Jim Fraser
born
***
Dan Williamson says:
Jim Fraser and I
attended Sunday School together at West Van United
Church in the late 50's and early 60's.
We also both lived
at the corner of
I went to school
with his sister Barbara through most of my education.
Where the heck are ya Jimmy?
Drop me a line.
I've got to get home
more often.
***
Terry Robert Fleming
says:
My friend and I
played (radio) Disk jockey right from age 7, and he is Jim Fraser one of
***
Jim Fraser - CKAY
Duncan 1969-71; CHUB Nanaimo 1971-73; p.m. drive 1973-84 and morning host
1984-94 CKWX Vancouver; morning host CJJR-FM Vancouver 1994-97; morning fill-in
CKKS-FM Vancouver 1997-99; Sea Watch CKNW Vancouver 2001; a.m. weekends/a.m. drive fill-in CKNW current
***
***
1969
On New Years Eve,
Jim Fraser made his broadcasting debut at CKAY. He stayed until 1971 and is
best known for his ten years as morning host at country powerhouse CKWX
Vancouver.
The Province 1991
Chuck Davis
The way he got the
'WX job is funny: Jim was chafing at the bit at CHUB Radio in
He liked the station
and the people, but he wanted to play music they didn't go for.
"I had an
argument with them about a song called Ruby Red Dress, by Helen Reddy. They
didn't want me to play it."
Keep that song in
mind.
Jim lets CKWX know
he's interested. Tom Peacock and Bob Bye get in a car and drive down to a beach
on Point Grey where they can pick up CHUB.
They listen to Jim
doing his show. And they hire him.
The first song he
played when he went on the air at CKWX? Of course: Ruby Red Dress.
Jim's been at CKWX
17 years, and has done the morning show for six of them (his predecessor was a
fellow named Red Robinson.)
The station puts out
50,000 watts on what's called a "clear channel," which is why they
get the occasional letter from
"Too bad it
wasn't my shift," he says.
***
The Province 1997
Leave-takings in the
radio biz are often -- usually -- marked by kamikaze tactics, shock, fury and
blood in the control room.
In contrast, over at
JR FM, morning man Jim Fraser's shuffle into the wilderness following his shift
last Friday seems to have been positively civil.
Directly after his
"I'm sad. I'm
not bitter. I'm going to miss the people I worked with and I'm certainly going
to miss the audience. Country attracts very nice people and I've had a few
years in this market so I've made some very nice acquaintances."
Fraser spent some 20
years as a country broadcaster at CKWX before that station went all news and he
was at JR a little more than two years.
"Jim has been a
large part of the growth of JR and certainly helped us
get the station to where it's at." Gerry Siemens.
"As we looked
to where we were going, we felt we needed a morning show that was a little more
compelling, that will draw the casual country and non-country listener. We felt
we needed something with a little more energy."
The rest of the
morning crew will be staying on, Tamara Stanners
included, and Fraser will be replaced by Clay St. Thomas -- late of Z-95 --
sometime toward the end of March.
Meanwhile, Jim
Fraser can start catching up on his sleep.
***
BCCMA
DJ of the Year
1978 – (Urban) – Jim
Fraser, CKWX Vancouver
1984 – Jim Fraser,
CKWX Vancouver
1986 – Jim Fraser,
CKWX Vancouver
ON AIR PERSONALITY
OF THE YEAR
1987 – Jim Fraser,
CKWX Vancouver