BACKnUSSR said:
Well, David...I am neither guessing at this, nor looking for your guidance....simply stating fact. You are talking about the label "smooth jazz"...not the actual format which had also been called "new-age".
I think all formats are evolutionary, not revolutionary. The original concept which has a linear connection to today's Smooth Jazz format was inplemented in LA at KTWV in 1986/7 by Owen Leach and Frank Cody.
The "earlier" versions were not as much the same format as more "jazzified" versions of what was made commercial by KTWV.
So the "label" was actually applied to KTWV upon it's switch from KMET in 1987, along with KIFM AND KKSF (which had ALREADY been in the format). KTWV was also preceeded by WQCD (the former WPIX/NY) which would later "re-launch"
But all the predecessors were not "smooth jazz," although they certainly had elements of the format.... just not the mass appeal ones that made the format so viable when made mainstream. In fact, the key word is "mainstream" as opposed to "niche."
under "smooth jazz" and WJZZ/Detroit.
My first radio job was at WCUY and WJMO in Cleveland. The FM was all jazz, as was, later the Detroit station. The core audience was mostly Black, and it did not have mass appeal. Calling WCUY an early version of Smooth Jazz is like calling an early Top 40 an early version of AOR... yes, there were an element or two in common but the formats were fundamentally different.
In fact, former beautiful music station WRVR/New York has dabbled in the format as early as 1977.
Playing some "jazzy" covers of pop hits hardly qualifies this statement. Beautiful Music stations, by the late 70's, were either going with syndicators or joining groups that did custom music. Those that could do neither experimented with all kinds of instrumentals, hoping they could reduce the dependence on Fanck Pourcel and Percy Faith. Most were not successful.
And indeed the format grew out of beautiful music in its earliest days rising from the "cheesy, smooth jazz-like"
beautiful music covers of "Hey Jude" and "Just The Way You Are" (it was ELEVATOR music).
Since I was part of one of the groups that did coustom music and deeply involved in Beautiful Music as a format (87 syndication subscribers at one time, I can say that nearly everyone learned to stay far away from anything jazzy, and from songs that were not covers of familiar pop tuners. The only thing that smooth Jazz and Beautiful share as a format are the facts that they are instrumental based and often used as the background music in stores. The audiences were radically different. The group I was with inlcuded EZ Communications, WBEB and many other significant programmers and syndicators.
There were never many more than that. So what???
With that number of stations, and most of them bing in "odd" markets, I can't see how anyone can claim such formats are influential or significant except to those who hold them dear. I am always amused that the Golden West group sold KSCA because the signal would never allow anything they put on it to get above a low 1 share... yet it debuted at a 6.7 under the new owner in 1997. That just about says it all for the appeal of AAA.
You'll also find that some of the most influencial non-commercial stations in America happen to be AAA, KCRW/LA and WFUV/New York. Your comparisons are misleading. Many "regional Mexican" and "AC" stations (I still dont understand the relevance) are also in non-rated markets and on class A's with limited coverage and impact.
Influential? KCRW has not been AAA for many a year, and WFUV, in a metro of 16 million reaches less than one person in 80. Of course, you may have a dseparate definition of "influential" but mine is pretty simple: lots of people listen to it.
As to the other comment, Regional Mexican is one of the top 5 formats in the US, while AAA is not, based on AQH listening level and national share. AAA is not.
This "spun" rhetoric goes on and on. When he's proven wrong, he says he doesnt listen to english-language radio.....when he's not being challenged.....he's suddenly an expert on ALL formats in ALL markets in ALL era's.
Puleeeze.....this guy is RIDICULOUS.
What I listen to for enjoyment was the subject of a post I made about assimilation not changing music tastes significantly; "enjoyment" and listening for analysis as a broadcaster are two different things.
Not liking certain formats does not mean I do not track them, listen enough to understand them, etc. In the case of Smooth Jazz, I spoke with one of the creators of the format, besides my own experience in Beautiful Music. Simply stated, my opinion of the correlationship of Beautiful and Sommoth Jazz is that there is nearly none... and you seem to feel differently. I have researched the subject, including speaking with another person "in the know" and having been deeply involved in Beautiful. I don't know your credentials, but would welcome your comments. Disagreement is supposed to be one of the healthy aspects of this kind of board.