Episodes

  • Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 2003 v2

    Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 2003 v2
    Sep 14 2024
    It's hard to imagine now but in the late 90s, Apple were on the verge of going out of business. Things changed with the return of Steve Jobs and the introduction of new software and services such as iTunes and new hardware such as the iPod. The iPhone was not even a twinkle in anyone's eye yet. In 2003, I liked what I was seeing from Apple, switched my home computer from Windows to Mac and bought by first iPod. It was still the early days of online music and Apple had “New Music Tuesday” when they would give away a newly released track and would list all of the albums that had been made available in iTunes that week. It was a small enough number that I could scan through each Tuesday to see what was new. Looking back, it was probably the start of my rediscovered love of new music. That came to a head in 2005 which we'll cover in that episode but the trend starts in 2003 and you'll hear an eclectic mix of music I was listening to at the time and that I discovered since.
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    56 mins
  • Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 2000 v2

    Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 2000 v2
    Aug 2 2024
    BillBoard magazine describes 2000 as a “year that would bring a totally different sound befitting the turn of a new millennium” and John Peel described it as “a great year for music”. But I was too wrapped up in seismic personal changes to notice. We had been married 6 months and I broke out on my own to become a self-employed software developer. My first gig was in the US mid-west where Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota all meet. Not only is that part of the world incredibly cold in January, I was working in a meat processing plant and slaughter house so it smelled awful too. The people I worked with were terrible and it was one of the worst experiences of my life. Luckily, it only lasted a few months before I was able to escape back to work with old friends in Ohio (so could take in more Major League Soccer with the Columbus Crew) and California. Silicon Valley does not smell of cows and death.
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    56 mins
  • Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 2023

    Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 2023
    Dec 15 2023
    While 2023 starts with a continuing war in Ukraine and there are horrific events in the Middle East on the horizon, I'm struck by what a relatively uneventful year it has been. While I clearly don't want you to switch off, and there is some great music and significant moments to enjoy in this episode, I do find myself asking, is this the most uninteresting year ever? But, having said that, there were personal events that will forever shape my memories of 2023. My father passed away in September, just shy of his 84th birthday. While I was pleased I got over to the UK in 2022 to see him, I will always regret not going back again since then while he was ill. I did rush over to help out with funeral arrangements and such, and ended up staying for a month. Even though it was for a very sad reason, I did enjoy that time spent mostly with family and there is a large chunk of this episode heavily influenced by that time spent in the UK.
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    56 mins
  • Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 1975 v2

    Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 1975 v2
    Jul 29 2023
    Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 1975 I was 8-years old as the year began so was mostly interested in riding my bike, climbing on the backs of tractors as the summer harvest was brought in, waiting until prompted to yell “Crackerjack” at the TV and thinking how much fun it would be to hang out with Jimmy Saville. I have a vague recollection that there was to be a referendum on the UK staying in the European Community but was fairly oblivious to anything else going on in the world. It's hard to believe that, less than 50 years ago, a major Western European nation, Spain, was still living under a dictatorship. Equally hard to believe was that the Vietnam War was still going on. But you better believe... it's 1975
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    56 mins
  • Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 1973

    Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 1973
    Jul 1 2023
    1973 is another of those years that feels like one chapter is ending as another begins. That may have something to do with personal memories. I turned 7 and, while I certainly have earlier memories, they're just glimpses and fragments. There are stories in this 1973 episode that have a concrete “time and place” to them. But there's a flip side to this. While I have distinct memories of Australia and New Zealand protesting French nuclear testing, the energy crisis, Goodies and the Beanstalk and a host of the other TV sound-bites, I am struck by how many times I found myself saying, “how did I not know this?”. I did not know that there was a referendum in Northern Ireland about whether to remain in the UK or not. I have visited Bermuda several times but never knew that the Governor was assassinated in 1973. I vaguely remember Skylab but did not know that Skylab 1 was shortly followed by Skylab 2, launched to repair Skylab 1. I did not know about an arson attack on a gay bar in New Orleans that killed 32 or the fire that swept an Isle of Man amusement center killing 51. I had never thought through the fact that Nixon was elected with Spiro Agnew as his vice-president but that Gerald Ford was VP when Nixon resigned the following year (sorry for the spoiler by the way). Agnew resigned before Nixon because of his own challenges with bribery, extortion and tax fraud. See if you spot these and other memories as you sit back and enjoy the world of 1973.
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    56 mins
  • Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 1972

    Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 1972
    Jun 17 2023
    My name is Jon Miller. I was born in 1966 in the idyllic countryside of the Cotswold Hills in the south west of England. I have a brother who is two years younger than me and soon after he was born, my parents moved from the tiny village of Salperton, to the slightly less tiny village of Hazelton about 2 miles away. I was 5 as 1972 begins and attended school at Northleach CofE. I spent most of my time riding my bike, climbing trees (or onto the roof of my dad's shed) or kicking a football around. I have vague musical memories of seeing artists such as Slade, T Rex, Gary Glitter, Roxy Music and Gilbert O'Sullivan on Top of the Pops. But I couldn't swear they were the songs you'll hear or later ones. I do remember Gordon Banks car crash, a world of airplane hijackings and Mark Spitz winning lots of gold medals. But I do not remember some of the bigger news stories carrying over from the previous year; Bangladesh seeking to separate from Pakistan, the British stepping up activities in Northern Ireland or the continued war in Vietnam. For some people, the story stays the same. But for others, things are about to change.
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    56 mins
  • Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 1971

    Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 1971
    Jun 3 2023
    In this episode you going to hear from artists that are the epitome of 1970s music; T Rex, Rod Stewart, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, what have you. But there's a new sound creeping in that doesn't even have a name yet! Discotheques had been popping up in Europe as early as the second World War. The shortened term “disco” first appeared in 1964 to describe a fashion and a certain type of LA night club. It wasn't used to describe a style of music until 1973 but there's a prelude to that in a couple of songs you'll hear in this episode. You've probably heard bits of it previously (Sly and the Family Stone comes immediately to mind) as the sounds of rhythm and blues, soul, gospel and funk started to align. Motown had added a distinctive sound of their own, bringing in disco elements, including the bass and orchestra. Contributions come out of Philadelphia and New York plus the role of the UK can't be misstated either with the sounds of northern soul and the newly emerging glam-rock also playing their part. But before this turns into a whole musical history lecture, let's get on with the show. Welcome to 1971.
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    56 mins
  • Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 1970

    Brierly Hill 90210 presents... 1970
    May 20 2023
    The music of the early 70s does not have the greatest of reputations. You can judge for yourself if that is well-founded or not. But there certainly seemed to be less good songs to draw from as I put this episode together. But, if you're of a similar age to me, a child born of the 60s, there's something that starts to feel more familiar now. See if you agree.
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    56 mins