Product Description

A collection of songs culled from Weller's solo acoustic tour of Britain and Europe. The most notable feature here is the inclusion of songs from The Jam and The Style Council which Weller had previously refused to play as a solo artist.

Track Listing

1. Brand New Start
2. The Loved
3. Out Of The Sinking
4. Clues
5. English Rose
6. Above The Clouds
7. You Do Something To Me
8. Amongst Butterflies
9. Science
10. Back In The Fire
11. Down In The Seine
12. Thats Entertainment
13. Loveless
14. There's No Drinking When You're Dead
15. Everything Has A Price To Pay
16. Wild Wood
17. Headstart For Happiness
18. Town Called Malice

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9224 in Music
• Released on: 2006-02-13
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Live

Amazon.co.uk Review
Days of Speed, recorded live and acoustic at various shows during his 2001 global tour, will do little to further Paul Weller's standing among critics, who have a blind spot when it comes to Paul Weller. How is it, they want to know, that the man responsible for one of the most inspirational commercial punk-era bands (The Jam) and the cosmopolitan verve of the early 1980s nouveau jazz/pop Style Council is so seemingly content spending his twilight years turning himself into a third-rate Eric Clapton? Clearly, he's not lacking in talent (or fervent support, as the applause on this album proves). Yet he insists on singing in a wooden fashion--you could kindly compare him to Steve Winwood, if Weller wasn't so clearly his own man--and writing songs that continue to ignore the outside world. Contrast the older songs here--a lacklustre "That's Entertainment", a desultory "Headstart for Happiness" from the Council's excellent 1984 album Café Bleu, "Town Called Malice" divorced of its driving Motown beat (surely its main part)--with the newer version of Weller, a "mature" Weller, a Weller that clearly thinks the concerns of the world are no longer his. "You Do Something to Me" (from 1995's successful Stanley Road) still shimmers above the hedgerow, "Amongst Butterflies" (from 1992's Paul Weller) possess a certain naïve charm, but on the whole this is heavy going indeed. One indistinguishable love song follows another. The fall and fall of Weller certainly adds fuel to the fire of those who believe rock & roll to be a youth music, but really it comes down to one simple test for old Jam fans: which song did you prefer, "Going Underground" or "That's Entertainment"? --Everett True

Customer Reviews

Charming and surprisingly touching
Mr Weller's songwriting credentials are not up for question in most quarters. What has troubled many of late has been the trudging, stodgy, wholegrain guitar music that has been churned out in both the studio and on the stage in the last 10 or so years.
"Days of Speed" showcases a run of fine songs delivered with soul, simplicity and just an acoustic guitar for backing.
Songs like "Everything Has A Price..." and "The Loved" shine up as great songs in this context.
Well worth a listen.

Silk From A Raw Throat
I've owned Days of Speed for three years and never tire of it - it's easily the most played CD in my collection. Most of the songs sound better live - and from Weller's mature chords - than they do on the studio albums. There are many stand outs but Science and English Rose in particular are real gems. I read Amazon's review and what a pile of old bollocks from the maudlin git who wrote it. If you only ever get one Weller album, make it this one. But once you've bought it, I doubt you'll be able to stop at just one and you'll soon be back for the entire discography. Disclaimer: I'm a sad old Weller freak and own just about anything the man has ever produced.

A worthy inclusion
This is a worthwhile effort from Paul Weller, and unusual to boot. He sings unaccompanied save his trusty acoustic guitar and the CD is a fine showcase for his clever, atmospheric pastoral/bucolic, often Morrison-esque lyrics and also shows Weller to be an accomplished acoustic guitar player, with a fine touch and instinct for melody.

However, listened to as a whole, one often longs for the band to kick in at times as entire acoustic concerts (as this selection from many shows is intended to replicate) can verge on the samey.
The collection is very much early morning or late night music. It is certainly not to be put in your CD player just before going out for the evening ! On the other hand, listen to it as the sun goes down on a peaceful summer's evening in rural England and it just doesn't get much better.