station boots Sinatra for smooth jazz

Date: Fri, 4 Apr 2003 10:43:34 +0900
Newsgroups: rec.music.bluenote,rec.music.jazz
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http://www.floridatoday.com/!NEWSROOM/peoplestoryA46578A.htm
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Mar 16, 6:14 PM
Sebastian station boots Sinatra for smooth jazz
By Breuse Hickman
FLORIDA TODAY
Get out the wine and cheese. The airwaves are going to sound little smoother
starting today.
Cumulus Broadcasting Melbourne recently acquired Sebastian-based radio
station WINT-FM (95.9) and changed its format from classic '40s and '50s pop
songs to smooth jazz.
To match its new airplay list of Kenny G, Sade, Fourplay, Boney James and
other heavy mellow acts, Cumulus has given the station a more appropriate
name -- WSJZ.
Listeners can pick up the station as far north as Port St. John and as far
south as Fort Pierce, said Cumulus market manager Dan Carelli.
"I believe we are going to be the headquarters for smooth jazz in Brevard
County," Carelli said. "This is a format that does extremely well in both
large and small markets."
Listeners of the former WINT-FM as well as Cumulus' WA0A-AM (1560) can still
get their Sinatra and Streisand. WINT's "music-of-your-life" format --
complete with the WINT's call letters and former WMMB-AM host Mark Pence --
will now air on 1560-AM.
WSJZ has plans to bring jazz artist Greg Adams, a founding member of Tower
of Power, to the Melbourne Art Festival for a twilight jazz show April 26,
Carelli said.
In the coming days, DJ Sabrina, now a part of Cumulus' WA1A (107.1) morning
show, will move to WSJZ as the morning disc jockey.
Her replacement on WA1A, where she co-hosts with Timothy Vee, should be
announced later this week.
Until now, smooth jazz in Brevard has been synonymous with WFIT-FM (89.5).
The Melbourne public radio station has relied on the soft, background
melodies ever since eschewing its popular alternative music format in the
early '90s.
Though smooth jazz often is labeled yuppie elevator music, some traditional
jazz fans welcome the new smooth jazz format in Brevard.
"Sure, there's a lot of classic jazz listeners who turn a deaf ear to smooth
jazz," said Joe Schwartz, a member of the Space Coast Jazz Society. "But
there are also a lot of us who like both styles. In fact, many of us are
going to see Boney James when he comes to Brevard (on April 12)."