JazzTimes Gets into the Satellite Radio Act

JazzTimes crosses over, albeit briefly, into another medium with a Year in Review show produced for Sirius satellite radio. Airing on Saturday, January 22 at 3 p.m. on Sirius’ Pure Jazz channel (#72), the special segment features JazzTimes publisher Lee Mergner, columnist Nate Chinen and guest artist Christian McBride, each weighing in on the highlights and lowlights of 2004. Hosted by Sirius’ Paul Anthony, the show includes a lively discussion of the Critics’ Pick of Don Byron’s Ivey-Divey as the best of the year and an analysis of the DIY trend in jazz recording. And what would a roundtable discussion of jazz be without mention of Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center program? The guests end the show with some predictions and wishes for jazz in 2005.

Matt Abramovitz, jazz format manager for Sirius, says about the show: “Nobody has a better perspective on the year in jazz than the folks at JazzTimes magazine. With everything that’s happened on the scene in 2004-from the opening of the new space at Lincoln Center to the retirement of Dr. Billy Taylor-I’m glad that Lee, Nate, and Christian are able to give Sirius listeners the insider’s take on the jazz world, where it’s been, and where it’s headed.”

Sirius delivers more than 120 channels of commercial-free music, talk shows, news and information and sports programming to listeners across the country in digital quality sound. Sirius offers 65 channels of 100-percent commercial-free music and features over 55 channels of sports, news, talk, entertainment, traffic and weather for a monthly subscription fee of $12.95. Sirius also broadcasts live play-by-play games of the NFL and NBA, and is the Official Satellite Radio partner of the NFL. Sirius ended 2004 with 1,143,258 million subscribers, exceeding its end-of-year target of 1 million subscribers, perhaps due to the announcement that Howard Stern would move his wildly popular syndicated show to the service starting in 2006.

Pure Jazz is one of five jazz channels on Sirius; the others are Planet Jazz (eclectic modern jazz), Jazz Café (smooth jazz), Swing Street (traditional and swing jazz) and Standard Time (vocal jazz). Jazz also makes cameo appearances on other channels such as Sirius Disorder (free form radio) and Broadway’s Best (show tunes).

Those still living in the world of terrestrial radio can go to www.sirius.com and listen on a trial basis to Sirius that day.

Originally Published January 19, 2005