Desperately Seeking Paul : Paul Weller Fan Podcast

On this episode of The Paul Weller Fan Podcast, we dig in to stories from the solo years with Jamie Johnson.

Jamie has been working as a musician, producer and sound engineer since the early 1990’s.

As a house engineer at Phil Manzanera’s (Roxy Music) Gallery Studio, he recorded with some of the world's leading musicians and producers, before becoming freelance in 1999.

He has worked on numerous No 1 albums for artists including Paul...

Let's celebrate the 40th anniversary of the start of The Style Council and the release of that debut single Speak Like a Child back on March 11th 1983.

I really wanted to chat to someone who knows what it's like to sing and perform that band's incredible songs live on stage to adoring audiences. In the absence of Paul Weller for our podcast series (so far?), I turned to Darren Fletcher - the fella behind The Style Councillors ...

My special guest on this episode of The Paul Weller Fan Podcast is Punk Photographer, Andy Rosen.

Andy started out as a music photographer working on Record Mirror and Sounds and freelancing to NME, Melody Maker, The Face Magazine and most record companies during the burgeoning punk scene in the mid-1970s.

As a friend and cohort of many who went on to become the biggest names in punk, Andy had unprecedented behind-the-scenes access t...

On this episode of The Paul Weller Fan Podcast, I’m joined by a huge fan of The Jam and Paul Weller... singer-songwriter Nick Heyward...

Nick burst onto the scene in the early 80s with his band Haircut One Hundred and the debut album Pelican West (which has just been re-released to celebrate the 40th anniversary! ).

On this episode of the podcast, Nick talks about his love of The Jam and connections with Paul Weller from sha...

On this episode of The Paul Weller Fan Podcast, I’m joined by Franco-Algerian singer-songwriter and guitarist Souad Massi.

Souad began her career fronting the Kabyle political rock band Atakor, earning her a reputation as a troublemaker in an Algeria torn apart by civil war.

After fleeing to Paris following a series of death threats, she performed at the 1999 Femmes d'Algérie to great acclaim, earning her first recording contract.

She...

On this episode of The Paul Weller Fan Podcast, I’m joined by author, Richard Houghton - one of the people behind the book - The Jam - The Day I Was There.

With a foreword written by Jam drummer Rick Buckler, this book tells the story of The Jam in the words of over 300 fans. With memories from the earliest shows at clubs and pubs around Woking and London, UK and North American tours through to their last ever gig in Brighton in Dec...

On this episode of the podcast, I am joined by keyboard wizard, singer and songwriter - Christopher Holland.

His session and touring work has featured the likes of Green On Red, Squeeze, Sam Brown, Ethan Johns, and Ray Davies & Stereophonics.

He is a hugely talented musician who joined the Paul Weller band for the Heliocentric Tour in 2000.

Chris is also part of Jools Holland's Rhythm and Blues Orchestra so we’ll talk studio work ...

I am delighted to be joined by Brass Musician and Arranger, Stewart Prosser on this 130th edition of The Paul Weller Fan Podcast for what was a hugely enjoyable chat.

Stewart is such a talent - a fabulous trumpet and flugelhorn player, and brass arranger, who played a key role in The Style Council's early years. He joined the band as an Honorary Councillor in 1984 for the Council Meeting Part 1 Tour, and stayed all the way up to the...

On Episode 129 of The Paul Weller Fan Podcast, I am joined by another absolute legend in the music industry - Photographer, Virginia Turbett.

The British rock music and social reportage photographer is best known for her photographs of bands, fans and street culture as she captured the music, the fans and fashion of the punk, heavy metal, mod, new romantic, reggae, 2-tone and electro pop scenes in the late 1970s and throughout t...

My guest on Episode 128 of The Paul Weller Fan Podcast is Terry Edwards.

A musician who has largely been in the studio, on the radio or onstage somewhere in the world since the age of 20. Terry sings and plays an array of musical instruments - sax, trumpet, guitar, keyboards, flute - with a myriad of artists including PJ Harvey, Nick Cave, Billy Bragg, Jesus & Mary Chain, Madness, Franz Ferdinand, Jerry Dammers, Gallon Drunk, R...

What a way to kick off our podcasts for 2023 !

Another world exclusive as Bill Wheeler - Paul Weller's Tour Manager joins us to share his story...

First credited as part of the set up around the time of 22 Dreams - Bill is the son of the legend that is Kenny Wheeler.

We'll hear how he first got involved in the Weller set up via merch to itineraries and taking on a bigger role in the set up, touring the UK, Europe, North America...

On this episode of The Paul Weller Fan Podcast, we hear the incredible story of another absolute legend - the multi-award-winning music photographer - Jill Furmanovsky.

We kick off her story in 1965, as she emigrated from Zimbabwe with her parents to England, on to studying graphic design and starting her career in 1972, when she became in-house photographer at the Rainbow Theatre specialising in live rock concerts.Over the last fif...

It was a real honour to be joined by Ocean Colour Scene frontman, singer & songwriter - Simon Fowler - for this episode of The Paul Weller Fan Podcast...

Since the group formed in 1989, they have released eleven studio albums including the million-selling Moseley Shoals and the number one Marchin’ Already. Their run of twenty successive Top 20 singles includes the era-defining ‘The Riverboat Song’, ‘The Circle’ ‘The Day We Caught Th...

What a delight to be joined by another huge talent - the Singer, Songwriter & Musician, Edgar Jones for this episode of The Paul Weller Fan Podcast... Also known as Edgar 'Summertyme' Jones, his musical path began in the early 90s, as frontman and founder of Liverpool band The Stairs, championed by the likes of Elvis Costello and signed to Go! Discs, then also the home of future collaborators Paul Weller and The La’s.

His other band...

On this episode of the Paul Weller Fan Podcast, I am joined by another hugely successful musician - Steve Sidelnyk. A man whose Honorary Councillor status led him to work with some of the world's biggest music stars.A drummer, percussionist, programmer and producer who has created music and / or played live with the likes of Madonna, Robbie Williams, Kylie, Dido, The Blow Monkeys, Richard Ashcroft, R.E.M., Seal, The Rolling Stones,...

If you’ve followed the music of Paul Weller as a solo artist over the past 30 years then the odds are pretty high that you will have also experienced and enjoyed the photography of my latest podcast guest, Lawrence Watson.Their working relationship started in 1988, with a chance opportunity for Lawrence to photograph The Style Council. Paul was impressed with his photography, so much so that the work was used for the Confessions of...

In this episode of the Paul Weller Fan Podcast, we hear the story of a man known on your Style Council sleeve notes as Jezar - who's actually Jeremy Murray-Wakefield.

From a random beginning, meeting John Weller and joining Solid Bond Studios in 1984 as a junior assistant for Peter Wilson to keyboard sequencing on Our Favourite Shop through to his promotion to Chief Engineer for elements of The Cost of Loving and on the Confessions ...

This bonus episode of the podcast comes on album release day for Paul Weller's Will of the People boxset. A follow up to 2003's 'Fly On the Wall' and takes the listener through a similar mix of rarities, this time spanning the period 2002 to 2021. Like its predecessor not only does it make for some great listening but it's a superb way to hear all those hard to get solo tracks that haven't been featured on an album before.

This coll...