paul weller

[CRAZY-HORSE]

PAUL WELLER "heavy soul" 1997.

this one is a huge letdown after 'wildwood' and 'stanley road'...maybe it has something to do with the fact that Weller was indulging in alcohol and drug binges with the Gallagher brothers around this time, maybe he was believing his own myth of greatness heaped on him by the 'britpop' bands of the day, or maybe he had exhausted himself through constant touring for the previous two years....whatever it was it created a below-par record.
the songs sound stodgy and compressed,there is a lack of focus on the songs and more effort put into creating a soundscape. this said, the songs sound raw and full of energy when performed live.
the aptly named album,'heavy soul' is just that as it tries to emulate the sound of Traffic in a modern way. there is one very good track on here,six average songs and five dud tracks,having said that,that is my opinion, and opinion of Weller fans is split on this one.
the album reached #2 on the UK charts, it would have got to #1 bar the give-aways it included...chart stipulations at the time in the UK stated that 'no more than two give-aways were allowed in an album to count towards chart sales, thus 30,000+ sales were not counted for the week it was at #2...an oversight on Island Records part, and one Weller was not impressed with.
four singles made the UK top 30: peacock suit#5, brushed#14, friday street#21, and, mermaids#30.

I LOVE THIS ALBUM

worst track: brushed
best track peacock suit

tracks:

1.  heavy soul pt.1***
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Et1sBsJnJ_Q live(pts 1 +2)
2.  peacock suit***
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRRB-MS7gJY live
3.  up in suzies room***
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZTOlIw4lDg&playnext=1&list=PL5E926B28C2FE8469&index=23 live
4.  brushed**
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVKZKMvzcJA live
5.  driving nowhere***
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDm0Idz_VrY audio
6.  i should've been there to inspire you***
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ez1Ja7e2acc live
7.  heavy soul pt.2*
see 'heavy soul pt.1'
8.  friday street**
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgOenmmFeM8 live with interview
9.  science**
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0KGZGvUK7U audio
10.golden sands***
11.as you lean into the light***
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIYYnQxxxhA live
12.mermaids***
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0UdMpWu9b8 live

3s=7
2s=4
1s=1

rating 2.5

to be continued,next...'heliocentric'2000.