| Broadcast area | United States, Canada |
|---|---|
| Frequency | Sirius XM Radio32 Dish Network 6033 |
| Format | Soft rock/Adult contemporary (1960s-1990s) |
| Class | Satellite Radio Station |
| Owner | Sirius XM Radio |
| Website | SiriusXM: The Bridge |
The Bridge is Sirius XM Satellite Radio channel devoted to gold-based soft rock and adult contemporary music. It is currently available on Sirius channel 32[1] (previously 33) and XM channel 32[2] (previously 27, where it replaced The Heart on November 12, 2008, even though The Heart was on channel 23, which became Sirius XM Love). The channel plays mainly 1970s acts such as Fleetwood Mac, James Taylor, Carole King, Jackson Browne, Jim Croce, The Eagles and Billy Joel, along with some later '80s and '90s artists like Sting, Bonnie Raitt, and others. It was basically the 1960s & 1970s counterpart of the former StarLite channel for the Sirius service before the Sirius/XM merger replaced StarLite with The Blend (which covers adult contemporary music from the 1970s-now). Since then, The Blend has eliminated most of the 1970s because The Bridge's addition to the XM service, as of September 2009.
The Bridge, originally on Sirius channel 10, has often been removed from the lineup when the service wants to devote a channel to a single artist for a period of time, such as The Rolling Stones or The Who. On September 27, 2007, it was displaced by E Street Radio, devoted to the music of Bruce Springsteen.[3] The channel could still be heard on Sirius' internet stream, however.[4] These frequent and long-lasting periods of preemption have angered many subscribers.
The Bridge returned to the Sirius satellites on June 24, 2008 on channel 12, forcing Super Shuffle to take the SIR-2 stream formerly used by The Bridge. E Street Radio will remain on channel 10 until 2009.
On November 1, 2008, channel 12 switched to Led Zeppelin Radio, with The Bridge moved to channel 33. On November 12, 2008, channel 12 became The Pulse as part of the Sirius/XM merger, moving Led Zeppelin Radio to channel 33 and forcing The Bridge to go on hiatus for the rest of the year. The Bridge returned to Sirius (and debuted on XM) on January 1, 2009. The Bridge is available on Dish Network channel 6033. As of February 9, 2010, Direct TV has dropped Sirius XM programming in favor of SonicTap.
From February 14-March 13, 2009, the channel was temporarily pre-empted for Fireman Radio, a channel devoted to the music of Paul McCartney.[5] From October 15-October 22, 2010, it was again pre-empted for Elton!, a channel devoted to the music of Elton John.[6] From November 29-December 26, 2010, The Bridge is again being pre-empted for Band on the Run Radio, another Paul McCartney oriented format.