[peel] Re: Tapes of Top Gear from 1969 and 1970

[Eddie Duffy]

John,

Ken knows all that because he's the author of "In Session Tonight", and 
he's currently researching a new edition.

Regarding legality, well technically, no, I suppose this is not 100% 
legal. However, if you're dubious about embarking on this, consider what 
happened when the BBC found out about Guy Brown's reconstruction of the 
final Perfumed Garden show. They didn't consult their lawyers: they 
actually broadcast parts of it on BBC 6Music, complete with an 
introduction from Guy about how it all came about. ( 
http://www.bbc.co.uk/6music/events/peel/perfumed_garden.shtml )

BTW, have you found anyone who's going to take this on yet? I see you've 
had some offers. This is the most interesting Peel find for a good 
while, so I hope it works out.

Cheers,

Eddie.

hills1902 wrote:
>
> Thanks for the information on dates - how do you know all this??
>
> In response to your questions:
>
> - in the show on 27/4/69, I haven't played it all through again, but
> I think the only reference John Peel makes to the new producer is to
> call him John "Petals" Walters, you get the impression he took a
> while to warm to him! One of the tapes has the last bit of the
> previous show (unfortunately I recorded over most of it with a John
> Peel concert programme) in which JP pays tribute to Bernie Andrews
> the outgoing producer and says he can't understand the reason for the
> change - so perhaps he was initially a bit hostile to John Walters.
>
> - unfortunately I recorded over the last 10 mins or so of the show on
> 27/7/69 (also with a JP concert programme) so don't have the last
> item (Elton John's Skyline Pigeon)- was it significant?
>
> The tapes also have some mostly incomplete recordings of the John
> Peel concert programme (Van der Graaf Generator, Mungo Jerry, Brett
> Marvin and the Thunderbolts are some I've written down) but I don't
> find these very interesting now, compared to the Top Gear shows which
> you listen to and think what great music (mostly)!
>
> One question from me - does anyone know about the legality of
> distributing these recordings? I imagine the BBC are the only ones
> that might take an interest. I've looked for archive recordings on
> their website and they have the odd disappointingly brief snatch of
> Top Gear. Does anyone know if they have preserved the recordings of
> the shows, or is it only the sessions that they have kept?
>
> John
>
> --- In peel@yahoogroups.com <mailto:peel%40yahoogroups.com>, "ken 
> garner" <ken_garner@...> wrote:
> >
> > I too would like to hear them, of course. I think I can be of some
> > assistance with confirming your dates, here you go:
> >
> > Sn 27/4/69 Eclection, new session first broadcast (plus repeated
> > sessions from: Family, Principal Edwards Magic Theatre)
> > - yes, defintiely 27th, not 26th, and coincidentally that was the
> > first Peel show Produced by John Walters, I wonder if Peel says
> > anything about this in his links?
> >
> > Sn 11/5/69 T.Rex, King Crimson (Fleetwood Mac, Bonzos)
> > - correct, King Crimson's first, by the way
> >
> > Sn 18/5/69 Pentangle, John Dummer's Blues Band (Blodwyn Pigg,
> > Mandrake Paddle Steamer)
> >
> > Sn 29/6/69 Idle race, Led Zeppelin (Pentangle, Savoy Brown Blues
> Band)
> >
> > Sn 6/7/69 John Hiseman's Coliseum, Imrat Khan (Pretty Things, John
> > Dummer Blues Band)
> >
> > Sn 27/7/69 Third Ear Band (Roy Harper, Ten Years After)
> > - my notes also say last record in show was Skyline Pigeon by Elton
> > John! Got that?
> >
> > ...Top Gear moved to Saturday afternoons late Sept 69...
> >
> > St 4/7/70 Country Joe McDonald (Fotheringay, Cochise)
> >
> > St 11/7/70 Kevin Ayers + the Whole World, Son House (East of Eden)
> >
> > Most of the major sessions there survived on tape, but I am not
> sure
> > quite all of these are in the Radio 1 Archive, by the way,
> especially
> > the Country Joe one, but I can check that easily enough...
> >
> > ken
> >
> >
> > --- In peel@yahoogroups.com <mailto:peel%40yahoogroups.com>, 
> "hills1902" <jandchill@> wrote:
> > >
> > > I have some old 7 inch reel-to-reel tapes of eight Top Gear
> > > programmes
> > > that I recorded in 1969 and 1970, with sessions from the
> following
> > > bands:
> > >
> > > 26 Apr 69 - Principal Edwards Magic Theatre, Eclection, Family
> > > 11 May 69? - Fleetwood Mac, King Crimson, Tyrannosaurus Rex,
> Bonzo
> > > Dog
> > > Band
> > > Date unknown - Pentangle, Blodwyn Pig, Mandrake Paddle Steamer,
> > John
> > > Dummer Blues Band
> > > Date unknown - Ten Years After, Roy Harper, Third Ear Band
> > > 29 Jun 69 - Led Zeppelin, Pentangle, Idle Race,
> > > 6 Jul 69 - John Dummer Blues Band, Colosseum, Pretty Things,
> Imrat
> > > Khan
> > > 4 Jul 70 - Country Joe Macdonald, Fotheringay, Cochise
> > > 11 Jul 70? - Kevin Ayres, East of Eden, Son House
> > >
> > > Some of the tapes are recorded at 3 3/4 inches per second and
> some
> > at
> > > 1
> > > 7/8 inches per second, and are of complete programmes, though
> > > unfortunately I edited out the half-hourly news on most of them.
> I
> > > seem
> > > to remember Radio 1 was only on medium wave at the time so
> quality
> > is
> > > not brilliant, but they were recorded by connecting to the
> speaker
> > > terminals of a radio (not using a microphone). Also the tape
> > recorder
> > > was a bit dodgy and took about 10 mins to warm up to full speed
> so
> > > some
> > > of them now play back too fast for the first 10 mins or so! The
> > tapes
> > > also have various LPs of that era on them.
> > >
> > > Despite all their faults, is anyone interested in them ? I'm
> > willing
> > > to
> > > send them by post in return for the postage (plus donation to
> > charity
> > > if there's a lot of interest), and would be interested in
> > > copies on CD if that's what someone would like to do with them.
> > >
> >
>
>