John Peel
I was lucky enough to cross paths with the legendary John Peel just twice, once at a Melt Banana gig where he stood in his cagoule, sipping a glass of red wine amongst a crowd at least 40 years his junior and again at a nacho stand at the Big Chill! On both occasions I was completely star struck and regrettably kept my admiration to myself.
I have chosen John Peel as my silver saint for his individuality and passion for what he did. It’s difficult in any profession to be able to forge your own place and be recognised for the individual you are.
Even in the early stages of his career John Peel was able to establish his own unique approach to being a radio personality and never became a part of the media marketing machine. He was always keen to explore various genres of music, based purely on his own judgement, the bands’ passion, how he felt the bands had contributed to music or the way they reflected and impacted on the sound of the time.
I was an avid listener to John Peel’s Radio One shows and he taught me a lot about a very varied range of music, many of which have stuck and many of which baffled me to say the least, but definitely broadened my horizons! Although I might not necessarily have found everything that John Peel championed appealing I admired the idea that everything he heard and liked was acknowledged by others because he liked it. He was never pressured to stick to a play list or to push the latest fads and trends, he was an individual, who was liked and listened to because of his obvious passion and the enjoyment that he got from his work. He was able to follow a path that he believed in, and this is a quality I'd like to apply to the choices that I make in my career.
Passion is an admirable quality as it implies that someone has a desire to do something without obligation. I’d like to think that being inspired to explore and continuously learn more about your interests will lead you to be successful and personally fulfilled and through this you have the chance to become a significant influence to others that share that passion. I find John Peel achieved this during his career and will always be remembered for it and this to me makes him a worthy Silver Saint.
Liz Wheatley