Even with all the Christmas music, it had to happen

[EZ103.3FM]

I was driving this morning at about 8:40 AM. I turned to B97.1 and heard 'Little Drummer Boy' by Bob Seger. I flipped to Magic 97.9 and heard the same thing.

Also, I posted a few weeks ago about 'Sleigh Ride'. I heard it against this morning (Boston Pops version) and I swear even though I listen to the Christmas stations for maybe an hour a day at the most, I've heard some version of 'Sleigh Ride' every day.

[Lester]

I've noticed a serious lack of originality in Christmas programming this year.

[The-Hammer]

Source: XKCD

[lastone]

Perhaps you should listen to "A Radio Christmas" sometime. It's the same but different.



If you would like to hear it....PM me and I'll send you the pass to download the entire four hours from http://www.thenewoldiesshow.com site.

And even if you don't like it....MERRY CHRISTMAS ANYWAY !

[Greg Goodfellow]

WRSG is airing it on Christmas Eve, beginning at 6 p.m. We'll then air it Christmas evening, beginning at 8.

[Clay JD Walker]

High cume...low tsl

Just in line with most ppm ac stations
As scads of research studies show...people only want originals. No 'covers'.

What sucks is that there is very little attention paid to title separation on these songs. On 24/7 Christmas stations you hear one version of white Christmas, next hour the same song by another artist. Not certain if the strategy is to leverage the low tsl nature of this Christmas beast and loosen up that separatiOn for the sake of playing 'the hits' more often as more of the audience is mobile this month than in the other 12...or if it's on account of lazy programming.

I'm gonna presume its the previous...only because I haven't had to program 'all Christmas' yet...but I work with many who have.

I can't stand it...mainly because my station kills month 1-12, but when aribtons crapp 13th month rolls around we drop like flies. Just enough to screw the quarterly averages out. Ah well...can't have em all right?

The only settling part of all of this is seeing how the dailies change from 12/25 to 12/26...those all Xmas stations drop off the planet as they go back to their normal thing, and all is right with the world once again.

So bah humbug.

[EZ103.3FM]

One I haven't heard this year is the Porky Pig-like version of 'Blue Christmas'.

I think generally I've heard less religious songs and more winter-y and pop Christmas songs, like 'Holly Jolly Christmas'.

I've probably heard more Burl Ives than is medically safe. I hope the intelligence folks are using his music instead of waterboarding now....

[jag]

Given that there are more familiar Christmas tunes than probably ANY other oeuvre, why the repetition? Yes, "Der Bingle" did a memorable version of "White Christmas," but everybody and his brother has also recorded that one. Why not hear other versions? And, as the holiday is Christmas, why the reticence (which some stations definitely have) to play the more traditional songs and carols?

[David Paleg]