The Jam - All The Choice Cuts

MINE

And now we've covered it all.  In my total obsession with the Modfather we have now come full circle, from solo to Style Council to The Jam.  Which got me wondering, why he's been such a presence in my life?  There's no doubt he's a consummate songwriter, a great singer, and his looks have only improved with the years.

The Jam were one of many angry young bands that I listened to in that part of my life when I was rather a serious young insect.  Yes, I was growing up in suburban Canberra (the horror) and reading Camus and Simone de Beauvoir and wearing the Mod uniform of skinny jeans and pointy shoes and white shirts with skinny ties under grey or black blazers.  Oh, the pretentiousness of it all!

In those days we didn't dream of making it big in New York - everyone wanted to go to London.  And the Jam were (for all their Woking roots) oh so London.  It may seem trite but their sound evokes the smell of London for me, along with the greyness and damp I always seem to encounter whenever I go there.  And that soundscape heralding Down in the Tube Station at Midnight just puts me there.

I'm looking forward to seeing him again this month.  If the show's anything like last time, we're in for a real treat.

VERDICT: TURN IT UP

YOURZ

The Jam are more important to me than just about any other of their contemporaries, with the possible exception being Elvis Costello & The Attractions and The Clash.  I was introduced to them through my friendship with a funny little English bloke called Paul.

At my first posting as a young RAAF airman, we became friends, bonding over a common love of alternative music.  I introduced a lot of Australian artists to him and he returned the favour by introducing me to some of the best the British had to offer, including the afore-mentioned artists.  I'm unsure of where Paul ended up as we lost contact many years ago, but if he, by freaky coincidence, is reading this, I'd like to say "thanks, mate."

I had two of their albums on cassette, Sound Affects and The Gift.  I also had their first greatest hits compilation, Snap.  I played these three cassettes until they snapped from wear but I've never replaced them. Listening to this collection has me thinking I should because, while it is a greatest hits, it does miss some of my favourite tracks from their albums.

And I still get a kick from tracks like In The City, Going Underground and Start!, which sound as raw and vital as they've ever done.  We'll be seeing Weller live in the next month or so and while I'm hoping he might play one of these, I know we're probably going to end up hearing Eton Rifles and Town Called Malice. Not that this is a bad thing...

VERDICT: TURN IT UP

For more information go to: http://www.thejamfan.net/

The Style Council - The Singular Adventures of the Style Council

MINE

Aaaagh... I've already used my Style Council story in the Paul Weller review... what to do?  OK, OK, just put the CD on, maybe something will come to me.  Ah!  Of course.

Paul Weller has written two of my top-three love songs of all time.  George Harrison has the honour of taking the number one spot, with Something (on the Beatles' Abbey Road album, if you need to find it).  But it's closely followed by two of the Modfather's own - You Do Something To Me from his solo album Stanley Road, and this compilation's opening number: You're the Best Thing.

I can't imagine my life without this CD as it delivers hit after hit after hit... and I can really only find two songs that haven't stood the test of time for me.  So I just skip over It Didn't Matter and Waiting, and immerse myself in all the other songs.  No doubt the completists will tell me I should have all the albums, and they're probably right.  But this CD has always been a favourite of mine, and it always will be.

VERDICT: TURN IT UP (and SHOUT to the top!)

YOURZ

This is the incarnation of Paul Weller I'm not hugely a fan of but then I've never been a big fan of this kind of British soul.  While I'm probably gonna earn the wrath of Mine for saying this, I think a lot of the songs on this collection have aged pretty poorly.  (Mine says: So this is Girl Music, huh?) This is not to take away from Paul Weller's song writing.  It's more about the sound of the record rather than the songs themselves.

Having said this, tracks like Walls Come Tumbling Down and Shout To The Top still sound every bit as vital as they did when first released.  And Weller's voice is just fuckin' awesome, no doubt.  But given I only knew four of the songs on this this collection, I can't really find anything more to say about it except I hope the pointy stick lands on The Jam, so we can complete the Weller triumvirate.

Given Mine's love of all things Weller, I'm not going to risk it by saying "Throw It Out", so I'll just say...

VERDICT: TURN IT DOWN

For more information: http://www.myspace.com/thestylecouncil

In our collection, we also have Confessions Of A Pop Group

Paul Weller - Wild Wood

YOURZ

I have always been a fan of The Jam.  The Style Council, not so much.  I mean, I do have an extremely rare edition of The Beat Surrender single (which I won't part with so don't bother asking) but apart from this, I wasn't into the band.

Having said this, Mr Weller's voice is so distinctive, I couldn't help but like what he did when I heard it. Yet somehow, I missed a lot of his output in the intervening years. Thankfully, Mine didn't.  I firmly believe she would leave me at the drop of a hat if Paul wanted her.  Makes me grateful he lives on the other side of the world and doesn't like flying.

I had the distinct pleasure of seeing him perform live last year (probably my gig of the year, truth be told).  What a showman he is and what a band he has supporting him.  The passion he evokes was evidenced by the audience reaction and in the cross-section of ages at the concert.  He really is a multi-generational artist.  I know there were parents and children at the show, equally as entranced by him.

Part of me feels remiss that I've spent so many years not listening to him, particularly now I've become familiar with this album.  For instance, I can't get the song Wildwood out of my head.  It's a superbly understated piece of brilliant guitar rock and almost brings me to tears with every listen.  Then there's Sunflower, a song whose title I thought would imply some sort of hippy ode but instead turns out to be anything but.  The ageless sound of Can You Heal Us (Holyman) and the turned upside-down reprise are simply wonderful as is All The Pictures On The Wall.  If you've not experienced any of Mr Weller's output and you consider yourself a fan of good music, then I can't recommend this album highly enough.

I'm now off to listen to Stanley Road.  I don't believe it can be any better than this but I'm prepared to be wrong.

VERDICT: TURN IT UP

MINE

My hero, my inspiration, the musician I've most closely followed through my life, and hasn't he kept his looks??!! (He's another one on my list). This was his second solo album after the Style Council split, but I've been a fan since The Jam. Yes, I was a mod (She's a mod, she's a mod, yeah, yeah yeah) and my love for the Modfather continues.

Here's the deal. In 1985 I was living in Bendigo, a small town inland from Melbourne, Australia, with my first husband. I was unemployed and broke, and the Style Council were playing in Melbourne on my birthday. I hinted like anything that all I really wanted for my birthday was to see them, and that weekend we packed up the car for what my then-husband said would be "a weekend waterskiing with his friends". "Ha ha" I thought, "this is just to make the special occasion even more special". But then we took another road, and - guess what? We spent the weekend waterskiing.

Furious, I promised myself I'd catch the Style Council the next time they toured. They broke up. Then I learned Mr Weller isn't fond of flying, and I had to wait 26 years to see him. To ensure I fully enjoyed the experience I saw him twice - once in Sydney (with YourZ), where we live now, and then flying more than 700 kilometres (about 450 miles) to see him in Brisbane by myself. Scored the set list from that concert, which now has pride of place on our fridge. However, I'm not the only person I know who flew silly distances for him. My ex, who I introduced to PW many years ago, flew more than 4,000 kilometres (about 2,500 miles) from Broome to Adelaide for the same experience.

So trying to give my opinion on Wild Wood is a bit difficult. I think it's a great album - not as good as Stanley Road, which is one of my favourite albums of all time. In my opinion, it's better than his latest, 22 Dreams, which I'm not as keen on as he is. I felt it was a bit MOR, to be frank. But I can listen to Wild Wood any day, in any mood, especially for Sunflower and Wild Wood. In fact the worst Paul Weller album will always be better than some of the best albums from other artists, because his voice sings in my heart, and it always will.

VERDICT: TURN IT UP

For more information: http://www.paulweller.com/

In our collection, we also have Stanley Road, 22 Dreams, Days Of Speed, Heliocentric, Heavy Soul and Paul Weller