5fm serves up its new recipe
2002-11-26 10:40
Johannesburg - While 702 breakfast programme presenter Gareth Cliff has been roped in, Alex Jay and Phil Wright have had the chop.
And, these are only a few of the changes made by 5fm, with microphone shifts coming into effect on December 1.
The new recipe rests heavily on Mark Gillman, Ian F, Sasha Martinengo and "Just Plain Darren", who are now held up by this station as "four legends of South African radio".
They will be supplemented by "upcoming talent" like Cliff, newcomer Koula and Roger Goode, Capetonian disc jockey, musician and production leader.
Fans of Gillman, the former hit jockey of Good Hope FM in Cape Town, do not have to fear. He, Reuben Goldberg, Kevin Fine and The Prophet (Gillman's production leader) are still in the breakfast slot.
Apparently, Catherine Strydom will ensure a bit of femininity among these guys.
Jay's well-known late-morning slot will be filled by Ian F, with "contemporary and interactive radio".
Many listeners have indicated already that they will miss Jay's impressive music knowledge and rare music jewels. Mr F, therefore, has a pair of imposing shoes to fill, with more than just balderdash.
Sense of contemporary music
Despite 5fm's reference to Jay as "too old" for the station's image, he remains a pioneer who played quality music that many of his contemporaries had never even heard. It will be difficult to equal his sense of contemporary music.
Who else would, for example, dare play British rock band Gomez on 5fm? Or showcase Moby and Massive Attack long before they hit the mainstream?
Martinengo moves from his evening slot to the first afternoon slot from 12:00 to 15:00, which used to belong to Ian F.
Martinengo is followed by Just Plain Darren from 15:00 to 19:00. Darren keeps his "drive-time" time-slot with contributions by John Walland and a sports programme from 18:00 to 19:00.
Cliff is in control of matters from 19:00 to 22:00 on weekdays with a programme on which "the unexpected" will apparently surprise listeners.
Nicole Fox replaces Barney Simon in his late-night time slot from 22:00 to 01:00, but Simon will not disappear from the airwaves.
He will present a special contribution for the mosh brigade every Tuesday and Thursday evening, and also gets a chance to play South African music on Sundays.
Late-night listeners already know the voice of Dicksy, who will take over from Fox from 01:00 to 04:00. Then follows Koula, the latest addition to the 5fm presenter team, from 04:00 to 06:00.
Big Brother presenter Mark Pilgrim keeps his breakfast slot on Saturdays and Sundays from 07:00 to 10:00.
Koula will present the World Chart Show with Ursula Stapelfeldt, or rather Brown Sugar, from 10:00 to 14:00 on Saturdays. Brown Sugar's former co-host, Tony D, will join Cliff on Sundays from 10:00 to 14:00 to present the 5fm Top 40.
Roger Goode, who is also well known abroad for his hit, In the Beginning, among others, will take the reins of the dance programme from 01:00 to 04:00 on Saturdays from Derek "The Bandit".
The Bandit does not, however, lose his World of Dance time-slot at 19:00 on Saturdays. But Goode will set the pace from 23:00 on Saturday to 04:00 on Sunday with another programme filled with new dance music.
Steve Kirker will focus on listeners' requests in particular when he hosts his own programme between 04:00 and 07:00 on Saturdays and Sundays.
Barney Simon goes solo
Zuraida Jardine, the other Big Brother presenter, keeps her Saturday time-slot of 14:00 to 17:00 and will also play "smooth vibes" from 19:00 to 22:00 on Sundays.
Nicole Fox's New Sound Selection moves to an earlier time-slot on Sundays, and will be aired from 14:00 to 17:00.
Then, from 17:00 to 19:00, Barney Simon is alone behind the mike for his Modern Rock Chart and the latest on South African music.
Station programme manager Nick Grubb says there have been rumours for some time about the music format that the station will follow from December 1. But he describes it as "100% hit radio" - an ad slogan strongly reminiscent of the one by 94.7 Highveld Stereo...
Grubb says it includes pop, rock, dance, hip hop and R&B, and that the station is also a big supporter of "homemade talent".
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