“I’m the changingman”: Paul Weller’s 10 greatest solo songs
It takes a particularly special kind of songwriter to transcend generations and genre conventions as expertly as Paul Weller. Without wishing to sound overly patriotic, the UK has produced a wealth of incredible songwriters over the course of musical history, but very few have achieved the same staying power as ‘The Modfather’. From the youthful rebellion of The Jam to the profound vulnerability of his recent solo work, Weller still seems to be bursting with songwriting prowess, even in his late 60s.
Weller first made a name for himself during the punk boom of the mid-1970s. His group, The Jam, had first been established back in 1972, but their early gigs largely consisted of working men’s clubs and functions in the songwriter’s native Woking. Punk provided a platform for grassroots groups like The Jam to truly make an impact, and Weller certainly did not squander that chance. Eclipsing the tight confines of the movement by incorporating a wealth of influences from the 1960s, The Jam soon became one of the biggest bands in Britain, inspiring a complete resurgence of the mod subculture.
Not wishing to be tied down to one specific sound, however, Weller self-destructed The Jam in 1982, instead focusing his attention on a new group, The Style Council. With that incredibly successful outfit, the songwriter was able to capture the political unrest of Margaret Thatcher’s reign, while also inspiring a sense of unity through their upbeat, soul and jazz-influenced sounds.
By the time the 1990s rolled around, The Style Council had gone the same way as The Jam, with both groups leaving behind a repertoire of utterly iconic anthems which perfectly captured the power of Paul Weller’s songwriting. The Jam, in particular, still boasts a dedicated cult following to this day, but Weller had never been swayed into a cash-grab reunion tour. Instead, he has focused his attention on crafting expansive and often experimental solo material for over three decades now.
Unjustly, Weller’s solo career is rarely afforded the same mainstream reverence or acclaim as his previous works with the likes of The Jam or The Style Council. However, his skill as a songwriter have only seemed to increase with the passing of time, and regularly rivals that of his younger days. With that in mind, join us as we count down ten of Weller’s greatest solo efforts from over the years.
Paul Weller’s 10 greatest solo songs:
‘The Changingman’ (1995)
What better place to start our list than this storming moment of self-exploration? Taken from Weller’s seminal 1995 record Stanley Road, the songwriter details his necessity to move forward in a personal and artistic sense, even if that means destroying something. Although the lyrics were predominantly influenced by Weller’s recent divorce, they do also work as an allegory for the success and subsequent break-ups of The Jam and The Style Council.
“Numbed by the effect, aware of the muse, too in touch with myself, I light the fuse,” are particularly telling lyrics, reflecting the artist’s constant desire to reinvent himself and his work, refusing to ever get too comfortable in one place or sound. Musically, he accompanies this message of growth with a riff borrowed from ELO’s ‘10538 Overture’, which further adds to the sense of retroism with the song, as though Weller was rejecting the complacency of languishing in the past, determined to move forward into a new age.
‘Aspects’ (2018)
For Weller’s 2018 record True Meanings, the songwriter adopted a much more folk-centric sound than on previous efforts, and the vulnerability of the album’s lead single, ‘Aspects’ set the tone for the rest of the release. Built around the tender vocals of ‘The Modfather’ accompanied by Nick Drake-influenced acoustic guitar and orchestra sounds which build as the song develops, it is an incredible emotional affair that feels, in a similar vein to ‘Changingman’, like a voyage of self-discovery.
Released on the artist’s 60th birthday, ‘Aspects’ almost feels like a culmination of all the experiences, the highs and the lows, that Weller has experienced throughout his extensive career in the music industry. One of the songwriter’s most emotional offerings, there is a distinct melancholy to the song but, as it reaches its conclusion, the gentle nature of the track gives rise to a sense of hopeful optimism for the future.
‘Peacock Suit’ (1996)
Ever since his youth, Paul Weller has been a noted disciple of the mod subculture, immersing himself in the fashion, music, and lifestyle of the movement and using the platform of The Jam to inspire a resurgence of its popularity. Throughout his solo career, the songwriter has routinely used the subculture as a means of artistic inspiration and expression, and ‘Peacock Suit’ might be the greatest example of that fact.
Reportedly written in response to a newspaper article criticising the fashion of the mod subculture, the defiant anthem acts as a definitive anthem for mods everywhere. Summarising the individuality and rebellion of the movement, the Heavy Soul track exists somewhere between Dobie Gray’s ‘The In Crowd’ and All Mod Cons, and it remains Weller’s most successful solo effort, having reaching number five in the UK singles chart.
‘I Woke Up’ (2024)
Despite Weller’s continued genius as a songwriter, some of his more recent solo efforts are rarely afforded the same deserving praise as that of Stanley Road or other beloved early records. Nevertheless, his most recent release, 66, could certainly be in contention for one of his strongest records in years, and ‘I Woke Up’ is certainly the stand-out track. Accompanied by Sheffield’s finest, Richard Hawley, on steel lap guitar, the bulk of the track is built around an understated, stripped-back sound, focused on Weller’s intimate vocals and a gentle acoustic guitar progression.
Telling a tale of alienation, isolation, loss, and ageing, the song plays on Weller’s clear appreciation for folk, but, unlike previous efforts such as ‘Aspects’, the instrumentation becomes much more rousing and grandiose as the song progresses. There is a beautiful sense of triumph and growth within Weller’s understated lyrics of isolation, which makes the song utterly compelling.
‘From The Floorboards Up’ (2005)
Returning to a higher-octane atmosphere, ‘From The Floorboards Up’ reestablished Weller’s innate power as a performer upon its release back in 2005. Infectious and guitar-driven, the instrumentation of the song almost harks back to the songwriter’s early punk influences from back in the 1970s, complete with the kind of confrontational vocal delivery which made those early Jam releases so compelling. Still, the song does not rely entirely on nostalgia, slotting comfortably into the distinctly 2000s tracklisting of As Is Now.
At the time of its release, the UK music scene was experiencing a renaissance of guitar-led music, thanks to the blossoming indie scene and groups like The Libertines and Arctic Monkeys, among various others. While Weller never fully embraced the youthful energy of indie sleaze, his interest in that emerging scene is evident on tracks like ‘From The Floorboards Up’, built almost entirely around a seemingly simplistic yet endlessly infectious chord progression.
‘Out of the Sinking’ (1994)
Stanley Road is routinely heralded as Weller’s masterpiece, and it is easy to see why. The first single released from that groundbreaking record was ‘Out of the Sinking’ and, despite being panned by critics upon its initial release, the song has aged like a fine wine. Awash with lush, clean guitar tones and all the romantic sensibilities of 1960s pop ballads, the song is a love letter to Weller’s early mod influences, taking admitted inspiration from the work of The Small Faces.
Although the track might not be as commanding or confrontational as some of Weller’s other efforts from around that period in his solo career, it predicted the development of his sound as a solo artist, in addition to reflecting his continued abilities in crafting timeless love songs. Unusually, for somebody who emerged from the punk scene, Weller has created a wealth of compelling love songs over the years, from ‘English Rose’ to ‘The Best Thing’, and ‘Out of the Sinking’ is among his most enduring.
‘Sunflower’ (1993)
One of the very first solo singles released by Weller, all the way back in 1993, ‘Sunflowers’ quickly shut the mouths of any sceptics, ushering in an entirely new age for Weller’s songwriting and performance. A distinctly psychedelic offering taking cues from Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd, and the Weller’s beloved Beatles during their ‘Strawberry Fields’ era, the songwriter dragged those old-school sounds of psychedelia firmly into the musically diverse era of the 1990s.
Arriving in 1993, following the success of grunge in the UK, the song offered a clean-cut alternative to the abrasive distortion and ripped-jeans of the grunge era. In that sense, it could certainly be argued that ‘Sunflowers’ played a role in the emergence of the Britpop scene which would follow, using its retro instrumentation and modern sensibilities to create fresh, new, guitar-led anthems for a new generation of music fans. ‘Sunflowers’ reflects Weller’s innate ability to draw from the influences of the past while simultaneously striving for something new, inventive, and artistically gratifying.
‘Broken Stones’ (1995)
A life-lesson in song form, this masterful soul-infused ballad from Stanley Road apparently arose from a conversation Weller had with his young son while on a trip to the seaside. As such, the lyrics read more like a philosophy or manifesto for life than a mid-1990s Paul Weller rock song. Perhaps that is because the song departs from the rock leanings of other inclusions on Stanley Road, borrowing heavily from Weller’s enduring obsession with soul music. Throughout the song, the distinctive sounds of a Rhodes piano adds entirely new layers to the Motown-infused sounds of the track, but it is the lyrics which take centre-stage.
Weller has always maintained a knack for profound songwriting, but this effort, more than most, captures his unique abilities to deliver groundbreaking, life-altering messages of life, love, and loss in an endearingly understated, intimate manner. The song might be something of an outlier on Stanley Road, but one which remains one of Weller’s all-time greatest efforts.
‘Wild Wood’ (1993)
Another early solo effort, arriving in 1993 from the album of the same name, ‘Wild Wood’ is certainly one of Weller’s most expansive and ambitious efforts, incorporating elements of folk, soul, and rock. The resulting sound pays homage to the songwriter’s adoration of figures like Nick Drake, as well as his ever-expanding collection of old-school soul and R&B artists. With that unique combination, Weller marries profound lyricism with a catchy pop structure, creating an unsuspectingly earworm which builds in anticipation as it progresses.
It was understated masterpieces like ‘Wild Wood’ that helped to establish Weller’s potential as a solo songwriting, arriving only a few years after the disbanding of The Style Council. Allowing the artist to explore a wealth of different atmospheres and influences, the track remains an ulatime highlight within the songwriter’s repertoire, both as a solo artist and within his previous groups.
‘You Do Something To Me’ (1995)
Not only is ‘You Do Something To Me’, another storming effort taken from Stanley Road, Paul Weller’s greatest solo track, it might just be one of the greatest songs he has ever written in any capacity. We’ve already spoken about Weller’s penchant for writing incredible love songs, but this 1995 track is his archetypal anti-love anthem, detailing an unattainable love likely influenced by his recent divorce. Still, the songwriter manages to imbue the anti-love anthem with enough of the trappings of romanticism, including a lush, intimate delivery, to give the track something of a universal appeal.
It is this universal appeal which makes the 1995 song such a stand-out release in Weller’s discography. While other efforts on this list provide a voice to the mod subculture, or tell vulnerable tales of Weller’s personal journey through life, ‘You Do Something To Me’ is a track that virtually every listener, regardless of age, race, gender, or musical taste, can identify with. Indeed, Weller’s impassioned delivery makes it very difficult not to be swept away in its compelling wake. More so than any other, ‘You Do Something To Me’ perfectly encapsulates the enduring power and quality at the heart of Paul Weller’s songwriting.
