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Review: Paul Weller joined by Roger Daltrey at Bedgebury Pinetum

Despite struggling to make an impact on the top 40 since the start of the new millennium, which probably says more about the charts than the artist, Paul Weller remains one of the UK’s most influential artists.

His solo albums have enjoyed critical, if not commercial success, and his influence on the British music scene can be traced back to Brit pop and beyond.

Paul Weller on stage at Bedgbury Pinetum
Paul Weller on stage at Bedgbury Pinetum

Early success came with The Jam and, when he decided that he wanted to explore a new musical direction, with The Style Council.

It was a period in his career that was to bring several number ones, including Going Underground, Beat Surrender and A Town Called Malice.

Weller was also asked to perform on the Live Aid single, Do They Know it’s Christmas?.

The evening at Bedgebury Pinetum got off to a lively start thanks to Edinburgh band The Merrylees, who brought an eclectic mix of country and western with strong 60s and 70s influences.

They were followed by Telegram, from east London, with their wildly infectious guitar solos and trance rumbles.

Given that the audience was being treated to three very different acts, the music had an appropriately festival-like undercurrent.

Weller’s introduction onto the stage pretty much summed up the man and his music: There was no hyperbole, no big build-up, no grand entrance.

This is a man who really does let his music do the talking. And why wouldn’t he?

It’s unlikely anyone would mistake Weller’s distinctive sound for any of his peers so it’s less chit chat and more music.

One of the UK's most influential musicians Paul Weller who played at Bedgebury Pinetum
One of the UK's most influential musicians Paul Weller who played at Bedgebury Pinetum

If you ever want to see cool personified, Weller’s your man.

The evening did, in fact, have a contradictory feel to it.

Despite the audience numbering in the thousands, it felt like an intimate gig and though the music was, for the most part, upbeat, there was a distinctly chilled out vibe.

Weller only occasionally – and briefly – addresses the audience, choosing instead to interact through his music.

The rest of the night was a smorgasbord of Weller classics. This is a man who isn’t afraid to revisit his past glories, and delivered live they easily stand the test of time.

Every song is a reminder of just what a great songwriter and lyricist Weller is.

This is a man who has something to say and knows how to say it and the audience are willing listeners, hanging on every word, every note.

The big surprise for the evening was the arrival on stage of The Who frontman Roger Daltrey, who joined Weller to belt out a few hits including Substitute.

The two of them looked so comfortable on stage together it’s a bit of a surprise they don’t duet more often.

The evening wouldn’t be complete, of course, without A Town Called Malice and Weller duly obliges on his third – yes, you read that right – encore.

The other two encores included Wild Blue Yonder and Be Happy Children, but it’s Malice that turns the audience into a frenzied mob of demented pogo sticks, jumping, bouncing and leaping, all to their own rhythms and none of them in time with the music.

No one cares, nor should they, because if there is one thing that Weller’s career has taught us, it’s do your own thing.

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