Paul Weller is releasing Weller At The BBC Volume 2 on Friday, featuring live performances, classic songs and a Billie Eilish cover.
Paul Weller is preparing to release Weller At The BBC Volume 2 on Friday, a new live collection that brings together performances of his own songs and interpretations of other artists’ work.
The former Jam frontman, long nicknamed “The Modfather,” told the BBC he remains intent on moving forward creatively, saying he is “always looking to develop what I do.” The album includes a cover of Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?,” the Oscar-winning song from the 2023 Barbie film soundtrack.
Weller said the Eilish track became familiar at home through his youngest daughter, who is a fan. He described the song’s melody as beautiful and its lyrics as clever, and said he thought covering it would also please his daughter.
The release is also a personal snapshot of Weller at 67, still working from a base close to where his career began. Weller is from Woking, Surrey, and has a studio in nearby Ripley, where some of the album sessions were recorded. He described the studio as a creative space that gives him room to work.
Weller also reflected on his earliest performance as a teenager at Woking Working Men’s Club, where he recalled playing original songs to a small and largely unimpressed audience before the room loosened up later in the night.
The singer said stopping drinking has changed how he approaches music, making him more conscious of what he is doing and more appreciative of the work. He also spoke about family life, including his two grandchildren, playing down any notion that he is a particularly cool grandparent.
“I’m just another grandad around,” Weller said, adding that he feels lucky to see the next generation continue.
Weller, who has eight children, said music in his family is not a one-way lesson from parent to child. While he sometimes recommends songs, he said the exchange goes both ways, with younger listeners moving between new music and older soul, jazz and other styles without the same strict categories that shaped his own generation.
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