Keeping It Peel
I have prepared the above Spotify playlist to commemorate the day which has come to be known internationally as John Peel Day. It pleases me that this dedicated 24 hours seems to gain increasing notability every year, what with numerous gigs nationwide, as well as plenty of activity online – so here’s me contributing in my own small way.
I was a big Peel fan, particularly between the years of 2000 and 2003 when I sought to listen to all his weekly shows until I moved to a room down a Penryn valley with no radio reception. Since his death in 2004 I have spent many hours scouring the internet for downloadable shows and sessions, but this list certainly reflects the turn of the millennium more than any other period – and I still listen to most of these artists and their offshoots as much now (and often more) than I did then.
Melt-Banana – Free The Bee: Noise melting Peel favourites from Japan who recorded a number of sessions and were included in The Festive Fifty a good few times. My introduction to them came post-Peel, but I’m well aware that their introduction to UK audiences was largely down to him – and this track, taken from Teeny Shiny, became a set staple.
The Quadrajets – All My Rowdy Friends Are Dead: A Peel introduction to me. In early 2003 I won a competition to watch The Immortal Lee County Killers do a session at Maida Vale. The Quadrajets were the earlier band of lead singer, Chet Weise, and I remember Peel blasting them out of the speakers while ILCK set up and we drunk beers. ILCK ruled, and afterwards, Peel being the perfect gentlemen, offered me and my girlfriend a lift to where we were staying. I’ll never forgive myself for declining the offer, but it wasn’t necessary at all. Nor did it seem necessary to ask for an autograph or a photo or any of that usual stuff you do when you meet your hero. And on reflection, I think that’s kind of cool.
The Mountain Goats – Family Happiness: I remember Peel playing this (it must have been 2000) and being compelled to try out this new thing, Napster, to see if I could find the track on there. I did, waited for about two hours for it to download, and my love affair with The Mountain Goats is still strong today.
Pavement – ...And Carrot Rope: Again, I remember Peel playing this and talking to my friends about Pavement at school the following day. Shortly afterwards I bought Terror Twilight then Brighten The Corners then Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain and then... Pavement split up.
The Fall – Industrial Estate (Peel Session 15/6/78): Seeing as The Fall did, pretty much, a Peel session a year, I’m sure I caught a few as they were aired. I won’t state the obvious to say the Rough Trade box-set compiling all of them is fantastic – and this is taken from that.
The Wedding Present – Crushed: Although The Wedding Present are playing all over the world these days, at the turn of the millennium they were on something of a hiatus and lead singer, David Gedge (who makes a great appearance on John Peel’s This Is Your Life episode), was in Cinerama. Still, it was at around this time that my best friend played me Bizarro and I came to learn about the world according to Gedge – thus making the connection with Cinerama, this band which Peel played as if it was some religious duty.
The 90 Day Men – From One Prima Donna To Another: Another Peel introduction which led me to hunt down The 90 Day Men on Napster. I regret not seeing them when they played in Exeter all those years ago – and something tells me they aren’t the kind of band to reunite.
Half Man Half Biscuit – Irk The Purists: A Peel favourite and a track with a message to live by. I remember thinking they had about the stupidest name I’d ever heard, which made me instantly curious.
Baby Dee – When I Get Home: My introduction to Baby Dee was sort of indirectly through Peel. The Mountain Goats covered this song during a session in 2002 or 2003 – and I’ve come to love both versions.
Venetian Snares – Dollmaker: Of course, Peel was a big champion of underground electronic music including those who make up the rosters of Planet Mu and Warp. Venetian Snares was no exception, and although it no doubt went over my head at the time, I came to love Venetian Snares post-Peel and love it when he crops up when going back over torrents of old shows.
Aphex Twin – Come To Daddy (Pappy Mix): My favourite Aphex/Peel memory is when the two met for an interview at Cornwall’s Gwennap Pit for the Channel 4 show Sounds of the Suburbs. I remember unearthing the Cornwall episode in UCF’s video library when I was a student and its brilliant to see Peel walking around all these places on my doorstep talking about music, sound, poetry, art and how weird we are down here. I like to think he’d have the same response were he able to visit again.
Lightning Bolt – 13 Monsters: More noise-making from this duo who Peel invited for a session after they played ATP. I believe I missed the session because I was living in that reception-less Penryn valley at the time.
The Bug – The Director: Although Peel was a fan of The Bug, it was his producer who introduced me to him/them when up visiting for the Immortal Lee County Killers session.
Tarwater – Miracle Electric @ John Peel Session: Obligatory German electronica (side-project of To Rococo Rot) who I’ve come to be quite obsessed with recently (and they’ve just had a new record out).
Butthole Surfers – Edgar: My favourite band. Butthole Surfers did two Peel sessions and a rough early version of this (titled EDG) appeared during one of them. It’s also worth reading Peel’s review of an early Buttholes show in the book The Olivetti Chronicles. (It basically sounds like the best gig ever.)
Nocturnal Emissions – Fons: A recent discovery for me. I read an interview with Nocturnal’s Nigel Ayres in which he talks about Peel’s influence on him during the early 80s – and basically hearing punk, reggae, industrial, metal etc all in one place. Listening to the Nocturnal Emissions stuff that followed, it’s no wonder Peel came to champion him too.
Ivor Cutler – Pass The Ball Jim (for John Peel): A great little dedication to Peel and his love of football.
Lightnin’ Hopkins – You’re Gonna Miss Me: Included because of the obsession with blues which was occurring during the time I listened to Peel most (what with the explosion of The White Stripes et al.). Peel was keen to remind us of where it all started, though, and this Lightnin’ lament on loss seemed pretty damn apt.
