After WPLJ’s transition to CHR from AOR and prior to flipping to Hot AC, WPLJ was in direct CHR compeition with both WQHT and WHTZ, although the “Power 95” version of WPLJ was mixed a bit more hard-edged as the former two competitors, in the respect that on this aircheck in particular, there’s more hard rock than Z-100. Still, here is a station that STILL sounded great and very much in the game in the late 80s and early 90s.
Listen now to Skyy Walker and Domino on Power 95
Another CHR WARS presentation from East Coast Airchecks courtesy of Robyn Watts!
THANKS FOR POSTING THESE PLJ AIR CHECKS!! AWESOME!
I was a freshman in high school when this aircheck aired live–wow–‘PLJ was really great then and so was the music.
I think that WPLJ’s having slightly leaned rock during its Top 40 era (but with all hits, nonetheless) was at least partially owed to its roots as an album-oriented rock (AOR) station. In fact, IIRC, during its first two or three months as a Top 40 outlet, it retained, its AOR presentation, maintaining even its early-80s album-rock airstaff (Marc Coppola, Carol Miller, Jim Kerr, Tony Pigg, Dave Charity, Pat St. John). (When the presentation was changed to one more typical to CHR, ‘PLJ hired new deejays[i.e. Fast Jimi Roberts and Willie B. Goode, to name just two], while retaining Kerr, St. John, and Charity.)