[LenGroat]

I am 'drawn out of Exile' to reveal that the GEM name is once again to be heard in the 'Great East Midlands!

As Radio Today reports:

Heart 106 in the East Midlands is to rebrand as Gem106, as owners Orion Media free themselves of a franchise agreement with Global Radio.

News of the re-launch comes just weeks after the station enjoyed its highest ever audience figures, with almost half a million listeners.

GEM AM was last heard in the East Midlands in 2007, when Global Radio changed the name of Classic Gold GEM to “Gold”. It was the name of the oldies station which started broadcasting in 1988, as a secondary service to Trent FM.

Heart will rebrand to GEM on the same day that Trent FM changes its name to Capital FM as part of a nationwide roll-out.

I particularly like the sweet irony of the last part, which I have underlined.

Orion's David Lloyd, did the OB which launched GEM-AM in 1988 ….

I wait with 'bated ears' to hear the jingles, and which ex-East Midlands 'Trent' and 'GEM' presenters appear on the station.

[MikeBrown]

Good news on the name, but gem106.co.uk says they'll be playing “…Olly Murs and Alicia Keys; Katy Perry and Take That”. I'd like to have heard something different. If the music is the same as the rest of the orion bunch then I reckon it'll be resings of the Wise Buddah jingles to match.

[jingle fan]

Hey perhaps the penny has dropped that we don't want blanket coverage of Heart and that local identity might be coming back. A positive step in the right direction.

[Barras]

This is great news Len and really it had to be you to announce this…

Just listening to some of the Gem AM jingles and if you sing “Gem 106” over the station ID bit, it does work, here`s some cuts which I`ve montaged together and deliberately called the file Gem 106 as a jingle precognition !

http://jinglemad.com/e107_files/public/1289325829_3680_FT83077_gem_106.mp3 filename:gem_106.mp3

[mbMember]

This is great news. I am keeping my fingers crossed for them and also laughing my socks off at global who are clearly rattled by the move judging from the reaction of their spokesperson. And it does leave a big regional hole in their “national” station.
I do however think GEM 106 may be a different creature from “solid gold GEM” -It has to be – we’re 20 years on judging from the music on the site it’s going to be very much like the currently very successful Heart. I’m not sure we’ll be smooth sailing with the highly successful sound….
However there is clearly a heritage and vibe that they wanted to create.
With Trent going to Capital it can clearly big up it’s localness and seems to be planning a lot more local content than the current Heart. So will it be a new jingle package or a resing of their softer Orion package for Wyvern?
It’s a bold move and there is no doubt interesting times ahead on Jan 1st in the Great East Midlands.
I suspect they’ll be looking to hold onto the current Heart listeners but attract the older disaffected Trent listeners.

[SeanMartin]

Very eloquent, Michael.

-Sean

[GlennaMember]

Its not who will; but who should.

[aaronhudson1981]

great news – look forward to see what happens!!

just thought I would share a wee montage of GEM/CLassic Gold GEM jingles towards the end of their days 1st time around – not shared in a while
Best
Kool

http://jinglemad.com/e107_files/public/1289435764_9872_FT83077_cgg_montage.mp3 filename:cgg_montage.mp3

[IainJohnstonMember]

I note that a wag on DigitalSpy has said that in the run-up to the change, they should have some jingles sung as “That WAS Heart, That WAS Heart!” to parody the existing Global ones.

Any JM “cut-and-splice” experts up for a “sample” or two (as with R1 Tonic the other day)?
:^)

[MartinS]

Interesting name given that the coverage area is not as “great” as the East Midlands region, which will still see Global's Heart in the region the old Northants 96 station.

[LenGroat]

Thanks for the various comments; it's good to have diversity of thoughts and opinions freely expressed! Of course it won't be 'Solid Gold' but I'm sure it will be more LOCAL, and I suspect some former GEM and Trent presenters might appear.

With Radio 2 using jingles by 3 or 4 different companies the 'powers that be' at the new GEM could easily follow suit and produce some JAM jingles that would be nostalgic to the former GEM-AM listeners, which would not detract from the other idents?

As regards 'Great East Midlands' it is not a set geographical region. I coined the term to conjur-up in the mind of the listener the idea of a cohesive region to cover Nottingham, Leicester and Derby, the 3 'Trent station' areas, which GEM took the AM services of in 1988. It worked ~ as in the peak years of '91 to '93 the Nottingham and Derby services had up to 24% weekly reach.

The Heart that replaced Northants 96 has on its website 'The station for the Home Counties', and I do not recall the station being associated in any way with the East Midlands region.

Len

[sarahfalty]

http://www.jinglenews.com/audio/2010/wb_RADIO_3I_MONTAGE%5B2%5D.mp3 <---- I think they will order that one, fits perfecto aswell!

[Barras]

Faulty wrote:
http://www.jinglenews.com/audio/2010/wb_RADIO_3I_MONTAGE%5B2%5D.mp3 <---- I think they will order that one, fits perfecto aswell!

http://jinglemad.com/e107_files/public/1289746316_3680_FT83077_nick_abott_fx_16_what.mp3 filename:nick_abott_fx_16_what.mp3

[mbMember]

Kool wrote:
great news – look forward to see what happens!!

just thought I would share a wee montage of GEM/CLassic Gold GEM jingles towards the end of their days 1st time around – not shared in a while
Best
Kool

http://jinglemad.com/e107_files/public/1289435764_9872_FT83077_cgg_montage.mp3 filename:cgg_montage.mp3

Thanks for posting always interesting to hear imaging I've not heard before. Is it me or did they drag someone off the street to voice those? I'm not adverse to sweepers but they have to be classy. Those just about natch the quality of the v/o done by the tfm receptionist a few years ago. Lets hope that GEM launch with something classy bright and fun. would love an update to the WB BRMB package the last Orion packages were awsome, some of the best jingle work I've heard in the last decade.

[Barras]

Michael Bolton wrote:
Is it me or did they drag someone off the street to voice those? I'm not adverse to sweepers but they have to be classy. Those just about natch the quality of the v/o done by the tfm receptionist a few years ago.

Not really, that`s the voice of Danny Petroni who`s worked on-air at several UK commercial stations and done lots of voice work…

[mbMember]

I didn't recognise him, no disrespect to DP – he's great on air as a presenter but those sound disjointed and don't really have the flow of a great station sweeper – But then I don't know what direction was given and often the results are a result of the producers instructions.
Unless the instruction from the producer was “sound bored”
I still stand by my view that as production they sound pretty poor compared to a lot of imaging. You'd have thought that a national Gold station ( that GEM was part of ) could have had some really great imaging.

[RjM]

Faulty wrote:
http://www.jinglenews.com/audio/2010/wb_RADIO_3I_MONTAGE%5B2%5D.mp3 <---- I think they will order that one, fits perfecto aswell!

Aside from being more of a CHR package, it's also a re-sing of the BRMB custom package which is also an Orion station.

If Orion are going to stick with Wise Buddah I'd love to hear the Boom 97.3 package re-sung somewhere in the UK. The logo might be an awkward fit for GEM 106 though.

[LenGroat]

I have to say that those 'sweepers' are VERY late GEM and almost certainly made AFTER after Paul Robey left ~ he took over running the station when I left. They have NOTHING to do with the 'spirit' and style that made GEM a great and successful radio station.

As regards Wise Buddah making the package I suspect that may be the case, they are probably being sung as I type !? However, as I said above:

With Radio 2 using jingles by 3 or 4 different companies the 'powers that be' at the new GEM could easily follow suit and produce some JAM jingles that would be nostalgic to the former GEM-AM listeners, which would not detract from the other idents?

Whatever happens it will certainly be a better year for listeners in the Great East Midlands!

Len

[sarahfalty]

RjM wrote:

http://www.jinglenews.com/audio/2010/wb_RADIO_3I_MONTAGE%5B2%5D.mp3 <---- I think they will order that one, fits perfecto aswell!

Aside from being more of a CHR package, it's also a re-sing of the BRMB custom package which is also an Orion station.

If Orion are going to stick with Wise Buddah I'd love to hear the Boom 97.3 package re-sung somewhere in the UK. The logo might be an awkward fit for GEM 106 though.

Oh cool! I like the Boom package aswell, Gem 106 might fit that OK

[LenGroat]

A quick update – a 'little Wise Birdy' told me the tracks were being made as I wrote last time, the vocals are actually being done by the first week of December…

[IainJohnstonMember]

“Wise Birdy” must therefore = W.B. then?

[LenGroat]

.. what a Wise Wixy you are… !

Ironically, as the new jingles for GEM 106 are being made, tonight ex 'Radio Trent' Nottingham and Derby staff (many who also worked on the original GEM-AM) met at Nottingham Castle. It was for a 'goodbye Soiree' to Radio Trent which 'dies' in January, just as the new GEM is 'born'.

The event was private 'party', organised by Trent affecianados, and copies of a 'visual and audio' look-back over 35 years of 'Radio Trent' will soon be collectors items…

Len

[ah-mediaMember]

Firstly, really pleased to hear what is happening with GEM and look forward to the re-launch.

I've just been up in the Midlands for a few days and spent some time in the car listening to Mercia and I have to say how different this station sounds now.

The presentation is really relaxed and the jingles really do work – although the WB website has jingles just sung as “Coventry” , the on-air versions say “Coventry and Warwickshire”.

It's a world away from the dull GCap days when I vowed never to retune to the station.
I think that the re-birth of GEM is in very safe hands!

http://jinglemad.com/e107_files/public/1291117115_3702_FT83077_coventry_and_warwickshire.mp3 filename:coventry_and_warwickshire.mp3

http://jinglemad.com/e107_files/
public/1291117115_3702_FT83077_coventry_warwickshire.mp3 filename:coventry_warwickshire.mp3

http://jinglemad.com/e107_files/public/1291117115_3702_FT83077_97__102.9_made_for_cw_.mp3 filename:97__102.9_made_for_cw_.mp3

[IainJohnstonMember]

Andy, your middle file there is doing a “Not Found”.
Do you perhaps want to re-try loading it?

[ah-mediaMember]

Hi all –

Thanks for point that out Iain .. Was working earlier

http://jinglemad.com/e107_files/public/1291131630_3702_FT83077_coventry_warwickshire.mp3 filename:coventry_warwickshire.mp3

[Author]

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