PAUL WELLER Vinyl & CDs

Review: Paul Weller returns this July with Find El Dorado, a studio LP of covers with a reflective twist applied. Refusing to play it straight as ever, the guitarist and principal Jam songwriter dives into songs that he's now happy to reveal have haunted him for years, revisiting them with quiet clarity and a reverent touch. Produced by longtime collaborator Steve Cradock, the record nets in a wide cast (Declan O'Rourke, Noel Gallagher, Amelia Coburn, Seckou Keita, Robert Plant), enlisting his very many sidereal friends to help reshape such classic blues, ragtime and rock & roll cuts as The Flying Burrito Brothers' 'White Line Fever' and Christy Moore's one-cover-removed version of Mountain's 'One Last Cold Kiss'.

Review: British songwriting institution Paul Weller revisits a set of longstanding favourites and lesser-known selections across 15 reinterpretations that blur the line between cover version and personal inventory. Produced by Steve Cradock, the record mixes stripped-down arrangements with occasional flourishes from a guest list including Robert Plant, Seckou Keita and Amelia Coburn. 'Handouts in the Rain' and 'Small Town Talk' open side one with soft restraint, setting a tone that leans more reflective than revisionist. 'El Dorado' and 'White Line Fever' follow with a cleaner, more acoustic palette, while 'One Last Cold Kiss' and 'When You Are a King' stay faithful in structure but add texture through careful instrumentation. 'Pinball' and 'Where There's Smoke, There's Fire' close the first half with a slightly sharper edge. Side three starts with 'I Started a Joke', reworked with minimal accompaniment. 'Never the Same' and 'Lawdy Rolla' stretch further into blues and folk territory, while 'Nobody's Fool' pulls things back to softer tones. The final three tracks i 'Journey', 'Daltry Street' and 'Clive's Song' i are quieter, more impressionistic sketches, closing the set with understated clarity. Nothing here tries too hard. It's measured, unforced, and sequenced with care.

Review: A reflective step sideways from the ever-restless Paul Weller, this new release finds the modfather reinterpreting the music that shaped him with measured reverence. Not just a covers project, but a kind of internal cartography-charting influences that feel intimate and formative. The standout 'Lawdy Rolla' is loose and lived-in, a bluesy drawl that lands somewhere between campfire spiritual and basement jam. On the flip, 'Pinball' is rendered with fragile grace, stripped of Pete Townshend's original angst and reimagined as something more quietly resigned. With guests including Noel Gallagher, Robert Plant and Seckou Keita, it's a record driven less by ego than memory. Produced with warmth by Ocean Colour Scene's Steve Cradock, it's an understated, deeply felt offering from an artist still unafraid to look inward.

Review: Paul Weller unveils the 'Supplement: 66 EP', featuring four exquisite new tracks. These songs, recorded at Weller's Black Barn Studios, reflect a heartfelt homage to his musical roots while showcasing his evolution as an artist. Produced by Weller himself, the EP includes contributions from the Wellerband, along with notable musicians like Max Beesley - yes, the actor - on vibraphone and folk legend Danny Thompson on double bass. Original Jam member Steve Brookes adds guitar work, enhancing the rich soundscape. The closing track, 'So Quietly', features esteemed folk artist Kathryn Williams on lead vocals, who also co-wrote the haunting piece. 'Supplement: 66' delivers an additional four tracks of soulful, roots-inspired rock, perfectly complementing its parent album.

Review: Paul Weller's Fly On The Wall reissue is a fantastic compilation for fans, now available as a 3LP vinyl set. This collection, originally released in 2003, gathers B-sides, remixes, and rare tracks from Weller's prolific period between 1991 and 2001 with Go! Discs and Island Records. The album includes gems like the demo of 'Into Tomorrow,' the reflective 'The Loved,' and the title track 'Fly On The Wall.' Notable highlights are the Portishead remix of 'Wildwood' and the 'Lynch Mob Bonus Beats Remix' of 'Kosmos,' showing Weller's versatility and willingness to experiment. The covers, including The Beatles' 'Sexy Sadie' and John Lennon's 'Instant Karma,' add a delightful twist, displaying Weller's ability to reinterpret classics with his unique flair. This reissue is a comprehensive and richly varied package that highlights Weller's range and creativity during a dynamic decade of his career.

Review: Two tracks from the Modfather's current 66 album get the remix treatment, with the A-side seeing Alexis Taylor of Hot Chip joining unlikely forces with Parisian DJ and producer Cedric Marszewski aka Pilooski for an overhaul of 'Flying Fish', before the flip hosts 'Flying Fish' Richie Stevens of virtual band Spacemonkeyz works his magic on 'Nothing'. Weller's remixes have been well chosen and generally top drawer ever since Brendan Lynch reworked 'Wild Wood' back in the mid 90s, a rich tradition that continues unabated here.

Review: Paul Weller's upcoming album 66 promises to be a great addition to his discography. With contributions from guest musicians like Dr Robert, Richard Hawley, and Noel Gallagher, and lyrical input from the likes of Suggs and Bobby Gillespie, the album is rich in collaborative spirit. The preview of 'Soul Wandering' hints at a soulful and introspective journey, setting the stage for what's to come. The inclusion of string arrangements by Hannah Peel adds depth and texture to the sound. This double CD set packaged in deluxe hardcover book format, comes with four extra tracks on the second disc. Weller's continued evolution as an artist is evident in this highly anticipated release.

Review: To mark his 66th birthday, mod legend Paul Weller returns with 66, his 17th full length solo album and one that arrives on Polydor to great fanfare. In the vast expanse of contemporary music, Weller stands as an icon of enduring influence and innovation, boasting a recording career spanning from 1977 to the release of this latest album. With a steadfast dedication to pushing artistic boundaries while honouring his roots, Weller's latest offering promises a captivating journey through his musical evolution and it reflects on life's myriad facets, from spirituality to changing circumstances, with a positive outlook tempered by wisdom gained from lived experiences. Collaborations with esteemed artists enrich the album, offering a fully-realized celebration of creative synergy.

Review: Paul Weller has a new 12 song album simply called 66. The former lead singer of The Jam and Style Council brings his soulful voice to album that has a slew of interesting guest artists, with contributions from Suggs, Noel Gallagher and Bobby Gillespie to name just a few. The lead single will be 'Rise Up Singing', which immediately transports to us a carefree 60s sound, 'Soul Wandering' is a powerful rock track where Paul really shines and is one of our favourites here. The modfather is back.

Review: This album was brought together as a look back at some of Paul Weller's lesser-known tunes. The collection dates back to 1991 and takes in many solo recordings across six sides of vinyl. Amongst the inclusions are plenty of rare B-sides and remixes as well as live recordings, none of them appearing on any of his most successful solo albums. It's a mix of rarities that fans are sure to lap up as they travel through 20 years of Weller magic, all compiled by the man himself.

Review: Paul Weller has aged as well as any of the original rockers if you ask us. And so too his music. In 1998 he was already of such status that he put out this backslapping collection, Modern Classics: The Greatest Hits, and why not? The bumper double disc collection featured most of the solo singles he had successfully released up to then as well as a new track in the form of 'Brand New Start'. It will always be hard to beat the lovely 'You Do Something To Me' but plenty makes a claim here from the more energetic 'Wild Wood' to 'Sunflower.' It's well worth having all these in one place.

Review: Five tracks from Paul Weller's critically acclaimed 2020 LP On Sunset, with five remixers taking the stems and crafting something new from that original material. And what remixers they are, comprising James Skelly of Liverpool band The Coral (Skeleton Key), Welsh synth-y songwriter Gwenno, Senegalese drummer Seckou Keita, psychedelic folk star Jane Weaver and French indie pop troupe Le SuperHomard.

With that lineup you'd expect the results to be varied, but that's something of an understatement in reality. From the tripped out surrealism of 'Rockets' as read by Weaver, through Keita's pared back percussive take on the same track, the sparse minimalistic harmonies of 'Old Father Thyme' to the sublime and sexy downtempo jazziness of 'More', it's a taster menu right down to the number of dishes.

Review: Jules Buckley can do absolutely no wrong in our eyes. The conductor responsible for leading the globally revered Heritage Orchestra has made a name for himself experimenting with the limits and limitless potential of classical music, taking influences from the world of dance and club tunes to open up orchestral performances to new demographics and generations.

He also has the honour of heading up the BBC Symphony Orchestra at select performances, another of the world's finest ensembles. This is just one recording from one of those shows, but clearly proves there's genius at work. The same could be said for Paul Weller, the iconic UK guitarist and singer who here invites said players to rethink tracks from his back catalogue for a staggering 75-minute set that elevates the rocker's oeuvre to greater heights than ever before.

Review: Paul Weller is perhaps one of the best non-soul musicians to ask to compile a rare soul compilation. Rather than documenting soul music as it proliferated in the 1960s, Ace Records' soul aim was to capture a genre, fashion and style as one man saw it in retrospect, in light of his involvement in the mod revival of the mid 1970s. Weller would later go onto form and front The Jam, but in late 1974, shortly before his involvement in the punk movement, he was about none of that business at all. Punk partly grew on febrile tissues of mod, which was in turn an offshoot of 60s soul; and it is true that we may hear a foetal form of the sound in the brasher cuts on this record, be it Billy Stewart's 'Summertime' or James Carr's 'Pouring Water'. Also clock Brother To Brother's 'In The Bottle', a super-early drum machine blues gem perfect for the house heads.

Review: Paul Weller of The Jam pens an unlikely soul missive in 4xLP compilation form, released through Ace. The British new wave and mod revivalist naturally grew up listening to soul music, though the likes of 'That's Entertainment' and 'Going Underground' hardly bear their imprinting marks. Having hassled Weller for years to compile such a thing, Ace now finally, happily deliver this biographic brain-pick. From James Carr's 1966 'Pouring Water On A Drowning Man' to 'Life Walked Out' by The Mist, we've a somewhat obscure selection here; but it's only natural for a man so immersed in 60s soul as a teenager that he'd go so far as to buy a Lambretta and vow never to take off his mohair!