Jazz background music of Weather Channel on CD

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Umbrella? Check. Galoshes? Got 'em. Scarf? Sure thing.

Smooth jazz? In the CD player.

The Weather Channel released its first CD this fall: "The Weather Channel Presents: The Best of Smooth Jazz."

Think of the 12 tunes as a soundtrack to the elements. Some are hot and sultry, others cool and crisp. Some are sunny, some blue.

The songs are among the channel's most requested selections and play during the forecast fixture "Local on the 8s" that airs six times an hour. It's the cue that draws you to the TV set when you want to find out if you should take along that jacket when you leave home.

While the disc features jazz artists such as Chick Corea, Jeff Lorber, Dave Koz and Najee, not all the music played on "Local on the 8s" is jazz. Sometimes it's light rock or holiday tunes. But most all of it's instrumental.

"We tested some vocals, but the consumers didn't like it," says Shari Pace, vice president of licensing for the cable channel. "When I travel to a different city and have the Weather Channel on, the music is comforting to me. I like the calmness of it. When there are vocals with it, it changes."

Released in October on Nashville-based Midas Records, the CD is available online and at Barnes & Noble and other retail stores. It's currently No. 2 on Billboard magazine's contemporary jazz chart.