Ahh, here we go. Back in 2004/05, the WSFM website had a copy of their TV commercial in the “Music” section as “a preview of WSFM music” (not quite sure how this ad counts as a preview of WSFM music, but anyway…):
Thankfully, the archive.org database managed to store the MPEG1 file so I was able to get screencaps of the WSFM Sydney version of this ad albeit with a whopping screen resolution of 354x288- not that great these days but would’ve been high quality video on the internet by 2004 standards!
Having tracked down this WSFM commercial and compared it with the Gold 104.3 version, it seems the poster scenes were localised. Notably in the Sydney version, there was also a black & white photo of a concert at the Opera House which of course wasn’t in the Melbourne one!
Yesterday I had my daily walk and chose Sydney’s China Town. I am always fascinated that this 2KY sign has survived for decades. I reckon it could the the oldest existing billboard-style ad for a radio station in Australia. I think this is where the studios were located. In the late 80s I worked at 2KY for a few weeks and I think they were in Parramatta, so it was along time ago that the station was in the city.
Haven’t been to Parramatta on a train for years but I used to enjoy seeing the 2KY kookaburra logo painted on the side of the building. I wonder if that’s still there.
Does anyone have further information about Ralph Bower? Seems quite the pioneer to have wanted to begin commercial TV in Esperance and successfully initiated commercial radio there:
From TRV, an aircheck of 3KZ Melbourne from December 1989, not long before it converted to FM as KZFM, which went to #1 in its first survey. The station later became Gold 104 in October 1991 with a “Good Time Oldies” format, which later evolved to a Classic Hits format. The station’s format is now described as “Better Music & More of It”, which is more 80s/90s based.
It was very daggy. And a few people as announcers that never should have been. Like Craig Willis. But at least it was something different. More suited as a laid-back station to FM.
Thanks - I have never heard 3EE’s first hours on air before.
It’s interesting that so many of the once heritage rock stations - 2SM, 3XY and 4IP / Stereo 10 - moved to “smooth” style stations in the late 80s and early 90s. None of them succeeded. They all struggled from Day 1.
3EE sounds like good dinner party music. My God I am so old now.
I love listening to how 3EE really linked itself to Melbourne. Talking about the trams and restaurants of Melbourne. Talking about how they loved Melbourne.
Nowadays our radio stations cannot link really align themselves with a city - too much networking and imported radio branding - Triple M, Nova and KIIS are not uniquely Melbourne. They were all created in Sydney and are now geographically generic.
Craig is a magnificent, iconic voice but I can’t imagine how he’d go as a radio host.
If that first 10 minutes of music is anything to go by I’m not surprised they didn’t rate, it nearly put me to sleep. Magic 693 was a logical succession from it at least.
And how’s the Mayor of Werribee getting excited that the transmitter was located in his shire? I mean I know Werribee hasn’t often had a lot going for it (especially back then), but an AM transmitter site is hardly something that’s going to feature on postcards or tourist brochures, even if it does have four masts…
It was marketed at the time as a cross between 3AW and (easy listening) 3MP. But I think in sitting on the fence it failed to attract the rusted on listeners from either station. Then 3MP took it over and turned 693 into a straight simuicast of 3MP, until it was forced to launch Magic as a separate station. Ironically it soon became more popular than 3MP.
Similarly, just the other day I heard this jingle from “Melbourne’s Own” 3DB when Bert Newton was running it in 1986/87. But like with any other 3DB revamp before it, it never really took off. Probably not helped by having large slabs of airtime devoted to horse racing.
