Meticulous Detail, 02 Jan 2008
Fascinating book. Aside from the detailed annexes on every session etc there is a section setting out the background to broadcasting popular music on the radio, long before John Peel and Radio One, and the history of sessions (basically because 'needle time' i.e. playing records was limited). Seeing also who played what and at wha stage of their career is a tremendous insight. Recommended.
Beyond essential for Peel Show fans, 13 Nov 2007
Nothing I write here could do justice to Ken's monumental effort of meticulously documenting the greatest music radio show ever made.
For me, the most refreshing thing is we now have a book that is solely dedicated to accurately representing the story of John Peel's show from start to finish - the one thing he did that really matters. Personally, as a Peel show disciple, I started to get frustrated at the misrepresentations of the show following his death (e.g. some obituaries made it sound like opportunity knocks for indie acts) along with the focus on other less important aspects of his life (yeah yeah, National Service, Home Truths, zzzz...). If you feel the same, if you treat your lovingly compiled C90 Peel tapes like the crown jewels, this is the only Peel book you'll ever need.
Not quite the whole story..., 12 Nov 2007
This book is generally authoritive and fascinating. However, without wishing to question Ken Garner's dedicated and skillful authorship I would like to state a few facts that are somehow not properly reflected in the text:
(1) Peel was almost singlehandedly giving airtime to dozens of acts who were part of the roots reggae movement during its heyday of the mid-to-late 1970s. This was a significant musical force that was almost contemporary with the punk revolution. Peel loved reggae much more than many of the dour indie bands he featured.
(2) Peel's favourite album of this era was Misty In Roots "Live At The Counter Eurovision" - this was featured heavily on the Peel show, and reflected the man's real love far more than the more retro trendy Joy Division's and Smiths...
(3) Almost written out of the Radio One story of this era was the much less hip Alan Freeman. Yet Freeman too played the early punk on his Saturday afternoon show, and was equally enthusiastic by the new sounds - I first heard the Ramones and the Damned in 1976 from Freeman, not Peel. There was a real synergy between Peel and Freeman; they shared sessions and in-jokes through this period. Point is, Peel was not quite the lone voice in Radio One that is suggested.
These three points are hardly, if at all, given any reference in the book, yet they are vital to an understanding of the true significance of the Peel show. I accept that the emphasis has been placed on the sessions, and reggae artists were less available, but the main overview history of the Peel show in the firtst part of Garner's text could have brought more balance in this way.
The definitive guide to your shoebox of C90s, 13 Oct 2007
Much, much more than a book of lists, The Peel Sessions blends forensic attention to detail with a deft lightness of touch. Ken Garner shows a genuine love of music, and much warmth towards the people who create it. Fascinating to read, with a clear narrative and a keen sense of musical trends, the layout also rewards those who wish to pick and mix at random.
It is easy to see why the "Session' remained at the heart of the Peel programme. They provided help to a myriad of new, often unrecorded, artists, and offered an enduring platform for those talents not cursed with the trappings of conventional stardom. Each session was lovingly (and in some cases grudgingly) crafted by a procession of engineers and producers, with John Peel providing a blend of fatherly advice and boyish excitement that spanned 5 decades.
Some might argue that John Peel would not have welcomed this backward looking introspection. I think not. At its heart, it is a celebration: a celebration of those who simply love to listen to new music, of musicians who love to create it, and above all those few unique individuals exemplified by Peel whose passion and skill bring the two together.
Open up the shoebox, take out a C90 at random, and spend an hour or two immersed in this book. Trust me, it will be time and money very well spent.
Peeling back the years, 11 Oct 2007
Back in 1992 Ken Garner published a fascinating account of the history of the BBC
Radio One session called "In Session Tonight". Long out of print and still much
sought after, the book tied in with BBC Radio One's 25th anniversary and along with
telling the story of the station and it's commitment to live music, the book also
contained an almost complete list of sessions recorded and broadcast from when the
station opened in September 1967 to September 1992. The lion's share of these were
recorded for the legendary John Peel, and now with Radio One celebrating forty years
on air, Garner has bought the story up to date with the publication of "The Peel
Sessions".
Unlike his previous book, this one concentrates solely on the work of the late great
John Peel, and is without doubt one of the finest tributes to him that has yet appeared.
Using material published in the original book, but altered where necessary for
obvious reasons, Garner traces the rise of the Peel programme and it's hosts never-
ending quest to find and champion new music. The Peel Session became a mark of
respect, and there have been few bands outside of the pop mainstream that have not
recorded at least one for the programme.
The first half of the book is littered with stories and anecdotes from various classic
sessions and even a few memories supplied by listeners, not to mention some
wonderful photos of both Peel and various bands. One should also not forget the
programme's many producers from the irreplaceable John Walters (R.I.P.) to Alison
Howe, Anita Kamath and Louise Kattenhorn, plus of course Bernie Andrews who did
so much to support Peel in his early days at Radio One when a lot of the BBC management wanted him out.
Garner continues the story from it's original signing-off point in 1992 up to it's sad
conclusion with the death of John Peel in October 2004 and the end of an
extraordinary era of British radio history.
The second half of the book is a trainspotters delight; a full A-Z list of every Peel
Session from 1967-2004, and a full list of every Radio One programme Peel hosted to
show where the session's fitted in. Garner admits that he did this list originally to help
in his research and then decided to include it in the book. That's not all; there is also a
full list of the legendary Festive Fifty's including the `missing' list from 1977 and the
Peelenium list from 1999/2000.
This exhaustive but never less than fascinating book is going to become an essential
reference work and surely must be the last word on John Peel the broadcaster and
"teenager's friend"! If you own the original "In Session Tonight" then "The Peel
Sessions" is an essential companion piece.
Worthy purchase, 01 Sep 2005
FOOC was always a gleaming corpuscule amidst the airwaves of the world, now you can have it printed and bound in your hands. History books portray nations as overall tapestries - this book provides a thread that weaves through them all.
A thinking global traveller's book, 13 Aug 2005
Coming from probably the best world affairs programme on radio
today, it is not surpising that this book will capture those
readers who have a real interest in world affairs and also those
who travel extensively and interest themselves more in people, places and current events, than beach and sun holidays.
The collective knowledge and experiences of all the contributors
to this book is stagering and makes it the number one thinking travelers book.
Excellent theoretical and practical reader on audio drama, 13 Apr 2000
If you really enjoy listening to radio drama and study it or practice it in any context then this is a wonderful text for you. Crook does, as far as I know, the latest critique on radio drama and switches the genre into 'audio-drama' to extend its historical line before the first radio plays and post radio in terms of the Internet.
He pulls together existing literature and theoretical writing on the subject to formulate a critical vocabulary which is useful for scholars and practitioners.
He is passionate and rather opinionated in those passages which seek to inspire practical expression and reserved when dealing with an academic enquiry into the place of audio drama in media history, and a critical assessment of a modern play such as Lee Hall's Spoonface Steinberg.
I think it is excellent he has selected this play for analysis because it had a popular reaction from the largest audience available in the UK and perhaps in the world for radio drama.
In terms of aesthetics and theatre craft he properly praises it to the hilt. I was uncomfortable with his 'Cultural Studies' analysis. I think he was too harsh by adopting the Roland Barthes structuralist and Professor Stuart Hall approach on representation. In some way that kind of critical analysis is too narrow.
He accepts that the author and producers' intentions were sincere and I think there are other critical structuralists who give more room for authorial purpose.
If you write radio drama then his section on the theory and practice of writing is priceless.
If you direct, you will find, I think, his section on radio drama direction fascinating and if you make creative features or do anything creative with radio then the section on 'the feature' opens up ideas and practical advice which you just cannot find anywhere in existing literature.
He also references radio drama produced in USA, Australia and Canada and so widens the field.
I think this book is a fantastic accompaniment to Drakakis's British Radio Drama which though published nearly 20 years ago provides a stalwart critical evaluation of the cultural value of the radio drama text.
To use a fashionable word Crook's book has intertextuality value. In order words you can find notions and points which reference other media such as film studies, television studies, and audience studies.
He has also planted some pretty powerful roots for developing research. What begins as a pretty mundane review of radio hoaxes extends into a whole new field about improvisational artists intervening and mischeviously performing in ritually defined broadcasting formats as fictional story tellers. He calls these 'radio bards'. These are seeds which merit much further intellectual analysis and development.
Very good bibliography at the back opens up doors for further reading. He also rightly pays tribute to Drakakis for his brilliant bibliography on radio drama publication up until 81.
As a conclusion I hope that this text bridging with Drakakis, Cambridge University Press 1981 will begin to construct a path for greater critical and cultural discussion and analysis of audio drama well into this century.
The best all-round book about The Goon Show, 17 Dec 2006
As the most recent publication about The Goon Show, this book covers all the areas you need for a good overview. It contains background information, scripts, photos and an episode list. It also contains memories of the then surviving cast members - Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe, Eric Sykes (who wrote some episodes) and Max Geldray.
It's true that much of the book has been covered in other publications, but I think this is the most readable and if you are new to the Goons I would say this is the book for you. If you want a more indepth appraisal of The Goon Show and it's development you may want to consider 'The Goon Show Companion' instead.
Not the definitive Goon book, 05 Sep 2001
Norma Farnes introduces this as 'the definitive Goon Show book'. Well, the story of how the Goons met and worked together has been told many times before and that accolade really belongs to Roger Wilmut's excellent "Goon Show companion" of 1976. There is no acknowledgment of Wilmut's book, or indeed any bibliography of previous accounts, and frustratingly, no index. The book includes a list of Goon Show titles but this is not as detailed as Wilmut's "Goonography".
Relying more on interviews with the then surviving Goons (Secombe being still around then), Farnes draws together personal reminiscences and quotes from the great men themselves. However, the book is shamelessly padded out with the full scripts of two of the shows; this is completely gratuitous - the scripts have been published before and the shows are available on audio. No reader is going to be bothered to read through the scripts.
Any serious Goon fan will want to add this to their collection anyway.
He's fallen into the water ! - A great book !!, 19 Jul 2001
I'm not old enough to remember them the first time round, but i have heard and seen recordings of their antics, - I'm sure they were partly the inspiration behind Monty Python and other comedies, - This book is a great addition to any Goon fan's collection.
Long awaited story of the goons by its creator, 18 Jul 1999
I would suggest this book to ardent Goon/Milligan fans,a large amount of the information has already been published in the Goon scripts etc,a large number of the photographs are new and of interest.The chapter concerning Eric Sykes is very good to see, as up till now his contriution to the shows has been unknown.All in all o.k,- i wish Spike were a bit more forthcoming on The Goon Show, it is of too much importance in the history of comedy to be paid what amounts to "lip service" to by its creator.
