Friday, July 09, 1999
Smooth jazz has cool comeback
BY JOHN KIESEWETTER
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Finally, some good news since “The Wave” crashed April 29.
“Smooth jazz” has returned to the air.
Michael Grayson, the WVAE-FM morning smooth jazz DJ fired after the format change, hosts Smooth Jazz Saturday Night 7 p.m. to midnight on sister station WRRM-FM (98.5).
“I think they wanted to do something to appease the people who were upset over the change,” says Mr. Grayson, 51, who had worked 111/2 years at “WARM98” and “The Wave.”
“Or maybe they're feeling guilty about firing a nice guy with good ratings who's expecting a baby next week,” he says.
“It's taken me 14 years to get back to where I started,” says Mr. Grayson, whose wife, Sue, is due with their third child on Sunday.
In 1986, Mr. Grayson introduced WARM98 to smooth jazz with his Saturday night Cincinnati After Dark show. It grew to seven nights a week by 1993, before station managers decided to go soft rock around the clock. “The Wave” was born in September 1995 when Jacor bought the rights to “The Fox” from 94.9.
Susquehanna Radio Corp. pulled the plug on WVAE-FM in April, the day the station had jumped to No. 8 from No. 11 in local radio ratings. It was replaced by “Mojo radio” WMJO-FM (94.9), hits from the late 1960s through the 1980s by Kool & the Gang, Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson.
Now the sounds of David Sanborn, Jim Brickman, Candy Dulfer, Diana Krall, Grover Washington Jr. and Cincinnati's Kathy Wade fill the air, at least five hours a week.
“The smooth jazz listeners have had nowhere to go,” Mr. Grayson says. “That's what I've heard over and over again: "Gosh, I have nothing to listen to.'”
Apparently some tuned in WARM98, and caught his first show last Saturday. “There was a great response. The phones were just constant all night,” he says.
Those who need a smooth jazz fix should tape Mr. Grayson's shows. He promises to play the best of the old “Wave” library (still at the station), plus new releases.
“I'm pretty clear on who I'm playing, and what it is, so people know what CDs to buy,” he says.
Mr. Grayson, an award-winning Summerfair stained-glass artist, hopes that WARM98 might expand the show to more nights. But don't count on it.
The Mojo is working.
WMJO-FM listenership is up 300 percent from WVAE-FM, April to May, according to Arbitron's monthly reports, says General Manager Dan Swensson.
“It would be a mistake to think that this (Smooth Jazz Saturday Night) would mean we'd go back to that format,” he says.
So enjoy some cool jazz on a hot summer night. It's not much — but better than nothing.
CHANNEL 5 NEWS: Rick Rogala's 21/2-year tenure as WLWT general manager may be one of the shortest in Channel 5 history — and one of the biggest.
Mr. Rogala, 38, who leaves after today to manage WFLA-TV in Tampa, orchestrated the move from historic (and dysfunctional) Crosley Square to 1700 Young St., Mount Auburn.
“I made it my quest to get a new building,” he says. “I've had a great time, and I love the people here. But if there's a time to transition, it's now.”
His arrival here in 1997, when Hearst-Argyle bought Channel 5 from Gannett, was also memorable. About a dozen employees, including the chief engineer and most department heads, were dismissed and replaced.
As the Tampa station president and general manager, he will help Media General combine its TV station, newspaper (Tampa Tribune) and on-line service.
LOCAL WINNERS: Princeton and Norwood schools won international Hometown Video Festival awards Thursday at the Alliance for Community Media convention at the Omni Netherland downtown.
Norwood High School astronomy students won two awards — best educational video and best youth-produced video — for Star Station 1.
Princeton's Institutional TV Network won for overall educational access.
Other winners:
• Mark Bailey, Cincinnati Community Video, best computer/video art and best innovative video, Republicans Under the Bed.
• Eldred and Regina Bishop, Cincinnati Community Video, best cultural/ethnic diversity for Echoes of the Heartbeat.
• Robert Donovan and Vincent Linz, Cincinnati Community Video, best music video, “Cup of Sunshine.”
• Thom Schneider, Waycross Community Video (Forest Park-Greenhills), best sports event production, St. Xavier Road to State Football.
• Steve Schlecter and Steve DeVoto, Community Program Center (Northern Kentucky Telecommunications Board), best election coverage, Crescent Springs/Villa Hills Election Special.
AROUND THE DIAL: Ricky Martin sings “Living La Vida Loca” and “She's All I've Ever Had” on Oprah Winfrey today (4 p.m., Channel 9). Jennifer Lopez also sings “If You Had My Love.”
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