Planet Rock - The Rock Block

mr_goo

I love listening in to Planet Rock, being a bit of a dinosaur with my music taste. At 6 - 7pm on a week day they do a feature called the Rock Block. A selection of tracks selected by listeners. You go to Planet Rock website and fill out a form of 20 tracks and submit.
The more I listen to this section the more sceptical I am becoming as to it's authenticity. This was definitely confirmed this evening (mon 11th nov) when they played 'Since You've Been Gone' by Rainbow apparently selected by 'Carol'.
In my opinion if you were a lover of rock music and Rainbow, this is about the last track you would choose. Thinking about recent Rock Blocks, the playlists are pretty samey. So this gets me thinking that they could be bogus listener selections.

ballysmate

If it's Rainbow, it has to be Stargazer.

mr_goo

Ballysmate wrote:

If it's Rainbow, it has to be Stargazer.

Exactly my point. Nobody would ever pick Since You've Been Gone. No even Ritchie Blackmore would.

ballysmate

Mr Goo wrote:

Ballysmate wrote:

If it's Rainbow, it has to be Stargazer.

Exactly my point. Nobody would ever pick Since You've Been Gone. No even Ritchie Blackmore would.

Blackmore probably would pick it, just to be contrary.
I think he deliberately went down a more commercial route and then changed tack again, buggering off to play the lute or some such shite. Blinding guitarist though.

mr_goo

Yeh Blackmore probably would pick it, just to pi55 everyone off. Greatest rock guitarist IMHO. I think that pilgrim fathers hat he loved wearing gave him brain damage. What a waste of a talent playing a lute at German folk festivals. But then he probably doesn't need the money so perhaps it's now just a hobby.

ballysmate

First album I bought was Made in Japan. Still think it's awesome today. Very little engineering required, virtually laid straight down. 5 guys at the top of their game.
Agree re Ritchie, my favourite rock guitarist. Also don't forget the maestro that was Jon Lord, RIP.

mr_goo

Ballysmate wrote:

First album I bought was Made in Japan. Still think it's awesome today. Very little engineering required, virtually laid straight down. 5 guys at the top of their game.
Agree re Ritchie, my favourite rock guitarist. Also don't forget the maestro that was Jon Lord, RIP.

Made in Japan was one of the first albums I bought. Jon Lord, another rock musician who seems to be forgotten. It all seems to be Led Zep (who are great), but Deep Purple I regard as an equal.

CiB

Back to OP, it's probably a good thing that PR don't allow user-selection. I could drive to work with Stargazer on all the way there & all the way back home again (and have in fact) but listening to some other pretentious bore's choice* of 'great music' for an hour would probably have listeners leaving in droves.

Simon Mayo's Friday All-Listener Request is the same - the choices all fit in with R2 drivetime playlist fare and it's rare that anything out of that tight remit is played. It'd be nice to go on having asked up front for something so awful I couldn't listen to it - so anything by Dexy's Midnight T055ers then - and then request Bodies when live on air. How long before you get bumped on the delay to the words 'oh - we seem to have lost the line'.

* as opposed to my pretentiously boring choices...

thegreatdivide

Damn, I thought this thread was going to be about Afrika Bambaataa's seminal electro track - but it's about men in tights with big hair :-(

captain_chaos

Rainbow - Great Band - probably amongst the first albums I ever bought. And yes to Stargazer

However I do find (courtesy of Spotify) Ritchie Blackmores more recent folk type offerings curiously compelling - must be a sign of middle age crisis

mr_goo

Well I finally got a Rock Block played, on Weds (13th Nov). As an avid listener to the station and as stated in my OP there is a playlist or selection of artists/bands that they prefer to play. So I based my selection of 20 tracks using this guidance and got 11 tracks played:

Burn it to the Ground - Nickelback
Smoke on the Water - Deep Purple
Barracuda - Heart
Train Train - Blackfoot
I Want You to Want Me - Cheap Trick
Shine on You Crazy Diamond - Pink Floyd
More Than a Feeling - Boston
Love You Like a Hurricane - Scorpions
Living in the Past - Jethro Tull
Doctor Doctor - UFO
The King Will Come - Wishbone Ash


Cannot remember all those submitted but I did also request
Breadfan - Budgie
The Temples of Syrinx - Rush
Hammerhead - Samson (this was never gonna be played)
Tarot Woman - Rainbow

eric_draven

Breadfan a fantastic choice
personally i started listening to Team Rock instead,wish they would play a bit more of the alternative side of the genre

Pross

CiB wrote:

Back to OP, it's probably a good thing that PR don't allow user-selection. I could drive to work with Stargazer on all the way there & all the way back home again (and have in fact) but listening to some other pretentious bore's choice* of 'great music' for an hour would probably have listeners leaving in droves.

Simon Mayo's Friday All-Listener Request is the same - the choices all fit in with R2 drivetime playlist fare and it's rare that anything out of that tight remit is played. It'd be nice to go on having asked up front for something so awful I couldn't listen to it - so anything by Dexy's Midnight T055ers then - and then request Bodies when live on air. How long before you get bumped on the delay to the words 'oh - we seem to have lost the line'.

* as opposed to my pretentiously boring choices...

Had a rant recently about Mayo's all request Friday. Not so much the music but the people who think that for some reason the whole country wants to hear them telling us they are stuck in traffic driving from Hampshire to a pigeon fancier's convention in Orkney. Same with that tedious three words to say what you are doing crap - bad enough when they text in and it gets read out but those who think they are so interesting it's worth leaving a 3 word answer phone message, why?

Wish my current car had digital radio so I could listen to Planet Rock again. At least my MP3 player is fixed now so no more Mayo, Wright or Vine.

ballysmate

Pross wrote:

CiB wrote:

Back to OP, it's probably a good thing that PR don't allow user-selection. I could drive to work with Stargazer on all the way there & all the way back home again (and have in fact) but listening to some other pretentious bore's choice* of 'great music' for an hour would probably have listeners leaving in droves.

Simon Mayo's Friday All-Listener Request is the same - the choices all fit in with R2 drivetime playlist fare and it's rare that anything out of that tight remit is played. It'd be nice to go on having asked up front for something so awful I couldn't listen to it - so anything by Dexy's Midnight T055ers then - and then request Bodies when live on air. How long before you get bumped on the delay to the words 'oh - we seem to have lost the line'.

* as opposed to my pretentiously boring choices...

Had a rant recently about Mayo's all request Friday. Not so much the music but the people who think that for some reason the whole country wants to hear them telling us they are stuck in traffic driving from Hampshire to a pigeon fancier's convention in Orkney. Same with that tedious three words to say what you are doing crap - bad enough when they text in and it gets read out but those who think they are so interesting it's worth leaving a 3 word answer phone message, why?

Wish my current car had digital radio so I could listen to Planet Rock again. At least my MP3 player is fixed now so no more Mayo, Wright or Vine.

Move to West Mids then. PR broadcasts in place of Kerrang.

arthur_scrimshaw

Mr Goo wrote:

Ballysmate wrote:

First album I bought was Made in Japan. Still think it's awesome today. Very little engineering required, virtually laid straight down. 5 guys at the top of their game.
Agree re Ritchie, my favourite rock guitarist. Also don't forget the maestro that was Jon Lord, RIP.

Made in Japan was one of the first albums I bought. Jon Lord, another rock musician who seems to be forgotten. It all seems to be Led Zep (who are great), but Deep Purple I regard as an equal.

Jon Lord was excellent, also wrote quite a bit of classical music before he died.

BelgianBeerGeek

Arthur Scrimshaw wrote:

Mr Goo wrote:

Ballysmate wrote:

First album I bought was Made in Japan. Still think it's awesome today. Very little engineering required, virtually laid straight down. 5 guys at the top of their game.
Agree re Ritchie, my favourite rock guitarist. Also don't forget the maestro that was Jon Lord, RIP.

Made in Japan was one of the first albums I bought. Jon Lord, another rock musician who seems to be forgotten. It all seems to be Led Zep (who are great), but Deep Purple I regard as an equal.

Jon Lord was excellent, also wrote quite a bit of classical music before he died.

Indeed. Was watching Coronation Street the other day (yeah, I'm a regular) and Roy and Hayley were listening to Deep Purple's LP they did with orchestra (LSO?). Probably the most obscure rock reference so far this year on telly and the album is ace. Must dig it out of my tape collection.

BelgianBeerGeek

Mr Goo wrote:

Well I finally got a Rock Block played, on Weds (13th Nov). As an avid listener to the station and as stated in my OP there is a playlist or selection of artists/bands that they prefer to play. So I based my selection of 20 tracks using this guidance and got 11 tracks played:

Burn it to the Ground - Nickelback
Smoke on the Water - Deep Purple
Barracuda - Heart
Train Train - Blackfoot
I Want You to Want Me - Cheap Trick
Shine on You Crazy Diamond - Pink Floyd
More Than a Feeling - Boston
Love You Like a Hurricane - Scorpions
Living in the Past - Jethro Tull
Doctor Doctor - UFO
The King Will Come - Wishbone Ash


Cannot remember all those submitted but I did also request
Breadfan - Budgie
The Temples of Syrinx - Rush
Hammerhead - Samson (this was never gonna be played)
Tarot Woman - Rainbow

Chapeau, Mr Goo to your taste in music (not pea fritters, though). Samson are flippin' ace.
And respect for getting on Rock Block.