John Peel would have been 73 years old today. I’m not sure if some of our younger visitors would remember this legendary UK DJ but he introduced so many amazing bands into the ears of many for decades and we miss him loads.
His voice was so endearing that I found myself encapsulated, listening in to what he had to say. The bands he picked for his Radio 1 Show were so sporadic that I would sit with my tape recorder waiting for anything that sounded vaguely punk or indie and capture it for use on the way to school. He had a tendency to throw in all sorts of random music in the mix such as Reggae, African and even Hawaiian music, so I had many taped compilations of tracks that have the first bar cut off the front end! Bands such as The Smiths, Electro Hippies, Dinosaur Jr, Intense Degree, Napalm Death…the list runs as long as your arm. It was a lottery, but such a great one that no other DJ has come close to over the years.
I met him once in a tent at Glastonbury. We both stood there whilst the rain bucketed down chatting away about hardcore punk, D.O.S.E, Mark.E.Smith and much more whilst Euro 96 football played on a screen in the tent. He was a gent and had plenty of time to chat about music to anyone. Something I will never forget. Please raise your glass tonight to this man as he graced so many people like myself with quality music knowledge that no fanzine back then could deliver regularly.
John Peel RIP. You can find his archived radio shows here. Have a look and download some brilliant sessions and shows of the past as there’s some amazing stuff in here.
