“Above the Clouds” (1992) – Paul Weller * Written by Paul Weller * LP: Paul Weller * Produced by Brendan Lynch, Paul Weller, and Chris Bangs * Label: Go! Discs/London
This third single from Paul Weller’s first solo album goes down effortlessly with its fluffy major 7th chords, suggesting itself as suitable backdrop for the act of boarding an airplane. But close listening reveals Weller in an honest state of self doubt in this new decade, all skittery with its Clyde Stubblefield samples. Was he licking wounds after his Style Council era, in which he came across so confidently with anti-rockist postures and “Capuccino Kid” manifestos that brought out the worst in his critics? By ’93 such rumination would stabilize as retrospection (emphasis on retro) and England would love him again.
