Despite mammoth popularity in the UK, Europe, and Japan, Paul Weller remains largely unknown in America. Since forming The Jam in the late 70's, Weller has been the UK's answer to Neil Young, the "Modfather", perpetually moving forward while always showing his fandom for bands like The Who, The Small Faces, and the English 'Northern Soul' music so popular in Weller's youth. At once a member of the same musical spaces as 'London Calling'-era The Clash and early Elvis Costello, Weller also influenced and mentored many British acts of the 90's, most notably Noel Gallagher of Oasis. At age 48, Weller's actually put together enough material that 23-song greatest hits overview Hit Parade has to omit quite a bit of material (he has over 55 UK Top 40 singles). There's so much extra, in fact, that there's an alternate version of the new Hit Parade disc that comprises four CD's and nearly five hours of music. So one has to recognize the limits of an 80-minute disc before discussing it.
Hit Parade provides the curious and casual Weller fan with an amazing back catalog, split into quarters: 1/4 The Jam, 1/4 The Style Council, and 1/2 solo career. The collection wisely kicks off with the genius "Town Called Malice", which is so upbeat and catchy that it takes a few listens to catch the acidic lyrics like "Struggle after struggle, year after year - The atmosphere's a fine blend of ice, I'm almost stone cold dead..." that anchor the tune. Weller is a notoriously grumpy guy; he still hates the other members of The Jam 25 years after they split up. His vitriol is on frequent display in his songwriting, which holds up very well throughout the three decades of tunes on display here. The disc's sequencing is necessarily awkward, with The Jam's punk and mod, The Style Council's 80's dance, and Weller's classic-rock styled solo work juxtaposed together as best they can. What's amazing is not only that Weller has has success with three bands in different rock genres, but that his personality stands out so distinctly on each cut. You never see him losing the plot here, but instead see an artist following his interests regardless of fan or label expectations, only to find an audience in spite of the stylistic shifts.
[Paul Weller official site]
[Paul Weller MySpace]
Image via Paul Weller's MySpace page. Photographer not credited.
Of the material here, we prefer The Jam and the solo work to The Style Council, but it's all pretty solid. Standout tracks include "Sunflower", "Broken Stones", and "Hung Up" from Weller's mid-90's resurgence, as they all have a real sense of familiarity and timelessness the very first time you hear them. They're all rather depressing lyrically, but the melodies and guitar and organ lines soar and the ace drumming of Steve White adds dramatic depth to the rhythm section. The half-dozen Jam songs here also may induce listeners to find a used copy of Compact Snap! to delve into the catalog of one of the greatest bands they've never heard.
While Weller has unfortunately given up on touring America outside of occasional New York and LA gigs, that doesn't mean we can't appreciate the tremendous volume and depth of the man's music. Hit Parade is highly recommended.
Paul Weller - "Sunflower" - Live from Hyde Park, London.
Paul Weller - "Hung Up" - Live from Hyde Park, London.
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what a legend!
great review Tom!
Tom Thornton is is the Paul Weller of Austin. And I mean that in a good way.
Actually, I think Paul Weller might just be the Tom Thornton of Woking.