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WCZX
WCZX (97.7 FM) is a radio station licensed to Hyde Park, New York, and serving the Mid-Hudson Valley of New York state. The station is owned by Townsquare Media and broadcasts at 300 watts ERP from the Illinois Mountain master tower in Marlborough, New York, with studios on Pendell Road in the Town of Poughkeepsie. It plays a country music format, which is simulcast on two other stations in the Hudson Valley, 97.3 WZAD in Wurtsboro and 105.5 WDBY in Patterson.
The 97.7 frequency first signed on in 1969 as WHVW-FM, sister station to WHVW (then a Top 40 station that was No. 1 in the Poughkeepsie market). For the first several years of its existence, it simulcasted WHVW's Top 40 programming during that station's operating hours and aired automated easy listening music during the nighttime hours when WHVW was not on the air.
This format would remain until 1976 when WHVS evolved to Soft Adult Contemporary, a format which two years later would be replaced by an automated Top 40 format as WJJB, "Jib 98".
When the owners of WHVW and WJJB went bankrupt in 1982, WJJB was sold to the Sillerman-Morrow Group, a Middletown-based partnership headed by investor Robert F.X. Sillerman and New York City radio legend Bruce Morrow ("Cousin Brucie"). The Morrow half of the group would take over programming of the station and relaunched it as 98 Fame, a CHR/oldies hybrid (listing as a mainstream adult contemporary). A mild ratings success (part out of Morrow, widely known in the market, doing a regular weekend show), the format would last until March 1988 when the Sillerman/Morrow partnership was dissolved.
Under new ownership led by Harry Gregor, the former general manager for the Sillerman Morrow Group, the 98 Fame format was tweaked to a classic hits approach under the new calls WCZX and the name being modified to "'CZX Classic Hits". With former WKIP News Director Ron Lyon programming the station, it successfully evolved to oldies as "97-7 'CZX". In 1989, as the Hudson Valley Market recoiled under the IBM downsizing (39,000 employees from the Hudson Valley were 'early retired' or transferred), revenues fell dramatically, and the loan called in by Barclays Business Credit. After months of negotiations, Gregor filed for bankruptcy, and the station was sold to locally-based Beehive Entertainment which picked up many personalities formerly of WEOK which had previously been the oldies station in the market.
In 1993, the Crystal Radio Group (owners of WPDH and WEOK) began controlling WCZX via a local marketing agreement. With this change came a modified name "(Oldies 97.7)" and a move into the recently upgraded WPDH/WEOK studios (reuniting much of the staff) and ended the last vestiges of automated programming at the station. Crystal would purchase WCZX outright in 1995 and in February 1996 would purchase 97.3 WZAD in Wurtsboro (which had been a locally run oldies station) and combine its operations with WCZX with some of its personalities being retained. The simulcast would rebrand itself as "Oldies 97-7/Oldies 97-3". The expanded station also would reach the Port Jervis/Middletown area plus reaching Sussex County, New Jersey, and Pike County, Pennsylvania.
The air personalities during this period included "Mitchell In The Morning" with Marty Mitchell (who would later become Program Director and afternoon host at WYNY in NYC and on-air at the legendary WCBS FM). After Mitchell left, Bob Miller was promoted from weekends to mornings with Program Director and morning sidekick Brian Jones (now News Director for Pamal Broadcasting and is a regular news anchor on WHUD, midday host Beth Christy (previously of WRWD, now Program Director at WKXP), PM drive host Randy Turner (preceded by "Cadillac" Kelley), night host Nick Robbins, and Marty Allen on overnights. Weekend talent included Bob Reynolds, Samantha Campbell (who would later move on to WXKP and sister station WRRV using the air name of Brandi Hunter), Scotty Newman, Ken Elder (host of "The All Request Saturday Night Oldies Party") and Rick McCafferey (host of the "Solid Gold Jukebox" on Friday nights, formerly of WEOK and WKIP, a show focused on pre-1964 music).
1999 saw some subtle changes at the station, with the moniker being simplified to Oldies 97, Jones becoming news director for the cluster, and Freddie Coleman (now of ESPN Radio) taking over as program director. The playlist was tweaked to an end date of 1979 with some 1980s music by relevant artists. This approach would last through the sale of Crystal Radio to Aurora Communications in 2000.
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WCZX
WCZX (97.7 FM) is a radio station licensed to Hyde Park, New York, and serving the Mid-Hudson Valley of New York state. The station is owned by Townsquare Media and broadcasts at 300 watts ERP from the Illinois Mountain master tower in Marlborough, New York, with studios on Pendell Road in the Town of Poughkeepsie. It plays a country music format, which is simulcast on two other stations in the Hudson Valley, 97.3 WZAD in Wurtsboro and 105.5 WDBY in Patterson.
The 97.7 frequency first signed on in 1969 as WHVW-FM, sister station to WHVW (then a Top 40 station that was No. 1 in the Poughkeepsie market). For the first several years of its existence, it simulcasted WHVW's Top 40 programming during that station's operating hours and aired automated easy listening music during the nighttime hours when WHVW was not on the air.
This format would remain until 1976 when WHVS evolved to Soft Adult Contemporary, a format which two years later would be replaced by an automated Top 40 format as WJJB, "Jib 98".
When the owners of WHVW and WJJB went bankrupt in 1982, WJJB was sold to the Sillerman-Morrow Group, a Middletown-based partnership headed by investor Robert F.X. Sillerman and New York City radio legend Bruce Morrow ("Cousin Brucie"). The Morrow half of the group would take over programming of the station and relaunched it as 98 Fame, a CHR/oldies hybrid (listing as a mainstream adult contemporary). A mild ratings success (part out of Morrow, widely known in the market, doing a regular weekend show), the format would last until March 1988 when the Sillerman/Morrow partnership was dissolved.
Under new ownership led by Harry Gregor, the former general manager for the Sillerman Morrow Group, the 98 Fame format was tweaked to a classic hits approach under the new calls WCZX and the name being modified to "'CZX Classic Hits". With former WKIP News Director Ron Lyon programming the station, it successfully evolved to oldies as "97-7 'CZX". In 1989, as the Hudson Valley Market recoiled under the IBM downsizing (39,000 employees from the Hudson Valley were 'early retired' or transferred), revenues fell dramatically, and the loan called in by Barclays Business Credit. After months of negotiations, Gregor filed for bankruptcy, and the station was sold to locally-based Beehive Entertainment which picked up many personalities formerly of WEOK which had previously been the oldies station in the market.
In 1993, the Crystal Radio Group (owners of WPDH and WEOK) began controlling WCZX via a local marketing agreement. With this change came a modified name "(Oldies 97.7)" and a move into the recently upgraded WPDH/WEOK studios (reuniting much of the staff) and ended the last vestiges of automated programming at the station. Crystal would purchase WCZX outright in 1995 and in February 1996 would purchase 97.3 WZAD in Wurtsboro (which had been a locally run oldies station) and combine its operations with WCZX with some of its personalities being retained. The simulcast would rebrand itself as "Oldies 97-7/Oldies 97-3". The expanded station also would reach the Port Jervis/Middletown area plus reaching Sussex County, New Jersey, and Pike County, Pennsylvania.
The air personalities during this period included "Mitchell In The Morning" with Marty Mitchell (who would later become Program Director and afternoon host at WYNY in NYC and on-air at the legendary WCBS FM). After Mitchell left, Bob Miller was promoted from weekends to mornings with Program Director and morning sidekick Brian Jones (now News Director for Pamal Broadcasting and is a regular news anchor on WHUD, midday host Beth Christy (previously of WRWD, now Program Director at WKXP), PM drive host Randy Turner (preceded by "Cadillac" Kelley), night host Nick Robbins, and Marty Allen on overnights. Weekend talent included Bob Reynolds, Samantha Campbell (who would later move on to WXKP and sister station WRRV using the air name of Brandi Hunter), Scotty Newman, Ken Elder (host of "The All Request Saturday Night Oldies Party") and Rick McCafferey (host of the "Solid Gold Jukebox" on Friday nights, formerly of WEOK and WKIP, a show focused on pre-1964 music).
1999 saw some subtle changes at the station, with the moniker being simplified to Oldies 97, Jones becoming news director for the cluster, and Freddie Coleman (now of ESPN Radio) taking over as program director. The playlist was tweaked to an end date of 1979 with some 1980s music by relevant artists. This approach would last through the sale of Crystal Radio to Aurora Communications in 2000.