John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004.
The Housemartins were an English indie rock group formed in Hull who were active in the 1980s and charted three top-ten albums and six top-twenty singles in the UK. Many of their lyrics conveyed a mixture of socialist politics and Christianity, reflecting the beliefs of the band. The group's a cappella cover version of "Caravan of Love" was a UK number one single in December 1986.
Talulah Gosh were an English guitar-pop group from Oxford, and one of the leading bands of the indiepop movement, taking their name from the headline of an NME interview with Clare Grogan. They supposedly formed in 1986 when Amelia Fletcher and Elizabeth Price, both wearing Pastels badges, met at a club in Oxford. Their original line-up comprised Amelia Fletcher, her younger brother Mathew Fletcher (drums), Peter Momtchiloff, Rob Pursey (bass) and Elizabeth Price (vocals). Pursey left early on, to be replaced by Chris Scott.
The Ruts are an English reggae-influenced punk rock band, notable for the 1979 UK top 10 hit single "Babylon's Burning", and an earlier single "In a Rut", which was not a hit but was highly regarded and regularly played by BBC Radio 1 disc jockey John Peel. The band's newfound success was cut short by the death of lead singer Malcolm Owen from a heroin overdose in 1980. Despite this the band continued under a different musical style as Ruts D.C. until 1983 when they disbanded. The band reformed in 2007.
The Screaming Blue Messiahs were a rock band, formed in 1983 in London by guitarist and singer Bill Carter, bass player and backing singer Chris Thompson and drummer Kenny Harris. The group emerged in the wake of the pub rock and punk scenes that had been very prominent on the UK capital's live music circuit during the late '70s/ early '80s. The band, a classic power trio, was active between 1983 and 1990 and released three major label LPs. They toured extensively throughout Europe, North America and Australasia, garnering wide critical acclaim for their aggressive blend of rhythm and blues, punk and rockabilly.
Shop Assistants were a Scottish indie pop band from Edinburgh, Scotland, formed in 1984, initially as 'Buba & The Shop Assistants'. After achieving success with independent releases they signed to Chrysalis Records sublabel Blue Guitar, releasing their only album in 1986. After splitting in 1987, with singer Alex Taylor moving on to The Motorcycle Boy, they reformed for two further singles in 1990.
Tommy is a compilation by The Wedding Present gathering their first four singles, their B-sides and selected tracks from two early radio sessions. It was released in July 1988 by their own record company, Reception Records.
Unseen Terror was a British extreme metal band formed by Mitch Dickinson (Heresy) and Shane Embury, and played extreme metal with a technical edge along with elements of hardcore punk. Their most notable feat took place in March 1988, when they recorded tracks for John Peel's BBC Radio 1 program.
Po! are an indie rock band formed in Leicester, England in 1987, with releases dating up to 1998 on Rutland Records, Sunday Records in the US and Elefant Records in Spain.
Bowie at the Beeb is a compilation album by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie, first released in 2000. Originally, it came in a three-CD set, the third, bonus CD being a live recording made on 27 June 2000 at the Portland BBC Radio Theatre, part of his Mini Tour. Later editions contain only the first two CDs.
Age of Chance were a British alternative rock-dance crossover band from Leeds, England, active from 1983 to 1991. They were perhaps most known for their mutant metallic cover of Prince's "Kiss" which topped the UK Indie Chart in 1986, and peaked at No. 50 in the UK Singles Chart in January the following year. Despite signing for major label Virgin, and being favourites with the UK music press, they never enjoyed a major hit in the UK, although "Don't Get Mad… Get Even" reached No. 8 on the US Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play chart.
That's All Very Well But... is a best-of compilation of the band McCarthy.
Music Through a Cheap Transistor is a compilation album by the Northern Irish rock band Therapy?. It was one of the first releases in Universal Records 2007 series of BBC sessions. Originally released as a download only on 26 February 2007, the set was later released on double CD on 13 August 2007.
BBC Sessions is a compilation album featuring studio sessions and a live concert recorded by English rock group Led Zeppelin for the BBC. It was released on 17 November 1997, by Atlantic Records. Disc one consists of material from four different 1969 BBC sessions. Disc two contains most of the 1 April 1971 concert from the Paris Theatre in London. Disc three was only included in a limited run of album releases and features rare interviews from 1969, 1976/1977, and 1990.
BOB were an indie pop band from North London, England, formed in 1986.
The Best of Joy Division is a compilation album of material from the British post-punk band Joy Division. It was released 24 March 2008 and the UK version includes The Complete BBC Recordings as a bonus disc. The US release is a single disc. The Best of Joy Division reached #97 in April 2008 in Australia, which marks only their second appearance on the ARIA Charts after Substance reached #53 in 1988.
At the BBC is a live box set containing three CDs and a DVD by alternative rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, released in June 2009 by record label Universal International.
Black Roots are a roots reggae band from the St. Paul's area of Bristol, England, formed in 1979. They toured extensively in the UK and Europe in the 1980s and early 1990s releasing several albums and singles during that time before disappearing from the music scene for about ten years. Their comeback began when Soundicate/Makasound, a record label in France, released an album in 2004 and followed it up with another in 2007. In December 2010 they performed their first live show for some twenty years at the Trinity Hall in Bristol and since then they have been active once again, playing live dates and releasing a new album.
Devil's Answer is a song by British rock band Atomic Rooster from their album, In Hearing of Atomic Rooster (1971). It is also a compilation of their live recordings, released in 1998 by Hux Records.
R.E.M. at the BBC is a 2018 live album box set by American alternative rock band R.E.M. released on October 19, 2018. The eight-disc compilation features sessions recorded between 1984 and 2008, including a bonus DVD of videos. Additionally, a two-disc best-of collection was released on the same day.
