John Peel. Will BBC radio realise what they've lost?

The BBC so obviously understand what they lost that yesterday a certain DJ was playing Atmosphere and claiming it as Peels' favourite song! If they knew what they had they wouldn't have spent fifteen years trying to marginalise him in the schedules I suspect.

My own thought is that, if you put aside the influence he had on you personally and your tastes and what a genuinely nice person he appears to have been, the thing that actually distinguished him from all the rest and made him utterly unique was not, as has been claimed elsehwhere, that he was near the cutting edge, or that he championed quality music, or even that his taste was so broad. It was simply that, whilst he had his own opinions of good and bad, he tended to put those aside to let people make up their own mind.

I have never heard such appalling music as I heard on the Peel shows but equally he didn't censor that. He let me make up my own mind. All the Kershaws, Radcliffes etc. love music but that is the one thing they have never been able to do. What others give you is their version of good music. Peels version was that all music is good and that it wasn't his job to determine what was good for other people to listen to. THAT, above ALL else, was what truly made him unique.

God bless Peely.

Bless his kind heart and lovely voice - if he was an atheist he knows better now, and he'll be well looked after!

John Peel's passing did prompt me to wonder what Radio 1 will do now. Whilst he was around I suppose they felt obliged to give airplay to obscure acts of whatever calibre. Will that continue? Moreover will Radio 1 now feel 'freed up' to give up on 'cutting edge' music altogether, now that they no longer have a 'big name' to champion their cause? Instead might they go unashamedly mainstream and concentrate on squabbling for ratings with the commercial stations?

jon

We will not see his like again. He comes from an era of DJ's who played for the people, the new music that excited them and not market research driven 'playlists'.

It is in a way, remarkable that he survived in the 'establishment' BBC. A testament to his charming, humourous and intelligent reasoning I imagine.

How many other popular music DJ's have the range of broadcasting enthusiasm and ability that JP brought to 'Home Truths'?

Did you see Andy Kershaw on 'The Six'? The media normally wheel people out to make the right noises on these occasions, but the poor guy looked genuinely shell shocked.

That said it all.

John.

Mike is right - there were periods (e.g. the early eighties) when the industry in general and the BBC in particular were quite content to maginalise Peel, leaving him in his graveyard slot with his listeners.

There is something slightly depressing about R1's coverage and 'tributes'. I thought the Lamacq choices on last night's show were safe in the extreme (if he played any Fall or Beefheart he must have played them very early on - because I didn't hear any).

I left the radio tuned to R1, so instead of the sonourous tones of the Today Programme, the less sonourous tones of that twat Moyles woke me up. They were all having a snigger about trying to set fire to Peel at an Xams party, rapidly pointing out that obviously they thought he was a really great guy.

Perhaps there is a happy irony in that Peel, because of his longevity and loyal following, had a profound effect not just on music radio, but on music in general - while the vast majority of BBC pap-product DJs are happily forgotten quite quickly.

Tim

"You never know how good something was until you lost it......"

For me, this sums up John Peel. He played music I loved, music I hated, made me laugh and made me sad - very often in the same programme.

He championed new bands and always challenged "the norm" musically.

Sadly missed and fondly remembered.

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Originally posted by Mike Hughes:
The BBC so obviously understand what they lost that yesterday a certain DJ was playing Atmosphere and claiming it as Peels' favourite song!

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Peels' actual favourite tune was "Teenage Kicks" by the Undertones.

Actually IIRC Peelies favourite song of all time was "I'm a Lonesome Fugitive" by Liz and Casey Anderson.



P

All I can say is thanks John, after listening to you for over 35 years I heard some great music and experienced some great vibes with you, thankyou.

May yor God be with you.

Love and peace,

Richard

I thought that Roger McGough (and the production team and contributors) handled "Home Truths" this morning rather well.

Not least because it made you realise just how good he was at putting people at their ease. Won't be the same without him.

Bhazan and P.

It was deffo Teenage Kicks and I was being sarcastic.

Mike

OK. Teenage Kicks may have been his much publicised favorite record but I'm a Lonesome Fugitive was his favourite song.
The song he sang in the shower.

A little known fact but true nonetheless

P

Everyone always says Teenage Kicks was John's favourite track. Anyone know why when he did his top 50 alltime Festive 50 tracks in 2000 he put Atmosphere at No1 ahead of it? Can't remember listening to that show.

I didn't know he even liked Russ Abbott

Jonathan

P,

You've lost me on that one sir. Teenage Kicks was a single song and not an album. Both songs and tracks are interchangeable terms for what goes on vinyl, cd etc. Therefore, it would be the same as a song, would it not???

Peel himself explained his festive fifty choice as being just that. A compilation of the favourite things he had played over the years but not necessarily in the order he would have played them or like them. In other words, he had taken account of other people's views etc.

He did also point out that what he sang in the shower was tempered to the extent it might sound ludicrous, thus, no Teenage Kicks by a middle aged man with teenagers at home.

There, that was simple. Anything else?

Mike

I wonder how many of us could actualy name one single all time favorite track... and then stick to it... I tend to have several favorites which change dependant on mood and circumstances...

As for JP, in my growing up years he was always the ultimate in coolness, and like others have mentioned had the ability to present music unjudged..

Sometimes I just want to give up!!!

How can anyone dare to suggest that Teenage Kicks was not very good? What else is your hi-fi for?

Sigh!!!

Mike

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Or can we now expect nothing other than the Children's TV presenters and Streetwise Urban types that seem to be the norm now for peak time listening.

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Just read that someone called Rob Da Bank is to take over the Peel slot for the forseeable future. I assume from the name he is one of the "Streetwise Urban types" I prophesised at the outset of this thread. Do I start despairing now or wait and see?

Jonathan

Shayman - I've got a pal - also Called Andrew -who's a John Peel expert and reckons this guy, Rob Da Bank (good name eh) is a Peel protege.

I've got a feeling that many of the BBC suits would like to quietly drop some of the 'difficult new music' and just concentrate on pleasing the crowd.

Andy