McG on the passing of John Peel

With the advent of Internet radio, people like myself in the United States recently became able to hear what Britains and musicians had known for decades.

John Peel was one of the most influential and important DJs in the history of broadcasting.

And his show was enormously fun to listen to.

Perhaps most important about Peel and his love of music was his willingness to embrace new music of all sorts including reggae, heavy metal, folk, vocals, pop, punk and more.

No genre of music was off-limits when it came to the John Peel show. One could often hear an old song from the 1930s followed by a song by a band called Selfish Cunt.

If it were interesting, groundbreaking or unusual, chances were Peel would give it a spin. The ultimate factor in deciding what music was played on the John Peel show was that it be good.

That's how he became the ultimate tastemaker of musicians old and new alike. His "Peel Sessions," in-studio performances recorded specifically for his program, were the stuff legends are made of.

These sessions often saw the light of day via bootlegs and more recently, through file-sharing and official release.

In the end, it can be said John Peel championed music because he loved it. And that love was clearly present during his broadcasts.

In recent months, Peel recounted how he had been working on his auto-biography. Regrettably, he won't be able to finish it, but certainly it will be released and will be just one of many reminders of how John Peel became and will remain a part of music history.

I feel fortunate to be able to call myself a regular listener of John Peel's radio show for the last year.

I've learned about several new bands and went back and did my homework about bands that I had only heard of, but never listened to. All thanks to John Peel.

All music fans owe a huge thanks and debt of gratitude to John Peel for being there for the past 40+ years ... and letting us listen in.