(I used to write a bi-weekly column, RadioRadio, for Players magazine in the Tampa Bay area. The following story appeared in 1990.)

98 Rock: PD Greg Mull is Rockin' in the '90s

By Bob Andelman

"I'm not living in 1978. It's 1990. The oldies are spice. That's what it's all about."

(Just as the sounds and competitive nature of commercial radio in Tampa Bay have changed dramatically in the last six months, so have the faces behind the scenes. WYNF, WXTB (formerly WKRL), WFLZ and WRBQ all have new program directors. In this column and another in two weeks, Players offers profiles of the new PDs at 98 Rock and 95 YNF.)

Greg Mull is your typical 29-year-old male. He's resisting the big switch to thirty-something by introducing his brain to the newest, loudest, sometimes raunchiest music he can lay his hands on in an effort to hang onto his youth. It's not uncommon in men of his age. But Mull has an advantage over most of his peers: he gets to share his discoveries with thousands of listeners as the new program and music director at 98 Rock, WXTB-FM.

There's one more thing he's got: a rock 'n' roll programming philosophy.

"Number one," says Mull, "it has to be rock 'n' roll. No pop music. And it's not soft, either. We don't play Billy Joel, Supertramp or Fleetwood Mac. We play rock 'n' roll. Some of the music we play may cross into Top 40, but it doesn't go (back) this way. It's pure rock 'n' roll, a youth-gone-wild kind of attitude.

"For so long, everything in radio has been focused on the 'thirty-something'/'Wonder Years' generation, but they forgot they had kids. I mean, the guys who are over 30 don't want to hear 'Kick Start My Heart' by Motley Crue. The other generation wants to hear it every five minutes," he says.

Faster Pussycat and the Jesus and Mary Chain are two more bands that you will hear in regular rotation on 98. The new sound is a mix of young avant garde bands and fresh, thrashing heavy metal. "A lot of this music hasn't had an outlet here," according to Mull. "I think this band Dangerous Toys is good. The Cult album is unbelievable. One of the best bands that's out now is Tesla. Great White is a great band."

Does that give you some idea where this station is headed?

Greg Mull is new to Tampa Bay but not to west Florida. He programmed 96 K-Rock in Ft. Myers not long ago, which introduced him to the area. He also worked at WXRC in Charlotte, N.C. and immediately before arriving at WXTB was a broadcasting consultant for The Research Group in Seattle. "As a consultant, I wore a suit every day. But I'm a jeans-and-a-T-shirt guy. That's one of the things that persuaded me to get off the airplane and get back into rock 'n' roll," says Mull.

Although he arrived in town after WKRL was taken over by Great American Broadcasting and changed its call letters to WXTB, Mull says he was familiar enough with the on-again, off-again "classic rock" station to know its days were numbered long before management saw the graffiti spray-painted on the wall. "What did I think of the 'KRL? It's easy to bad-mouth it because it didn't work. They were inconsistent. You never knew what to expect. Plus, they had a difficult time dealing with 'YNF because they're so entrenched. 'KRL could never succeed, which is why instead of going against 95, we went around them. Instead of playing the music of our older brothers, we went for the music of the '90s," according to Mull.

There is an interesting incestuous history between 95 and 98 that goes back a number of years. WYNF was originally owned by Great American, which now owns 98. Great American sold the company to CBS, the current owners. And several of the jocks at 95 started their Tampa Bay careers at the original 98 Rock.

Now 98 Rock is set up to give Tampa Bay rock fans a choice they haven't had in four or five years, according to Mull, who likes to damn the competition with faint praise.

"'YNF is a great station," he says. "But musically I think they lack something, especially for those who don't like classic rock. Most rock stations in the country are classic rock. They want baby boomers. But there's this generation that is tired of Steve Miller's 'Jet Airliner.' When The Alarm's 'Devolution Working Man's Blues' comes on, that's exciting to this group.

(Needless to say, 98 Rock plays "Blues.")

"To me, it's nice to hear 'Black Dog' from Led Zeppelin every once in a while. Just drop it in between the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Tesla. But when you put it in between Steve Miller and Lynyrd Skynyrd ... I'm not living in 1978. It's 1990. The oldies are spice. That's what it's all about."

Although he says 98 Rock doesn't expect to battle 95 YNF for the overall audience, actions speak louder than words. Like when the announcer on 98 says, "Hey, 'YNF - Bite Me!" Or the new station billboards - which 95 has sued over - that are intended to give the impression 98 has slapped its logo over 95's.

"It's just very fun around here," answers Mull. "Are we trying to provoke them? No. We're trying to show attitude. Is it baiting them? No. See, the music brings attitude to the table and the personalities that surround it have to have some of that. I'm not on the air slamming them like the Pig (WFLZ) did to Q105. The 'Q' was a weak competitor. I don't think 95 is."

Mull doesn't anticipate giving 95 the same kind of anal cattle prod Power 93/The Power Pig gave Q105 in the ratings.

"Q105 could have cut some of the loss," says Mull. "It's going to be different with 'YNF. They'll either move to solidify their position with the classic rockers or they drop those people and come after us. I'm sitting here, waiting to see what 'YNF does. So far, I haven't seen a huge reaction. And I think that's what they should do. That's what I'd do. Q105 could have fixed their problem. 95 doesn't have a problem. If I were them, I'd keep doing what I'm doing."

NEW MUSIC

Here's a look at new music being added to local commercial radio stations. The list is a good indicator of the volume of new music being exposed in the Tampa Bay area:
Black Crowes "Jealous Again" (95 YNF)
Motley Crue "Without You" (95, 98 Rock)
Don Henley "The Heart of the Matter" (95)
Billy Joel "I Go To Extremes" (95, Power 93)
Peter Murphy "Cuts You Up" (95)
Gun "Better Days" (95)
Jesus & Mary Chain "Head On" (95)
Peter Wolf "99 Worlds" (95)
Giant "Innocent Days" (98)
Smithereens "Blues Before and After" (98)
Tim Karr "Rubbing Me The Right Way" (98)
Babylon A.D. "Bang Go The Bells" (98)
Bobby Jimmy & The Kritters "Somebody Farted" (93)
Jane Child "I Don't Wanna Fall in Love" (93, Q105)
Joyce Irby "I'll Be There" (93)
Lelia K "Got To Get" (93)
Mr. Lee "Get Busy" (93)
Phil Collins "I Wish It Would Rain Again" (93)
Whitesnake "The Deeper The Love" (105)
Michel'le "No More Lies" (105)