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A Fresh NEW 104.3???

T

TheJermster

This labor day weekend could be an interesting one in Baltimore radio. I have heard about the raitings starved Smooth Jazz 104.3, here are a couple very interesting points. This past week clear channe registed the domain names www.my1043.com www.fresh1043.com and www.1043freshfm.com I could see 104.3 with the "my" moniker but "fresh" is registed to CBS by the way is WWFS up in the big apple the only station in the country to used the "fresh" moniker I have not seen it anywhere but on WWFS. For those of you keeping track Clear Channel has dumped thier Portland Oregon outlet in favor of a classic hits/oldies hybrid, wich sounds great so far but in fairness I have been listening for less than an hour as I pulled up the stream www.kool1059.com I know you cannot believe everything you read or hear but the reason this situation with Baltimore's WSMJ is so interesting is because 102.7 is Jack and Charm City is without an oldies/classic hits station.

I will reiterate nothing is for certain, but the pot is boiling think about the recent chages at CBS Radio Baltimore. Mix is or was at last check sounding more like a CHR/Hot AC station Jack has undergone a few slogan and image changes and I have just plain given up trying to keep track of the train wreck that is 105.7 LOL.

This is certainly something to watch. As much as I love oldies my bet is 104.3 could do a rhythmic AC a la Philly, Raleigh, Vegas and so on. If WSMJ goes away what do you think will take it's place?
 
So far business as usual at WSMJ, though sounding very Urban AC-ish with LET'S STAY TOGETHER by Al Green and LOVE WON'T LET ME WAIT FROM Luther back to back, and WHEN I THINK OF YOU by Janet Jackson, USE ME from Aaron Neville, STAY WITH ME TONIGHT by Jeffrey Osbourne, I JUST CALLED TO SAY I LOVE YOU from Stevie and MY LOVE IS LEAVIN' by Michael McDonald all within the same hour. Possibly the norm, but almost all the vocals are Urban AC and separated by only one instrumental. So if there is a format flip it could be either the aforementioned hip-hop to go against Radio One's Q or maybe even a nice slice of the Urban AC pie from Radio One a possibility too. Either case, CC not looking good against Radio One right now so they're going to have to get at them somehow with something more viable than Smooth Jazz. I still say it's a good idea for SJ stations to get rid of the Smooth Jazz moniker and just go Smooth 104.3, etc. to get rid of jazz expectations. The format wants to go young with vocals. Young listeners may not respond to the instrumentals the way they like, so instrumentals have to play more of a background role. I'm sure if a young listener just heard "Smooth 104.3" or "Smooth 106.5" they would have no expecations for what they feel is "jazz" and I think the format will rid itself of its current identity crisis. The KIFMs and others still have their built in audiences so they can continue as is OK. But with the low-maintenance networks most stations won't care. They won't have to do any work. Being a PD at those stations would be like being in charge of the family TV remote. Boring and meaningless gig, but NICE on a resume. I'd love to be a PD of an SJ satellite station now. Those guys have it made. They don't have to know squat (and most don't) about the music nor manage a staff.
 
Wait another day or two. IMO, I think a format change would be foolish as the stations ratings while not great don't seem to be bad either.
 
Right and let'a just leave the whole world up to you. Don't mean to be rude but you're cussing Smooth Jazz. Already most of the rhythmic oldies ones have already gone urban AC - we don't need any more of those wasted [EDIT] stations. And being a PD of any station would be exciting - you have to admit it's better than any dumb job such as a fast food or department store one. You're right though about young listeners like me being more of a background role. Before WJZI here in Milwaukee, WI flipped to AC, almost all of the music was vocals with smooth jazz mixed in. It was HORRIBLE! If others are like me, it wouldn't work!

[EDIT-profanity]

cklw800 said:
So far business as usual at WSMJ, though sounding very Urban AC-ish with LET'S STAY TOGETHER by Al Green and LOVE WON'T LET ME WAIT FROM Luther back to back, and WHEN I THINK OF YOU by Janet Jackson, USE ME from Aaron Neville, STAY WITH ME TONIGHT by Jeffrey Osbourne, I JUST CALLED TO SAY I LOVE YOU from Stevie and MY LOVE IS LEAVIN' by Michael McDonald all within the same hour. Possibly the norm, but almost all the vocals are Urban AC and separated by only one instrumental. So if there is a format flip it could be either the aforementioned hip-hop to go against Radio One's Q or maybe even a nice slice of the Urban AC pie from Radio One a possibility too. Either case, CC not looking good against Radio One right now so they're going to have to get at them somehow with something more viable than Smooth Jazz. I still say it's a good idea for SJ stations to get rid of the Smooth Jazz moniker and just go Smooth 104.3, etc. to get rid of jazz expectations. The format wants to go young with vocals. Young listeners may not respond to the instrumentals the way they like, so instrumentals have to play more of a background role. I'm sure if a young listener just heard "Smooth 104.3" or "Smooth 106.5" they would have no expecations for what they feel is "jazz" and I think the format will rid itself of its current identity crisis. The KIFMs and others still have their built in audiences so they can continue as is OK. But with the low-maintenance networks most stations won't care. They won't have to do any work. Being a PD at those stations would be like being in charge of the family TV remote. Boring and meaningless gig, but NICE on a resume. I'd love to be a PD of an SJ satellite station now. Those guys have it made. They don't have to know squat (and most don't) about the music nor manage a staff.
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Magnum said:
What was the announcement at 10am this morning on WSMJ?
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from the looks of their website, the big announcement was a Dave Koz Christmas concert that they are sponsoring. ha ha ha to all the format change folks. geez i am not a big fan of smooth jazz but everyone on these boards seem to hate the format. it at least deserves a spot in every major city. so be quiet and enjoy WSMJ. it's a good station for baltimore.
 
Interstate 78 said:
from the looks of their website, the big announcement was a Dave Koz Christmas concert that they are sponsoring. ha ha ha to all the format change folks. geez i am not a big fan of smooth jazz but everyone on these boards seem to hate the format. it at least deserves a spot in every major city. so be quiet and enjoy WSMJ. it's a good station for baltimore.
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I don't necessarily dislike the 'smooth jazz' format although I wish these stations would play more original material and fewer remakes. If there was a 'smooth jazz' like station that I really miss, it was the old WJZE (Jazzy 100) in Washington. They were on from 1990 to 1993.
 
Interstate 78 said:
... so be quiet and enjoy WSMJ.
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Problem is, when it comes to ratings, the station had been quiet...

Also, before they became WJFK, 106.7 in DC also played Smooth Jazz.
 
I loved to do work with Jazzy 100 in the background. It was kind of a real smooth jazz station. But as someone above noted, it wasn't a commercial success. The format morphed from a real type of music to a sound, and the sound today includes an awful lot of music that's not smooth jazz...but it is focus-group tested.
 
Problem is, when it comes to ratings, the station had been quiet...

Also, before they became WJFK, 106.7 in DC also played Smooth Jazz.
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The station's ratings haven't been necessarily stellar, but they have been somewhat respectable. Ninth place in Baltimore isn't particularly great, but it's not horrible either.

You're partially correct about 106.7. After dropping top-40 and the B-106 handle about 1987 and continuing for about another year, WBMW aired a blend of contemporary light jazz and new age. This lasted about a year. When they brought back Howard Stern and got the WJFK calls, they dropped the new age blend and went classic rock, IIRC. Sometime around 1992 or '3, when they weren't broadcasting Don and Mike, Gordon Liddy or Howard Stern, they brought back a smooth-jazz like format thus replacing the classic rock and triple-A during the evenings. IIRC, the triple-A show was called "The Progressive Show" with Cerphe. That was another show I was sad to see go. I was even willing to listen to it coming home from school during that time (I was a student at University of Baltimore then and WJFK just started simulcasting on 1300).
 
It does look like a "ha ha" for all the format change people on this strand about WSMJ. Unless they're purposely delaying as a result of all the speculation in order to calm the air staff. Then once it gets quiet enough they can make their move without the distraction of the rumors. The fall ratings period is here and if there any changes at this point one would think it could wait until December-January. It was this time last year the Smooth Jazz Network was announced and in January it became a reality. Whatever is in store for WSMJ will probably come in January. So Interstate (a poster) is correct. Let's enjoy WSMJ right now. It is a good station. I listen. I love the local jocks. They are incredibly passionate and knowledgeable about the music. And that's exactly why I think they're an endagered species. I'm confident that a new variation of the format will soon appear called SMOOTH AC. The "J" word will be taken out to get rid of listener expectations about the music they will hear. With the help of many artists, new releases contain many remakes. Some entire releases are remakes. And when a "Smooth Jazz" air personality goes, "On the way we have relaxing music from John Legend, Babyface, Kelly Sweet and the Pussycat Dolls" you basically have a new format in its infancy. If WSMJ doesn't flip their format completely you might see BA coming up with this new variation to stave off defections. AC vocals will dominate and instrumental artists wil be borrowing many popular vocalists for their projects. I'm looking for new themed projects a la Peter White's "Playing Favorites" and Dave Koz "At The Movies". Like "Back To The 70s", "My 80s Favorites"...stuff like that from known SJ artists. I wouldn't doubt with the BA/SJ artist alliances that they've already been told this is the way to go for them to get airplay going forward. So between the artists themselves and BA, look for an interesting 2008 to be thrust upon us. I'll bet every host on the BA Network will produce a new release of remakes loaded with vocals in 2008.
 
A WSMJ thought just occurred to me regarding the rumored format change that didn't happen---yet. They're sponsoring the Dave Koz Christmas Concert. That was the big announcement around Labor Day. Well, Dave Koz is considered by some to be the "Ryan Seacrest" of Smooth Jazz radio. Now wouldn't it be something if Dave Koz came to town and visited the station, and the next thing you hear is that Dave Koz was so good and well received at the concert and by his visit that it'd be a good idea to have him on every afternoon to capitalize on the euphoria? And then bring on Ramsey Lewis too? Hmmm...either a flip to another format or a flip to the BA Network could still happen. January is a great time for that and a way to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the BA Network to give them a stroke.
 
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