l IL A ME w B 0 O K S Jam preseved By Steve Kaminski A Beat Concerto By Paolo Hewitt omnibus Press FOR THOSE unfamiliar with the Jam, I'd like to point out that the Jam were the group in Britain in the late '70s and early '80s, bigger than the Police, the Olash, or Journey (who are unknown in the U.K., testifying to the average Briton's musical sense). To those more. familiar, they were the greatest rock group since the heydayof the Who, and Paolo Hewitt captures the slice of time more Americans should've known about. The Jam consisted of Paul Weller (guitar/vocals), Bruce Foxton (bass/vocals), and Rick Buckler (drums). Weller, the writer of almost all of the band's material, grew up ob- sessed with the Beatles and then modernism. Modernism, better known as "mod," was and is a lifestyle. In the early '60s, mods were into Motown, young British groups like the Who, Yardbirds, and Small Faces, clothes, amphetamines, and scooters, not necessarily in that order. Weller had by chance heard "My Generation" on a K-Tel compilation album and immersed himself in mod tradition. He teamed up with Foxton and Buckler, both turning out to be ex- ceptional players. When the punk ex- plosion of 1976 erupted, Weller (then 18) found excitement in the new scene. Soon, the Jam signed wiht Polydor and In the City was released. Paolo Hewitt, a New Musical Express writer, covers these early years deftly. The star is Weller, of course, seen by Hewitt in all his moods. Hewitt's jour- nalistic tendencies fail him in a few areas. His first gaffe is his criticism of the Jam's second album, This is the Modern World. He slags Weller for rip- ping off Who riffs for "The Modern World" and "Standards." If Hewitt had pieces such as the Joe-Strummer-can't- be-this-subtle-sarcastic-and-intelligent "Mr. Clean" and the gorgeous "The Butterfly Collector." At the age of twenty-two, Weller would then lead the Jam to the top with Setting Sons and Sound Affects. The Jam continued to move, and Weller continued to write great songs, like the amazing "Liza Radley" hidden away on The Jam EP. The Gift was their last studio album, spawning their only U.S. hit, the classic "Town Called Malice." The various musical styles on the album boasted this Motownish won- der, arguably the best single of the '80s. Weller's lyrics address the individual listener and the world: Better stop dreaming of the quiet life/'cause it's the one we'll never know ... time is short and life is cruel / through this period with the Style Coun- cil, Elvis Costello's Punch the Clock, Paul Young, and Culture Club. With typical Weller stubborness, the Jam's leader argues that rock music is "totally redundant - it's just a big em- pty fucking vehicle for nothing." Soul was now the god on the Woking Won- der's altar. He says further that his favorite songs "hadn't got any politics at all" and depended on feel to reach people, but his first Style Council single "Money Go-Round" is so political it ridicules that notion. Weller had jumped about wrenching great rock from his Rickenbacker and chucks it all for (at best) brilliant Motownish pop-soul and (at worst) jazz club muzak. Hewitt doesn't ask him about this switch - he walks in fear of asking about his idol's incon- sistencies. Despite those inconsistencies, Weller remains a pop figure far above all others in honesty -he refused to call the Jam's 1982 world tour a final tour to avoid fan hysteria (d'ya hear that, Pete Townshend?). But Hewitt's good effort isn't good enough - the reader is left with a few nagging questions about this songwriter who carried on the Len- non/McCartney, Townshend, and Davies songwriting tradition. But A Beat Concerto reminds you of that sudden glow, a flushed smile, that outstanding riff, and the touching lyric. As Paul Weller wrote on the back of the Jam's live LP, Dig the New Breed, "What have I learned? BELIEF IS ALL!" Yep. 'Hewitt... walks in fear of asking about his idol's inconsistencies.' ever picked up a guitar, he would have known that Modern World's chord progression differs frm "Pictures of Lily," and "Standards" isn't "I Can't Explain." To his credit, Hewitt includes short record reviews from other writers The Jam move on to the triumph of All . Mod Cons, showing more of a Beatles ("It's Too Bad") and Kinks (their cover of "David Watts") influen- ce. Although U.S. and U.K. albums dif- fered slightly, Weller wrote master- and it's up to us to change / This town called malice. A fierce howl against Thatcherite Britain (and Reaganite America) that points to you, yes you, to give a damn., With the Jam's story coming to a close, Hewitt makes another mistake. As seen by the group's last two singles, "The Bitterest Pill (I Ever Had to Swallow)" and "Beat Surrender," Weller had recaptured his fascination with soul music. The U.K. is still going at the Union? Why not bowl at Colonial Lanes? Challenge your friends or roommates to a few games and then join us in the newly remodeled Pin Room Bar and Grill for big screen TV., cold drinks and good food. There's no rea- son to give up bowling when you can go to Colonial Lanes. Colonial Lanes 1950 S Industrial Hwy Ann Arbor e 665-4474 . \V s _ , ° ~Ip¢ 12 Weekend/Friday, October 19, 1984