Today – August 30th – John Peel would have been celebrating his 80th birthday.
No doubt he would have been bashful, perhaps even a bit embarrassed, by some of the praise coming his way – after all, he never particularly grew used to the limelight.
Spending over three decades beaming out obscure music at the twilight hours on Radio 1, he developed a position as a vital outlet for challenging arts, continually remaining at the forefront of innovation across countless genres.
From death metal to grime, punk to drum 'n' bass, dub to the garage rock resurgence, John Peel somehow played a role in all of them, side-stepping expectations while remaining true to what listeners expected from his show.
Sadly dying in 2004, John Peel's legacy can be found in record collections up and down the land.
We've been asking Clash readers for their own musical memories, the tracks they closely associate with the John Peel Show.
Starting with this one…
I'll always treasure being programmed after him when I first joined Radio 1… he broke all the rules and allowed us to follow…. https://t.co/cjSB43b3u1
— Gilles Peterson (@gillespeterson) August 30, 2019
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Young Marble Giants – 'Final Day' / @IntegrityRecs
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Bentley Rhythm Ace at Glastonbury / @Frankie____
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Really Red – 'Teaching You The Fear' / @markdavess
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The Wedding Present – 'Brassneck' / @46_steve
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PJ Harvey Peel Session / @soozworld
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Mogwai – Peel Session / @ed_smithson
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I, Ludicrous – 'Preposterous Tales From the Life Of Ken McKenzie' / @dannybirchall
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Killing Joke – 'Wardance' / @El_HDH
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Steel Pulse – Peel Session / @garathome
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Napalm Death – 'You Suffer' @Nickipedia101
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Ivor Cutler – 'Beautiful Cosmos' / @pd_flynn
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The Undertones – 'Teenage Kicks' / @carole_a_smith
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M/A/R/R/S – 'Pump Up The Volume' / @damon_th
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Prince Far I – 'Under Heavy Manners' / @Hightowermarco1
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Cocteau Twins – 'Aikea Guinea' / @nobbysoldboots
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Interpol – Peel Session / @Klisse
Apples In Stereo – 'The Bird That You Can't See' / @LokomotivHubris
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Kenickie – 'John Peel Session' / @Dianeburnz
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Scritti Politti: 'Skank Bloc Bologna' / @LindsayWesker
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Delta 5 – 'Mind Your Own Business' / @mojo90
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Helen Love – 'Does Your Heart Go Boom' / @MaxTundra
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The Stupids – 'Jesus Do What You Have To Do' / @redgweeks
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And of course…
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