Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Here's A New Thing (b-side of 'Into Tomorrow' single)
2. That Spiritual Feeling (instrumental b-side of 'Into Tomorrow' single)
3. Into Tomorrow (demo version, b-side of 'Into Tomorrow' single)
4. Arrival Time (instrumental b-side of 'Uh Huh Oh Yeh' single)
5. Fly On The Wall (b-side of 'Uh Huh Oh Yeh' single)
6. Always There To Fool You (instrumental b-side of 'Uh Huh Oh Yeh' single)
7. All Year Round (From 'More Wood' Japanese import album)
8. Ends Of The Earth (b-side of 'Wild Wood' single)
9. This Is No Time (b-side of 'The Weaver' single)
10. Another New Day (instrumental b-side of 'The Weaver' single)
11. Foot Of The Mountain (live b-side of 'Hung Up' single)
12. Wild Wood ('Portishead' remix, b-side of 'Wild Wood' single - 1998 version)
13. Kosmos ('Lynch Mob Bonus Beats' remix, b-side of 'Hung Up' single)

Disc 2:

1. The Loved (b-side of 'Hung Up' single)
2. Steam (instrumental b-side of 'Broken Stones' single)
3. It's A New Day Baby (b-side of 'The Changing Man' single)
4. A Year Late (b-side of 'You Do Something To Me' single)
5. Eye Of The Storm (instrumental b-side of 'Peacock Suit' single)
6. Shoot The Dove (b-side of 'Brushed' single)
7. As You Lean Into The Light (b-side of 'Brushed' single)
8. So You Want To Be A Dancer (instrumental b-side of 'Mermaids' single)
9. Everything Has A Price To Pay (1997 'acoustic' version, b-side of 'Mermaids' single)
10. Right Underneath It (b-side of 'Brand New Start' single)
11. Helioscentric (instrumental b-side of 'The Keeper' single)
12. There's No Drinking After You're Dead ('Noonday Underground' remix, b-side of 'Sweet Pea' single)
13. The Riverbank (b-side of 'Brand New Start' single)
14. Science (with the Psychonauts) (Lynch Mob Remix, b-side of 'Wild Wood' single - 1998 version)

Disc 3:

1. Feelin' Alright (From 'More Wood' Japanese import album, also b-side of 'Above The Clouds' single)
2. Ohio (Live at R.A.H. October 1992, BBC recording - b-side of 'The Weaver' single)
3. Black Sheep Boy (from 'More Wood' Japanese import album)
4. Sexy Sadie (b-side of 'Out Of The Sinking' single)
5. I Shall Be Released (b-side of 'Out Of The Sinking' single)
6. I'd Rather Go Blind (b-side of 'The Changing Man' single)
7. My Whole World Is Falling Down (BBC session May 1995, b-side of 'You Do Something To Me' single)
8. Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City (b-side of 'Brushed' single)
9. Waiting On An Angel (BBC Session - 23.11.97, previously unreleased)
10. Bang-Bang (b-side of 'The Keeper' single)
11. Instant Karma (previously only available on Uncut cover-CD)
12. Don't Let Me Down (previously unreleased)

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #29924 in Music
• Released on: 2003-08-25
• Number of discs: 3
• Format: Box set
• Running time: 154 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
A patchy collection, but somehow all the more interesting because of it, Fly On the Wall is almost exactingly thorough in correlating all of Paul Weller's solo career B-sides onto three CDs (a few live cuts are absent) and also serves as a worrying reminder of how much the music consumer--and more importantly the musician--may stand to lose if the single format ever becomes a thing of the past.

Sometimes unfairly maligned (and sometimes not) the B-side is the musician's opportunity for a little friendly informality or hopelessly misguided experimentation, perhaps even a chance to fulfil that long-cherished ambition to remix one's biggest hit in an acid-house style with Acker Bilk and a troupe of Senegalese drummers. Weller hasn't gone that far, but he's certainly game--Portishead's "pots and pans" drum sounds on "Wild Wood" now sound a little antiquated but it's a refreshing slant on one of his best songs while, less successfully, the Lynch Mob Bonus Beats remix of "Kosmos" is akin to being boxed around the ears by an army of amusement arcade machines. Fly on the Wall does contain an awful lot of instrumentals (much in the way of funky grooving, wah-wah-pedals and hysterical saxophonists but, alas, precious little in the way of pithy tunes), but these are counter-balanced by a generous portion of proper songs which may well have merited promotion to the status of album track. And never one to shirk from wearing his influences on his sleeve (and depending on your viewpoint, this is either Weller's strength or his Achilles heel), the third disc is given over to some entirely respectful and altogether more rockier cover versions of classics from Lennon, the Beatles, Sonny Bono, Bob Dylan, Tim Hardin and Neil Young. There's something solid here for Weller fans of all persuasions. --Kevin Maidment

CD Description
3 CDs of B-sides and rarities from former Jam frontman and "Modfather" Paul Weller. Features an impressive collection of hard to find material including live versions, instrumentals, acoustic session tracks and the much sought after Portishead remix of 'Wild Wood'. The third CD, an album in its ownright entitled 'Button Downs', is a selection of covers which includes his version of the Beatles' 'Don't Let Me Down'.

Customer Reviews

Essential listening from the Modfather
At last!

All those B-Sides collected in one place for your listening pleasure. I managed to track down a copy of More Wood the Japanese release just last year (after much searching) and here are some of the best of the tracks on a UK release along with countless other titbits.

My personal favorites are 'Shoot the Dove', 'Bang Bang', 'Black Sheep Boy', and 'Instant Karma'; the last of these rocks with an energy of which Lennon would be justly proud. The cover of Dylan's 'I shall be released' is a joy of understatement, acoustic guitar underpinned by light dobro work.

This body of work spans many years but is fresh and bright as the day it was recorded, though anyone who has read this far is probably a Weller fan too so I'll be preaching to the converted. This is a great document of a star maturing and growing in confidence, the rawness of the voice gains in maturity and the growl just gets better. The attitudes remain from the Jam days but with perhaps, a more reflective side as befits one of the elder statesmen of the modern music movement (there aren't that many who were there when Weller started who still have the same influence or fan base).

Despite being someone who owns just about all of this already in various forms, it's worth owning again to have it in one place. One man, three discs, a lifetime of listening pleasure, ladies and gentlemen, Mr Paul Weller.

Disappointing but worth 3 stars for the Cover Versions
A very disappointing collection of B-sides etc. Discs 1 and 2 contain the Paul Weller originals and to be honest, only about half of these songs should ever have been allowed to see the light of day. The remix of Kosmos on Disc 1 is, quite frankly, atrocious ! The instrumental tracks (which could almost have filled a disc themselves) are all well and good for a serious collector, and indeed some of them are enjoyable, but after a few minutes of each the skip button comes in very handy. I have no complaints with the original songs - these could all have made the respective albums - but the instrumentals and remixes are pretty uninteresting.

The final CD however is well worth the money though. Aside from the plodding version of Neil Young's Ohio there songs are given a great treatment. I'd Rather Go Blind is, in my opinion, better than the original and Sexy Sadie is a joy.

This collection would have been much better as a double CD with the instrumentals and remixes removed and the "songs" and cover versions left.

Rare gems from Weller - Listen closely
The fly on the wall mini-box is a compilation b-sides and rare songs from Weller. It has some really satisfying moments, specially the live songs and covers were my favorites; but also some very good b-side recordings with a nice and warm feeling that could easily be included on a very good album.
The only thing I didn't enjoy much was the remixes and some of the instrumentals, but in a box like this there's always this element of unpredictability.
The set still has some nice gems (fly on the wall; a cover of Sexy Sadie & don't let me down ... and a lot more) ... listen to the third disc definitely worth getting a hold of, the best of the set!

Let the music play!