100.4 Jazz FM
Encyclopedia
Independent Local Radio
Independent Local Radio is the collective name given to commercial radio stations in the United Kingdom. The same name is used for Independent Local Radio in Ireland.-Development of ILR:...
station for the North West England playing jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
music. 100.4 Jazz FM played its own music from its Salford studio during the day, whereas specialist shows like Dinner Jazz and Legends of Jazz with Ramsey Lewis
Ramsey Lewis
Ramsey Emmanuel Lewis, Jr. is an American jazz composer, pianist and radio personality. Ramsey Lewis has recorded over 80 albums and has received seven gold records and three Grammy Awards so far in his career.-Biography:...
were networked from London's 102.2 Jazz FM
102.2 Jazz FM
102.2 Jazz FM was a local jazz and soul music station for London run by GMG Radio. The station was based and broadcast from Castlereagh Street in London to around 15.5 million people within the broadcasting area...
. The station was replaced by Smooth FM 100.4
Smooth FM 100.4
Smooth Radio 100.4 was an Independent Local Radio station based in Salford, Greater Manchester. It was part of the Smooth brand of stations from 1 March 2004, and changed its name from "Smooth FM" in March 2007. Along with other stations in the network, it was subsumed into a national Smooth Radio...
in 2004.
History
In 1993, Golden Rose Communications was awarded the regional FM licence for the North West, beating ten other applications for the licence.Jazz FM was launched as JFM on 1 September 1994 and broadcast from Exchange Quays
Salford Quays
Salford Quays is an area of Salford in Greater Manchester, England, near the end of the Manchester Ship Canal. Previously the site of Manchester Docks, it became one of the first and largest urban regeneration projects in the United Kingdom following the closure of the dockyards in...
, in Salford
City of Salford
The City of Salford is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Salford, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Eccles, Swinton-Pendlebury, Walkden and Irlam which apart from Irlam each have a population of over...
, England. It was originally known as JFM in order to try to appeal to more listeners who were put off by the "jazz" in Jazz FM. The station name reverted back to Jazz FM, a decision also made to its sister London station in 1995 when Richard Wheatly became chief executive officer
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
for Golden Rose Communications. Jazz FM originally played a wide variety of jazz, pandering to more smooth jazz
Smooth jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....
during the daytime to attract the 25-45 year old target market Jazz FM needed to make the station a success. The station before the rebrand
Rebranding
Rebranding is the creation of a new name, term, symbol, design, or a combination of them for an established brand with the intention of developing a differentiated position in the mind of stakeholders and competitors....
, however, played more soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
and softer R&B alongside jazz.
In 2003, the Guardian Media Group
Guardian Media Group
Guardian Media Group plc is a company of the United Kingdom owning various mass media operations including The Guardian and The Observer. The Group is owned by the Scott Trust. It was founded as the Manchester Guardian Ltd in 1907 when C. P. Scott bought the Manchester Guardian from the estate of...
did extensive research into the type of music the listeners in the north-west
North West England
North West England, informally known as The North West, is one of the nine official regions of England.North West England had a 2006 estimated population of 6,853,201 the third most populated region after London and the South East...
wanted to listen to. They concluded that many people were put off by the name "jazz" in the station name. As a result, 100.4 Jazz FM closed on 13 February 2004 and relaunched as 'Smooth FM' on 1 March 2004.
Smooth FM 100.4 relaunched as Smooth Radio 100.4 in March 2007 at the same time as London based 102.2 Smooth FM.
Return to the airwaves
On 28 February 2008 GMG Radio's chief executive John Myers made an announcement that Jazz FM would be brought back in the North West, London and the West Midlands on DAB. Myers also said that he believed it would make more sense for there to be a dedicated radio station for jazz listeners than the commitments to play jazz on Smooth Radio 100.4, as required by the licence granted to them by Ofcom. The closure of theJazzTheJazz
theJazz was a British commercial jazz digital radio station. The station was run by GCap Media and launched on Christmas Day 2006. originally as a non-stop jazz station on the Digital One DAB ensemble, Sky Digital, Virgin Media and the Internet....
on Digital One
Digital One
Digital One is a national commercial digital radio multiplex in the United Kingdom, owned by Arqiva. , the multiplex covers more than 90% of the populationfrom a total of 137 transmitters...
was also part of the reason for the return of Jazz FM. The relaunch of jazzfm.com, under a three year deal with The Local Radio Company
The Local Radio Company
The Local Radio Company is a British media company, originally based in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, that owns ten independent local radio stations in the UK...
happened on 6 October 2008.
Former presenters on 100.4 Jazz FM
- Chris Best
- Steve Collins
- Andy CraneAndy CraneHoward Andrew 'Andy' Crane is an English television and radio presenter, best known for presenting Children's BBC , amongst many others.-Career:...
- Paul Jones
- Brian Day
- Martin KelnerMartin KelnerMartin B. Kelner is a British journalist, author, comedian and radio presenter, educated at Stand Grammar School, in Whitefield near Manchester....
- Steve Quirk
- Richard Searling