Built On Shifting Sands

There are many things to admire about Paul Weller. For one thing, there’s his haircut, which seems to have essentially stayed the same all throughout the years with only minor variations in length and color. For another, there’s his longevity, managing to stay something close to contemporary from his origins in the Jam, through the Style Council and then the solo career that crested the wave of Britpop and earned him the nickname of the Modfather. But what I really admire about the man is that he managed to recycle the same guitar riff into two different songs that I still actually like.

And the best part? It’s not even his riff. It’s not even, as many people have said, “Dear Prudence” by the Beatles – well, it is, but there’s something that’s even closer than that: It’s ELO:

Seriously, there’s something I genuinely love about the shamelessness of not only stealing from Jeff Lynne and getting away with it, but doing it twice and having both attempts be hit singles. No wonder that this era of Weller, the early Modfather days, is the one I love the most, the one I feel that all of his interests and talents came together, even in side projects like this:

It’s all just 1960s retro and Beatles love, of course, but… I don’t care. It’s what I would do, if I could play guitar and had such good hair.