John Peel Wiki

Changes to the look of John Peel Wiki will take place in the near future due to a new skin being rolled out over Oct/Nov across Wikia. Please see the Wikia Staff Blog for further details. On this site, the changes will affect the navigation from the left menu, as well as introduce a fixed page width with narrower content space. Please be patient while adjustments are made for the switch to the new system.

UPDATE: As the change is now in force for some users, I have switched the navigation to the simplified one for the new system. Please check Navigation in the Help section if you can't find things. I also initially made small adjustments to the front page layout, but have now reverted to the old look until all users are on the new system.

COUNTDOWN: Just a reminder for people still using Monaco that the final switch to the new skin is due on Nov. 3. After that, it will no longer be offered as an option. Sorry. Nothing to do with me.

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John Peel Wiki
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Nico

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(This page is about the German female singer who performed with Velvet Underground. For the American techno producer of the same name, see Nico(2). For the British drum and bass producer, see Nico(3).)

Nico (born Christa Päffgen; 16 October 1938 – 18 July 1988) was a German singer-songwriter, lyricist, composer, musician, fashion model, and actress, who initially rose to fame as a Warhol Superstar in the 1960s. She is known for both her vocal collaboration on the Velvet Underground's debut album, The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967), and her work as a solo artist from the late 1960s through the 1980s. She also had roles in several films, including Federico Fellini's La Dolce Vita (1960) and Andy Warhol's Chelsea Girls (1966), as herself. Nico died in July 1988, as a result of a heart attack while vacationing on Ibiza with her son.

Links To Peel[]

Peel first got to hear Nico when she shared the billing on the Velvet Underground's debut album, although she only appeared on three of its tracks. He may also have heard her first solo album Chelsea Girl in 1967, although he is not known to have played any tracks from it on his shows. Tracks from her 1969 album for Elektra, The Marble Index and the 1970 collection on Reprise, Desertshore, did receive airplay on Top Gear.

Peel was so impressed with her voice that he invited her to perform a session on his show in 1971, and again in 1974, by which time she had become a cult figure and was recording for Island Records. (One of her Peel Session tracks, Secret Side was only released for the first time on a re-issue of her 1974 The End album, in 2012).  Meeting her in 1971, he was less impressed with her personality, particularly when she got up and walked out of the studio in the middle of a conversation with him. As Sheila Ravenscroft recounts in Margrave of the Marshes (p.182) Peel wrote in his diary (on 4 February 1971) that Nico was "stunningly rude" and described her as "Andy Warhol NY super cool rat shit."

She became notorious for her drug habit, yet retained her cult reputation into the punk era and played at least once on the same bill as The Fall, in 1981 (account here). She also lived in Manchester (with John Cooper Clarke) at the time the city was home to Peel favourites such as The Buzzcocks, Joy Division, New Order and The Smiths, although her material only made an occasional appearance in Peel's later playlists.

Sessions[]

Two sessions. In 2022, "The End" from the second session placed #84 in a Guardian list of the 100 Greatest BBC Music Performances, marking the centenary of the BBC.[1]

1. Recorded: 1971-02-02. Broadcast: 20 February 1971.

  • No One Is There / Janitor Of Lunacy / Secret Side / Frozen Warnings. Available on Nico 1971: The BBC Sessions (2015, 12-inch 45rpm EP, Gearbox Records)

2. Recorded: 1974-11-18. Broadcast: 03 December 1974. Repeated: 24 February 1975, 20 January 1986

  • We've Got The Gold / You Forgot To Answer / Janitor Of Lunacy / The End. Available on the re-issue of The End(2xCD, 2012, Universal/Island)

Other Shows Played[]

(The following list was compiled only from the database of this site and Lorcan's Tracklistings Archive. Please add more information if known.)

1967
  • July 1967 (Radio London): I'll Be Your Mirror (LP: Velvet Underground and Nico) Verve (US import) (Peel as guest on mid-morning coffee break feature of 9.00 - 12.00 show, hosted on this occasion by Pete Drummond, who discusses the Velvet Underground and Andy Warhol's films with him)
  • 22 July 1967: I'm Waiting For The Man (LP: Velvet Underground and Nico) Verve (US import) (JP: "...actually, this whole LP is superb....") (but Nico doesn't appear on this track)
  • 08 August 1967: All Tomorrow's Parties (LP: The Velvet Underground & Nico) Verve
  • 01 October 1967: Sunday Morning (LP - Velvet Underground and Nico) Verve (JP: "Another Peel exclusive there, so to speak, and I hope they are going to come over here sometime before the end of the year.")
  • 08 October 1967: I'll Be Your Mirror (album - The Velvet Underground & Nico) Verve SVLP 9184
  • 29 October 1967: There She Goes Again (LP - The Velvet Underground & Nico) Verve
1971
  • 23 January 1971: unknown (sourced from David Cavanagh's Good Night & Good Riddance book)
1979
1981
1982
1984
1987
1988

See Also[]

External Links[]

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