Why is this collection here? At least 90% of these songs are timeless classics. Have the songs stood up? Mainly yes. ‘That’s Entertainment’, ‘Eton Rifles’, ‘Town Called Malice’ and ‘Start’ all still sound like they were written yesterday. ‘English Rose’ and ‘Carnation’ show that Weller, even as a teenage, was at his best when writing stuff from the heart. So, what makes this collection different? Well, its sheer quantity of songs (47) for a start. And chronological order listing enables you to see clearly the sure and steady development of the band as players and Weller’s true voice as both singer and songwriter. Witness the short, sharp stabs of ‘In The City’ against ‘The Bitterest Pill’. One has an overexcited trio of upstarts too focused on three chords and the truth to do anything other than just steam in and sacrifice the song’s quality. The other shows a band who know and revel in their true strengths, with a stunning brass and string arrangement that allows Weller’s voice to stand, soar and swoop very naturally, with full confidence.
There are as many low points and interesting failures here. ‘Shopping’ is as banal as its title. ‘Pop Art Poem’ is an embarrassing spoken-word-cum-funk mess (“I made this up as I went along” declares Weller – no, really??!!). ‘Beat Surrender’ shows why some white boys should never (ever) attempt to be black and what exactly is the point of that stupid “In The City” radio advert which kicks off the whole set? You get a very good full appreciation of Weller. You also become well acquainted with his influences. He’s trying to be Pete Townshend on ‘Town Called Malice’ and ‘In The City’. He wants to be Curtis Mayfield on ‘Precious’. And The Jam always sounded better when Paul Weller relaxed and let the supporting players do their thing – that comes across at all times. Ok, but can we all agree that this well has now run dry? Four stars for the quality of the stuff alone.