pop leaning Classic Hits format with music mostly from 1964 to 1979 , and is also involved in the organization of several concerts and events within the Boston area. WODS is a CBS Radio station. The station...
, and WEGQ. Currently he is Production Manager for WRKO in Boston.
A series of ownership changes made WZLX a part of Cook-Inlet Radio, then Infinity Broadcasting in late 1992. Currently it is owned and operated by
CBS RadioCBS Radio Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, fourth behind main rival Clear Channel Communications , Cumulus Media and Citadel Broadcasting...
.
In 1997, WZLX radio host
George Taylor MorrisGeorge Taylor Morris was a United States disk jockey and radio personality who grew up with and on the radio. Initially working on AM Radio to changing to an FM Radio format, Morris' career evolved and he was a "founding father of satellite radio at Sirius XM", according to the station...
created a media frenzy about the "
Dark Side of the RainbowDark Side of the Rainbow
" phenomenon, in which
Pink FloydPink Floyd were an English rock band who, in the late 1960s, earned recognition for their psychedelic and space rock music, and in the 1970s, as they evolved, for their progressive rock music. Pink Floyd's work is marked by philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album cover art,...
's album
The Dark Side of the MoonThe Dark Side of the Moon is the sixth studio album by English progressive rock group Pink Floyd. Released in March 1973, the concept built on the ideas that the band had explored in their live shows and previous recordings, but it lacks the extended instrumental excursions that characterised their...
is said to synch up with the movie
The Wizard of OzThe Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical / fantasy film directed mainly by Victor Fleming from a script by Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson, Edgar Allan Woolf, and others and based on the 1900 children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum...
.
In the spring of 2007, WZLX became the first station in the country to broadcast programming in full digital 5.1 surround sound. This flagship effort coincides with the recent move of the industry to implement the
HD RadioHD Radio technology is a system used by AM and FM radio stations to transmit audio and data via a digital signal in conjunction with their analog signals. As a standard practice,the kilohertz signal rate is written next to its corresponding data transfer rate kilobits/s or kbits/s in HD Radio...
format.
From 1991 to 2007 the station had its studios on the 24th floor of the
Prudential TowerThe Prudential Tower, also known as the Prudential Building or, colloquially, as The Pru, is a skyscraper in Boston, Massachusetts. The building, a part of the Prudential Center complex, currently stands as the 2nd-tallest building in Boston, behind the John Hancock Tower. The Prudential Tower was...
in downtown Boston, the location of its
transmitterA transmitter is an electronic device which, usually with the aid of an antenna, propagates an electromagnetic signal such as radio, television, or other telecommunications.-Transmitter types:...
. On March 3, 2007, the station moved crosstown to the facility where sister stations
WODSWODS, known on-air as "103.3 WODS" is a radio station in Boston, Massachusetts. WODS has a pop leaning Classic Hits format with music mostly from 1964 to 1979 , and is also involved in the organization of several concerts and events within the Boston area. WODS is a CBS Radio station. The station...
and
WBCNWBCN is a digital-only radio station airing on WBZ-FM HD-2 in Boston, Massachusetts and owned by CBS Radio. Before switching to 98.5 HD-2 on , WBCN ran its rock format for 41 years as an analog radio station on 104.1 MHz . WBCN became a legend in the Rock music industry for breaking many bands,...
are clustered in the
CBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is an American television network, one of television's original "big three", which also include NBC and ABC. Like NBC, CBS started out as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System...
studios in Brighton. The transmitter is still atop the
Prudential TowerThe Prudential Tower, also known as the Prudential Building or, colloquially, as The Pru, is a skyscraper in Boston, Massachusetts. The building, a part of the Prudential Center complex, currently stands as the 2nd-tallest building in Boston, behind the John Hancock Tower. The Prudential Tower was...
.
Programming/personalities
The most prominent personality on WZLX is probably
Carter AlanCarter Alan is a disc jockey and radio announcer who has been working professionally in Boston since 1979. His work began at the student radio station at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, followed by 19 years Boston radio station WBCN. Alan is perhaps most famous for playing U2 before they...
, best known as the
disc jockeyA disc jockey is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, dis
k referred to phonograph records, while dis
c referred to the Compact Disc, and has become the more common spelling...
who, during his time at
WBCNWBCN is a digital-only radio station airing on WBZ-FM HD-2 in Boston, Massachusetts and owned by CBS Radio. Before switching to 98.5 HD-2 on , WBCN ran its rock format for 41 years as an analog radio station on 104.1 MHz . WBCN became a legend in the Rock music industry for breaking many bands,...
, helped the rise of the band
U2U2 are a rock band that formed in Dublin, Ireland. The band consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr...
in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and later wrote one of the definitive biographies on the band; he also hosts
Sunday Morning Blues, some of the week's most popular programming. 15-year veteran Chuck Nowlin handles one of the most successful afternoon drive shows in Boston featuring the
Attitude Adjustment Hour. Kenny Young, the Night Rocker, rounds out the day's schedule from 7:00 p.m. to Midnight.
There have been a few morning shows on the station in recent history. With the coming of
Howard SternHoward Allan Stern is an American radio and media personality most notable for his radio show which since January 9, 2006, has been broadcasting on Sirius XM, an uncensored satellite radio service...
to
WBCNWBCN is a digital-only radio station airing on WBZ-FM HD-2 in Boston, Massachusetts and owned by CBS Radio. Before switching to 98.5 HD-2 on , WBCN ran its rock format for 41 years as an analog radio station on 104.1 MHz . WBCN became a legend in the Rock music industry for breaking many bands,...
in the early 90s, the Boston legend
Charles LaquidaraCharles Laquidara is an American radio disc jockey whose show, The Big Mattress was broadcast in the Boston, Massachusetts area for nearly 30 years on WBCN...
and his show, The Big Mattress, took up residence at 'ZLX. With Charles's retirement, the short-lived
Mornings with Tai and Steve SweeneySteve Sweeney is an American comedian.-Biography:Sweeney was born in Charlestown, a section of Boston. His Boston accent and idiosyncratic mannerisms are trademarks of his stand-up act, headlining at top comedy clubs across the country, including Caroline's Comedy Club in New York City.A graduate...
eventually gave way to
Steve Sweeney's Neighborhood, (co-hosted by
Lance NorrisLance Norris is an American actor/writer/director/stand-up comic/critic/mentalist.-Life and career: Norris was born in Des Moines, Iowa and attended Whitman College where he was a wrestler and rugby player...
) which ended a 5-year run in 2005. Long time morning team
Karlson and McKenzie took over on August 1, 2005.
In June 2006, the weekend branding of programming was changed. The branding
"Weekend 'ZLX" debuted on the first Friday afternoon of summer that year, and has continued through the present time. The idea is that the songs are played in "shuffle mode" in honor of the
iPodiPod is a brand of portable media players designed and marketed by Apple and launched on . The product line-up includes the hard drive-based iPod Classic, the touchscreen iPod Touch, the video-capable iPod Nano, and the compact iPod Shuffle. The iPhone can function as an iPod but is generally...
, versus the pre-selected tracks by management.
Current on-air staff
- Karlson and McKenzie - 5:30—10 am
- Carter Alan - 10 am—2 pm
- Chuck Nowlin - 2—7 pm
- Kenny Young - 7 pm—12 midnight
- Anngelle Wood
- Bill Abbate
- Jack Lawrence
- Travis
- Deja
- Mike Wendt
- Brett Richards
- Chris Engel
- Kim Collins
- Bradley Jay
- Janet Egan King("Juanita")
Specialty programs
- Wed. 11 pm—1 am - Rockline
- Sat. 7 pm—12 am - Nights with Alice Cooper
- Sun. 6—7 am - Common Ground
- Sun. 8—9 am - Breakfast with The Beatles (hosted by Cha Chi)
- Sun. 9 am—12 noon - Sunday Morning Blues with Carter Alan
- Sun. 10 pm—12 midnight - The Living Room Concert Series
Availability
WZLX can be heard clearly as far west as
WorcesterWorcester is a city in the state of Massachusetts in the United States of America. Having a population of 172,648 in the 2000 census, Worcester is ranked the second or third largest city in New England. It is the county seat of Worcester County....
, south into
ProvidenceProvidence is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island, and one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the estimated second or third largest city in the New England region...
, and as far north as
Portsmouth, New HampshirePortsmouth is a city in Rockingham County, New Hampshire in the United States. It is the fourth-largest community in the county, with a population of 20,784 at the 2000 census...
on typical radios.
A more sensitive receiver may be needed for reception on Eastern
Cape CodCape Cod, often referred to as simply the Cape, and called Cape of Keel by early Norse explorers, is a peninsula in the easternmost portion of the state of Massachusetts, in the Northeastern United States. It is coextensive with Barnstable County...
, in
ConnecticutConnecticut is a state in the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and New York to the west and south ....
, west of City Hall in Worcester, and in central
New HampshireNew Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian province of...
. The signal may occasionally be heard on a powerful car stereo in
Western MassachusettsWestern Massachusetts is a loosely defined geographical region of the U.S. state of Massachusetts which contains the Berkshires and the Pioneer Valley...
and parts of
MaineThe State of Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordering the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, New Hampshire to the southwest, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is the northernmost portion of...
. The station streams its audio live at its web site.
External links