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 Shannon West |
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We are entering the second decade of the 21st century. How
in the world did we get here so fast? In the smooth jazz
universe, it seems like the world turned slowly for a long time
with playlists shrinking to only one or two new songs a month and
a chart clogged at the top with year-old releases. Then
it went into a tailspin that shook a lot of people up and out into
the realm of the unemployed or unsigned. That happened after
a long period of comfort and complacency. Back when we were
in the throes of millennium fever, there was a smooth jazz station
in almost every decent sized market. Most of them had good
ratings. Some heritage stations had spectacular ratings and
raked in the advertising revenues selling upscale car dealerships
a target audience of designer clad wine aficionados. The
chinks in the armor were starting to show - jazz sales were down
even as the market share of adult music buyers was increasing and
original instrumentals were being replaced by an increasing number
of cover songs and lite pop crossovers. One company consulted
most of the important stations. They told the stations what
to play and the personalities what to say. The accepted mantra
was "if it works, don't fix it" and if it was starting
to not work a little smoke and mirror work could fix the problem. It came to a head this year. A number of heritage stations, previously thought to be invincible, abandoned the format. Radio and Records, the trade publication that gave the most extensive coverage to the format and selected the stations record companies and artists had to focus on, closed their doors. Harbingers of doom and gloom popped up on every blog and internet forum saying the format was dead. Then little voices began to tweet "the format may be dying but the music is very much alive and not only that but now that nobody has the status that came with being chosen as a Radio and Records reporter I might matter too!" This is where we are now. For the first time since the mid 90s, there is room for creative programmers who care about the music to come on board, or come back on board. Before media consolidation and the one-consultant system there were lots of people playing this music on the radio and using lots of approaches. It varied by market because these stations and specialty shows were local and in touch with the people who listened to them. Not by "research" but by actually seeing them at the grocery store and the gym. Nobody was saying, "I do it this way and I am getting ratings so everyone should do it the same way I do or you'll fail." One person might be mixing in some traditional jazz, someone else might be playing some R&B vocals, then another person might toss in some jam band or rock instrumentals. They all might be getting ratings and making money for their respective stations. We had trade publications where we could share our ideas, viewpoints, theories and music discoveries. We were a community. Looking back, I'm amazed that we did it, that we shared so much information and encouragement by way of phoning or (later) faxing information in to editors who would compile it, write it up, print it, then put it in the mail so we could have it on Monday. What we have now was unimaginable then. We have so many ways to communicate immediately. Even more important, we are now in a place where your skills, creativity, and commitment matter more than having the name of a big corporation or major market on your resume. The other good news is that there isn't one "party line" anymore. Listen to a variety of indie smooth jazz programmers and you'll hear a variety of approaches, from the traditional "smooth and relaxing" to "jazz that rocks," from playing the hits to free-forming it and everything in between. Now we can begin to communicate with each other and listen to our listeners, not as "research study participants" but as living, breathing, music loving human beings. There are so many innovators out there right now that it would be impossible not to miss some significant ones. Here is a very partial list. Most indie smooth/contemporary jazzers are networking via Facebook so even if you don't want to "friend" people you don't know or play games and do apps it might be worthy to sign up just so you can get status reports like "Randy and Michael Brecker... some skunk funk...streaming at www.wsge.org." Check out their shows online. Some promote concerts where you will be treated well while you hear the music you love. Enjoy and be inspired. Tammy Greene The Jazz Spot She gets first listing because her status report mentioned above popped up while I was writing this- her show is "The Jazz Spot" 10-12pm eastern time on WSGE-FM, in the Charlotte N.C. area. She has also been producing concerts under the name of the Carolina Smooth Jazz Friends Concert Series and produced her first festival last Labor Day Weekend. And oh, she has a 'daytime job" too. The Smooth Jazz stations on Live 365 Kerri Donovan Ted Hasiuk John Beaudin Chris Acton Jimi
King Talking Smooth Jazz Steve Bauer Michael Tozzi Chris Standring |
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