WXRB
Encyclopedia
WXRB is a non-commercial, educational radio station
located in Dudley, Massachusetts
. Its studios and transmitting facilities are located on the campus of Nichols College
, which previously owned the station as WNRC-FM until a stronger signal at 97.5 FM signed on in February 2004. The college later sold the 95.1 FM frequency to Peter Q. George, the stations' engineer, who had been programming 95.1 after the frequency swap.
The station is named (in tribute) for XERB-AM ("The Mighty 1090"), the famous 50,000 watt Mexican "Border Blaster
" radio station from which famous disc jockey
Wolfman Jack
(the late, Robert Weston Smith) broadcast in the mid 1960s and early 1970s. George has said that he is a lifelong fan of Wolfman Jack.
WXRB features a 24/7 automated all-oldies
format, in Stereo, focusing on the years 1954-1979, similar to the original "R-KO-matic" automated music format at WRKO-FM and WROR (now WBZ-FM
) in Boston, Massachusetts. On Saturday nights from 9:00 PM until midnight (Eastern), WXRB presents some of the lesser heard oldies, including the sound of Doo-Wop
from the 1950's and early '60s on "Saturday Night Extra Gold". The station also features old-time radio
shows on "FM Flashback!" followed by the original classic WOR-New York/Jean Shepherd
Show every Sunday night. WXRB frequently carries sports programming produced by the students at WNRC-LP
, featuring the Nichols College
Bison sports teams. Two traditions that continue to endure on WXRB are the yearly broadcast of Orson Welles and The Mercury Theatre On The Air's original 1938 presentation of "War Of The Worlds" every Halloween night and the yearly airing of Arlo Guthrie's "Alice's Restaurant Massacree" twice on Thanksgiving Day.
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
located in Dudley, Massachusetts
Dudley, Massachusetts
Dudley is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,390 at the 2010 census.-History:Dudley was first settled in 1714 and was officially incorporated in 1732...
. Its studios and transmitting facilities are located on the campus of Nichols College
Nichols College
Nichols College is a private, co-educational, four-year institution of higher learning that is located in Dudley, Massachusetts.Nichols has many diverse majors that mainly focus on business and liberal arts. The school also offers an MBA program for graduate students.Nichols College athletics...
, which previously owned the station as WNRC-FM until a stronger signal at 97.5 FM signed on in February 2004. The college later sold the 95.1 FM frequency to Peter Q. George, the stations' engineer, who had been programming 95.1 after the frequency swap.
The station is named (in tribute) for XERB-AM ("The Mighty 1090"), the famous 50,000 watt Mexican "Border Blaster
Border blaster
A border blaster is a licensed commercial radio station that transmits at very high power from one nation to another. Border blasters should not be confused with international broadcast stations...
" radio station from which famous disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
Wolfman Jack
Wolfman Jack
Robert Weston Smith, known commonly as Wolfman Jack was a gravelly voiced US disc jockey who became famous in the 1960s and 1970s.-Early career:...
(the late, Robert Weston Smith) broadcast in the mid 1960s and early 1970s. George has said that he is a lifelong fan of Wolfman Jack.
WXRB features a 24/7 automated all-oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....
format, in Stereo, focusing on the years 1954-1979, similar to the original "R-KO-matic" automated music format at WRKO-FM and WROR (now WBZ-FM
WBZ-FM
WBZ-FM is a sports radio station known as "98.5 The Sports Hub" and broadcasting on 98.5 MHz in Boston, Massachusetts. Owned by CBS Radio, the current WBZ-FM began on August 13, 2009 and competes with AM sports talk stations WEEI and competed with the ESPN Radio pair of WAMG and WLLH before their...
) in Boston, Massachusetts. On Saturday nights from 9:00 PM until midnight (Eastern), WXRB presents some of the lesser heard oldies, including the sound of Doo-Wop
Doo-wop
The name Doo-wop is given to a style of vocal-based rhythm and blues music that developed in African American communities in the 1940s and achieved mainstream popularity in the 1950s and early 1960s. It emerged from New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Baltimore, Newark, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and...
from the 1950's and early '60s on "Saturday Night Extra Gold". The station also features old-time radio
Old-time radio
Old-Time Radio and the Golden Age of Radio refer to a period of radio programming in the United States lasting from the proliferation of radio broadcasting in the early 1920s until television's replacement of radio as the primary home entertainment medium in the 1950s...
shows on "FM Flashback!" followed by the original classic WOR-New York/Jean Shepherd
Jean Shepherd
Jean Parker Shepherd was an American raconteur, radio and TV personality, writer and actor who was often referred to by the nickname Shep....
Show every Sunday night. WXRB frequently carries sports programming produced by the students at WNRC-LP
WNRC-LP
WNRC-LP is a radio station licensed to serve Dudley, Massachusetts. The station is owned by Nichols College. It airs a College radio format....
, featuring the Nichols College
Nichols College
Nichols College is a private, co-educational, four-year institution of higher learning that is located in Dudley, Massachusetts.Nichols has many diverse majors that mainly focus on business and liberal arts. The school also offers an MBA program for graduate students.Nichols College athletics...
Bison sports teams. Two traditions that continue to endure on WXRB are the yearly broadcast of Orson Welles and The Mercury Theatre On The Air's original 1938 presentation of "War Of The Worlds" every Halloween night and the yearly airing of Arlo Guthrie's "Alice's Restaurant Massacree" twice on Thanksgiving Day.