Studio 150

Product Information

And so to Studio 150, named after the venue in Amsterdam where this collection was recorded. Opening with northern soul stomper "If I Could Only Be Sure", this promises not to be too much of a departure with a heavy Gibson riff underpinning Weller's gruff vocals. At the time he said he was frustrated with the trio's sound - coming as it did on the heels of the number two hit "The Bitterest Pill", and preceding their final single, "Beat Surrender" entering the charts at number one - it's been clear since the start that commercialism was never a factor in the workings of Weller's mind. Paul Weller is as keen on re-invention as that other 80s icon Madonna - fortunately without the religious imagery and pointy bras - and this latest album is testimony to his determination to follow his own path.

Few opening lyrics set a song’s stall out so perfectly as ‘In your white lace and your wedding bells/you look the picture of contented new wealth’. Weller’s soul influences again shone through on a tale of love, bitterness and jealousy that was featured in Channel 4’s This Is England ‘86. Studio 150 is the seventh album by British artist Paul Weller. It comprises covers of songs by a variety of artists, and showcases Weller's myriad musical influences. It was named after the small Amsterdam studio in which it was recorded. It entered the charts at #2.The Weller song you’re most likely to hear after the word ‘ladies and gentlemen, the bride and groom’, he accompanied Adele on it during a 2008 BBC 6 Music session and did the same for Celeste in an Apple Music performance 11 years later. Besides the Studio 150 album, there was also a DVD release featuring a studio concert Weller gave at the Riverside Studios in London in 2004. The DVD features most songs from the album and some songs Weller wrote during his career, including a song of The Jam and The Style Council. Shepherd, Fiona (3 September 2004). "Weller Clears the Wild Wood". The Scotsman . Retrieved 21 June 2015. AMY WINEHOUSE AND PAUL WELLER WITH JOOLS HOLLAND & HIS RHYTHM & BLUES ORCHESTRA - DON’T GO TO STRANGERS (Amy Winehouse at the BBC, 2006)

The Style Council's cover of Joe Smooth's "Promised Land" heralded the advent of Weller's fascination with house music and as a true modernist he's always chosen breaking down musical barriers over reiterating a successful formula - witness his announcement that in October '82 that The Jam was no more whilst at the height of its popularity. With Weller a vocal campaigner against Thatcherism, this defiant Northern Soul stomper calls out “the public enemies at number 10” who “dangle jobs like a donkey’s carrot”. The story of a man being assaulted in a tube station by a gang of skinheads who ‘smelt of pubs, and Wormwood Scrubs, and too many right-wing meetings’. Tension is heightened by the sound of a heartbeat in the left audio channel, and its visceral lyrics led to the song being banned by the BBC. Fans at an in-store album launch this week were unanimously supportive of Studio 150. A BBC 6 Music vox-pop found a wide cross-section who said Weller had introduced them to artists they'd never have otherwise discovered: "I'd never heard of Neil Young until Weller first played his version of "Ohio" in 1993" said one fan. Others said they admired him for avoiding the obvious, saying they thought he was pretty brave to record a version of Gil Scott Heron's "The Bottle". Also covered by the likes of Beyonce, Jay-Z and Seal, Weller’s sleek version of the 1978 Rose Royce hit featured on his 2004 collection of covers.When rumours first circulated that the Modfather was releasing his version of Rose Royce's "Wishing on a Star"as well as Sister Sledge's"Thinking of You",eyebrows were raised. But true Weller fans won't be fazed by this dalliance with disco. the surround mix (the reason I bought the SACD, lets face it high-resolution stereo's a bit of a waste of time on a fairly lo-fi recording such as this) has its fair share of high points. rear activity is pretty aggressive at times but is still mostly sympathetic to the material.

firstly, I'd like to respond to one aspect of "eesau's" review here in so much as I do not get the same phase issues across the front 3 channels.. if you move to the left PW's vocals move left with you and if you move right he follows you to the right, all is just as it should be for me on this one. as for the comb filtering issues they encountered, I'm not technically minded enough to know what to look out for so I can't comment on that score. Close to You", originally sung by Richard Chamberlain in 1963, popularised by The Carpenters in 1970 Over acoustic guitar, Weller sings of ‘a smash of glass and the rumble of boots’ and ‘a freezing cold flat and damp on the walls’. The slice-of-life lyrics would be at home in a John Cooper Clarke song or Ken Loach film. Offiziellecharts.de – Paul Weller – Studio 150" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 23 July 2020.The Jam had covered Heatwave by Martha Reeves & The Vandellas on 1979's Setting Sons, and that influence was clear on possibly Weller’s most beloved song. Building on the social commentary of That’s Entertainment and adding a Motown beat, it’s a set closer at most Weller gigs.