Watch The Jam perform a powerful show in Paris 1981
In 1981, English punk rockers The Jam took a trip to Paris to perform a powerful set that demonstrated their range and dynamism. The gig followed the release of two of their most celebrated albums, the politically charged Setting Sons in 1979 and psychedelia-inspired Sound Affects in 1980. The Jam would go on to release one more studio album, The Gift, which reached number one and featured perhaps their most famous hit ‘Town Called Malice’, before disbanding the project.
The performance begins with a cover of The Kinks’ ‘David Watts’, written by Ray Davies. The Jam bassist Bruce Foxton joins Paul Weller on vocals as they make the track their own. The band move onto ‘Private Hell’ from Setting Sons. Weller has since noted that he “wouldn’t write a song as harsh as that now.” He spoke on the track to Uncut in 2022, stating, “It’s not like I didn’t feel empathy in that song, but I’d just use softer language, different words.”
The performance plunges into a couple of tracks from the deluxe version of Setting Sons, ‘The Butterfly Collector,’ and ‘When You’re Young’, Weller and Buxton delivering the line “Life is a drink, and you get drunk when you’re young” in harmony. There’s also a brief interval for the catchy, almost love song ‘But I’m Different Now’ from Sound Affects.
The recording ends with the band launching into ‘Eton Rifles’, a class critique aimed directly at elitist private schools, namely Eton. With a British flag ironically tied around his mic stand, Weller’s anger and passion seep into his performance as he throws himself into the guitar parts and paces around the stage, declaring, “I’d prefer a plague to the Eton rifles.”
In 2008, soon-to-be Prime Minister and Eton alumni David Cameron declared himself a fan of the track. Weller responded in the Daily Mirror, “Which part of the song didn’t he get? Did he think it was a celebration of being at Eton or something? I don’t know. He must have an idea what it’s about, surely?.” He continued, “It’s a shame really, that someone didn’t listen to that song and get something else from it and become a socialist leader instead. I was a bit disappointed really.”
Far from Cameron’s confused response to the track, the Parisian crowd erupt into applause at Weller’s final strum. He leaves them wanting more, promptly leaving the stage with a wave and a “God bless ya, goodnight”.
Watch The Jam perform an assured, roaring live set in Paris in 1981 below:
