Inspired by Albumism, I’m doing my own version of Flying Solo with individual tracks. Band breakups and hiatuses are never fun, but these solo jams were defining moments in my life’s soundtrack.
I’ve been a fan of The Jam and the mod revival scene since high school. But, I’m a newbie and a late bloomer when it comes to Paul Weller’s solo work, only now starting to dive into his vast catalog. I’m impressed at how versatile and experimental he’s been over the years. Weller is a true musical chameleon and explorer, almost Bowie-esque. And “The Soul Searchers” is one of my new favorites.
I love the accessible, yet unique melody and Weller’s wry guitar riffs — both on acoustic and electric. But the one thing that “The Soul Searchers” does as well as any other song is weave its string arrangements so seamlessly in with the rest of the instrumentation. There are probably somewhere between 15 to 20 different instruments on the recording - and not a single part overpowers or gets lost.
“Sleep tight, let tomorrow bring you a new day.”