Mick Softley was a leading figure in the local beatnik-folk scene around St. Albans and Aylesbury, which produced Donovan, and Peel would have known his name from the songwriting credits on tracks such as "Goldwatch Blues" on Donovan's first LP. Softley was able to make his first LP in 1965 thanks to Donovan's recommendation, but by the time Peel returned to the UK in 1967, he had distanced himself from the music business. Softley returned to live performance in the late 1960s and was written up by journalists such as Pete Frame of Zigzag magazine, which was also based in the Aylesbury area. He never showed much interest in commercial success and eventually turned away from music to concentrate on poetry, but did two sessions for Peel's show in 1972 and 1973, the time when he was most prod