Join us & legendary promoter and agent John Giddings to discuss the Isle of Wight Festival, its history, and the challenges of managing such a significant event and the evolving dynamics between the festival and the local community.

We hear about some of John's most memorable experiences at the festival over the years from biblical rain in 2012 to David Bowie's final UK performance in 2004.

From the festival's inception in 1968 to its revival in 2002, we cover some of the iconic performances from Bob Dylan & Jimi Hendrix in the 60s to David Bowie & the Paul McCartney in more recent times.

Prior to taking over the Isle of Wight festival in 2002 John had worked with a who's who of the music world & we hear about seeing the Sex Pistols at the Nashville in Kensington in 1976, his early days promoting at Exeter University, and touring with the likes of the Rolling Stones, Genesis & more.

John tells us about some of the relationships with legendary artists he has maintained over the years including Iggy Pop, Celine Dion & The Corrs.

The Isle of Wight Festival takes place on June 19th to 22nd 2025 & is headlined by Sting, Stereophonics & Justin Timberlake.

It takes anything from 5 to 40 hours to prepare each episode of Music Maps - if you’d like to make a contribution to help us cover the costs & time of producing these episodes for you, you can do so at this link: ko-fi.com/musicmaps

It is hugely important for us to get positive reviews & star ratings - if you have enjoyed Music Maps & can spare the time to do either we would hugely appreciate it.

You can see our upcoming live events here: https://rocknrollbookclub.co.uk/live/

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Hosted by Mark Hart & Simon Cardwell

Written & Produced by Simon Cardwell

Edited, mixed & spruced up by Andy Maxwell

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we welcome David Browne, a senior writer at Rolling Stone, to talk about his book Talkin' Greenwich Village & to explore the musical history of Greenwich Village from its heyday in the 50s & early 1960s through to it's decline in the 80s.

Many of the areas venues were originally jazz venues hosting the likes of Billie Holiday, John Coltrane & Charles Mingus & many legendary venues appear in Greenwich Village at the dawn of the 60s including the Village Vanguard, Gerde's Folk City, The Folklore Centre,

We touch on the likes of Peter, Paul & Mary, Woody Guthrie, Fred Neil, Phil Ochs & Dave Van Ronk all of whom passed through the area. Joan Baez arrived in Greenwich Village already signed to Vanguard having built a following in Cambridge, MA.

Not long after Bob Dylan also appears in the area & is signed to Columbia within a year, in early 1962. Bob achieves a quantum leap on his second album Freewheelin' which follows in May of 1963 & we discuss how this material is received in the coffeehouses & clubs of the village when Dylan first starts bringing it in.

At this point Dylan's songs are more well known than he is, Peter, Paul & Mary having scored a huge hit with 'Blowin' In The Wind' selling over 300,000 copies in the first week.

A little later Simon & Garfunkel are briefly in the area playing the coffeehouses but they soon move on once signed to Columbia.

The arrival of the The Beatles in the US in early 1964 changed things & many left the folk scene as the it started to dissipate - although the village had several brief periods of renaissance - one when the New York Dolls breakthrough while playing regularly in the area & Bruce Springsteen also played a series of legendary shows at The Bottom Line in the 1970s.

In the early 80s Gerde's Folk City hosts the likes of Sonic Youth, The Minutemen, The Replacements, Violent Femmes & Husker Du for a brief but fondly remembered period.

It takes anything from 5 to 40 hours to prepare each episode of Music Maps - if you’d like to make a contribution to help us cover the costs & time of producing these episodes for you, you can do so at this link: ko-fi.com/musicmaps

It is hugely important for us to get positive reviews & star ratings - if you have enjoyed Music Maps & can spare the time to do either we would hugely appreciate it.

You can see our upcoming live events here: https://rocknrollbookclub.co.uk/live/

Instagram: @rocknrollbookclube17

Blue Sky: @musicmaps.bsky.social

X: @simonmusicmaps

Facebook: E17rockbookclub

Hosted by Mark Hart & Simon Cardwell

Written & Produced by Simon Cardwell

Edited, mixed & spruced up by Andy Maxwell

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Music Maps we finally talk about The Beatles as we welcome writer Ian Leslie to discuss his new book on Faber: 'John & Paul: A Love Story In Songs'.

We focus on their early years from meeting at Woolton Village Fete in July 1957, with Paul McCartney joining the Quarrymen shortly after.

The dynamic in the Quarrymen changed after Paul joined with John Lennon no longer the total leader as before - the pair bonded over their shared love of imported rock & roll from America. Before long they were writing songs as a duo.

John & Paul both lost their mothers as teenagers & became an unspoken bond between the two & their friendship deepens as their songwriting blossoms.

George Harrison joins the band but rather than coming between John & Paul, his presence actually reinforces their bond. Stuart Sutcliffe & Pete Best also join before The Beatles head to Hamburg for the first time in August 1960. They come of age in Hamburg both in terms of stagecraft and musicianship - playing 6 hours a night on the Reeperbahn.

Upon returning to Liverpool, the Beatles soon turn from unknowns into the leaders of the beat scene in the city & they make their debut at The Cavern in February of 1961.

Paul McCartney moves to bass following the departure of Stuart Sutcliffe & Brian Epstein comes in to manage the band at the end of 1961.

Following a failed audition at Decca Records, the band come to the attention of George Martin at EMI & their debut release Love Me Do follows in October 1962.

It takes anything from 5 to 40 hours to prepare each episode of Music Maps - if you’d like to make a contribution to help us cover the costs & time of producing these episodes for you, you can do so at this link: ko-fi.com/musicmaps

It is hugely important for us to get positive reviews & star ratings - if you have enjoyed Music Maps & can spare the time to do either we would hugely appreciate it.

You can see our upcoming live events here: https://rocknrollbookclub.co.uk/live/

Instagram: @rocknrollbookclube17

Blue Sky: @musicmaps.bsky.social

X: @simonmusicmaps

Facebook: E17rockbookclub

Hosted by Mark Hart & Simon Cardwell

Written & Produced by Simon Cardwell

Edited, mixed & spruced up by Andy Maxwell

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.