Although The
Jam were only around for a relatively short time – releasing their first album
in 1977 and breaking up by 1982 – they unquestionably made an indelible mark on
music and pop culture with their unique sonic and aesthetic imprints. While
they routinely get lumped in with their peers in the UK-brand of 70s punk rock
of The Clash and The Sex Pistols, The Jam favored suits over safety pins and
their music was far more melodic than most. Capturing the passion, restlessness,
joy, and angst of working-class English youths, The Jam managed to ignite the
underground, achieve chart-topping success, and bow out on their own terms, all
while maintaining their own brand of songwriting, attitude, and street cred.
For its
release, About the Young Idea is
being paired with When You’re Young,
a stunning, never-before-released 22-song concert film of The Jam performing on
German television’s Rockpalast show
from 1980. There are also a ton of bonus features on the first disc, including
additional interviews and other musical performances from the band’s career.
The Deluxe Edition houses even more extras, including a CD of the Rockpalast
show and a 40-page booklet.
About
The Young Idea (Documentary) – “It was The Who, kissed by Motown, with
a dash of The Clash.” This is how music journalist Barry Cain sums up the sound
of The Jam during one of the new interviews featured in About The Young Idea. Foregoing the favorite
narration-over-archival-footage style used by most music documentaries, About The Young Idea tells the story of
The Jam through a variety of modern day interviews. First and foremost, it’s
really nice to hear all three band members – singer/guitarist Paul Weller,
bassist Bruce Foxton, and drummer Rick Buckler – tell their own sides of the
band’s collective rise to pop cultural prominence from their almost 40-years-on
perspective. However, About the Young
Idea really shines in relaying the band’s story through a revolving cast of
characters of fans, industry personnel, photographers, authors, screenwriters,
and actors.
Telling the
story of The Jam from the band’s early formation in the UK suburb of Woking in
the early 1970s to their break-up at the heights of their popularity in 1982, About The Young Idea is a thoroughly
entertaining and surprisingly emotional recounting of the band’s successes and
struggles. The film tracks their start as a trio to a temporary foursome and
back to a trio again – which how they would remain throughout their rest of
their career – and it elegantly maps their rise through the releases of their album
and singles. Whether they were releasing their first two albums back-to-back
within the same year, netting back-to-back #1 singles in 1980, or using the
b-side covers on their very last single to hint at Weller’s new soul-infused
sonic direction that he would perfect in post-Jam band The Style Council, The
Jam knew how to keep fans excited and how to keep them guessing.
There’s an emotional narrative that’s woven extremely well throughout About The Young Idea that is eloquently captured in one of the documentary’s earliest scenes. As the band’s early formation is being laid out, a present-day Paul Weller and early bandmate Steve Brookes are shown playing through a rendition of “Bye, Bye Love” by The Everly Brothers and “Slow Down” by Larry Williams. Not only does the scene highlight some of The Jam’s early R&B influences, but it underscores the relational aspect of Weller’s musical career. Even when he hasn’t played with someone for a very long time, the bond that was formed when they initially made music together seems to allow him to just pick right back up with the person. While there has never been any positive speculation about the viability of The Jam reuniting, seeing how easily Weller is able to pick back up with someone still gives a fool’s hope to the possibility.
About the Young Idea closes with a
modern day check-in on the band members and what they’re doing now, including
Foxton’s involvement in quasi-tribute band From the Jam, Buckler’s stint as an
author for his book That’s Entertainment,
and Weller’s continuing solo career. While all three members address the
reunion question – and all three agree to it not being a good idea – there’s
certainly enough material in their catalog to keep fans intrigued and inspired
for quite some time, an idea that is nicely driven home throughout About the Young Idea again and again.
When
You’re Young (Concert Film) – This 22-track concert film recorded in
1980 for the German television show Rockpalast
highlights the band at one of its most exciting and innovative periods.
Recorded just a few days after the release of their fifth studio album Sound Affects, the band wisely relies on
fan favorites like “Going Underground,” “The Modern World,” “In The City,” and “Down in the Tube
Station at Midnight” to bolster the inclusion of the brand new songs like
“Start!” and “Boy About Town”. While the more well known songs get the biggest
crowd reactions at their opening chords, When
You’re Young wonderfully shows how The
Jam was at a point in their career were fans were along for the journey on the
new songs as well.
When You’re Young also does a phenomenal
job of showing what made The Jam so special. Embodying the very sonic definition
of “power trio,” Weller’s herky-jerky guitar stabs, Foxton’s aggressive and agile
bass lines, and Buckler’s R&B-meets-punk drumming style carry each song to the
dizzying heights that only The Jam could conjure. Weller’s on stage banter is
minimalist at best, but his few-and-far-between song intros are coldly
charming: “This one’s for anyone who was around in the early days. This is
called ‘The Modern World’” and “Cynics beware. This one’s called ‘Scrape
Away.’” After a burning closer of “Down in the Tube Station at Midnight,”
Weller’s short and sweet “Thank you, goodnight” barely finishes ringing out
before the band is completely gone from the stage. They came, they slayed, and
they left before anyone really knew they were gone. Pretty fitting indeed.
About the Young Idea is currently available
on 2DVD, Blu-ray + DVD, digital format, and Deluxe Edition packages.
Oh, come on. Singers against Youtube? Are they scared that some of the fans have a better voice than them? Come on! What I like about the old school singers is charisma. They don't have to be afraid of anything because their talent and hearts are irreplaceable. From the Jam tickets are available, the band that you never forget, the legend of 18th is back on stage!
ReplyDelete