I can’t quite wrap my head around the fact that it’s just over twenty years since we lost the great John Peel. For anyone at all interested in music beyond the mainstream- from glam to punk to drum ‘n’ bass, Peel championed all of it. It’s hard to imagine the musical landscape without his legacy these days.
6Music took up the mantle- indeed his son Tom Ravenscroft presents his ‘New Music Fix’ alongside Deb Grant- and is a pioneer in playing stuff you won’t often hear elsewhere, but he was the original, the true trailblazer, playing Captain Beefheart in the sixties when everyone thought that was just unlistenable, The Fall in the late seventies, and hardcore techno in the eighties. Without him, we wouldn’t have the Spotify generation, which is all about embracing different genres, regardless of popularity.
His was a real eclectic mixture. One minute, some insane electronic experimentation from Aphex Twin, the next, mellifluous African guitars from Four Brothers, and a soupcon of fifties rockabilly. He used to despair at the results of his annual Festive 50, bemoaning the dominance of “white indie guitar boys” and a lack of diversity. He was always more inclusive than often painted.
Sure, when he died, there was “a minute’s noise” played for him, but Peel was all about the other, the stuff that was sidelined, the stuff that nobody else care for- no matter how badly recorded, obscure or strange. Plus, he was absolutely hilarious, a droll voice in a beige, soundbite- ready industry. Stick on your vinyl, play it at the wrong speed, and drink a toast to the wee man with the big record collection. We owe him so much. RIP, Peely.
Picture: BBC Archive
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