Critique of Lyric FM

The Black Oil

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/features/2010/0915/1224278889466.html

I don't listen to Lyric often, the movies show the odd time, but how is it doing? There's a thread on the Classical forum bemoaning its output. I'm not sure I could stick listening to Gaybo et al.

TimmyTarmac

It's going downhill fast - and I say this as a long time listener and admirer of much of RTE's public service contributions - orchestras, RnaG, Lyric etc.
Why? Two words - Marty Whelan.
The music is all over the place - Bach followed by Dean Martin followed by Van Morrisson followed by The Priests followed by Vivialdi followed by Phil Collins.
Add to this his, ahem, unique style of presentation and you get a true mess.
I've been on about this here and to RTE about before.
If they want to chase ratings with something other than a specialist music and arts station - fine. Just sell the frequency and give me back some of my license fee.

Poly

some great classical pieces, then some crap from the musicals.

Coriolanus

It's pretty woeful during peak hours these days. I pretty much only listen to it after 9pm now, there are still some good shows.

Aglomerado

Gloria on a Sunday morning with Tim Thurston is a treat. Other than that I don't listen anymore, mainly since Marty and Graybo came on board.

eoin1981

yep, lyric off peak is when its best. early morning or late at night. although the John Kelly show is good whenever I hear it.

Rebelheart

The Black Oil wrote: »

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/features/2010/0915/1224278889466.html

I don't listen to Lyric often, the movies show the odd time, but how is it doing? There's a thread on the Classical forum bemoaning its output. I'm not sure I could stick listening to Gaybo et al.

It's definitely gone downhill since that Gay Byrne guy joined it. George Hamilton and Marty Whelan have also changed its tone. All three have their niche in the public mind, and it isn't in something calm and soothing like classical music.

The Lyric management need to restore the station's distinctive brand and re-recruit old presenters or more appropriate new presenters. At the moment Lyric is like the dumping ground for any old RTÉ presenter.

Callan57

eoin1981 wrote: »

yep, lyric off peak is when its best. early morning or late at night. although the John Kelly show is good whenever I hear it.

John Kelly is superb and more important unique ... love his show

Coriolanus

RTE has a history in mismanagement. I don't think there's much hope of the lineup being cleared up properly mid season, at best they'll do a re-shuffle coming up to summer.

Jezzington

I agree with the comments about Marty, he belongs on some Dublin or Cork easy listening, no much brain-power required type of effort. Not so much the "eclectic" nature of his playlist, but rather the fact that he picks such obvious material by the artists concerned. His inane small-talk and "oh look at me, I'm such a gas character" act is highly grating too.

Liz Nolan is another that needs to be shipped out, with her in your face "haughty" schtick, fake bonhomie, and constant smug gender remarks that a male broadcaster would be critiqued for instantly.

Otherwise, Lyric gets my thumbs up. Bernard Clarke is class personified, John Kelly *pwns* (as my pal from Delaware might say), Carl Corcoran is effortlessly brilliant, Rachel Blech, Cynthia Morahan, Tim Thurston, etc, are always top class too. When it comes to the kind of genuine eclecticism someone like Tom Dunne can only dream of when he's playing U2 or Coldplay, Lyric is the one I always turn to. Alongside Lyric, Power FM, Alison Curtis when she's on-air, the outrageously under-rated John Creedon before 10-00 on Radio 1, and BBC Radio 4 (even though it's poisoned with faux-Liberal middle class guilty conscience political correctness) are the only other times I listen to Radio.