Sweet Talk Radio

Need a friend who's there for you every day? Someone with a reassuring voice and an open ear? All you need is a portable radio and a set of batteries, thanks to a new trend on the AM dial that mixes good-sense advice and tips for living, gentle music and, often, a nonthreatening dose of spirituality.

Honey-voiced Delilah, one of the most successful in the genre, receives 100,000 calls each night. Many of them are from single mothers seeking guidance, says Mike Bettelli, who produces the Delilah show as a programming director for Jones Radio Network's Seattle operations. "If you're looking for a companion, she's pretty much it," says Bettelli. Delilah, who uses no last name, listens to her audience's most intimate problems and carefully selects the best music to follow each call. Bette Midler's "Wind Beneath My Wings" is one of the show's most frequently requested songs.

The John Tesh Show, carried weekly on 150 stations, mixes light music with pointers on relationships, well-being and money matters. He describes the show this way: "Imagine yourself standing in front of the largest newsstand in the world, every great magazine article that you need for your life jumps into your hand, and somebody who sounds a lot like me whispers it in your ear."

"Radio can be the confessional booth," says Dave Ramsey, who provides personal financial advice on 200 stations. "There are certainly very few friends on the planet you would tell everything to. But if nobody knew who you were, you could unload some [emotional] junk and deal with it."

Who's Talking

John Tesh

Listeners: Mothers, truckers, swing-shift workers

Host's other lives: Emmy-winning former host of Entertainment Tonight; singer

Catch Phrase: Music and intelligence for your life

Spiritual? No, intended to be secular but uplifting

Delilah

Listeners: Single mothers, kids dedicating songs to their parents

Host's other lives: Adoption proponent; mother of seven

Catch Phrase: Love someone tonight

Spiritual? Yes, in the underlying message

Dave Ramsey

Listeners: Families with debt, high school students

Host's other lives: Self-taught real estate mogul; recovered from bankruptcy

Catch Phrase: Life, love and how they happen to revolve around money

Spiritual? Yes, but only when callers express an interest