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Live at the Royal Albert Hall

Paul Weller - Live at the Royal Albert Hall Audio CD

A fair review of the Paul Weller "Live at the Royal Albert Hall" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Paul Weller reviews here, or go back to the Paul Weller tabs.

Band: Paul Weller
Title: Live at the Royal Albert Hall
Rating:

Release Date: 2008-06-17
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Peacock Suit [DTS 5.1 Surround [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 2: Friday Street [DTS 5.1 Surroun [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 3: He's the Keeper [DTS 5.1 Surro [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 4: Back in the Fire [DTS 5.1 Surr [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 5: Dust & Rocks [DTS 5.1 Surround [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 6: Out of the Sinking [DTS 5.1 Su [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 7: Heavy Soul [DTS 5.1 Surround S [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 8: Time & Temperance [DTS 5.1 Sur [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 9: Frightened [DTS 5.1 Surround S [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 10: You Do You Something to Me[DT[DT [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 11: Changing Man [DTS 5.1 Surround [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 12: Porcelain Gods [DTS 5.1 Surrou [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 13: There's No Drinking After You're Dead [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround [Dol 14: As You Lean into the Light[DT[DT [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 15: Broken Stones [DTS 5.1 Surroun [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 16: Picking Up Sticks [DTS 5.1 Sur [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 17: Love-Less [DTS 5.1 Surround So [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 18: Woodcutters Song [DTS 5.1 Surr [Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound] 19: Changing Man 20: Porcelain Gods 21: You Do Something to Me 22: Peacock Suit 23: Out of the Sinking 24: Friday Street 25: Broken Stones 26: Back in the Fire 27: Love-Less 28: Heavy Soul 29: Picking Up Sticks 30: There's No Drinking After You're Dead 31: He's the Keeper 32: As You Lean into the Light 33: Dust & Rocks 34: Woodcutter's Son 35: Frightened 36: Time & Temperance

Changing Man, Circa 2000
Paul Weller Live at the Royal Albert Hall does just that. One of the benefits of a great live performance DVD is that it captures the artist at a specific point in time, age, experience and creative output. Filmed in 2000, to support the "new" (and now largely dismissed) album Heliocentric, the performance is laced with songs that these days are largely overshadowed by Weller's earlier and subsequent work. Eight of the 18 tracks performed here by Weller come from Heliocentric, six are from 1995's Stanley Road and four are from 1997's Heavy Soul. This, then, is Paul Weller - the UK's acclaimed and Britpop-invigorated "Modfather" -- at the start of the new millennium, introducing his newest songs to an adoring London crowd. Weller has always been an intense, passionate performer, thriving on the energy of a live audience. At the Albert Hall he is backed by longtime associates Steve White on drums and Steve Cradock on guitar, plus Edgar Jones on bass and Chris Holland on keyboards. Also on hand are Robert Kirby and a 16-piece string orchestra, accompanying the band on most songs. The performances are tight and the production quality is excellent. The DVD of the live show clocks in at 96 minutes, giving the home viewer as good a live concert experience as you can get sitting on the couch. There's not much banter with the audience, but at one point Weller acknowledges the abundance of new material and lack of dome-lifting (it is the Albert Hall, remember) old favorites with a sheepish "here's one you might recognize. " Perhaps the biggest surprise of the whole shebang is how well those old Heliocentric songs hold up. I don't expect you'll see eight of them played at any future Weller shows, so this DVD is the only way to enjoy them live. The "Sight & Sound" packaging also includes a CD - shoehorning and rearranging all 18 songs into a highly listenable 75 minute package. The downside: If you've seen the actual show, you'll likely miss the 9 minute version of Heavy Soul (trimmed to 4 and a half minutes here) and the seven minute version of As You Lean Into the Light (an enjoyable live jam that fades out on the CD after three minutes). Otherwise, enjoy both for one low price!.

Weller's best live show
I bought it in 2002 and have watched it dozens of times since. This concert was originally only available as a Region 2 PAL DVD, imported from the UK. (Thank goodness that many cheap DVD players can handle PAL standard video. ) It features songs from his Stanley Road and Heliocentric cd's, with a 16 piece string section on most songs. Just the right combo of rock energy and artistic songwriting, it is easily my favorite live concert DVD. Weller has a number of good DVD performances available, but this one is really special. He is an energetic live performer who throws himself into every song. The difference on this show from 2000 is the added texture from the strings, it really shines in Dolby surround. The PAL DVD I have has 5. 0 surround sound, not 5. 1 like the newer release - probably not a big sonic difference. Weller's fans who prefer his Jam songs may not like this style of performance, but I think it rises above the typical rock show in artistry.

Overlooked yet essential
Paul Weller's music is too overlooked as it is by American audiences, but this stellar live CD somehow slipped through the cracks of even the venerable [. . ], which otherwise faithfully and perceptively reviews all of Weller's remarkable output. Apart from a recent 4-disc BBC collection, "Live at the Royal Albert Hall" is one of three live releases from Weller as a solo artist and bandleader, this one featuring songs from his third through fifth albums, "Stanley Road," "Heavy Soul" and "Heliocentric. " (His first concert set, "Live Wood," collects songs from his first two solo albums, the self-titled debut and "Wild Wood. " His latest live recording, the double-disc "Catch-Flame!", both updates his recent output -- taking songs from "Illumination" and "As Is Now" -- and looks backward to draw on his catalog with the Jam and Style Council. A fourth live CD, "Days of Speed," spotlights Weller alone with his acoustic guitar, in a set spanning his entire thirty-year career. ) If you're more than a casual fan of Paul Weller, you'll want all three full-band collections, as they trace his live sound over the course of his 17-year solo career. As one critic has noted, a concert setting brings a shot of energy to Weller's music and adds a great soulful dimension to the work of his intense, introspective songcraft. "Live at the Royal Albert Hall" brings this accent especially to Weller's selections from "Heliocentric," an album that subtly echoes the Philly Soul sound, complete with soaring strings and equally soaring sentiments. At a full 75 minutes and a generous 18-song list, the energy of "Live at the Royal Albert Hall" never dips, nor does the craftsmanship. The band plays tightly but with great ease, and Weller's vocal phrasing is expert while remaining passionate and gritty, giving depth and credence to the convictions in his songs. Don't pass this one up; while "Live Wood" bears a jazzy vibe and "Catch-Flame!" a spikier aesthetic (to accommodate the songs from "As Is Now"), "Live at the Royal Albert Hall" is the Modfather's great live stab at rock-n-soul. You don't want to miss it. .

You can see a complete list of all Paul Weller discography, or go back to the Paul Weller tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.