Image a world in which you could get “all your music and
videos online without ever leaving your home”. I know. It’ll never happen!!
This vast explosion of change in cyberspace and
interactivity was on the horizon when BBC Radio 1 presented their Interactive Radio Night in March 1995.Twenty years ago cutting edge was a CD-ROM and
the concept on sending an email was still a novelty.
Guiding listeners through the technology are Evening Session presenters Jo Whiley and
Steve Lamacq, with help from “space cadet” William Franklyn.
The three-hour show, that went out on Sunday 26 March 1995,
is here condensed into a 45-minute slice.
Incidentally the web address of “http://www.bbcnc.org.uk/online/radiointeract/”
no longer works.
Britpop is celebrated this week on Radio 6 Music and Radio 2
with the return of Whiley and Lamacq helmed Evening
Session and a number of new and repeated documentaries.
The rise of the guitar-based music scene produced some catchy
tunes infused with 60s pop and 70s punk and was a much-needed shot in the arm
for the music business. This week’s programmes coincide with the release twenty
years ago this month of Blur’s seminal album Parklife; though lest we get too carried away with the impact on
the pop charts of the time it’s worth remembering that this week’s number one
single was the Dutch one-hit wonder Doop.
Jo Whiley and Steve Lamacq remain closely associated with
the Britpop scene as their Radio 1 Evening
Session would be the main forum for new acts and live sessions. “we were
the only people to pick on that stuff and dared to put these bands live on the
radio”, recalls Jo. “No other station was interested in them for at least a
year.”
In fact by stroke of luck they just happened to be in the
right place at the right time and it was only the fallout from the Bannister-purge
at Radio 1 that secured them the job. The Evening
Session was an existing programme that had been presented by Mark Goodier since
September 1990. That early evening slot already had a 10-year history of live
sessions and breaking new acts with DJs Mike Read, David Jensen and Janice
Long.
Jo’s first Radio 1 appearance was In June 1993 when she covered
for Mark on the Evening Session for a
couple of weeks followed immediately by two weeks cover from Steve. He was back
for a week from 23 August 1993 and the following week saw their first joint
appearance. This temporary arrangement continued whilst Goodiebags looked after
the Breakfast Show. It became a
permanent gig from 25 October 1993 following a reshuffle with Mayo taking over
from the departing Bates and Goodier remaining at breakfast.
By chance I have the first 30 minutes of that 25 October
show with playlist comprising dance, house and a new album from INXS.
There’s a opportunity to hear some archive editions from the
Evening Session this week overnight
on 6 Music and Mark Goodier is back with one of the Radio 2 documentaries with Not Just Britpop: Pop on Wednesday
night.
The Face Behind the Voice features from the Radio Times in early 1994:
