Paul Weller

Template:Infobox musical artist 2 Paul Weller (born John William Weller 25 May 1958, in Sheerwater, near Woking, Surrey) is a British singer-songwriter.

Weller was the leader and creator behind the formation of two successful bands, The Jam and The Style Council, before starting a successful solo career. He has remained essentially a national rather than an international star, possibly because much of his songwriting is rooted in English culture. He is also the principal figure of the 1980s Mod revival and is often called the Modfather.

Early life

Weller was born into a working-class family. His father worked in the building trade as a scaffolder and a bricklayer, and his mother worked as a cleaner. Weller was brought up in Stanley Road, Woking in a Victorian council house, which had an outside toilet but neither hot running water nor central heating.

Weller was not academically minded and he disliked the discipline and routine of school; however, he keenly read the lyrics on pop music records and watched Top of the Pops on the television. From about 10 years old he was interested in playing in a band, and when he was 12 years old his family gave him a guitar, which he learned to play from a few basic music lessons and by playing along to music. In 1973, at the age of 14 years, Weller performed his first gig, which was at Walton Road Working Man's Club, with his friend Steve Brooks, who helped to form The Jam. They had a regular Wednesday evening slot there and they played cover music to a very small audience. As a teenager, he began to realise that a career in pop music would be ideal when a gig the band played in the lunch hour at his school was successful and popular with girl pupils. The band played in social clubs, working man's clubs and pubs in Surrey and London for about five years, with his father as manager always keen to promote the band and take care of the organisation. They attracted a good following, which was particularly noticeable when they played for three weeks at a pub called the "Red Cow" (now rebuilt and renamed Latymers) in Hammersmith, and increasing numbers of people attended to the extent that queues formed. The Jam were signed by Polydor Records in 1977 for £6,000, at a time when they were short of money, and later in 1977 they performed on Top of the Pops.

Career

The Jam

Weller first burst onto the national music scene in 1977 with his first band, The Jam, which he had formed four years earlier in Woking with his friends Steve Brookes (lead guitar), Rick Buckler (drums) and Bruce Foxton (rhythm guitar). Weller himself took lead vocal duties and bass guitar. When Brookes left the band, Weller and Foxton swapped guitar roles.

Although The Jam emerged at the same time as punk rock bands such as the Sex Pistols and The Clash, The Jam better fit the mould of the so-called 'new wave' bands who came later. Also, being from just outside of London rather than in it, they were never really part of the tightly-knit punk clique.

Nonetheless, The Clash seemed to take the most notice of the band. Joe Strummer even supposedly had a conversation with Weller and suggested he write songs about things that affected him, as well as songs that involved society and politics. The Clash were also suitably impressed by The Jam to take them along as the support act on their White Riot tour of 1977. The Jam went on to be far more successful in the singles charts than The Clash in the UK.

The Jam's single "In the City" took them into the UK Top 40 for the first time in May 1977. Although every subsequent single had a placing within the Top 40, it would not be until the band released "The Eton Rifles" that they broke into the Top 10, hitting the No. 3 spot in November 1979.

From then on their blend of pop melodies and politically conscious lyrics made them hugely popular, and in 1980 they hit number one for the first time with "Going Underground". A popular story has it that hitting the charts at all was in fact an accident for "Going Underground": it was supposed to be a double A side with "Dreams of Children", but a mistake at a French pressing plant meant "Going Underground" was given 'A' status on the label. Whether this is true or apocryphal is not known, but whatever the case, after "Going Underground", The Jam - and Weller in particular - were UK superstars.

Weller was strongly influenced by 1960s bands such as The Kinks, The Small Faces and The Who. However, that did not mean that he was averse to finding inspiration in the works of many other artists: the Jam's second number one single, "Start!" lifts the bass line from The Beatles' "Taxman", for example. The group's third chart topper, "Town Called Malice", which found renewed fame on the Billy Elliot soundtrack (2001), has a bass line taken straight from one of Martha Reeves & the Vandellas' less-remembered hits, "I'm Ready for Love."

By the early 1980s, The Jam had become one of the biggest bands in Britain. They became the only band other than The Beatles to perform two songs ("Town Called Malice" and "Precious") on one edition of Top of the Pops (the feat would later also be equalled by Oasis and Manic Street Preachers). The Jam even had one single, "That's Entertainment", reach No. 21 in the UK singles chart despite not even being released in that country - it got there purely on the strength of the huge number of people buying import sales of the German single release. Weller, however, was eager to explore other musical avenues he felt he could not follow with The Jam. Later Jam songs such as "The Bitterest Pill (I Ever Had to Swallow)" - often described by critics as "a Style Council song pretending to be a Jam song" - were written in a more melodic, soulful style.

In 1982, Weller announced that The Jam would disband at the end of the year. Their final single, "Beat Surrender", became their fourth UK chart topper, going straight to No. 1 in its first week, which was still a rare achievement at the time. Their farewell concerts at Wembley Arena were multiple sell-outs. Their final concert took place at the Brighton Centre on the December 11 1982.

The Style Council

At the beginning of 1983, Weller collaborated with keyboard player Mick Talbot to form a new group called The Style Council. Weller brought in Steve White, who was only 16 at the time, to play drums. White has been playing with Weller ever since (apart from a two-year break in 1989-1990).

The Style Council played in a wide range of musical styles, from pop and jazz to soul/R&B and the occasional folk-styled ballad. The band was at the vanguard of a jazz/pop revival that would continue with the emergence of bands like Matt Bianco, Sade, and Everything But The Girl, whose members Tracey Thorn and Ben Watt contributed vocals and guitar to a Style Council song, "Paris Match".

However, the Style Council were not completely untouched by the spirit of The Jam - indeed, one of their early singles "A Solid Bond In Your Heart" was originally written and recorded during The Jam era, this earlier version later turning up on that band's Extras compilation. "Walls Come Tumbling Down!" did well in North America, appearing with "The Internationalists" on the Live Aid album and getting airplay on some college radio stations.

Although the Style Council were never as commercially successful as The Jam - they never had a No. 1 single - that did not stop Weller from greatly increasing his public profile in the UK. He appeared on 1984's famous Band Aid record "Do They Know It's Christmas?" (although his major contribution was probably to mime the unavailable Bono's part on the Top of the Pops performance of the song) and the Style Council were the second act to appear in the British half of Live Aid at Wembley Stadium in 1985.

In December 1984, Weller put together his own charity ensemble, the Council Collective, to make a record ("Soul Deep") to raise money for striking miners. The record featured the Style Council plus a number of other performers, notably Jimmy Ruffin and Junior Giscombe. In spite of the song's political content, it still picked up BBC Radio 1 airplay and was performed on Top of the Pops, which led to the incongruous sight of lyrics such as "We can't afford to let the government win/It means death to the trade unions" being mimed amid the show's flashing lights and party atmosphere. Weller also rapped for the first (and, so far, only) time during the song.

The Style Council were marginally more successful in the US than The Jam had been, with "My Ever Changing Moods" providing them with their first of only two singles to ever make the Billboard Hot 100, the other being "You're The Best Thing". In Australia however, they were far more successful than The Jam having a number one in 1984 with "Shout To The Top" and many other top 40 singles.

As the 1980s wore on, the Style Council's popularity in the UK itself began to slide, with none of their singles even reaching the Top 20. The Style Council's death knell was sounded in 1989 when their record company refused to release their fifth and final studio album, Modernism: A New Decade, although this did eventually have a limited vinyl run and appeared on The Complete Adventures of the Style Council, retrospective CD box set.

Solo career

Weller performing at V-Fest.

In 1989, Weller disbanded The Style Council and disappeared from the public eye for a couple of years, before returning to prominence as one of the major influences of the mid 1990s (beginning in 1991 as The Paul Weller Movement and later simply as Paul Weller). With his long-term drummer and friend Steve White in tow, Weller successfully joined the 'Britpop' movement that gave rise to such bands as Oasis and Blur. Oasis in particular cited The Jam as a major influence. Weller even appeared as a guest guitarist and backing vocalist on Oasis' hit song "Champagne Supernova". During this time Weller's music was also marketed among the emerging Acid Jazz scene. Such tracks include "Here's a New Thing", and "That Spiritual Feeling" (which was recycled from the then-unreleased Modernism sessions).

Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher also appeared on Weller's album Stanley Road, providing guitar and backing vocals on the cover of Dr. John's song "I Walk On Gilded Splinters". Weller was an important influence in the development of Ocean Colour Scene, and members of that band, particularly guitarist Steve Cradock, who has been a regular fixture in Weller's band since the early 1990s, except for 99-2000 when Ocean Colour Scene had reached their peak and guitar duties went to Matt Deighton of Mother Earth. Weller went back on the road, performing Jam and Style Council covers, under the guise of The Paul Weller Movement, eventually releasing the single "Into Tomorrow" on his own Freedom High record label. His first solo album, the self-titled Paul Weller, featured photography from Nick Knight. The album was financed partly from the sale of his West End-based recording studio, Solid Bond. The difference between his last work, the house music workout Modernism - A New Decade and this solo album four years on were astounding; the self-titled album saw a return to a raw guitar sound, featuring samples and a funk influence, with shades of The Style Council sound. The album also featured a new producer, Brendan Lynch.

Fans and critics hail Wild Wood as one of Weller's finest albums. Recorded deep in the English countryside, it had the sound and style of the new "get out of the city" Weller, a man matured and married with children.

However, his role was not that of a mere influence: his own 1995 album Stanley Road took him back to the top of the British charts, and went on to become the best-selling album of his career. The album was named after the street in Woking where he had grown up. It marked a return to the more guitar-based style of his earlier days. The album's major single, "The Changingman", was also a big hit, taking Weller to #7 in the UK singles charts. The album also featured a second popular single, the ballad "You Do Something To Me", which was his second consecutive Top 10 single, peaking at #9 in the UK. It also featured the #20 hit "Broken Stones" and a new version of 1994 single "Out Of The Sinking", which made #16. The album also featured "Wings of Speed", inspired by the famous painting The Lady of Shalott.

Heavy Soul, the follow up to the million-selling Stanley Road saw Weller twist his sound again. The album was more raw than its predecessor; Weller was now frequently playing live in the studio in as few takes as possible. The album reached number 2 in the official UK charts, mainly because a limited edition was deemed to have too many 'freebies' included to be chart-eligible. The issue was that the images featured in the booklet of the main release were separate in the limited version. This would also include a small but often unrecognised use of Gil Scott Heron's "Lady Day & John Coltrane" on the track "science". The first single, "Peacock Suit", which continued in his hard-rock vein, was the most successful released from the album, reaching #5 in the UK Singles Chart.

New Jam and Style Council 'best of' albums took his earlier career back into the charts, including a reissue of "The Bitterest Pill (I Ever Had To Swallow") and his own solo 'best of' collection Modern Classics was a substantial success in 1998.

In 2000, he released his fifth solo studio album, and seventh solo effort overall, called Heliocentric (as well as the Modern Classics compilation, there had also been the 1994 live album called Live Wood). There were rumours at the time that this would be his final studio effort, but these proved unfounded when he released the No. 1 hit album Illumination in September 2002, preceded by yet another top 10 hit single "It's Written In The Stars". Between these two albums he had also released a second successful live album, 2001's Days Of Speed, which contained live acoustic versions from his world tour of the same name. The LP included some of his best-known songs from his solo career and the back catalogues of his Jam and Style Council days. Weller had again found himself without a record contract and the tour provided him with the opportunity to view his works as one back catalogue.

In 2003, Weller teamed up with electronic rock duo Death in Vegas on a cover of Gene Clark's "So You Say You Lost Your Baby" which featured on the album Scorpio Rising.

In 2004 Weller released an album of covers entitled Studio 150. It debuted at No. 2 in the UK charts and included Bob Dylan's, "All Along the Watchtower". The album also contained the singles "The Bottle" originally performed by Gil Scott Heron, "Wishing On A Star" by Rose Royce, "Thinking Of You" by Sister Sledge and "Early Morning Rain" by Gordon Lightfoot. This was a limited edition, coloured vinyl only, double A-sided 7", along with a cover of The Beatles' "Come Together". There was live concert film featuring the material, and accusations followed that perhaps Weller's handlers where trying to "pull a Rod Stewart" on his image.

His 2005 album As Is Now featured the singles "From The Floorboards Up", "Come On/Let's Go" and "Here's The Good News". Weller released a double live album titled Catch-Flame! on June 12 2006, with songs from both his solo work and his career with The Jam and The Style Council.

In late 2006, the album Hit Parade was released. This collected together all the singles released by the Jam, Style Council and Weller during his solo career. Two versions of this album were released: a single disc with a selection from each stage of his career, and a four disc limited edition, which included every single released and came with a 64- page booklet. However, the album did not include the new "Wild Blue Yonder" single, which was released on the same day. A new album is due to be released in early 2008. Paul Weller's song catalogue is published by BMG Music Publishing.

Paul Weller will be touring the UK in 2008.

Personal life

Soon after the formation of The Style Council, Weller and Dee C. Lee, Style Council's backing singer, formed a romantic relationship. The couple married, and have two children. The couple are now divorced. Weller has five children in total: two with Lee, one from a short relationship, and two with his current girlfriend.

Weller has a good relationship with his father and appreciates his practical approach and honest opinions. When Weller's father's health began to fail in 2003–4 he retired from being Weller's manager; nevertheless, Weller still welcomes his opinions.

Weller is a fan of Chelsea F.C. and can regularly be spotted at their games.

Paul Weller declined to receive a CBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours list of 2006.

The Jam song "Tales From The Riverbank" was inspired by the Canadian children's show Tales of the Riverbank about a group of small animals living on a riverbank. Weller likened himself to the main character in the show, Hammy Hamster.

Legacy

• Three of Weller's songs - two Style Council numbers and one song from The Jam - appeared on the soundtrack to the film Billy Elliot.
• His influence upon the 1990s generation of British guitar bands, coupled with his love of 1960's Mod-era music, had earned him the affectionate nickname "The Modfather". In 1995 he collaborated with Noel Gallagher and Paul McCartney to form a one-off 'super group' called The Smokin' Mojo Filters, releasing a charity version of The Beatles' hit "Come Together" in aid of Bosnian children.
• The Style Council came in at No. 97, Weller as a solo artist at No. 21 and The Jam at No. 5 in British national radio station Virgin Radio's poll in December 2002 to find the top 100 British artists of all time.
• In February 2006, Paul Weller received the Lifetime Achievement award at the BRIT Awards. At the presentation, he played his solo tracks "From The Floorboards Up", "Come On/Let's Go", "The Changingman" and also The Jam's "Town Called Malice".
• With Steve White, Weller also set up a website called checkemlads.com following a chat with a fan Philly Morris who was going through cancer treatment in 2003.
• In 1983, The Jam broke The Beatles' record of seven singles in the Top 100 simultaneously. The Jam placed 14 singles in the same week. This happened when Polydor rushed to re-release their entire back catalogue following the split.
• Paul Weller's career features strongly in the arts. In film, The Style Council song Have You Ever Had It Blue featured in the film Absolute Beginners starring Patsy Kensit, Eddie O'Connell and David Bowie; The Jam song Town Called Malice is used in the film Billy Elliot starring Jamie Bell; The Weller solo song You Do Something to Me appears in The Truth About Cats & Dogs starring Uma Thurman and the Paul Weller song Everything Has a Price to Pay is heard in the film Face starring Robert Carlyle, Ray Winstone and Phil Davies. On television The Jam song News of the World is the theme tune to Mock The Week whilst the Jack Dee comedy Lead Balloon includes One Way Road (written by Noel Gallagher, performed by Paul Weller). There are numerous books written about Paul Weller's career and even in the world of fiction the 2004 Lad lit novel You Are Here includes a character, Dave Holliman, who is a big Weller fan and there are numerous references to The Jam and Style Council.

Solo Discography

Albums

Studio

• Paul Weller - (1992) #8 UK
• Wild Wood - (1993) #2 UK
• Stanley Road - (1995) #1 UK
• Heavy Soul - (1997) #2 UK
• Heliocentric - (2000) #2 UK
• Illumination - (2002) #1 UK
• Studio 150 - (2004) #2 UK
• As Is Now - (2005) #4 UK
• 22 Dreams - (2008) TBC

Live

• Live Wood - (1994) #13 UK
• Days Of Speed - (2001) #3 UK
• Catch-Flame! - (2006) #17 UK

Compilations

• Modern Classics - The Greatest Hits - (1998) #7 UK
• Fly On The Wall - (2003) #22 UK
• Hit Parade - (2006) #7 UK

Re-issues

• Stanley Road (10th Anniversary Edition) - (2005) - #51 UK
• Wild Wood (Deluxe Edition) - (2007) - #88 UK

Singles

From Paul Weller

• "Into Tomorrow / Here's A New Thing / That Spiritual Feeling / Into Tomorrow (demo)" (as The Paul Weller Movement) (1991) - #36 UK
• "Uh Huh Oh Yeh / Arrival Time / Fly On The Wall / Always There To Fool You" (1992) - #18 UK
• "Above The Clouds / Everything Has A Price To Pay / All Year Round / Feeling Alright" (1992) - #47 UK

From Wild Wood

• "Sunflower / Kosmos (Sxdub 2000) / Bull Rush / Magic Bus / That Spiritual Feeling (new mix)" (1993) - #16 UK
• "Wild Wood / Ends Of The Earth" (1993) - #14 UK
• "The Weaver / This Is No Time / Another New Day / Ohio" (1993) - #18 UK
• "Hung Up / Foot Of The Mountain / The Loved / Kosmos (Lynch Mob bonus beats)" (1994) - #11 UK

From Stanley Road

• "Out Of The Sinking / Sexy Sadie / Sunflower (Lynch Mob dub)" (1994) - #20 UK
• "The Changingman / I'd Rather Go Blind / It's A New Day, Baby / I Didn't Mean To Hurt You (live)" (1995) - #7 UK
• "You Do Something To Me / My Whole World Is Falling Down / A Year Late / Woodcutter's Son (radio session)" (1995) - #9 UK
• "Broken Stones / Steam" (1995) - #20 UK
• "Out Of The Sinking" re-issue (1996) - #16 UK

From Heavy Soul

• "Peacock Suit / Eye Of The Storm" (1996) - #5 UK
• "Brushed / Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City / Shoot The Dove / As You Lean Into The Light (acoustic)" (1997) - #14 UK
• "Friday Street / Sunflower (live) / Brushed (live) / Mermaids (live)" (1997) - #21 UK
• "Mermaids / So You Want To Be A Dancer / Everything Has A Price To Pay ('97 version)" (1997) - #30 UK

From Modern Classics - The Greatest Hits

• "Brand New Start / Right Underneath It / The Riverbank" (1998) - #16 UK
• "Wild Wood" re-release (1999) - #22 UK

From Heliocentric

• "He's The Keeper / Heliocentric / Bang-Bang" (2000) - Did Not Chart: The first and to date only single by Weller (whether solo, or as a member of The Jam, The Style Council or The Council Collective) to completely miss the UK charts. This broke a string of 54 straight chart singles for Weller over 23 years.
• "Sweet Pea, My Sweet Pea / Back In The Fire / There's No Drinking After You're Dead" (2000) - #44 UK

Non-album single

• "Brother To Brother" (Terry Callier & Paul Weller) (2002) - #81 UK

From Illumination

• "It's Written In The Stars / Horseshoe Drama / Push Button / Automatic" (2002) - #7 UK
• "Leafy Mysteries / Talisman / Wild Wood (live)" (2002) - #23 UK

From Studio 150

• "The Bottle / Corrina Corrina / Coconut Grove" (2004) - #13 UK
• "Wishing On A Star / Family Affair / Let It Be Me" (2004) - #11 UK
• "Thinking Of You / Don't go to strangers / Needles and pins" (2004) - #18 UK
• "Early Morning Rain / Come Together" (2005) - #40 UK Charted as double A-side. "Come Together" does not appear on Studio 150.

From As Is Now

• "From The Floorboards Up / Oranges And Rosewater" (2005) - #6 UK
• "Come On/Let's Go / Shine On" (2005) - #15 UK
• "Here's The Good News / Alone / Super Lekker Stoned" (2005) - #21 UK
• "As Is Now EP: Blink And You'll Miss It / From The Floorboards Up / Come On/Let's Go / Here's the Good News" (2006) - Non Chart Eligible

Non-album singles

• "Wild Blue Yonder / Small Personal Fortune / The Start Of Forever (acoustic)" (2006) - #22 UK
• "This Old Town" (Graham Coxon & Paul Weller) (2007) - #39 UK
• "Are You Trying To Be Lonely" (Andy Lewis & Paul Weller) (2007) - #31 UK, #2 UK Indie
• "Why" (Gabrielle featuring Paul Weller) (2007) - #42 UK

From 22 Dreams

• "Echoes Round The Sun / Have You Made Up Your Mind" (2008)

External links

• Official Site
• WellerWorld
• Mr Cools dream. The complete history of The Style Council.
• The "Ooh Aah Paul Weller" fanzine site.
• Paul Weller's young mens cancer awareness site
• Profile at BBC.co.uk
• Steve White, Weller's long serving drummer
• The Paul Weller Live Concert Archive
• Various Paul Weller Album Reviews
• map Google Map view of Stanley Road, Woking
• Paul Weller Interview from PEOM
• Paul Weller interview/analysis from New York Magazine
• Porcelain God. The definitive Paul Weller documentary.

References

• Munn, Iain (2006). Mr Cool's Dream. The Complete History Of The Style Council. Wholepoint Publications. ISBN 0-9551443-0-2.