“The mod scene as such is a young man's game. mod however is different. it stays with you.“ Eddie Piller, 2006

He was one of the leading lights on the Mod Revival scene, the editor of influential fanzine “Extraordinary Sensations” and is now pumping out his soulful record collection on Radio 6. In short, Eddie Piller has been at the forefront of the scene for a long time. On his My Space -

http://www.myspace.com/eddiepiller - he is described as "purveyor of assorted musical confections". It is an accurate description - and one which was perhaps to have been expected. His mother was the head of the Small Faces fan club and his contact with music inevitably started at a young age. He DJ'd widely in the early eighties, delivering an infectious mix of soul, mod, punk and ska in his sets. He also allegedly coined the phrase Acid Jazz, whilst setting up the label of the same name along with Gilles Peterson. Rob tracked him down and put a few questions to him - about his influences, the scene all those years ago and what he's into now. And he took the chance to answer an urban legend.

You have been a crucial part of the Mod scene for many years. What first got you into the scene?

I wouldn't say crucial and I wouldn't say for many years. the mod scene as such is a young man's game. mod however is different. it stays with you.

Tell me a little about your experiences as a Mod in the 80s.

Good times all round. I was very into bands and mainly followed The Jam at first. There were so many bands around in 79. I liked and saw most of them at some stage.

Who were your favourite bands back then?
Pretty much most of them...in 79 it was Secret Affair, The Chords, Small Hours, Teenbeats, Long Tall Shorty, Purple hearts, Beggar but by 80 there were literally hundreds of bands that I liked

What do you remember about the Westcliff Hotel Mod nights?
Good fun but usually with a punch up.

I believe you became disillusioned with the scene as it was in the mid 80s. Why?
I didnt really like the direction that the music was taking (among other things) and it was just a bit too violent, being a mod in those days.

What got you into Acid Jazz.
I didnt really get into acid jazz. I just got into Jazz. Gilles Peterson had a radio show on radio London which featured alot of what would today be termed mod jazz (ramsey lewis, jimmy smith etc). One night I heard him on the radio when he advertised a gig at The Special Branch. I went along and was hooked. It was easy to be a mod amongst that crowd because they were a real mixture of everything - jazzers, rockabillies, soul boys, casuals etc etc. I loved it. Importantly, there were new faces at these clubs and interestingly, femail ones. Acid Jazz came six months later.

Tell me about your current Radio 6 show.
I am just holding the fort for Craig Charles, but whilst I am there I intend to make the most of it. I just love playing records and the response i have had to the bbc websit has been amazing.

Guitar music has made a comeback recently. Are there any of the new breed of bands who you particularly rate?
I like all kinds of music but if i had to choose two recent singles that i like, it wouldnt be guitar, it would be soul. Amy Winehouse - Rehab and DJ Shadow's new single. awesome.

This seems a high point for all things modernist, with the scene as alive as ever. Is that how you see it?
Dunno. Im not the right person to ask

What are your plans for the future?
New Zealand

And finally, it is rumoured that you were in Quadrophenia. Were you?
No. That came about because I was childhood friends with the two Curbishley kids, Jackie and Mike. They were both mods early on (as you would be if your dad managed The Who) and we used to hang out together. I actually met Peter Meaden at The Curbishley's house. We were aware that they were making the film but never got the chance to go along. Such is mod life!

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