The Modern World

As is so often the case for overnight successes, The Jam rush-recorded their sophomore effort during a hurried schedule to capitalize on the barnstorming debut, In The City. This, combined with Paul Weller's various personal distractions and temporary lack of interest, led to a belief that This Is The Modern World has less than satisfying overall results. With the luxury of time and hindsight we can all now calm down, settle back, and make a better consideration of this assured, and underrated, record. Yes, This Is the Modern World can be faulted for borrowed Who licks, pale rewrites of the debut, somewhat clichéd sloganeering and unfinished ideas, but there were still some moments of inspiration, especially in the more introspective Weller songs like "Life From a Window" and "I Need You (For Someone)"; both songs feature personal sentiments that the debut was clearly missing. This Is The Modern World is a work of continued growth and depth in song writing and performance from Weller and its reputation as their ‘sophomore slump’ is completely unfounded. There are indeed repeats of the formula of the first album, including "In the Street Today", "All Around the World", and the title track; the latter two released as singles, underscoring the effort to capitalize on the success of that sound in the UK; but also tracks like "London Girl" and "Standards" illustrate the continued maturity of strong passionate songs without needing to be overly frenetic. Elsewhere, though, listeners are privy to a glimpse into the future with “Life from a Window”, “The Combine”, “I Need You (for Someone)” and “Tonight at Noon”, which, although not always typical of later Jam musings, reveal a rapid development in Weller's approach to song writing, and point to a growing ensemble skill between the band members (which includes some nice harmonising / vocal sharing between Weller and Foxton). If The Jam were on borrowed time when they made This Is the Modern World; then during the recording of demos for the next LP, time up and deserted them completely. But as we know, The Jam got their act together - and how - and we got All Mod Cons. We needn't have worried ourselves so much. So just kick back, relax, and enjoy the music on this exhilarating, if occasionally undernourished album.

In The City

Throughout their existence, the Jam always maintained a precarious position within the punk rock spectrum. A fitting illustration is the cover of their acclaimed 1977 debut In the City, where the band's clean-cut mod portrayal belies their youthful rebellion while the hasty rendering of their name in graffiti contradicts the development and precision of their tight musicianship. Regardless of where the Jam fell in the cliquey continuum of British rock scenes in the 1970s, their full-length introduction impressively paved the way for an extremely successful, albeit ephemeral run in popular music. The terse chords that commence the album on the lead-in "Art School" do so in much the same fashion as the Clash hammering out "Clash City Rockers" to start the U.S. version of their debut full-length at around the same time. But while bands like the Clash and the Sex Pistols pushed their music in distinctly new directions, the Jam held tightly to the conventions of rock ‘n' roll, playing a sped-up and freaked-out adaptation that blurred the lines between revivalism and pioneering. Atop the confusion over their politics and place in the punk scene is still an undeniably great album. Songs like the smooth rocker "Sounds from the Street" and jerky dance tune "Takin' My Love" affix a glowing enthusiasm to counterbalance some of the weightier subjects of the record. Perhaps the only real gaffe might be the inclusion of the 1960s Batman theme. Apparently, it was a fairly popular tune to cover at the time with its easily recognizable blues scale lead and Adam West bearing the bat insignia on TV, but in retrospect it just throws off the flow of an otherwise outstanding sequence of songs. Despite the myriad debates attached to this album like asterisks, the Jam crafted an immortal effort with In the City. Recharging the rock ‘n' roll routines of the past and paving the way for the punks of the future, the Jam secured their spot in history on this, one of the definitive albums of the 1970s.