Sounds of the Sixties - Brian Matthew

[Ted Kendall]

Salut.

[Junk Box Nick]

Thank you for many wonderful hours of broadcasting down the decades.

RIP Brian

['LIVEWIRE?']

I just read the news of Brian's death on the internet. As others have said RIP Brian. Another good one gone.

[Hartley118]

According to the BBC, Brian Matthew is still alive, but critically ill.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-39500773

Martin

[Hunts smoothing bomb]

Just read that link Martin, how on earth can a blundering mistake like that be made I wonder...


Cheers

[Welsh Anorak]

Very sad - one of the greats. I doubt we can ever listen to The Shadows' 'Foot-tapper' and not think of him.

PS - It seems that in fact, Mr Matthew is still with us, though 'critically ill'. That's from The Independent's website.

[AC/HL]

Originally Posted by Hunts smoothing bomb

how on earth can a blundering mistake like that be made I wonder...

The announcement and subsequent obituary will have been prepared for some time, as they are with any personality. Unfortunately the unnamed "Family or Friend" must have been misinformed, or didn't make themself clear when passing on the news.

[Thyristor]

RIP Brian.

Announcement:-

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-39541162


Obituary:-

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-39513249


R2 Tribute:-

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/arti...-brian-matthew

[Hartley118]

RIP Brian - and thanks for all the music.

Martin

[greg_simons]

Sad loss and another piece of the musical kaleidoscope of my youth gone, rest in peace old boy.

[terrybull]

On TV news just now (Sunday 9th April) they are announcing that Brian Mathews died yesterday. Seems a little odd as I read it here several days ago.

[Tractorfan]

Hi,
It seems strange to recall that as a kid (I'm now 62), my father hired a white Ford Consul which had - gasp! - a radio! I remember well travelling to see my aunty, uncle & cousin in Nefyn, north Wales and listening to Saturday Club along the way. The signal came and went depending on which way we turned.
Brian Matthew also presented 'Easy Beat' on Sundays. He will be much missed. I'm sure.
Cheers, Pete.

[G4YVM David]

I also cursed the Beeb when they "sacked" Brian, but maybe he really did have to go due to health reasons and just didn't want us all to know...so much for my "old mate" !!

Sad news though, a great presenter.

D

[ThumbDial]

For someone who lives on the other side of the 'great pond', I have followed this thread of posts with amazement and fascination, at the same time.

I am truly sorry to hear of Brian Matthew's death, although I had no personal connection with him - and that leads to the reason for my post.

I could not name a single radio DJ in the USA, and I listen to the radio all the time. I certainly could not tell you anything about the personalities and on-air styles of DJs. And I know nothing about which DJ has been around longer than another DJ.

There are 4 radio stations that I often listen to (one at a time, of course) and have listen to for years. I know the program schedules, but not a single DJ. I guess that has never been important to me.

The ability of those posting in this thread to recognize the voices and names of radio DJs quickly caught my attention. I became even more fascinated when personalities were discussed and how this factored into some dislikes of various DJs. This was a new concept to me.

I wonder if this is typical in England (to know DJs at a personal level), or is this singular to this particular show (SOTS)?

[AC/HL]

We're a small Country, and Brian (and the others mentioned previously) were on National radio, and also on TV, for a considerable length of time. So it's perhaps inevitable that they became household names, at least for our generation.

[evingar]

I suspect "our generation" is a key word. The limited outlets and maybe even (eventually) the concept of "national radio" may be a thing of the past.

The path forward seems to be multitude of diverse outlets catering for a narrow interest group. I really couldn't tell you the names of the DJ's on , Gold radio, Smooth FM (etc) In fact for some of the time, some of these offerings are automated, which I'm sure the "bean counters" really like !

[G6Tanuki]

Originally Posted by ThumbDial

I could not name a single radio DJ in the USA, and I listen to the radio all the time. I certainly could not tell you anything about the personalities and on-air styles of DJs. And I know nothing about which DJ has been around longer than another DJ.?

Apart from the late John Ravenscroft [John Peel], I kinda follow your thinking here. To me, DJs are the annoying interruptions we have to suffer in between [and often topping-and-tailing tracks] the music.

I generally find adverts/adverts/blipverts easier to mentally tune-out compared to long rambling dialogs from the "DJ" or presenter-du-jour.

When what's colloquially known as "Zoo radio" - the idea that a station was run by a presenter and a bunch of his/her gabbling colleagues [and 'fake' phone-in callers] which together resembled something like a home for sub-autistic students - Yes, Steve Wright - I'm looking at you - I learned to retune *quickly*.

[julie_m]

I don't know ..... A good presenter can add something to a radio programme. For sure, though, a bad presenter can ruin it with inane comments, sound effects and ill-timed fades.

I remember a long-running programme that used to be broadcast on RAM-FM (showing my age much there?), Graham Torrington's Late Night Love -- letters, phone calls and music for listeners in love. It was not as cheesy as it sounds, and was totally unsqueamish about LGBT listeners -- which still raised a few eyebrows, in the 1990s. His presentational style was never getting in the way, it was always about the listeners' stories, and Graham Torrington made you feel connected with them.

On one occasion, G.T. had to fill in, at short notice (as in, So we're going over to Charlie Wolf now -- just a minute, you're not Charlie Wolf, are you? short notice), for a presenter on a very different segment, Saturday Night Party Hard -- high-octane dance and feelgood music for those preparing for a night out, or a night in with the wireless, and he managed better than commendably. Cheap plonk was certainly still swigged, and moves were certainly still practised .....

I think the difference is, whether the DJ thinks they are the star of the show; or whether they think the real stars are the listeners, the studio guests and the records.

[Radio Wrangler]

Brian Matthew certainly wasn't one of the me, me, me types. His chat wasn't waffle and filler. He left you knowing more about the composer, the performers and the era a record came from. He didn't fill you with trivial pursuit facts, he gave you a feeling for the time and the people involved. He didn't get in the way of the music.

He wasn't a DJ, he was a skilled and interesting guide.

David

[Alistair D]

+1 David. For the most part he was talking from experience rather than hearsay.

Al