Peter Eden
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Peter Eden (born 1943) is a British former record producer and record label executive, best known for his work in the mid-1960s with Donovan, and later with
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
musicians such as
John Surman John Douglas Surman (born 30 August 1944) is an English jazz saxophone, bass clarinet, and synthesizer player, and composer of free jazz and modal jazz, often using themes from folk music. He has composed and performed music for dance performanc ...
.


Biography

Eden was born in
Hadleigh, Essex Hadleigh is a town and former civil parish, now in the unparished area of Benfleet, in southeast Essex, England, on the A13 between Thundersley, Benfleet and Leigh-on-Sea with a population of 18,300. In 1951 the parish had a population of 5,2 ...
. In his teens, he became the drummer in the New Deal Skiffle Group, and then in local groups the Colin Dale Combo and The Problems. He turned professional in the early 1960s, and became a backing musician for such singers as
Susan Maughan Susan Maughan (born Marian Maughan, 1 July 1938) is an English singer who released successful singles in the 1960s. Her most famous and successful song, " Bobby's Girl" (a cover of the Marcie Blane single), reached number three in the UK Sing ...
and
Mike Sarne Michael Sarne (born Michael Scheuer; 6 August 1940) is a British actor, writer, producer and director, who also had a brief career as a pop singer in the 1960s. Sarne directed the films ''Joanna'' (1968) and ''Myra Breckinridge'' (1970). He h ...
. After his group split up, he helped run the Studio Club at
Westcliff-on-Sea Westcliff-on-Sea (often abbreviated to Westcliff) is an inner city area of the city of Southend-on-Sea, in the City of Southend-on-Sea, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. It is on the north shore of the lower Thames Estuary, about 34 ...
, and managed local R&B band The Cops’n’Robbers. Daryl Easlea, "The managers that built prog: Peter Eden", ''LouderSound.com'', 21 February 2017
Retrieved 1 September 2019
The band's singer, Brian 'Smudger' Smith, suggested to Eden that a friend, Scottish folk singer Donovan Leitch, who had returned from busking in Europe, should perform between the band's club sets. Eden liked Donovan's songs, and agreed with local songwriter
Geoff Stephens Geoffrey Stephens (1 October 1934 – 24 December 2020) was an English songwriter and record producer, most prolific in the United Kingdom in the 1960s and 1970s. He wrote a long series of hit records, often in conjunction with other British so ...
that they should manage him and produce his records. Through Stephens' contacts, Donovan appeared on ''
Ready Steady Go! ''Ready Steady Go!'' (or ''RSG!'') was a British rock/pop music television programme broadcast every Friday evening from 9 August 1963 until 23 December 1966. It was conceived by Elkan Allan, head of Rediffusion TV. Allan wanted a light ente ...
'', launching his career. Donovan was signed by
Pye Records Pye Records was a British record label. Its best known artists were Lonnie Donegan (1956–1969), Petula Clark (1957–1971), the Searchers (1963–1967), the Kinks (1964–1971), Sandie Shaw (1964–1971), Status Quo (1968–1971) and Brotherho ...
, and Eden co-produced his first single, "
Catch the Wind "Catch the Wind" is a song written and recorded by Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. Pye Records released "Catch the Wind" backed with "Why Do You Treat Me Like You Do?" as Donovan's debut release (Pye 7N.15801) in the United Kingdom on 28 ...
", which reached number 4 on the
UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
in 1965, and the albums ''
What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid ''What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid'' is the debut album from Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It was released in the UK four days after his nineteenth birthday on 14 May 1965, through Pye Records (catalog number NPL 18117). Terry Kennedy, P ...
'' and ''
Fairytale A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story, magic tale, or wonder tale) is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic, enchantments, and mythical or fanciful beings. In most cul ...
''. However, Donovan's partnership with Eden and Stephens ended in late 1965. Initially in partnership with Stephens, Eden continued to work as an independent producer and adviser with Pye,
EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...
and
Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...
. In the mid and late 1960s, he produced records by Vernon Haddock's Jubilee Lovelies,
Mick Softley Michael Softley (26 September 1939 – 1 September 2017) was an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. A figurehead during the British folk scene, Softley set up his own folk club, released three albums and worked with performers such as Mac ...
,
Bill Fay Bill Fay (born William Fay; 1943) is an English singer-songwriter. His early recordings were released by Deram, but following the release of his second album in 1971, Fay was dropped by the label. His work enjoyed a growing cult status in the ...
, The Crocheted Doughnut Ring, Dr. K's Blues Band,
Mike Cooper Mike Cooper may refer to: * Mike Cooper (musician) (born 1942), English blues and jazz guitarist and singer-songwriter * Mike Cooper (politician) (born 1951), former politician in Ontario, Canada See also * Michael Cooper (disambiguation) * Mike Ho ...
, and traditional singer Bob Davenport, among others. He had a particular interest in
British jazz British jazz is a form of music derived from American jazz. It reached Britain through recordings and performers who visited the country while it was a relatively new genre, soon after the end of World War I. Jazz began to be played by British ...
music, and started promoting it within the
progressive music Progressive music is music that attempts to expand existing stylistic boundaries associated with specific genres of music. The word comes from the basic concept of "progress", which refers to advancements through accumulation, and is often de ...
scene and in British
college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offerin ...
s, working with musicians such as John Surman, Mike Gibbs, Mike Westbrook,
Mike Osborne Michael Evans Osborne (28 September 1941 – 19 September 2007) was an English jazz alto saxophonist, pianist, and clarinetist who was a member of the band Brotherhood of Breath in the 1960s and 1970s. Biography Mike Osborne was born in Her ...
,
Norma Winstone Norma Ann Winstone MBE (born 23 September 1941) is an English jazz singer and lyricist. With a career spanning more than 50 years, she is best known for her wordless improvisations. Musicians with whom she has worked include Michael Garrick, ...
, and Alan Skidmore. Jazz critic Duncan Heining commented that Eden "was responsible for some 18 key British jazz releases of the late 60s and early 70s. It was through Eden
hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
artists such as
John Warren John Warren may refer to: Medicine * John Warren (surgeon) (1753–1815), American surgeon during the Revolutionary War * John Collins Warren (1778–1856), American surgeon * John Collins Warren Jr. (1842–1927), American surgeon, son of John C ...
, Mike Gibbs, Mike Osborne, John Taylor and Norma Winstone got to record in their own right." Colin Harper, "Highly Original Peter", ''Record Collector''
Retrieved 1 September 2019
Many of Eden's jazz productions were issued on the Deram and
Dawn Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the appearance of indirect sunlight being scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc has reached 18° below the observer's hori ...
labels, the "progressive" subsidiaries of Decca and Pye respectively. In 1969, while still helping to run the Dawn label at the time of
Mungo Jerry Mungo Jerry are a British rock band, formed by Ray Dorset in Ashford, Middlesex in 1970. Experiencing their greatest success in the early 1970s, with a changing lineup always fronted by Ray Dorset, the group's biggest hit was " In the Summer ...
's success on the label, Eden set up his own independent label, Turtle Records, releasing three progressive jazz albums by Mike Osborne, John Taylor, and Howard Riley. Though the albums sold poorly at the time, they are now highly regarded and collectable. Increasingly disillusioned with the recording industry, Eden scaled down his music business involvement, and started to run his own record store in
Southend-on-Sea Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authority area with borough status in southeastern Essex, England. It lies on the north side of the Thames Estuary, east of central London. It is bordered ...
. He continued to manage and produce the folk-rock band Heron, and undertook other occasional production work, including in 1974 the album ''Milky Way Moses'' by Finnish band Tasavallan Presidentti. Working for
Sonet Records Sonet Records was a jazz, pop and rock record label operating as an imprint of Universal Music Sweden. It was founded in Sweden in 1956. Sonet Records was established by Sven Lindholm and Gunnar Bergström, who managed the label into the 1980s ...
, he was involved in the English version of Sylvia's hit " Y Viva España", and produced singles by Brett Marvin and the Thunderbolts. Also in the mid-1970s, Eden wrote and produced the music and stories for the
children's television series Children's television series (or children's television shows) are television show, television programs designed for children, normally scheduled for broadcast during the morning and afternoon when children are awake. They can sometimes run during ...
''
Animal Kwackers ''Animal Kwackers'' was a popular children's television series produced by ITV Yorkshire, Yorkshire Television and broadcast on United Kingdom, Britain's ITV1, ITV in the 1970s. The Animal Kwackers were a four-piece pop band consisting of Ror ...
'', occasionally appearing in costume on the show as the drummer, Bongo. From the late 1970s, Eden worked full time at his record store in Southend. He helped put together bands in the town, and curated the compilation album, ''The Best Of British Rockabilly Volume 1 (Anything They Can Bop, We Can Bop Better!)'', as well as two compilations of ''Southend Rock''. "Southend Rock", ''Discogs.com''
Retrieved 1 September 2019


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eden, Peter 1943 births Living people English record producers