Say the names Malibu Sue, Donna Donna or Larry the Duck – and use them in the same phrase as, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Echo and the Bunnymen, or Souixsie and the Banshees – and any hip person living on Long Island between 1980 and 1995 would know what you’re talking about.
For those not fortunate enough to spend their defining years in the shopping malls, nightclubs and on the beaches of the country’s most populous island – I’m talking about 92.7 FM, WLIR. “Long Island Radio” – or “Low Income Radio” as many DJs joked back in the early days.
WLIR (or WDRE as it was called for a brief stint before turning back) was the pinnacle of modern music, new wave, alternative – whatever it was called – and was the launching pad for many of the gigantic artists we still listen to today. Bands like R.E.M., U2, INXS, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Blur. Or for those youngsters not born until the 80s – bands like Nirvana, Stone Temple Pilots, Soundgarden, even Dave Matthews – all owe a debt of gratitude to LIR for embracing the new styles and sounds of music over the past 20 years.
But 2004 marks the end of an era, maybe even the end of radio itself.
As of January 9, 2004, WLIR, owned by Jarad Broadcasting was sold to Univision, the biggest Spanish-language radio company in America. And now, when you tune your dial to 92.7, anywhere in the New York City, New Jersey, or Connecticut areas, you get to listen to the finest “Latino Mix” this side of Tijuana.
What a shame.
Back in the 80s, WLIR was doing things usually reserved for college radio. Playing stuff that no one else played. They took risks, broke rules, experimented, and most of all – had fun. But they were doing it on a commercial stage with a wide frequency and a growing audience. And it paid off. I don’t have exact numbers, but I’m fairly certain for several years WLIR/WDRE was leading the ratings in listeners. You couldn’t go anywhere in the Tri-state areas without hearing LIR. The mall, the beach, the gas station, all played LIR. Every bar and every club on Long Island was vying for “WLIR nights” or WLIR live broadcasts.
I remember the “WLIR Ladies Nights” at J. Sprats in Westbury on Thursday nights, with their free buffet and $2 Rolling Rocks. Or the “WLIR Malibu Dance Parties” at the Malibu night club on Malibu beach – where you and ten friends could get in for free if it was your birthday (plus a free bottle of champagne).
Shrieks and Screamers-of-the-Week would be the subjects of conversation, as LIR would select the best new song each week. Many now famous artists and many one-hit wonders were born as Shrieks-of-the-Week on LIR. Songs like “Melt With You” by Modern English, “Come on Eileen” from Dexy’s Midnight Runners, and “She Blinded Me With Science” from Thomas Dolby.
Throughout the late 80s and into the mid-90s, WLIR continued to play music that no other station carried. Bands like The Cure, New Order, Pet Shop Boys, Roxy Music, The Pixies, Love & Rockets – you could only hear in the night clubs or on LIR. Then around 1992, the grunge scene started to heat up – with bands like Nirvana and Soundgarden. WLIR saw the wave of change first and grabbed the music. Of course, grunge became bigger than LIR could contain, and other stations ditched their Van Halen and George Thorogood formats and jumped on board.
And that was the beginning of the end, as LIR slowly began to lose its edge (and its listeners, as per the folks at Arbitron) over the next several years. But I suppose it was inevitable, as nothing good lasts forever. They adjusted their format a few times, trying to catch whatever it was they lost, but the truth is, the industry simply caught up with them. The alternative music movement had gone mainstream – progressive radio was dead.
So, the question is – where are we going to hear “Melt With You” from Modern English? Certainly no one actually owns that album. We depended on LIR to play that song at least once a week. While we’re at it, what about The Smiths? Depeche Mode? The Soup Dragons? Flock of Seagulls? Okay, I could probably go the rest of my life without the Gulls, but there are so many of those other bands that I might have on cassette tape somewhere, but sound so much better in an 80s mixed environment on the radio.
WLIR played its last song at noon on January 9, 2004. It was “Forever Young” by Alphaville. Which, in my opinion, was kind of a sappy way to go out. I’m sure it crossed the minds of at least a few DJs that the last song played on LIR, before handing over the reins to Univision’s Spanish radio team, should have been Wall of Voodoo’s “Mexican Radio.”
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