I agree the Magic name is a little daggy. It’s the name of a radio station that our grandparents listened to and it conjures up names like Perry Como or The Andrews Sisters.
I don’t know if there is any value in resurrecting 3DB, 3MP, 3UZ, etc.
3XY possibly would be of interest, and it would at least bring it back to its original “home” as it was 3EE’s predecessor. But I imagine Radio Hellas would not want to relinquish the 3XY name.
I know this is not going to be a popular suggestion but I say bring back 3EE on-air. It’s not a heritage name as such and barely anyone would remember what it was back in the day, anyway, (it only lasted about 9 months at the time and it only rated zeros) but I think make it the brand for this “new” station. It’s not about heritage as such but just a name it can build on.
Just makes me think of chronic fatigue syndrome, CFS, as it is also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis, ME. Probably because I knew a couple of people who had it.
Keen to find out if they infuse some personality into the program. You may recall Glenn Ridge hosted a morning show for a few years, mid 2010s, on 3MP. While music connected the program, it did feature regular guests and extended talk breaks.
They will have to do some things different because they’re probably not destined to beat any of their FM rivals in the ratings (Triple M, Smooth, Gold/WS) yet could still carve out a niche of certain programming composition.
Could be a mistake not to play some sixties. I think the tempo of the station (more upbeat than in the past) might matter more than limiting it to a certain generation. That’s why I like 2CA’s “Forever Classic” tagline- No shame having a music station playing great songs discarded by FM - though doesn’t seem to be what’s happening
I was listening to the Cricket late on Tuesday night and heard a brief station id superimposed on the commentary; something like “Melbourne’s Magic 1278” so it looks like these are recorded already.
2UE used to have some brilliant station id jingles… I particularly remember one from (I guess) the early '80’s which championed 2UE’s already long history: “Sydney 95 2UE goes on…” Anyone remember that? I think they had a long EP version of it as well as several shorter stings.
If I remember correctly, it was a similar type of program to the one Jeremy Vine does on Radio 2 (ie; news/current affairs discussion mixed with music)
Yes they could do a lot worse than copy BBC Radio 2 in that regard. While music is always the main focus they do have some entertainment/talk shows, still featuring music
I think it will be important to move away from “no announcers” as soon as they feel they’ve got the music balance right. You don’t get to engage with the audience (which Nine claims is their priority) by just playing end-to-end records and a few ads. Personally, I felt the programming on Talking Lifestyle and MSR especially was too uncompromisingly tight. Even the Talk Sport feed they are taking from the UK at the moment has light relief segments (one on winners of the VC, another on the Loch Ness monster!).
Anyone want to guess the first song on the new 2UE? How about ‘I Can Hear Music’ (Beach Boys), or if they heed our calls for a more adventurous playlist, perhaps ‘Save Me’ by Fleetwood Mac?
Perhaps ‘King Of Wishful Thinking’ would be the most appropriate song…
Gloria- Laura Branigan. Just to remind listeners the once mighty 2UE only clings to life at the discretion of the 2GB overlords.
S.O.S.- ABBA.
Six Months in a Leaky Boat- Split Enz.
Burning Down the House- Talking Heads.
We Didn’t Start the Fire- Billy Joel.
It’s the End of the World as We Know It- REM.
Who’ll Stop the Rain/Bad Moon on the Rise- Credence.
Help- John Farnham.
Help me if you can I’m feelin’ dow-own
And I do appreciate you bein’ 'rou-ou-ound
Help me get my feet back on the grou-ou-ound
Won’t you please, plea-ea-ease, he-elp me-ee
Yes I agree. The Talking Lifestyle format could have gone a lot better if they had interspersed music and even had some music feature discussions. It might have sounded less like one never ending infomercial.
From memory in the later stages of TL I think they did have a music feature show. Was it called Rewind or something like that? I think it was during Ed Phillips’ shift and was quite refreshing to hear music and some nice info about each song.
