October 11th is John Peel Day!

“I just want to hear something I have not heard before.” ~ John Peel

John Peel was best known for his Peel Sessions, something he started back in the late 60’s when he went from Pirate Radio to BBC Radio. The idea of the sessions was to expose his listeners to new, live music. He would hand pick bands to come into the studio, play a live session and archive it for his audience. Peel was a pioneer when it comes to his sessions and brought true diversity and quality to radio.

The Peel Sessions were in essence, punk rock. Peel circumvented the establishment (at that time it was the BBC) and did something that changed how people were exposed to music. On the BBC radio website you can find archives of the Peel Sessions. There are 4,000 sessions with over 2,000 bands and they range in date from the 60’s to the year of his death (2004). What a job, to be able to hear first recordings of bands like Led Zeppelin, The Wedding Present, The Fall and thousands more!! If you don’t want to go through 4,000 sessions, you can narrow it down by checking out the top 125 Peel Sessions of all time.
John Peel Day is being celebrated throughout the world on Thursday, October 11. Many bands and clubs are holding gigs and tributes in honor of one of Britain’s most beloved broadcasters. On Thursday at the Casbah, Mario Orduno (Skull Control, Art Fag Records) will be spinning records in honor of John Peel. So, no Skull Control this week! Polysics (Japan) and Numbers (S.F.) will also be playing on October 11.
John Peel died of a heart attack while on a working holiday in Peru on October 25, 2004. R.I.P.