Channel 4 has made a programme about Peel’s 140 favourite records, which he carried around with him in a box. A spokeswoman for the programme said: “It is the story of an obsessive DJ told through the treasured few records he carried with him everywhere.”
― alex in mainhattan (alex63), Monday, 10 October 2005 17:09 (eighteen years ago) link
― zebedee (zebedee), Monday, 10 October 2005 17:32 (eighteen years ago) link
― Bidfurd (Bidfurd), Monday, 10 October 2005 17:39 (eighteen years ago) link
i heart paul morley.
― alex in mainhattan (alex63), Monday, 10 October 2005 18:27 (eighteen years ago) link
― cristian ceia, Sunday, 23 October 2005 22:23 (eighteen years ago) link
― Raw Patrick (Raw Patrick), Sunday, 23 October 2005 22:30 (eighteen years ago) link
Wow lots of Jack White.
Does no-one notice a certain band conspicuous by their absence?
― mark grout (mark grout), Monday, 24 October 2005 06:55 (eighteen years ago) link
― bidfurd__, Monday, 24 October 2005 07:48 (eighteen years ago) link
― mark h (mark h), Monday, 24 October 2005 07:56 (eighteen years ago) link
Unless it's 'oh I wish that single had ten more tracks on it'.
― mark grout (mark grout), Monday, 24 October 2005 08:08 (eighteen years ago) link
Mike Spencer and the Cannibals - Nothing takes the place of youGorgeous piece of blues.
79. Quads - You've gotta jive + There must be thousandsBest 10p I ever spent. Remember him starting and finishing one of his shows with this, having only taken receipt of it that afternoon
Some Chicken - New religion + Blood on the wall (RAW RECORDS) The Users - Sick on you + I'm in love with today (RAW RECORDS)Raw Records were the in-house label of my local record shop in Cambridge, Lee Wood's Remember Those Oldies. They sold Sniffin' Glue from Issue 1 onwards, as well as imported copies of Punk magazine, all the early Stiff/Chiswick stuff, all the early punk indies, and imports such as all the Pere Ubu Hearthan singles. Amazing place, that was. The Users were the first band I ever saw live.
The Upsetters - Bucky skank + Yucky skankOh, fantastic. Truly pioneering; pre-dates even Augustus Pablo. I discovered this on the orginal 7" last year.
Also, Julie Burchill and other h8erz please note the extensive array of classic soul, especially Stanley Winston - No more ghettos in America.
― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Monday, 24 October 2005 08:41 (eighteen years ago) link
― mark grout (mark grout), Monday, 24 October 2005 08:56 (eighteen years ago) link
― kimtortoise, Monday, 24 October 2005 13:53 (eighteen years ago) link
― mark grout (mark grout), Monday, 24 October 2005 13:56 (eighteen years ago) link
i'm excited by about four of the singles on the list. zzz, whatever, wish the cult of peel would die.
― The Lex (The Lex), Monday, 24 October 2005 13:59 (eighteen years ago) link
― mark grout (mark grout), Monday, 24 October 2005 14:03 (eighteen years ago) link
― DJ Mencap (DJ Mencap), Monday, 24 October 2005 14:18 (eighteen years ago) link
most of them are before my time, to be fair. and from genres i have no enthusiasm for.
― The Lex (The Lex), Monday, 24 October 2005 14:20 (eighteen years ago) link
ha ha. i have this on tape from one of his shows in the late 80s (?). it's various songs from the wizard of oz done in a 'Stars on 45' style.
― koogs (koogs), Monday, 24 October 2005 14:41 (eighteen years ago) link
― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Monday, 24 October 2005 14:44 (eighteen years ago) link
the cat power single he chose is from her 1st album. the only one i don't have!
the buzzcocks are the only punk band on there i know. excellent band and song choice for that genre that's for sure.
i am surprised not to find any joy div, the fall and the smiths on there. didn't he like the smiths?
― alex in mainhattan (alex63), Monday, 24 October 2005 15:40 (eighteen years ago) link
― alex in mainhattan (alex63), Monday, 24 October 2005 15:45 (eighteen years ago) link
said certain band makes two appearances on his Fabric cd (ok, 1 and a half) which i think is more representative of his live sets.
might have the Golinksi Brothers thing somewhere as well. and the YMCA thing.
― koogs (koogs), Monday, 24 October 2005 16:04 (eighteen years ago) link
I'm wondering why you are feeling disapointment over the musical choices of a man whose tastes are obviously completely unknown to you?
Peel is not famous for inventing student discos. Even in the mid-80s he was more likely to play the Bhundu Boys than the Smiths. He was no more a champion of Joy Division than he was of Charlie Feathers. And dozens of his favourite bands like Bogshed, Marc Riley and the Creepers and Half Man Half Biscuit easily surpassed the Smiths in terms of airplay and sessions recorded.
As for saying it's like a "collectors" list. Errrrr. Well, firstly he WAS a collector. Secondly, "Danger -High Voltage", "9 to 5", "Down Down", "Happening Ten Years Time Ago", "Without You", "Everybody's Talking", "My Friend Jack" and lots of others on this list are familiar top 40 hits in the UK.
― everything, Monday, 24 October 2005 16:25 (eighteen years ago) link
― alex in mainhattan (alex63), Monday, 24 October 2005 16:52 (eighteen years ago) link
― TRG (TRG), Monday, 24 October 2005 17:26 (eighteen years ago) link
Ann Peebles - I can't stand the rainhttp://s53.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=0CB2I2NKE3CO227I6PYLQEMTJE
The Misunderstood - I can take you to the sunhttp://s53.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=1AUXZEX3IC62V16UCCOI66AAJ1
Yardbirds - Happenings ten years time agohttp://s53.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=0HLWUPSZL2HI80MO553AE4PQHD
The Upsetters - Bucky skank http://s53.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=12MMFIFYUQARU1ZJI5LB9NCK9S
― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Monday, 24 October 2005 21:52 (eighteen years ago) link
― TRG (TRG), Monday, 24 October 2005 22:14 (eighteen years ago) link
― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Monday, 24 October 2005 22:27 (eighteen years ago) link
Don Covay - It's better to havehttp://s40.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=3UWKNVKTQ555F33D56VT92IHWO
The Quads - There must be thousandshttp://s40.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=1YOI7FECKSE1J1UZU76DFNYQ7H(Contrary to the list in The Times, this was the actual A-side.)
Some Chicken - New religion http://s40.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=22ZJHKNAJN9LJ2MQ960POLMMFA
Stanley Winston - No more ghettos in Americahttp://s40.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=1LL6TN4LO1I7Z21OP7RD1S7GOA(Taped off an early 1980s Peel Show. History does not record precisely how JP finished the sentence at the end, but I think it might have been something to do with how the song never failed to make him cry.)
The Freshmen - You never heard anything like ithttp://s40.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=09C48W852XJOA2UK23BM7MNA26(Taped off a 1979 Peel show on a knackered cassette recorder, hence even rougher quality than Stanley Winston. When listening, bear in mind that The Freshmen were a middle aged Irish showband "doing punk".)
Mel and Tim - Starting all over againhttp://s40.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=3JZ8NPR3LNCOK09NDPCPFHHEVN
― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Monday, 24 October 2005 22:58 (eighteen years ago) link
― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Monday, 24 October 2005 23:01 (eighteen years ago) link
― TRG (TRG), Monday, 24 October 2005 23:46 (eighteen years ago) link
― alex in mainhattan (alex63), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 04:59 (eighteen years ago) link
― NickB (NickB), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 06:16 (eighteen years ago) link
The only one I'm surprised with is Nilsson's "Without You". It was number one for ages at the time, and I hated it as much as "Everything I do". Now, I can appreciate it more, without necessarily liking it. (The other Nilsson on is fant. btw)
Oh, and I am so "YEAH!" for the YSI's. THAKNS!
― mark grout (mark grout), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 07:15 (eighteen years ago) link
Golinsky Brothers:http://s37.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=3NGITRP1UY8I43T00VESKDP2GS
Galactic Symposium:http://s38.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=0ATGKR0A2GO8711EPN7L7K1TH9
i only found the squirrels track this morning so that'll have to wait...
― koogs (koogs), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 08:20 (eighteen years ago) link
― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 08:37 (eighteen years ago) link
― Colonel Poo (Colonel Poo), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 09:09 (eighteen years ago) link
― DJ Mencap (DJ Mencap), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 09:19 (eighteen years ago) link
What do you mean predates Augustus Pablo? I mean what's the significance?
― Dadaismus (Dada), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 09:21 (eighteen years ago) link
― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 09:51 (eighteen years ago) link
― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 10:04 (eighteen years ago) link
― mark grout (mark grout), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 10:05 (eighteen years ago) link
― Dadaismus (Dada), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 10:12 (eighteen years ago) link
― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 10:38 (eighteen years ago) link
alex... you hate most of these records because you've never heard of them? insane. the reason why the cult of peel is so swollen, and why people mourn his passing so much, is because he would probably have greeted a carton of 140 records he'd never heard of as a reason for celebration, because he was always interested in that which he wasn't already familiar.
the person who pointed out Peel didn't invent indie discos is my new favourite poster.
that's a weird list. the 9 white stripes singles seem too many. recently i asked someone where to start with them (5 albums yet) and that person said, they are all essential. i immediately thought fuck them then. i mean what i heard of them was ok but i'll never get 5 cds by them. if all is equally good it is also equally bad.
yeah, that doesn't make any sense to me either. but i'd say start with 'die stihl' (the 'songwriting' album) or 'get behind me satan' (my favourite, their most unhiged and also their most crafted), or track down a copy of 'handsprings', which might be the best thing they've ever done.
― foxy boxer (stevie), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 10:42 (eighteen years ago) link
― Dadaismus (Dada), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 10:43 (eighteen years ago) link
― foxy boxer (stevie), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 10:43 (eighteen years ago) link
― Tom (Groke), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 10:58 (eighteen years ago) link
― Colonel Poo (Colonel Poo), Tuesday, 25 October 2005 11:01 (eighteen years ago) link
anyhoo, Peel's Birthday today. which calls for presents.
094, the Spitout single has been found by an anonymous somebody and is available from the usual place. (currently it's a 3 track m4a but i've sent him a version of it split into mp3s so you may want to wait a while until that's up). (it's very noisy)
also, 008 Arthur K Adams has also been found (Speed Limit Records - http://speedlimit45rpm.com/) and will be available shortly.
http://www.koogy.clara.co.uk/photos/wildwood.png
5 new tracks in the last 3 days, woot. at this rate, and with 10 left to find, we'll be finished next week 8)
(oh, and, as someone said way above, i think the other side of the Electro Hippies track is You Suffer by Napalm Death:
http://www.discogs.com/release/367419was mentioned in Guardian a week or so ago as shortest single)
― Koogy Yonderboy (koogs), Wednesday, 30 August 2006 15:46 (seventeen years ago) link
― patita (patita), Wednesday, 30 August 2006 15:54 (seventeen years ago) link
Also well done Mark for going to the SOURCE.
― PJ Miller (PJ Miller 68), Wednesday, 30 August 2006 16:21 (seventeen years ago) link
6 music playing them throughout the day. O Superman and Bucky Skank so far...
― Koogy Yonderboy (koogs), Thursday, 26 October 2006 07:38 (seventeen years ago) link
― k o o g y (koogs), Monday, 30 October 2006 11:22 (seventeen years ago) link
― Elvis Telecom, Saturday, 28 April 2007 17:30 (sixteen years ago) link
― Elvis Telecom, Tuesday, 1 May 2007 20:09 (sixteen years ago) link
^ impt questions
― TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Wednesday, 26 October 2011 12:37 (twelve years ago) link
Yesterday was 7 years since he died. As MES said, "He's gone and you see all these bastards walking around..."
― Gerald McBoing-Boing, Wednesday, 26 October 2011 13:32 (twelve years ago) link
Now this is a coincidence..
I got a 'facebook friend' request for Thomas Ravenscroft, and remembered I'd mailed him about the unknown disc, "Groovy" by Dreamland express. He mailed me back saying he'd record it for me, but it never happened.
So anyway, I tried tracking down "Tickey Dopies" yesterday, and found that Eric Idle played it as part of his comedy radio show "Radio 5". Apparently, it's downloadable as "torrent".
"Series 1, episode 2" if you are interested.
― Mark G, Wednesday, 26 October 2011 14:38 (twelve years ago) link
that's great news, in fact the only news for several years.
am listening now. is partial, about 70 seconds worth... a fantastic 70 seconds though.
― koogs, Thursday, 27 October 2011 12:41 (twelve years ago) link
http://peel.wikia.com/wiki/John_Peel's_Record_Box
Some good updates (e.g. Nilsson, the suggestion that it's actually one e.p. not three singles)
― Mark G, Thursday, 27 October 2011 13:33 (twelve years ago) link
Great site, thanks!!
― Gerald McBoing-Boing, Thursday, 27 October 2011 14:12 (twelve years ago) link
ok, according to the peel yahoo group email list thing a couple of tracks have turned up on the shared shows that everyone's been posting (they bought hundreds of tapes off ebay and have been digitising them gradually) we are down to the following:
(list taken from (defunct?) http://my.opera.com/JohnPeelsRecordBox/blog/ and updated with the sipho bhengu (1992-03-14) and fireman (1992-09-25) a-sides)
A-Sides:027 Dreamland Express - Groovy
B-Sides:027 Dreamland Express - u.f.o090 Sipho Bhengu - I saluti
― koogs, Friday, 28 October 2011 12:51 (twelve years ago) link
http://peel.wikia.com/wiki/29_September_1978
This also has "Ticky Dopies", and also this was the show that played the whole of "That's Life" the first (only?) punk "concept" "rock opera" album, Sham 69.
Which means I have heard this before...
― Mark G, Friday, 25 May 2012 11:28 (eleven years ago) link
"Dreamland Express" is not "Dream Express", a euro-disco outfit from 1974 or thereabouts.
We Shall Never Know.
― Mark G, Thursday, 17 January 2013 12:42 (eleven years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-asHmCt-is
John Plays "Tickey Dopies"
― Mark G, Wednesday, 11 September 2013 13:18 (ten years ago) link
Hello folks.
I am just about finished with this project.
Let's summarise what I don't have (or you might not have)
27. Dreamland Express - Groovy + u.f.o (EMI) - This I have had no luck on finding, but I have found some possible leads as to who they were....32 Electro Hippies - Mega-armageddon Death (Peel session) - This is a Strange Fruit promo, it has "You Sexy Thing" by Cud on the other side!34 Firemen - Old Smokie / Louie's theme - This I have got via ebay, might take a month to get here.70 Nice - The thoughts of Emerlist Davjack (IMMEDIATE) - This is a one sided promo, with JPeel commantary. I do have this from a broadcast, with latter day Peel talking over it.86 Sasha Caro - Grade 3 section 2 + Little maid's song (DECCA) 1967 - I lost out on ebay last week, this is somewhat pricey and hard to find. The side 2 here is anthologised, not found side 1.90. Sipho Bhengu - Tickey dopies + I saluti (INKONKONI) 1971 - Found it!141. Yami Bolo - Richer than Cory (JAMAICA INTERNATIONAL) - On its way.
Note that the three Nilsson singles are actually just one record, a "hits" e.p. with three tracks on it.
Yeah, possibly no-one's interested but hey.
― Mark G, Friday, 20 March 2015 15:41 (nine years ago) link
(i would love a good copy of the sipho bengu.)
― koogs, Friday, 20 March 2015 17:34 (nine years ago) link
pm me, can sort it.
― Mark G, Friday, 20 March 2015 18:01 (nine years ago) link
Is the Nilsson EP thing confirmed as existing? It's not apparently on Discogs. I have an EP of Without You but the tracklisting is different (and it's also not on Discogs).
― everything, Friday, 20 March 2015 21:16 (nine years ago) link
http://www.discogs.com/Nilsson-Without-You/release/778212
― Mark G, Friday, 20 March 2015 22:28 (nine years ago) link
(have eventually sent email, mark. was waiting until i was back in front of proper computer)
― koogs, Monday, 23 March 2015 10:00 (nine years ago) link
look now.
― Mark G, Monday, 23 March 2015 10:38 (nine years ago) link
Just found my "Pop a top" b-side "The Lion Speaks" Rico, cuts at one minute in.
Does anyone have the full version?
― Mark G, Monday, 23 March 2015 10:39 (nine years ago) link
probably, somewhere.
― koogs, Monday, 23 March 2015 10:51 (nine years ago) link
those sipho bhengu tracks are both from a compilation mentioned here: http://electricjive.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/thala-thala-1971.html
― koogs, Monday, 23 March 2015 11:33 (nine years ago) link
Yes, I think that's where I got the tracks from.
― Mark G, Monday, 23 March 2015 11:36 (nine years ago) link
http://danger-man.co.uk/rickminas.asp
I can't try it here, but it seems to be a link to the Sasha Caro tracks...
― Mark G, Wednesday, 25 March 2015 16:44 (nine years ago) link
Yes, links are live. I think we had at least one of those before.
― koogs, Wednesday, 25 March 2015 17:35 (nine years ago) link
Well, that's the lot either accounted for or on its way!
Except for Dreamland Express...
― Mark G, Wednesday, 25 March 2015 18:23 (nine years ago) link
Aside from the Dreamland Express tracks and the Firemen, "Old Smokie", I know have an mp3 of everything on the list.
Mark G, were you able to track down Firemen, "Old Smokie"?
― ChuckyG, Wednesday, 2 September 2015 12:35 (eight years ago) link
Yes I did. I actually managed to get a decent copy off Ebay.
Funny, this is the single that JP managed to destroy by dropping it down the back of a fridge, or some such, and all he could do was to ask his listeners to track him down a new one.
So, drop me a line..
― Mark G, Wednesday, 2 September 2015 12:45 (eight years ago) link
He never did, you know..
― Mark G, Wednesday, 17 February 2016 06:52 (eight years ago) link
What's the deal with Dreamland Express? Any leads on whether it's real or just a total mystery?
― everything, Wednesday, 17 February 2016 18:03 (eight years ago) link
I found a gig flyer with Fairport Convention and Dreamland Express, but more than that, no.
― Mark G, Wednesday, 17 February 2016 18:07 (eight years ago) link
...which also had John Peel on the bill, right?
― everything, Wednesday, 17 February 2016 18:09 (eight years ago) link
http://www.marmalade-skies.co.uk/middleearth3sep67.jpg
― everything, Wednesday, 17 February 2016 18:11 (eight years ago) link
One of these days, I'll get Tom Ravenscroft back on the case...
― Mark G, Saturday, 6 July 2019 12:31 (four years ago) link
Hi all, My Covid lockdown project has been John Peel's record box. I've come pretty close to getting them all. I need I'm not Drinking More - Al Ferrier and Ticky Dopies/ I Saluti - Sipho Bhengu, and , of course, Dreamland Express - I think I saw somewhere that John Peel may have played the Dreamland Express tunes on his show. Is that true? Mark G, I see from a post about 5 years ago that you got hold of the Sipho Bhengu. I would dearly love to have copies of these tracks (and the rest of the Thala Thala compilation album)
If Mark G or anyone else can help me with these last few tunes that would be great. Does anyone else need any from the list?
― Alexrob, Tuesday, 30 June 2020 15:41 (three years ago) link
Just sent you a Webmail with a link to the Al Ferrier song.
― city worker, Tuesday, 30 June 2020 16:49 (three years ago) link
And..
― Mark G, Tuesday, 30 June 2020 17:17 (three years ago) link
city worker - thank you so much. I had kind of resigned myself to failure, or at the very least a long long wait to find that. Do you have any gaps in your collection? Who knows, I moght have something you're after. You're welocme to any music I have.
― Alexrob, Tuesday, 30 June 2020 23:00 (three years ago) link
Mark G, Hi. Did you send a weblink as well? It hasn't come through to me.... I have to say, I'm amazed and delighted to get these responses.
― Alexrob, Tuesday, 30 June 2020 23:02 (three years ago) link
Hi,
Not as yet, but.
― Mark G, Wednesday, 1 July 2020 06:26 (three years ago) link
Listening to Peel's intro to a 1973 Be Bop Deluxe session and it's striking how different his on-air voice is from later years. He's even more lugubrious and deep-voiced in 1973. Anyone know if the change was intentional or just something that gradually happened?
― Gerald McBoing-Boing, Wednesday, 22 July 2020 19:27 (three years ago) link
He definitely tried his hardest to distance himself from his fluty-voiced public school hippy persona of the late 60s, I didn't know he was doing it as early as '73 though.
― Sonny Shamrock (Tom D.), Wednesday, 22 July 2020 19:36 (three years ago) link
I think Marc Bolan broke his hippy heart tbh.
coulda been bowie
― Kate (rushomancy), Wednesday, 22 July 2020 19:37 (three years ago) link
I have a theory that when he was in the process of trying to lose his hippy trappings he based a lot of his vocal mannerisms on John Walters, his producer, they could sound very similar.
― Sonny Shamrock (Tom D.), Wednesday, 22 July 2020 19:43 (three years ago) link