Pete Tong

Pete Tong
MBE

Pete Tong disc jockeying at Glastonbury in 2009
Background information
Birth name Peter Tong
Born Dartford, Kent, UK
Genres
Occupation(s) DJ, Music Producer, Presenter
Years active 1981–present
Website www.petetong.com

Peter "Pete" Tong MBE is an English DJ who works for BBC Radio 1.[1] He is the host of programs such as Essential Mix and Essential Selection on the radio service, which can be heard through Internet radio streams, for his record label FFRR Records,[2] and for his own performances at nightclubs and music festivals. Tong has also worked as a record producer, and is regarded as the "global ambassador for electronic music[3]"

The phrase "It's all gone Pete Tong", where the name is used as rhyming slang for "a bit wrong", was reputedly first coined by Paul Oakenfold in late 1987 in an article about acid house called "Bermondsey Goes Balearic" for Terry Farley and Pete Heller's Boys Own fanzine.[4][5][6] It's All Gone Pete Tong is also the title of a 2004 film which portrays a fictional DJ's experiences as he realizes he is becoming deaf.[7] Tong appears briefly in the film. It is also the name Tong has adopted for his club night at the nightclub Pacha in Ibiza and his nightly radio programme in the United States on iHeartRadio's "Evolution" EDM format platform.[8][9]

In 2008, Tong was involved with organizing the International Music Summit in Ibiza,[10] an event that has become an annual fixture (the 2016 Summit was held during 25–27 May).[11]

Early years

Tong was born in Dartford in 1958, and was educated at the fee-paying King's School, Rochester, Kent.[12][13]

Tong's original musical interest was in drumming, but he soon moved on to DJing. He played his first public gig at a friend's wedding at age 15.[14] While at school he and a couple of friends earned some extra money by promoting a couple of local bands, booking halls for gigs etc.[13] He also worked as part of the Kent "Soul Mafia" bringing soul weekenders to seaside towns like Caister-on-Sea and Prestatyn.[15] Tong was heavily influenced by the late DJ Froggy in his early years[16] and most of Tong's success is down to Froggy's originality in style of record mixing presentation.

Initially after leaving school, Tong set up a mobile disco based in a transit van, but he soon started his own club in Baker Street called Family Function. He also booked bands for an alternative night, the first of which was the then unknown Culture Club. Tong originally performed as a DJ using the name "Kickstart Roadshow" and then later "OHMS Roadshow" with an extensive sound system. Prolific Soul event promoter Brian Rix (Kent Soul Festivals, Seduction, Caister Weekenders) is credited as being the first person to extensively promote Tong using his own name at King Arthurs Court Nightclub in Kent, the Woodville Halls in Gravesend and other Kent venues.

Later he became DJ and promoter at the Kings Lodge club in West Kingsdown and quickly gained a faithful following, who were prepared to travel from far and wide on a Wednesday night to hear him playing underground jazz, funk and soul. Later moving venue to the Hill Top, also in West Kingsdown, he was responsible for breaking classics such as Lonnie Liston Smith's "Expansions" and Ritchie Cole's "Groovin on a New York Afternoon".

In 1979, Tong became a staff writer for Blues & Soul Magazine.[17] After a year he was promoted to features editor, a position he would hold until 1983. He left Blues & Soul to join London Records as an A&R manager. Through his connections in London Records, Tong was exposed to the newly emerging house music sound from Chicago. In 1986, Tong organised a compilation album, The House Sound of Chicago, Vol. 1, the first British release to gather and expose this genre.

Radio career

Tong's first appearance on radio was in the late 1970s on Radio Invicta 92.4fm, Europe's first soul music station. He joined a rotation of nightclub DJs, including Steve Walsh, Chris Hill, Chris Brown and others, to present monthly guest shows. Later, he appeared on local radio station BBC Radio Medway, as part of the 'Soul Mafia', and performed occasional mixes for Radio London. In 1981, Tong made his first appearance on Radio 1 as the host of a 15-minute feature on Peter Powell's show—he played new tracks, and covered the latest gossip and news from the dance music industry.

When Invicta Radio started in Kent in 1984, Tong became the host of a regular soul show on the station. As Tong had joined the developing dance-DJ management company of DJ-turned-journalist Eddie Gordon, of the Kent Messenger, he built a prominent county profile and performed at Gordon's local club 'The Slammer'.[12] Tong joined Capital Radio in 1988 to present a weekly dance programme, replacing the departing Jeff Young.

In January 1991,[18] Tong began his Friday evening show, branded as the Essential Selection for its first 15 years, on BBC Radio 1. The show still continues every week (currently it is broadcast at 10pm for three hours, live from Tong's garage at his home in Los Angeles),[19] and Tong is the second-longest serving DJ (after Annie Nightingale) on the station. Additionally, a one-hour Sunday edition of the programme, called "The Essential Selection - Part 2", was broadcast from April 1992 to April 1993.[20] A spinoff, titled The Rap Selection (featuring rap, ragga and new jack swing), aired on Thursday evenings[21] on the station from 9-10pm from April 1991 until March 1992.

From October 1993, Tong oversaw the production of the Essential Mix show, which was devised and, until 2003, produced by Gordon.[22] The show was the first BBC production to broadcast live from Ibiza, Spain.[23] The 500th mix was broadcast on 23/24 April 2010, featuring solely Tong on the Friday night, and Tong, plus DJs Sasha and Richie Hawtin, live from Circus nightclub in Liverpool, UK, for the second section.[23]

In November 2012, Tong was asked by Clear Channel Communications in the US to help launch a new EDM channel, on their iHeartRadio platform, called 'Evolution'. Along with the launch of the channel, Tong introduced a nightly two-hour program titled Its All Gone Pete Tong, which is similar to his BBC 1 program. The platform would later form the basis for Clear Channel to expand the Evolution brand, with the 20 December 2012 launch of the format on WEDX/Boston that included Tong's station promos and voiceover drops. Likewise, Tong's iHeartRadio program also airs on WEDX. In addition, a supplemental 2-hour weekly program, Evolution Beatport Show, is also aired on various Top 40/CHR and Rhythmic stations in the U.S. and in other countries worldwide, and is syndicated by Premiere Networks.

DJing

Tong is one of Britain's most recognised DJs, having gained a large following of fans from his Essential Selection programme. He was appointed a MBE at the 2014 New Year Honours for services to broadcasting and music.[24][25]

From 2003 to 2007, Tong was the resident DJ at Pacha nightclub in Ibiza, where he oversaw the Pure Pacha events. In 2008 Tong left Pacha and signed with Eden nightclub in Sant Antoni de Portmany to host his own Wonderland night. Tong explained in a 2009 interview that he, "from a UK perspective", he has played in Ibiza since inception (1991) and, as of the time of the interview, divided his time between the UK, Ibiza and the US, the latter of which he tours in the northern autumn.[26]

In March 2011, he announced that he would be returning to Pacha on Friday nights with a new event named 'All Gone Pete Tong'.[27] Tong played the Together Winter Music Festival in London, UK, at Alexandra Palace on 26 November 2011.[28]

Mix album discography

All chart positions are in the UK Compilation Chart[29]

References

  1. ↑ "Pete Tong". BBC Radio 1. BBC. 28 September 2012. Retrieved 4 October 2012.
  2. ↑ Richard Smirke (25 May 2011). "Pete Tong Teams With Warner U.K. To Relaunch FFRR Label". Biillboard.biz. Billboard. Retrieved 4 October 2012.
  3. ↑ "ARISE, SIR PETE OF TONG!". DJMag.com. Retrieved 2016-06-29.
  4. ↑ "The Story of Boy's Own: The Acid House Gang Who Changed British Clubbing | VICE | United Kingdom". Retrieved 2016-06-29.
  5. ↑ Romero, Dennis (2015-04-07). "Pete Tong Wants to Save EDM From Itself". Retrieved 2016-06-29.
  6. ↑ "Pete Tong Issues a Wikipedia Correction and Announces Concert at Mansion October 27" S. Pajot "CrossFade, the Music Blog", 19 October 2010, accessed 19 October 2010, Miami New Times
  7. ↑ "It's All Gone Pete Tong (2004)". IMDb. IMDb.com, Inc. 1990–2012. Retrieved 4 October 2012.
  8. ↑ "Evolution 101.7 – All Things Dance for Boston | Listen Live | iHeartRadio". Iheart.com. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  9. ↑ "About All Gone Pete Tong | Get Articles, Bio & Show Info | Evolution". Retrieved 2016-06-29.
  10. ↑ "Pete Tong - IMS". Retrieved 2016-06-29.
  11. ↑ Antwan Shalom (2012). "Pete Tong Interview for IMS 2012 (English)". electrocorp (in English and French). Electrocorp – Le Magazine des Musiques Electroniques. Retrieved 4 October 2012.
  12. 1 2 "It's all going Pete Tong". BBC Kent. 25 August 2007. Retrieved 17 June 2014.
  13. 1 2 http://www.inyougo.webeden.co.uk/media/4585029457
  14. ↑ "Pete Tong | Clubber.gr". www.clubber.gr. Retrieved 2016-06-29.
  15. ↑ "http://www.culturesofsoul.com/2009/12/20/u-k-jazz-funk/". www.culturesofsoul.com. Retrieved 2016-06-29. External link in |title= (help)
  16. ↑ Brewster, Bill (September 7, 2004). "Froggy". DJ History. Retrieved June 29, 2016.
  17. ↑ "Blues & Soul Magazine". Bluesandsoul.com. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  18. ↑ "BBC Genome" Friday 11 January 1991
  19. ↑ Interview on "Steve Wright in the Afternoon", BBC Radio 2, 29 November 2016, 4:39 pm (GMT)
  20. ↑ "BBC Genome" Pete Tong's Essential Selection Part 2
  21. ↑ "BBC Genome" The Rap Selection
  22. ↑ "BBC Genome" Pete Tong
  23. 1 2 "Radio 1 celebrates 500th DJ to take part in Essential Mix with special live broadcast". BBC Radio 1. 2 April 2010.
  24. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 60728. p. NN24. 31 December 2013.
  25. ↑ "BBC News – Radio 1 DJ Pete Tong honoured with an MBE". Bbc.co.uk. 30 December 2013. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
  26. ↑ "Interview: Pete Tong, Wonderland, Ibiza" (Video upload). DJSounds.com. DJSounds.com. 12 November 2009. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  27. ↑ "Confirmed: Pure Pacha All Gone Pete Tong". Ibiza Spotlight. Ibiza Spotlight S.L. 18 March 2011. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  28. ↑ Catherine Elliott (31 October 2011). "DJ AT TOGETHER WINTER MUSIC FEST". Mixmag. Development Hell Ltd. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  29. ↑ The Complete Book of the British Chart: Third Edition p.1275 (2003)

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/29/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.