Jazz FM – just for London in those days before internet radio – was launched in 1990 after lobbying by Dave Lee, the former Dankworth pianist and composer of the That’s Life TV theme. Working in Los Angeles in 1980, Dave had been so impressed by the abundance of jazz on local radio that he had applied there and then for permission to operate a similar service in London.
The station was welcomed by the jazz community with high hopes and a little scepticism about whether a pure radio station was commercially viable. A promotional tape recorded by then shareholder Humphrey Lyttelton promised a spread of styles, stretching from New Orleans to the fringes of world music, and included a commitment to “proper” jazz.
Jazz FM dived in the deep end. Some time in summer 1990, on the 63 bus in south London at drive time, I listened, happily and rather incredulously, to a track by Scott Henderson’s heavy-duty fusion band Tribal Tech. Could this be true?
It was, but within a few months – perhaps a sign of an actual or perceived poor appetite for “proper” jazz – the station began playing a good deal of soul-oriented pop, riling the hard-core jazz community and prompting some choice translations of “FM”. There followed arguments over content and identity. It was variously renamed JFM (1995) and Smooth FM (2005) after market research suggested listeners might be deterred by the word “jazz”. In 2008, perhaps reflecting successive declarations in the media of yet another a jazz boom, the station reverted to Jazz FM.
OFCOM at various times required Jazz FM or its successors to play 45 hours of jazz a week, a ruling the station has sometimes satisfied by confining jazz to the early hours. How the jazz content was measured would be interesting to know, but at the time of writing no indication of OFCOM’s definition of jazz is readily available.
In this context, Jazz FM’s latest new-music playlist – and music played on the station on the day of its release – provide a useful point of comparison with Jazz FM past and present and the torrent of jazz currently on release. Jazz Journal receives news of some 150 new albums a month.
A snapshot of artists played on the afternoon of the playlist’s release suggests that music the casual observer might identify as jazz is a relatively common daytime occurrence. On the afternoon of 18 October 2024 there were tracks by Professor Longhair, Chaka Khan, Fred Wesley and the JBs, Cherise, Jamie Cullum, Stevie Wonder, Blue Lab Beats, Kandace Springs, Jalen Ngonda, Hill St Soul, Sly and The Family Stone, Seun Kuti and Egypt 80, Anita Baker, Gregory Porter and Lois Levin but also by Samara Joy, Lee Ritenour and Dave Grusin, George Benson, Mel Tormé, Louis Armstrong and Nat King Cole.
Jazz Journal’s new-release coverage – a reflection of the music offered to JJ for review from worldwide sources and selected for review by JJ’s writers – can be seen here: JJ new releases lists, October- November 2024 and JJ review roster October 2024.
Jazz FM new-music playlist w/c 21 October 2024
A List
KOKOROKO – Three Piece Suit (feat. Azekel)
Jalen Ngonda – Anyone in Love
Ezra Collective – No One’s Watching Me (feat. Olivia Dean)
Mama Terra – A Mind Supreme
Lois Levin – Call Me Names
B List
Jacob Collier – Magic (feat. Emily King)
Gaby Moreno – New Dawn
Gizmo Varillas – Under The Weight
Kelly Finnigan – Prove My Love To You
kitti – Maybe
Earth-o-Naut – One Revolution
Thee Sacred Souls – Live For You
Blue Lab Beats – Options (feat. Farah Audhali)
CHERISE – Hello (feat. Frida Touray)
Lady Blackbird – No One Can Love Me (Like You Do)
C List
Mackwood – Master Changes
Stone Foundation – Reach Out (feat. Laville)
Michael Mayo – Four
Gina Sedman – Smile
Jay Phelps – Sunset In June
Jazz FM is here – https://hellorayo.co.uk/jazz-fm/