This Kindle edition of this best-selling book first published in 2004 to celebrate the life of the hugely influential, and greatly missed, John Peel, has been updated with a final ‘Ten Years After’ chapter examining Peel’s enduring effect on British broadcasting. With a new foreword from long-time manager and friend Clive Selwood, it contains many tributes from those who knew and worked with him and also includes an added, in-depth profile of Dandelion Records, the pioneering independent label he co-founded at the end of the 1960s.
This book focuses on the musical side of John Peel, exploring the source of his early influences, sharpened by a spell in the States, and his own effect on the listening tastes of a nation. It charts the changes in both the music he played and his relationship with the BBC, in whose eyes he gradually changed from thorn in the side to attain ‘national treasure’ status.
Reviews:
‘Essential reading for all interested in the life and times of the legendary broadcaster.’
Clive Selwood 2014, on the issue of the Kindle edition
2004 Publication reviews
‘Heatley’s book is meticulously factual (and) more than the cynical stocking filler that might be expected, providing (a) thoughtful, well-paced portrait of the national treasure du jour..’
Anna Lynskey, Observer
'Michael Heatley's book is quite simply, stunning.
Often drawing on the same sources, he manages to convey some of the urgency and excitement of Peel's radio programmes. Given the short time frame, it is a monumental achievement, and essential reading for all those whose tastes Peel influenced over so many years.’
Clive Selwood Sunday Times 2004
‘Michael Heatley's treatment of his subject is certainly affectionate and something of a tribute to the man and his forty years of broadcasts.’
GoodReads website
‘A tribute by a music historian who traces his career from pioneering Radio 1 to comfy Home Truths.’
Andrea Henry, Mirror
This book focuses on the musical side of John Peel, exploring the source of his early influences, sharpened by a spell in the States, and his own effect on the listening tastes of a nation. It charts the changes in both the music he played and his relationship with the BBC, in whose eyes he gradually changed from thorn in the side to attain ‘national treasure’ status.
Reviews:
‘Essential reading for all interested in the life and times of the legendary broadcaster.’
Clive Selwood 2014, on the issue of the Kindle edition
2004 Publication reviews
‘Heatley’s book is meticulously factual (and) more than the cynical stocking filler that might be expected, providing (a) thoughtful, well-paced portrait of the national treasure du jour..’
Anna Lynskey, Observer
'Michael Heatley's book is quite simply, stunning.
Often drawing on the same sources, he manages to convey some of the urgency and excitement of Peel's radio programmes. Given the short time frame, it is a monumental achievement, and essential reading for all those whose tastes Peel influenced over so many years.’
Clive Selwood Sunday Times 2004
‘Michael Heatley's treatment of his subject is certainly affectionate and something of a tribute to the man and his forty years of broadcasts.’
GoodReads website
‘A tribute by a music historian who traces his career from pioneering Radio 1 to comfy Home Truths.’
Andrea Henry, Mirror
