Here’s one just over 5 minutes long, featuring a long gone CHR station from Wheeling, West Virginia. WZMM has been gone so long, there’s virtually no information on it anywhere, so for this one we’re going to rely on our visitors to fill in the blanks so to speak.
Known on air as Z107, this end-of-the-80s hit station features jingles from JAM Creative Productions, a noontime all-request Oldies show and weather from AccuWeather (hear a forecast by meteorologist Alan Archer). All in all, the station sounds pretty typical of many CHR stations in medium markets all across America at about the same time period.
Years ago I had an old cassette of a WZMM aircheck on it. It was from June of 1989 and was a basic AOR station also called Z107. I guess this CHR format wasn’t able to compete with WOMP (100.5)
I (along with the corporate folks) changed WZMM to a Rock 40 (Remember Rock 40?)in March of 1989. It was a blend of the best Pop/Rock on the charts along Classic Rock tunes from the previous 20 years. (Think Pirate Radio in LA)
Z107 debuted #2 25-54/Men and #3 25-54/Adults in it’s only book as a Rock 40). My wife and I, Denise, did a morning show with Rob Parissi of Wild Cherry fame. I’ll post an air check soon. It was a fun time which led to a 10 year stint at WKWK. (AC across town)WZMM got rid of the new stuff and went all Classic Rock as WEGW/Eagle 107 in January 1990 – and have leaned that way ever since.
The station was I.D’d as an AM-FM simulcast. Does anyone know the AM frequency? Was it 1600?
FCC database shows 1600 as holding the WZMM calls from 4/87 until 2/14/89 when it became WBBD.
Z-107 was more of an AOR station than anything else. The (real) CHR in the market just kicked their butts in the ratings. One of the problems the station had was their lack of identity, a times it was hard to tell what the format was. The current 107.5 format is Rock/Classic Rock and they do much better in the ratings these days.
At the time (1989) I was working at one of the country stations owned by Clear Channel, WWVA. Shortly after this aircheck was made Clear Channel acquired this station and moved it under the same roof as WWVA and the other Clear Channel Stations that they owned in the market.