Radio Stations from the Tri-Cities area you miss the most? (cost, transit)

[Data Donut]

uh-oh, i'm going to show my age but growing up in Pasco/Kennewick I listened to and memorized every top 40 song on KALE, that was before the area even had a pop/rock FM station. (I think Yakima did)
Grigg's had a Juke Box you could listen to songs before you bought them...and I did, often.
Is Grigg's still around? I haven't been there in years.
Anyway, thanks for that memory.

[M3 Mitch]

Grigg's is still there in Pasco, and they have a branch Ace Hardware in Richland. I got here in 91 so am not sure I ever heard KALE as Top 40.

Anymore I almost exclusively listen to NPR.

[pw72]

KALE switched to an Adult format in the 80's, then an oldies format in the late 80's, then eventually abandoned that for sports, and is now Classic Country. As an aside, when I was attending WSU in the late 70's, KALE sounded GREAT! Unfortunately, top40 was moving to FM in droves during this era.

OK95 was a rocker up till 1990, then became more of a a CHR (or Top40), until a country operater moved in and fired everyone in 1996. I know, I was one of those fired. But I'm still in the biz...great memories.

[M3 Mitch]

I miss that old "Adult Contemporary" format, not sure anyone does it around here anymore. There is Sirius/XM of course, but I don't want to pay for it...

One thing that surprised me when I came here in '91 was that the radio presets I had done in North Carolina mostly still "worked" and went to the same kind of station. Probably related to all the consolidation and the decline of "real" disc jockies. I miss the days when real DJ's "turned you on to" good new music, like a good sommolier introducing you to a great wine vintage...

The decline of the DJ led me to pretty much dial in NPR and leave it...

[pw72]

OK95 provided some good radio from 1990 to 1996. I say this because I was part of the program. However, when I listen to old tapes, I actually believe I was correct. The ratings back this up. This era offered competition, however not in our format, the closest being KEYW. The new owners decided that Country was the future, and they felt that KORD was beatable. Yes, it worked for a year or two, but KORD eventually regained their crown as #1. And have been there ever since. The OK95 clones were just that. Clones. They never worked, and will never work, unless someone comes in with a solid plan and backing.

[FatheadEd]

Oh my god yes, i do remember OK95! I grew up on that ****. In fact thats how i found your post, i was looking for 'anybody' that might remember it also. As a teen thats all we listened to all day and all night, i loved it. Any chance you remember the Ok95 stickers? They were blue and shaped like a hand giving the Ok symbol. I went to an event and they gave me a stack of 50 or 60 of them and i stuck them on everything. Sadly i cant find a trace of even a single one anywhere not even online. Man those were good time and i miss them so much. The station is long gone now but at least the awesome music still lives on. Heres to OK95, the 80's, and classic rock!

[pnwguy2]

Radio is pretty well-developed in the Tri-Cities today. But it fails to impress this listener. A lot of stations aiming at the younger audience, a few that offer rock but are hit and miss with their selections. The AM band is especially terrible with nonsense "local" programming, that is totally aimed at pleasing advertisers than listeners. KONA-AM, KFLD-AM are the biggest offenders. Atleast 1340 pipes in Seattle sports programming.

[M3 Mitch]

It's been a while since I even sampled the AM band. KONA used to be pretty good, some local news, some fairly interesting talk shows.

[seedavyrun]

Originally Posted by M3 Mitch

Grigg's is still there in Pasco, and they have a branch Ace Hardware in Richland. I got here in 91 so am not sure I ever heard KALE as Top 40.

Anymore I almost exclusively listen to NPR.

Mitch, which NPR station around here is best? The website lists quite a few and I haven't found time to investigate. Any local NPR shows that stand out?

[M3 Mitch]

I am only aware of two major NPR stations, one at 89.1, 90.3, and 90.7, classical music, and one at 91.5, news and views. Near Pullman you can get an AM station as well.

NPR & Classical Music Radio Schedule | Northwest Public Radio

There is a school run alternative rock station at 88-something. This is not a real strong signal but you can find it around Tri-Cities.

As a general rule of thumb, and one that is not always true, the lower FM frequencies from 88.5 to 91.9 are reserved for public broadcasting.