Listening to some of the fun, joyous, and decidedly up-tempo songs on Darren Rahn's new CD a thought crosses my mind: the line between reinvention and regression is right here. If a station cannot play a song like "One Step Ahead," "Flashback," or "Into the Light," (with the guitar solo intact) then we will end up being relegated to the sound systems at assisted living facilities and geriatric specialist's offices.  Possibly not even there, because the likes of Steve Tyler and Mick Jagger are sixty-something and I can't quite see them or their boomer compatriots searching for soundtrack that induces narcolepsy.

A significant chunk of the smooth jazz community - both industry and fans - are grasping at straws picked up from another era. They are actually hoping to revitalize the genre from a perspective that is also from another era. That isn't going to work. A few broadcast stations have either managed to hang on to the format or even bring it back. When they do we see it as cause for celebration without looking deeper or asking how it will impact the growth of the music or nurture a wider and more advertiser-friendly audience.

Let's look closely at some of the survivors and upstarts on the FM band. Its “same old same old” for the most part, even with the stations that have just returned the music to the airwaves. The situation is rather alarming. Most stations post their playlists online now so it was easy to pull them up and check out what they were doing. Albuquerque’s new smoothie, The Oasis, doesn't post theirs yet but I spot-listened to their stream for a few hours or so.  I will give them credit for not anchoring their sound on those worn out pop crossover vocals, but
all the songs were really slow and they rarely played anything from this century. Clear Channel's new WLOQ Orlando - launched when the heritage jazzer of the same name was sold and changed formats - is equally mired in the distant past. You would be lucky to hear one new release in an hour. Anything that came out after 1999 was almost as rare. XM Watercolors played a little bit more recent music - say, two or three an hour with one or two current tracks in the mix sometimes and everything was slow and riffy. While this does give the artists some exposure it does nothing to showcase their recent work, or even let listeners know it is out there. Featuring only the slowest or most formula driven tracks on the CD also does the artists and music a disservice - it makes the audience that they haven't reached yet believe that  the whole genre is made up of unexciting, "old peoples music."

Some of the smaller independent internet broadcasters are beginning to break the spell but a lot of them cut their teeth listening to the traditional radio format right before it started to slide so that is their role model. Programmers transitioning from on-air to online find that old habits die hard. They also bring a fear of stretching the boundaries from their years in corporate radio. Fear that it might run off listeners, which will cut ad revenue. The catch here is that advertisers don't want to make buys if the majority of the audience is over 54 years of age, even if there are a lot of people listening. The 55-64 demographic is eroding too because every year a new group enters from the bottom that has even less interest in a total easy listening format.

Why is there so much fear of 21st century contemporary/smooth jazz? Why is there so much fear of a little bit of tempo? Is it because the original radio format backed off currents in 2000 and got even more oldie oriented as it started to fade, leaving no "tested" or "hit" songs for the old liners to trust? Is it because 20 years of focus on relaxation has made it part of our DNA? There has been so much thrilling, exciting, music released over the last 12 years. The last few years have even been better as artists were freed from having to deliver music that fit one radio consultant's formula. Now they are playing for you, but if you don't get to hear them how will you know that? If there is no evolution beyond the easy listening approach of the late 90's how can we lure in new fans who may like to be soothed by a groove but don't want background music designed for their grandparents' generation.

Axioms come to mind like “Change it or lose it," and "If you keep doing what you're doing you'll keep getting what you're getting." It's not a matter of playing nonstop new music or blasting one a series of in-your-face tracks. It's always a game of mix and balance. Right now the balance has shifted too far to one side. It's time to rethink the rules and dump the ones that no longer work. If the staid, conservative NFL team owners can meet once
a year to evaluate and change the rules of their game our growing community should be able to step out and
add some vitality to the way we approach our presentation of this music. Every tentative baby step in that direction will contribute to the growth of the music and the fan base that supports it. The music is there. Time to step up to the plate and play it!