"Wishing on a Star" is "Broken Stones" for 2004, and Weller's voice is poignant on "Black Is the Colour" with Eliza Carthy.Įstablished fans of Weller will appreciate this opportunity to hear the Modfather take these classic songs and make them his own - but unfortunately, I doubt Studio 150 will bring him any new converts. Opening with northern soul stomper "If I Could Only Be Sure", this promises not to be too much of a departure with a heavy Gibson riff underpinning Weller's gruff vocals.Īgain, with his version of Aaron Neville's "Hercules" which fizzes along on a funky bassline,his B&H tinged vocal is a sharp counterpoint to the sweetness of the original. The Style Council's cover of Joe Smooth's "Promised Land" heralded the advent of Weller's fascination with house music and as a true modernist he's always chosen breaking down musical barriers over reiterating a successful formula - witness his announcement that in October '82 that The Jam was no more whilst at the height of its popularity.Īt the time he said he was frustrated with the trio's sound - coming as it did on the heels of the number two hit "The Bitterest Pill", and preceding their final single, "Beat Surrender" entering the charts at number one - it's been clear since the start that commercialism was never a factor in the workings of Weller's mind.Īnd so to Studio 150, named after the venue in Amsterdam where this collection was recorded. But true Weller fans won't be fazed by this dalliance with disco. When rumours first circulated that the Modfather was releasing his version of Rose Royce's "Wishing on a Star"as well as Sister Sledge's"Thinking of You",eyebrows were raised. Weller's album chart performance has been especially strong, with five number one and seven number two albums. Throughout his career, hes made covers a staple of his records and concerts. TikTok video from wellerarchive (wellerarchive): 'Come Together - Paul Weller 1995 (Also released in his 2004 album 'Studio 150') PaulWeller. Not that hes been reluctant to cover other songwriters, of course. Renewed interest in his work in the Britpop era resulted in 1995's Stanley Road providing his first two solo top ten singles. For Studio 150, his seventh solo studio album, Paul Weller delivers his first official covers album. Others said they admired him for avoiding the obvious, saying they thought he was pretty brave to record a version of Gil Scott Heron's "The Bottle". Despite a modest performance in the UK Singles Chart, the subsequent 'Uh Huh, Oh Yeh' broke into the Top 20. A BBC 6 Music vox-pop found a wide cross-section who said Weller had introduced them to artists they'd never have otherwise discovered: "I'd never heard of Neil Young until Weller first played his version of "Ohio" in 1993" said one fan. When considering Studio 150, he saw it as an. Paul Weller is as keen on re-invention as that other 80s icon Madonna - fortunately without the religious imagery and pointy bras - and this latest album is testimony to his determination to follow his own path.įans at an in-store album launch this week were unanimously supportive of Studio 150. Since Paul had been a teenager, he'd been making mixtapes for friends.
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