The Straight Skinny

 

 

Windy City Options Fit Format Fans

New iterations fill abyss left by WNUA's flip

 

 

By Carol Archer

Casting a pall over the holidays, Smooth Jazz suffered the loss of another major market over-the-air station on Dec. 23 when Elyria-Loraine abandoned its venerable WNWV(The Wave)/Cleveland after 22 years in favor of Triple A. Compounding the blow (while congruent with common broadcasting business practice, if not the spirit of Christmas), Riviera Broadcasting also dropped Smooth Jazz on KOAS (the Oasis)/Las Vegas to sign on rhythmic hits.

 

As if that weren't enough, Clear Channel drove another stake into the heart of the format last month when it unceremoniously shuttered the Smooth Jazz HD-2 channel of seminal former format property, WNUA/Chicago. Fortunately for Chicago's legion of passionate SJ fans in that toddlin' town -- in the words of poet Carl Sandburg, "the hog butcher to the world" -- alternate listening options exist: Take Kurt Hanson's AccuRadio's ChiTownSmoothJazz.com or Venture Technologies Group's low-power WLFM(87.7), which signed on the same day WNUA flipped to Spanish in May with Sr. VP&GM and longtime 'NUA sales captain Pat Kelley at the helm. A BA Smooth Jazz Network affiliate, WLFM now commands cume of in the 475,000-plus-range in the Chicago PPM (and recently climbed to 540,000) -- an impressive number that reflects the Windy City's ardor for Smooth Jazz.

 

Wait, there's more. Now longtime top-rated WNUA midday personality Rick O'Dell joins WLFM as PD and midday host, following an ongoing stint with AccuRadio as Smooth Jazz consultant and co-host of ChiTownSmoothJazz.com.

 

Kelley says that based on the direction of WLFM and the Windy City's enthusiastic response to Smooth Jazz on the 87.7 frequency, O'Dell was the natural choice to take the programming reins. "His 20-plus years in the format, along with his passion and deep understanding of contemporary jazz music, made him the right person."

O'Dell chimes in: "Formats don't often get a second chance, so I must give credit to Pat Kelley and Venture Technologies Group for their faith in the future of Smooth Jazz in Chicago. Pat and I worked together during the heyday of WNUA, and I'm thrilled to be part of his new team at WLFM. I also look forward to reconnecting with the most loyal and passionate listeners in Chicago when I'm back on the midday show," he asserts.