Phoenix Smooth Jazz & Beyond

Smooth Jazz Station WJJZ 97.5 in Philadelphia....TERMINATED

Well, here we go again...The plug has been pulled in yet another major city!! At 6PM yesterday (September 5, 2008) WJJZ 97.5 closed and had the audacity to play a Boyz II Men tune (I'll Make Love To You) as the closing song. I really don't even care that they are from Philly, the point is the song wasn't even smooth jazz. You can only wonder what lies in the future for other cities. Since a new format is due on Monday morning (Semptember 9, 2008) at WJJZ 97.5 and the letter posted to the public may no longer be an active link, I am reposting what is currently on their site.

Dear Listener,

After much consideration and review, our company has decided to make a change to 97.5 FM. As many people in the market know, we share a passion for this wonderful music, the smooth jazz format, and all the good people that made the special things happen for all of us.

For nearly two years we have committed substantial resources to this program. Unfortunately, we have had limited success with smooth jazz as judged by the marketplace. We are grateful for your loyalty and support, and we appreciate your understanding.

Like our other top tier FM radio stations in the market, we are committed to serving the largest population possible, and we are excited to offer our listeners a powerful new choice. We will reveal our new vision on Monday at 9am.

Again, we appreciate what you have done with us in the past, and look forward to a bright future together. Stay tuned, because the feedback we received from listeners tells us you will enjoy the new adventure!

Thank you for your continued support,

The WJJZ Family

The trend continues.....

Sunday, September 7, is National Grandparents Day

Once a year there is a special day just to thank our grandparents for being there for us. This year National Grandparents day falls on September 7, 2008. Whether your grandparents are living or have passed on, I encourage you take a moment to reflect upon what they have given you and the memories they have provided. http://www.scottsdalehappyhour.info

For more history and information on this holiday please visit  http://www.grandparents-day.com .

Smooth Jazz Radio Stations In Phoenix, Arizona

One very important aspect that has not been established here in Phoenix is what venues are available over the airwaves for Smooth Jazz. After extensive research, I could only find the following three -

• KYOT 95.5 FM
• XM Watercolors - featuring Smooth Jazz, Contemporary Jazz, Instrumental Pop, Jazz Pop, Fusion
• Sirius Jazz Cafe - a sophisticated soundtrack of Smooth Jazz instrumentals and vocals

I would also like to note that XM and Sirius will require you to be a paying member and will require a satellite receiving unit to listen to their broadcasts. Internet streaming is also available.

KYOT is a local station and is located at 4686 E. Van Buren Street, Suite 300, Phoenix, AZ 85008. Tel: 602-374-6000.

Unfortunately, there is not much for Phoenix in the way of local radio for Smooth Jazz. But, at least there is something. Hopefully, rankings are high and we won't see a demise as in the case of CD101.9 and many other great stations.

Over the next few days, I will be posting about other stations in Phoenix that feature Jazz within their programming schedule.

Bassist Wayman Tisdale Loses Part Of Leg To Cancer

The Associated Press (AP) reported on Tuesday that Wayman Tisdale had part of his right leg amputated due to stem bone cancer on Monday, August 25, 2008.

Tisdale told the AP that his latest album, "Rebound," was inspired by his ongoing fight against the cancer.

Tisdale also stated, "This may sound drastic, but I have put it in God's hands and now have peace, knowing that this is the best way to put this disease in check," he said. "I have complete faith that with the Lord's blessings this surgery will eliminate the cancer from my body and I'll soon be back on the road doing what I do best."

Tisdale is a former NBA player and spent 12 seasons playing for the Indiana Pacers, Sacramento Kings and the Phoenix Suns.

We here at Phoenix Smooth Jazz & Beyond send our prayers and wishes for a full and speedy recovery.

Salt River Project & Arizona Public Services

The name of this blog is Phoenix Smooth Jazz & Beyond. Well, here is a posting for the "beyond". One of the big concerns for most residents in the Phoenix area is the cost of their electric bill. From the looks of things (unless I'm severly mistaken) there are two (2) companies providing major service to the area.

SRP: Salt River Project and APS: Arizona Public Services Co.

I can't say that I know many people on SRP, but I do know quite a few individuals that use APS. So, what am I getting at? I know that I'm very unhappy with my bill and everyone else that I speak with is unhappy with theirs. There are supposedly many factors that determine how much someone pays each month.....

• Location of the home
• Age of home
• Size of home
• Type of roof
• Number of pets
• Number of people and their age

I think you get the idea!! The list can go on for days. I actually can accept that these factors cause my bill to fluctuate. But, I cannot accept the fact how APS nickel and dimes me each month with bogus and unnecessary fees. Here is a list of the total charges per month an individual pays that has service with APS.....

• Basic service charge
• Delivery service charge
• Environmental benefits surcharge
• Federal environmental improvement surcharge
• Competition rules compliance charge
• System benefits charge
• Power supply adjustment
• Metering
• Meter reading
• Billing
• Generation of electricity on-peak
• Generation of electricity off-peak
• Transmission and ancillary services
• Transmission cost adjustment
• Regulatory assessment
• State sales tax
• County sales tax
• City sales tax
• Franchise fee

Do I understand all of these charges and why I have them? No, and not surprisingly neither does anyone else I know. To top it all off, APS gives you a minuscule discount if you use the AutoPay feature. It's their way of saying "Here are a few pennies back for all the thousands of dollars we're stealing from you". To be quite honest, I personally believe that the majority of residents in the greater Phoenix area are being taken advantage of by APS and probably by SRP as well. Here's the big question....What can be done to dampen the activities of these thieving giants? This is definitely one of the areas where our local elected officials are not doing their job, but that's an entirely different topic.

One thing I do know is that I now know what the acronym "APS" stands for....

ARIZONA POWER SUCKS!!!

For those of you on APS, be advised that they have requested a rate increase.

Please feel free to comment......

What is Smooth Jazz?

Ask someone this question and you'll probably get a variety of answers. For such a popular format why is there no definitive answer? Try taking a look at the definition that Wikipedia provides of smooth jazz. What a bonafide mess!!! In most cases, smooth jazz is defined as a modern form of jazz developed in the 1970s that has elements of rhythm and blues (R&B). I think the most accurate definition I've come across has been found here on Squidoo. Yes, it is true that in many instances it's a melodic line with an R&B backbeat, but there's a little more to it. In fact, there's a lot more to it. Smooth jazz recordings feature a controlled studio recording environment, but still retain the elements of improvisation.

While many jazz purists criticize smooth jazz, this genre of music is a great entry point for facilitating into jazz in general. Smooth jazz has many elements of pop, rock, latin, funk, soul and much more. Due to the many different genres of music that are incorporated into smooth jazz, individuals that would not listen to jazz find themselves becoming a fan of smooth jazz.

I welcome your comments on this broad question.

PRESS RELEASE - New Smooth Jazz Blog for Phoenix, Arizona

PRESS RELEASE

When Internet users search for "Phoenix Smooth Jazz" on Google.com, the results are disheartening. What are smooth jazz fans supposed to do? Where do smooth jazz fans go? Phoenix based musician and entrepreneur Alzie Ramsey asked that same question and chose to provide an answer by launching Phoenix Smooth Jazz & Beyond at www.phoenixsmoothjazzblog.com.

This blog will offer smooth jazz fans in Phoenix the music information and news the area has been lacking for so long. Visitors will be provided information in all facets of smooth jazz on a regular basis including a daily updated and accurate Event Calendar.

For a nominal fee, businesses, sponsors and promoters will have the ability to advertise with a Featured Listing. A Featured Listing will place the information in front of a greater share of the Web traffic.

Ramsey says that www.phoenixsmoothjazzblog.com will definitely give smooth jazz fans in the Phoenix area the information they've been looking for. When something is happening in smooth jazz (especially Phoenix) I want individuals to come to this blog first!

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Contact Information:

Black Widow Music
Alzie Ramsey
jazzblog@alzieramsey.com
www.phoenixsmoothjazzblog.com