Artist: Paul Weller
Title Of Album: Illumination
Year Of Release: 2002
Country: UK
Label: Independiente Ltd. ISOM 33CD
Genre: Rock, British Trad Rock, Misc
Quality: Lossless
Bitrate: FLAC (Image)+Cue+Log (CD-Rip)
Total Time: 47 min 31 sec
Total Size: 326 Mb (+5%) | Scans
Site

'Illumination' is the former Jam/Style Council frontman's sixth solo studio album and his first for Independiente. All tracks were written and produced by Weller, with Simon Dine of Noonday underground assisting with the production of 'It's Written In The Stars' and 'Now The Nite Is Here'. The album was recorded at Black Barn studios in Surrey and Wheelers End in Buckinghamshire.

As the acknowledged standard-bearer and champion of the mod aesthetic, Paul Weller has naturally always been a great lover of 1960s soul music. Not since the final Jam album, THE GIFT, however, has the genre's influence been so apparent in his own recordings. From the reverb-drenched horn loop and Hammond B3 stabs in the single, "It's Written in the Stars," to the Sam & Dave-like vocal-tradeoffs with the Sterophonics' Kelly Jones on the chugging "Call Me No. 5," ILLUMINATION recalls the gritty heyday of Stax and Muscle Shoals. Elsewhere, the Woking native continues to explore his solo career-era fascination with folk rock, psychedelia, and singer-songwriter music ("Who Brings Joy," "Illumination"), but even on these tunes, Weller's R&B-drenched singing adds a touch of Memphis to the otherwise very English proceedings.

Tracklist:

[03:33] 01. Going Places
[04:08] 02. A Bullet for Everyone
[03:06] 03. Leafy Mysteries
[03:08] 04. It's Written in the Stars
[03:30] 05. Who Brings Joy
[03:52] 06. Now the Night Is Here
[02:27] 07. Spring (At Last)
[05:35] 08. One X One
[03:21] 09. Bag Man
[03:25] 10. All Good Books
[03:26] 11. Call Me No.5
[04:48] 12. Standing Out in the Universe
[03:06] 13. Illumination

Line-up / Musicians:

Paul Weller (vocals, various instruments)
Steve Cradock (acoustic & electric guitars)
Aziz Ibrahim (guitar, sarod, tambora)
Simon Dine (brass, sound effects)
Seamus Beaghen (Hammond B-3 organ, Moog synthesizer)
Noel Gllagher (bass, drums, percussion)
Steve White (drums, percussion)
Damon Minchella (bass)
Carleen Anderson, Jocelyn Brown (background vocals)