Ageing Weller-istas are in for a treat with this. Taking the same tack as Stuart Deabill and Ian Snowball’s splendid Thick As Thieves: Personal Situations With The Jam, this coffee-table-sized book – overseen by Paul’s sister Nicky and with forewords from Messrs Weller, Buckler and Foxton – features a host of celebrities reminiscing about their love of the Woking wonders.
It’s mostly standard ‘they changed my life’ stuff from the usual suspects (Noel Gallagher, Kelly Jones, Martin Freeman) and the less obvious (Rick Parfitt, Bob Geldof), with only the occasional face-to-face encounter to spice things up.
Adam Ant’s meeting with the young Weller outside the Marquee in 1977, when the latter growled: “What you dressed up like that for, mate?” is typically sparky, while Ray Davies recalls Weller barking: “Wassa matter, you too old?” when Davies complained of tiredness at the end of a long tour.
Illustrated with the sort of rare memorabilia that could make a fan’s head spin, this is an essential purchase for anyone who can still sing Jam B-sides from memory.
