The 50s on 5
Encyclopedia
The '50s on 5 is a commercial-free, satellite radio
station on the Sirius XM Radio platform. It plays mostly Top 40 pop, doo wop, and rock and roll
hits from the 1950s and early '60s, although they occasionally play historically signifficant songs from the late '40s and mid '60s. The channel broadcasts on both Sirius
and XM
channel 5, respectively, as well as on Dish Network
channel 6005. As of February 9, 2010, Direct TV has dropped Sirius XM in favor of a new music service called SonicTap.
From 2001-08, the Program Director for XM
's '50s on 5 was Ken Smith and its Music Director was Matt "the Cat" Baldassarri; both men were dismissed from the channel in October 2008 following XM's merger with former rival Sirius
. On November 12, 2008, the '50s on 5 was added to the Sirius platform, replacing the Sirius Gold
channel. Current on-air personalities include Norm N. Nite
, "Cousin Brucie" Morrow
, Pat St. John
, Mike Kelly, Brian Carter (WUSL
), Dave Hoeffel, and Jim Kerr.
Like the other decades channels, The '50s on 5 attempts to recreate the feel of 1950s radio. They use similar DJ habits, jingles, period slang, and news updates. The channel was also used for XM's annual pop music chronology, IT
.
Satellite radio
Satellite radio is an analogue or digital radio signal that is relayed through one or more satellites and thus can be received in a much wider geographical area than terrestrial FM radio stations...
station on the Sirius XM Radio platform. It plays mostly Top 40 pop, doo wop, and rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
hits from the 1950s and early '60s, although they occasionally play historically signifficant songs from the late '40s and mid '60s. The channel broadcasts on both Sirius
Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio is a satellite radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Radio.Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially launched on July 1, 2002 and currently provides 69 streams of music and 65 streams of...
and XM
XM Satellite Radio
XM Satellite Radio is one of two satellite radio services in the United States and Canada, operated by Sirius XM Radio. It provides pay-for-service radio, analogous to cable television. Its service includes 73 different music channels, 39 news, sports, talk and entertainment channels, 21 regional...
channel 5, respectively, as well as on Dish Network
Dish Network
Dish Network Corporation is the second largest pay TV provider in the United States, providing direct broadcast satellite service—including satellite television, audio programming, and interactive television services—to 14.337 million commercial and residential customers in the United States. Dish...
channel 6005. As of February 9, 2010, Direct TV has dropped Sirius XM in favor of a new music service called SonicTap.
From 2001-08, the Program Director for XM
XM Satellite Radio
XM Satellite Radio is one of two satellite radio services in the United States and Canada, operated by Sirius XM Radio. It provides pay-for-service radio, analogous to cable television. Its service includes 73 different music channels, 39 news, sports, talk and entertainment channels, 21 regional...
's '50s on 5 was Ken Smith and its Music Director was Matt "the Cat" Baldassarri; both men were dismissed from the channel in October 2008 following XM's merger with former rival Sirius
Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio is a satellite radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Radio.Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially launched on July 1, 2002 and currently provides 69 streams of music and 65 streams of...
. On November 12, 2008, the '50s on 5 was added to the Sirius platform, replacing the Sirius Gold
SIRIUS Gold
Sirius Gold was an all '50s and early '60s music channel on Sirius Satellite Radio channel 5 and Dish Network channel 6005.What they played: Elvis Presley, Sam Cooke, The Drifters, Buddy Holly, The Everly Brothers, The Four Seasons, Roy Orbison, Ricky Nelson, Fats Domino, The Platters and more.On...
channel. Current on-air personalities include Norm N. Nite
Norm N. Nite
Norm N. Nite , was born Norman Durma and is the author of the Rock On! series of books. Rock On is coined as the official encyclopaedia of rock and roll music. He has spent many years on radio stations such as WGAR-AM and WMJI-FM in Cleveland and WCBS-FM in New York City...
, "Cousin Brucie" Morrow
Bruce Morrow
Bruce Morrow is an American radio personality known to many listeners as Cousin Brucie.-Radio work:...
, Pat St. John
Pat St. John
Pat St. John is one of the U.S.'s preeminent and longest serving radio personalities and voice artists. Known as The Dee-Jay’s DJ, he began his radio career on Windsor, Canada's CKLW in 1969, but is best known for his work in the New York City market on WPLJ, WNEW-FM, WCBS-FM and WAXQ...
, Mike Kelly, Brian Carter (WUSL
WUSL
WUSL, known as "Power 99 FM", is a mainstream urban radio station, owned by Clear Channel Communications and licensed to Philadelphia...
), Dave Hoeffel, and Jim Kerr.
Like the other decades channels, The '50s on 5 attempts to recreate the feel of 1950s radio. They use similar DJ habits, jingles, period slang, and news updates. The channel was also used for XM's annual pop music chronology, IT
IT (XM)
"IT: The History of Pop Music" is the name of a special program that XM Satellite Radio aired annually from 2002 to 2007, in which a majority of charted pop songs from the 1930s to the 2000s were aired in chronological order on seven of the platform's channels...
.
Program Schedule
In Central Time:- WEEKDAYS
- 12:00AM–05:00AM: Music
- 05:00AM–11:00AM: Pat St. John
- 11:00AM–05:00PM: Dave Hoeffel
- 05:00PM–11:00PM: Brian Carter
- 11:00PM–12:00AM: Music
- SATURDAYS
- 12:00AM–06:00AM: Music
- 06:00AM–09:00AM: Cool Bobby B's Doo Wop StopCool Bobby B's Doo Wop StopCool Bobby B's Doo Wop Stop is a syndicated radio show hosted by Cool Bobby B. The production company is Cool Bobby B Radio Syndication, LLC.The weekly radio show is dedicated solely to playing the best in doo wop music....
- 09:00AM–12:00PM: Jim Kerr
- 12:00PM–02:00PM: Mike Kelly
- 02:00PM–05:00PM: Rock On! With Norm N. Nite
- 05:00PM–09:00PM: Dave Hoeffel
- 09:00PM–10:00PM: Rockabilly Roadtrip
- 10:00PM–11:00PM: Pink & Black Days
- 11:00PM–12:00AM: Music
- SUNDAYS
- 12:00AM–06:00AM: Music
- 06:00AM–09:00AM: Jim Kerr
- 09:00AM–02:00PM: Brian Carter
- 02:00PM–05:00PM: Norm N. Nite
- 05:00PM–09:00PM: Crusin’ With Cousin Brucie
- 09:00PM–12:00AM: Cool Bobby B’s Doo Wop Shop
Current Programs
- The Cool Bobby BCool Bobby BCool Bobby B is a radio disc jockey who hosts a doo-wop oldies radio program called Cool Bobby B's Doo Wop Stop. This show is syndicated on local radio stations throughout the United States and can also be heard on the Sirius XM Satellite Radio channel '50s on 5...
Doo Wop Show - Devoted to doo wop and a capella harmony music. - The Remember Then Hour - An hour each Saturday and Sunday dedicated to a corresponding date between 1956 and 1963, hosted by Norm N. Nite (from the Rock and Roll Hall of FameRock and Roll Hall of FameThe Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
and Museum in Cleveland, OhioCleveland, OhioCleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
). - Rockabilly Roadtrip - Featuring rockabillyRockabillyRockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...
music both old and new, hosted by Bruce Berenson. - Pink and Black Days - A program of music and interviews, hosted by MemphisMemphis, TennesseeMemphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
radio personality Alex Ward.
Former Programs
- Harlem - Hosted by Matt the Cat, this program was dedicated to late '40s and early '50s R&BRhythm and bluesRhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
. - The Strip - Featuring the music of Frank SinatraFrank SinatraFrancis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
, Dean MartinDean MartinDean Martin was an American singer, film actor, television star and comedian. Martin's hit singles included "Memories Are Made of This", "That's Amore", "Everybody Loves Somebody", "You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You", "Sway", "Volare" and "Ain't That a Kick in the Head?"...
, and other "Rat PackRat PackThe Rat Pack was a group of actors originally centered on Humphrey Bogart. In the mid-1960s it was the name used by the press and the general public to refer to a later variation of the group, after Bogart's death, that called itself "the summit" or "the clan," featuring Frank Sinatra, Dean...
"-era performers. - Moments to Remember - A weekend show devoted to the hit paradeHit paradeA hit parade is a ranked list of the most popular recordings at a given point in time, usually determined by sales and/or airplay. The term originated in the 1930s; Billboard magazine published its first music hit parade on January 4, 1936...
music of the early '50s, hosted by Bob Moke. - Daddy Dave's Hollywood Diner - Featuring music and guest interviews with "Daddy" Dave Wood.
- Dancing in the Dark - Devoted to romantic adult standards.