Where do pebbles come from? Paul Weller and his take on human origin
Art has always aimed to answer the big questions in life, and musicians, in particular, have always been keen to throw their two-pence into the conversation. For a songwriter like Paul Weller, who has been a constant source of socially active songwriting for decades, his take on life and human existence has changed as he has grown older. Some of his most profound musings on life and the world came on the 1995 album Stanley Road, reflecting the changing tides of Weller’s existence at the time.
The world was first introduced to the distinctive sounds of the Woking songwriter during the 1970s when The Jam emerged from the sticky floors and sweat-stained walls of the punk scene to revive the mod subculture. During those early years, the Modfather’s songwriting tended to reflect the anger and political alienation that was inherent in the punk movement, penning a variety of politically-charged social commentary tracks like ‘Going Underground’ or ‘The Eton Rifles’. As his music progressed, however, so did the themes of his songwriting.
Exploring the infectious sounds of soul during his tenure with The Style Council, for instance, Weller’s musings on life and current affairs were distinctly more upbeat. ‘Walls Come Tumbling Down’, for instance, attacked the political establishment by calling for unity and solidarity rather than the abrasive anger of The Jam. When the songwriter decided to go solo, however, his songwriting became much more introspective, seeing Weller look inward in addition to reflecting the political landscape of the time.
After all, by the time Paul Weller released his debut solo album in 1992, he was a very different person to the teenage rebel who had founded The Jam. The songwriter was happily married to his former Style Council bandmate Dee C Lee, and eventually, the pair would welcome two children together.
Becoming a married family man certainly changed the themes of Weller’s songwriting, but mostly for the better. That change in pace can be seen throughout virtually all of the musician’s solo material. In fact, one of his defining solo tracks originally came from the inspiration of his son, Nathaniel Weller.
Featured on the deeply personal album Stanley Road, one of his finest solo efforts, ‘Broken Stones’ came to define this era of Weller’s songwriting. According to the man himself, the gospel-influenced song was born from a conversation he had with his son at a beach. “He was asking me where all the pebbles came from,” Weller was quoted as saying in The Art of Noise: Conversations with Great Songwriters. “I told him we were all part of one rock before and we all got smashed down in time and splintered and sent around the Earth.”
“I don’t know if that’s true or not, scientifically,” Weller said of this explanation. “But that was my explanation to him anyway. But even if it wasn’t true, as a metaphor for us as a human race, human spirit.” Expanding on this profoundly poetic take on life, the songwriter continued, “That we all come from one source and we just got splintered and sent round the world, there was sense of spirituality that we’re all seeking to get back to that core again or get back home.”
As such, ‘Broken Stones’ not only reflects Weller’s changing outlook on life but also his own beliefs on the origins and purpose of humanity as a whole. Only Paul Weller could channel this sagacious take on the human experience into a gospel-inspired hit single that breaks into the top 20. His continued ability to adapt his songwriting to changes in his own personal life only adds to Weller’s reputation as one of Britain’s defining songwriters.
