Like anyone who loves music, I adored John Peel But right at the other end of the broadcasting spectrum, I am in awe of Tony Blackburn. Very mainstream and happy to be ridiculed, he nonetheless continues to enjoy an astonishing career. He’s 71 today, so let’s congratulate the most famous DJ this country has ever produced. Written off 30 years ago and relegated from Radio 1 to local radio,he brilliantly turned his show on Radio London into a showcase for soul and dance music and began his climb back to national prominence and Radio 2. Always championing black music, he wrote the sleeve notes for a 1969 Motown Chartbusters album which includes this track. But most significantly, he invented that “poptastic’ style of broadcasting and set the template for the modern DJ. Which is why no other broadcaster, not even John Peel, has been as influential as he has.
Tony Blackburn has been a greater cultural influence than John Peel. Discuss.
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