Favourite John Peel quotes

Does anyone else remember the show where he was talking about the surprise (50th, I think) birthday party and he was saying how Sheila had arranged for a band - I think it might have been the Four Brothers - to play, and he got almost tearful, then played 'Sheila Take a Bow' by The Smiths?

During his Radio 1 1993 daytime stint, I remember he was forced to play some playlist records, one of which was by Go West. He said something like "that was by 'Go West'. [pause]. I wish they would".

I had been listening to John Peel since circa 1974, and cannot recall the amusing observations that he made, because there were so many lf them; although the following items do come to mind.
He once metioned going to his car in a car park, and being heckled a group of young men who had recognised him and kept calling out his name. He then reminisced "...it's at times like these that you just want to open up the boot of your car, and pull out the Uzi 9mm...dont you?"
Peely had played a number of tracks, over a period of time, by a band called 'The Ukranians'. They were a band made up of David Gedge and, I believe other members of 'The Wedding Present' – the sound they produced was similar to the theme music of Radio 4's 'Home Truths' (if that helps you). On reading out, from the LP, the list of the band's members names, he proceded to produce, in a slightly sarcastic tones a list of rather unbelieveable people. I cannot remember all of them, but 'conversation' went something like this: "...and on lead guitar is 'Roman Remains' ..." slight pause "...I think we should possibly take these 'names' with a pinch of salt...".

His remark regarding Crispy Ambulance's choice of a band name:

"They sound a bit like...a sortof folk band, you'd imagine a folk band would be called Crispy Ambulance because they're always called things like '2,000 Megaton Turnip' and things like that."

Just before playing Killing Joke's Psyche...
"Hark I hear the cry of the meadow pipit..."

During Festive 50 just after James Sit Down.

"Bob Harris is preparing himself for later frenzied acitivity
on Radio One FM after the 10:30 news
and I'm sure he's probably listening to the show
at this VERY MOMENNT."

The time that he referred to some foreign dignitary on Home Truths. The start of the dignitary's name was countless hundreds of 'Sri's' Peel read them out and speeded up the tape till his voice was a galloping mutant cartoon squeak "srisrisrisrisri...." ad infinitum. One of the funniest, weirdest radio moments I've experienced. bless him.

From an mp3 http://www.fistoffun.net/downloads.htm
I think its from hit the north, with Peel standing in for Mark Radcliffe in oct 96:

'That was Hank Williams though, with 'when god comes and gathers his jewels' and I suspect that in popular newspaper parlance that probably these days means testicles but I don't think thats what hank williams had in mind when he wrote the song'

Priceless

I think the thing about John as a presenter was that he wasn't 'a radio presenter'. He was still himself on the radio, not some kind of watered down, anodyne version.
Death to profesionalism.

On the prog rock top 20 (or something like that)that was shown on Channel 4. "ELP, a waste of talent and electricity"

Wonderful, witty stuff here, including his dissing of musicians I happen to enjoy. (Or more precisely, people whose MUSIC I happen to enjoy.) Too bad I never got to hear the man's programme in real time. No doubt many of we North Americans feel the same.

Can't believe I've only found this today!

Best one I remember was, during a Festive 50 in the early 90s, John announced that our local transmitter was going to be out of action for a few minutes. The signal duly went dead and crackled to life again halfway through the next record. After it had finished, John remarked "The transmitter should be back on again so, if you still can't hear us, there's something wrong with your radio!!"

my 2 favourite peel quotes are 1) his reference to 'gangster capitalists' on home truths, and 2)after playing the cocteau twins head over heels side 2 in full in 1983:'well, if you didnt like that i think the chances must be pretty high that you are dead.'

I requested The Fall's "Rebellious Jukebox" for the show to be aired on the day he died. I had been deeply upset and tearful (at work, in my office!) all day.

When they opened the show with it I sobbed uncontrollably. I haven't been the same since.

I honestly still think about him every day.

I made a thread which may be handy in the future

Thread to contain the John Peel quotes from the Observer so that we can still look at it when they take the article away in 2027

"Half Man Half Biscuit, every song title a potential t-shirt" (said after a session track)

I remember after Liverpool won the european cup in 1984 against Roma in what was a very tedious game, and they had recieved a lot of flak from the press. John came on at the start of his programme and said something like 'I don't know what's wrong with people - they seem to think that if the score isn't 8-7 after extra time, and if the winning goal isn't scored by a 4 year old orhpan in a pink dress, and if there isn't a giant scoreboard that lights up with fudge recipes at half time, they seem to think it's a boring game!"

Doing my 80's ballot reminded me of this one:
"That was Big Black, from the album 'Songs about Knitting'"

and there was the John Walters quote "If Peel ever reaches puberty, the show's in trouble"

Haha, for a dude who I disagree with hugely aesthetics/band-fan-wise, the man is good for a laff or fifty.

Thursday 13th October 2005 is being marked as John Peel Day, a year to the day since his last Radio 1 show was broadcast. I for one will celebrate by listening to a few of his (and my) faves.
Gone but not forgotten. Also, I'm about to get my new ipod engraved with "I'm sorry I think I may have played that at the wrong speed" in tribute.

Sorry to do it this way but would be grateful if you could do this:

Dear All

I would be grateful if you would do two things for me to mark one John Peel’s passing:

1)As in the spirit of the original Festive Fifty, please send me your top three tracks (singles or LP tracks) in order 1 2 3. Please ensure you send both name of track as well as artist/group.

2)Send this email to a bunch of people, asking them to send their top 3 to me at festivefifty@hotmail.co.uk by midnight 17th December.

I will collate the answers and put out a definitive Festive Fifty at www.festivefifty.net on 24th December this year.

I know this sounds a little…….but my love of music was fuelled by Peelie and having read the Mick Wall book, it brought it home how much he gave us and I would like to give a little back myself. If you think this is bollocks, then please do not reply but do me a favour, send it on as there are plenty of people who will not feel that way.

Cheers

Not a quote as such, but a reflection on John's humour.
At a John Peel roadshow in Guildord many years ago, I sidled up with my autograph book and then I was face to face with John - a great moment for me.
He signed my book and chatted for a couple of minutes - which was great, but when I read the dedication I cracked up.

I'd told him my name was "Steven with a v", so, of course, that is what he'd written

Not a quote as such, but a reflection on John's humour.
At a John Peel roadshow in Guildord many years ago, I sidled up with my autograph book and then I was face to face with John - a great moment for me.
He signed my book and chatted for a couple of minutes - which was great, but when I read the dedication I cracked up.

I'd told him my name was "Steven with a v", so, of course, that is what he'd written!

John Peel at the Reading Festival in the 70's whilst playing tunes to an indifferent crowd in between bands - "Come on you lot, this is about as much fun as a Young Conservatives disco!"

1. David Courtenay - Rancid
2. Down payment Blues - AC/DC
3. Gallows Pole - Led Zeppelin

This was back in the early 1980s when John Peel played a Theatre of Hate song, and then said:

Well, if that doesn't get to number 1, I'm going to shave off DLT's head

A great set of quotes - made me laugh and cry and every comment about the multi-talented Peely...

I think a certain Captain Beefheart track and Ten Commandments by Prince Fari were two songs that caused Peelie to stop his car at the side of the road to listen. Any others ?

While at Reading Festival in 89, on the Sunday I went for breakfast in a rubbish cafe and while sitting drinking my coffee was joined at my table by the man himself, who lent me his Observer to read the football results from the day before whilst observing that Liverpool's result was "the usual crap against crap teams" (or words to that effect) and we ended up having a long conversation about the merits of (what would eventually be called) grunge. What a lovely bloke.

> OK, not a Peel quote as such, but I do remember the opening of one
> particular show where - god help us - the first record up was Kylie's
> 'I Should Be So Lucky'. It played for a while and then gradually -
> very very gradually - it was crossfaded into some gutwrenching
> hideous noise by Extreme Noise Terror or some such bunch. Wonderful.

I still have this on tape - one of my most cherished recorded moments. To be precise, it was Kylie's "Put Your Hand On Your Heart" which was pummelled out of the way by a track by Japanese thrash band SOB.

Oaf

(Peel liked Kylie though, maybe as a person more than musically, yes. she was very kind to his kids several times. see also: courtney love)

(btw, peel's last show was 14th October last year, not the 13th - it was the thursday but this year the 14th is a friday so they've moved it forward a day - http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/alt/tracklistings/peel_archive.shtml?20041014

the bbc don't seem to link to the tracklisting archive anymore. they are still there, just not linked to from anywhere that i can see. a pity)

Went to see the inaugural John Peel Memorial 5-a side competition in Liverpool on 13th Oct - loads of teams made up of Liverpool bands, and one made up of John's family and friends, with Sheila presenting the medals. Anyone got any memories of him from those celebrity 5-a side competitions at festivals e.g. Phoenix? I know he used to enjoy seeing hip 'indie demi-gods' making fools of themselves in shorts!

You may well hate it, but the Cuban Boys Peel-sampling tribute "Your Nation Needs You" is downloadable at their website.

http://www.cubanboys.co.uk/

hmmmmm just posted this but it's gone. well again: i'd love to listen to some old john peel stuff again as i used to love listening to him at night when i was living in england (i am from germany). couldn't find any useful links online though :( so maybe someone is interested in helping me? please contact me.
thanks!
marie

I'm probably paraphrasing, but I remember a great line from the late 90's, just after an LTJ Bukem track...

"...I believe thats referred to as intelligent drum and bass, which obviously means there's a genre of stupid drum n bass out there...."

Genius. What a guy...

I've just posted this on another thread but darnit it show's how different he was from other DJs. After playing The Fall "New Puritan" which contains the line "Bands sent tapes to famous apes/Male slags, male slates, famous apes" he said "Am I one of the famous apes? I rather fear that I might be...".

Does anyone remember the recordings John and John Walters used to do for the Alan Freeman show in the 70's? A friend used to have few tapes of these - I'll borrow them and MP3 them if he still has them.

I'll never forget Peelie's euphemism for sitting in the lavatory: "crouched in the necessarium".

Las time i saw John i had the hangover from hell.. he just busied himself making tea and toast for us..Smashing thing to to as we had broken one of the windows to his dining room about two in the morning ..
Among all of the other great things he done in life, my overriding memory is that he was one of my pals grumpy dad....
Just a normal guy with some great music in his box i suppose...

btw... never have i seen so many records and cd's....!!

In 1983, just after the invasion of Greneda which overthrew its left-leaning government, John played a single called He's Read' after which he commented dryly: "Red Lorry Yellow Lorry's 'He's Read.' And that's Read, spelled "R-E-A-D", so you can call off the Marines..."

(That should of course be 'Grenada'` not Greneda....

Always remember hearing some astonishing stuff one evening about 12 years where he played an Ali Rakkhar and Ravi Shankar track, which was a spell bindingly live performance recorded way back at the Monterey festival. As the track concludes with thunderously lighting quick tablas & vocal ragas with blistering tempo he goes:

(with a sense of awe in his voice)"...... welll I liked to see you do that electronically chaps!" to the audience.

Beautiful man were Peel.
Since his passing, I trully haven't listened to Radio 1 since. There trully is no one that can hold a light to him.
FACT!

Hi,
I don't have any quotes (sorry) just wanted to say hi.
John Peel can't be replaced, unlike any other DJ, and well done to whoever set this page up (i found it thru a link)
This place really cheered me up, and made me laff out loud many times.
Life's not quite the same..is it?

If anyone has anymore links to mp3's etc, t'would be massively appreciated.

:o>

When it was the last item on the radio one news during John Peel's show that Robbie fowler had been fined £1000 for revealing a t shirt in support of the sacked liverpool dockers, a familiar voice was heard to intone, I'll pay your fine Robbie.

c.2002 John read out a request from a fan and it went something like this: "I have a postcard hear from William and he would like to hear a track from Bowie. Well no problem William, and we do really read all correspondence that we receive. And the date on that post card...1976....well better late than never eh..."

He played a track by David Bowie and commented "Do you think if his parents had called him Neil instead of David, anyone would care about David Bowie now?"

Peel's biography, Margrave of the Marshes, is currently being read by an actor with totally the wrong kind of Liverpool accent on Radio 4's Book at Bedtime. Peel's syntax (which often worked well in short journalism) is tortuous and laboured; he strains too hard for effect. As a result, you need to concentrate hard to follow the story, and the final impression is of someone protecting himself from any real revelation (and vulnerability) by quirky faux-jovial humour and a rather forced attempt at "breezy charm". I know Peel admired Vivian Stanshall's variety of dry, eccentric English humour, but he isn't quite able to pull it off himself. Perhaps he just wasn't feeling the necessary joie de vivre for this style during his last couple of years.

On the occasion of his 40th Birthday show in 1979 just after he'd spoken by telephone to Kenny Daglish during the last track wishing him a Happy Birthday he said: "Its like hearing the voice of God you know"....
Another quip followed a particularly trippy Julian Cope track in the mid-80's where he exclaimed: "Well, you don't get there on crates of light ale"!!
Finally, following a Bauhaus track in the Festive 50 of 1982 he said: "Bela Lugosi's Dead - and only yesterday the Board of Directors said they were behind him 110 per cent"! Irreplacable

(By the way, Ben Thompson's review of Peel's biography in The Independent is much better than Simon Garfield's in the Guardian.)

Fantastic reminders of the great man everybody. Does anyone know anywhere where you can download complete peel shows???

one of my favourites:

...after playing a record....

"Mmm..think I played that at the wrong speed.......sounded better for I think"

This is a wonderful tribute to the great JP.

Unfortunately I cannot remember the name of the band, but after the track finished he dryly remarked.

"A somewhat disappointing track there, on an otherwise flawless album."

John presented channel 4's Music for the Millenium,Top 100 albums of all time, after the segment on Joy Division, John says there were so many bands who were trying to sound like Joy Divison I got hundreds of demos..."it was the most depressing time of my life"