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Let's throw around some ideas
about what we're gonna do today.

-I've got a few ideas in mind--
-No, excuse me darling, no,

I still love you.
Really, I do love you

but you do your job, you know?

You do your job
and I'll do mine, okay?

I still love you, so let's go
for a take then, shall we?

-Okay? Yeah, brilliant.
-Sure.

["Shout to the Top!" plays]

It was the freedom
I was looking for

coming out of The Jam.

And I found it
within that situation,

that set up, you know?

I was half in mind
I was half in need

And as the rain came down
I dropped to my knees

And I prayed

[Mick] The Style Council
were very much

out on our own in the '80s.

We weren't a stereotypical
sort of '80s band.

I wish to stay forever...

[Dee C] You gotta keep changing
the game,

you gotta keep upping it

and you gotta keep mixing it up,
you know.

That's what keeps it exciting.

Once in a while

I just can't help it

It's that same old thing

[Steve] It was such
a fantastic thing to be part of.

It was almost, like,
unstoppable, you know,

it was a fantastic time.

Have you ever had it blue?

Have you ever had it blue?

[Martin] For me it was
and remains

one of the best combinations
of music and look

in a-- in a pop group ever.

Feel it deep inside

[Boy George] It was
in the soul pocket,

but, you know,
using a bit of humor.

You know, still a little bit of
a kind of punky spirit in there.

It was kind of like
not what you expected.

There's a girl in my heart

And she keeps on stopping

Right in front of my eyes

[Billy] The Style Council

is when Paul
embraces pop music.

'Cause you're the best thing
That ever happened

[Billy] He says, "You know what?
Yeah, I am gonna be a pop star,

and I am gonna stop
being a punk rocker outsider,

and I'm gonna embrace pop music,
and I'm gonna make the videos,

and I'm gonna get the haircuts."

And he had the chops to do it
and the vision to do it.

No matter what I do

[Tim] I don't think people
saw the Style Council coming.

There was kind of
a like interesting

sort of European feeling
to their music

and I thought it was sort of
quite ahead of its time

in many ways.

Are you gonna try
To make this work

Or spend your days down
In the dirt

You see things can change

Yes and walls
Can come tumbling down

Governments crack
And systems fall...

The Jam have announced
they're breaking up.

The group are led by singer
and songwriter Paul Weller.

At 24, he's become something
of a spokesman

for the new beat generation.

A police car
And a screaming siren

A pneumatic drill
And ripped up concrete

[Billy] There was something
about The Jam

that was so essentially suburban
and working class, you know.

"That's Entertainment"
was about me,

I was-- all those images
were images in my life

and I really,
really related to that.

So when he broke 'em up,
I was like,

"Well, what you gonna do now,
mate?"

"I mean, how's this-- you know,
what's gonna happen now?"

The smash of glass
And the rumble...

[Paul] However much I loved
my time with The Jam, you know,

it was just work, work, work,
you know,

there was a tour
and then there was a record,

then there was a tour,
then there was a record

and it just seemed like
a kind of a bit of a treadmill,

you know, which you have
to be on if you wanna make it

and do what you do.

That's entertainment

Ah

[Eddie] If you listen to
the last recordings of The Jam,

he's obviously outgrown,
uh, the band,

but they are the most
popular band in the country,

they've got the most
loyal following

and he went, "Do you know what?
I've had enough."

[Nicky] You know,
it was kind of like, wow,

you know,
you're top of your game

and you're just like
packing it all in,

but, you know, Paul's always
been one of them free spirits

that kind of wants to
move forward and stuff.

For the bitterest pill
Is hard to swallow

[Jason] When I understood,
"Okay, there's a shift,

there's a career move,
and it's at risk of losing

a whole audience,"
all of a sudden

I don't know,
I see him as an artist.

[Boy George] The Jam was angry

and got something to say,
you know,

and then Style Council
was like whimsical, you know.

It was probably quite surprising
for any like Mod fans.

[Billy] Pretty soon,
it was clear that

the sensibility that he had
was just gonna be communicated

through a more jazzier,

more soulful,
if you like, vibe.

But the need to break it
all down

and put it back together
another way,

I can completely understand
that now.

It's a big decision
In a town called Malice

Ooh yeah

It was just something
which I felt inside me,

you know, you just gotta go
by instinct

and I felt it was
the right thing to do.

I thought about it,
it wasn't just as if

I just sort of made
my mind up overnight.

I don't know
what's gonna happen, you know,

which I'm quite enjoying
at the moment,

'cause like I said,
it's the first time

for six years
it's been like that.

So I'm just gonna enjoy
that for a little while,

just see how it goes,
you know, take it as it comes.

Whatever I do,
I wanna be successful

otherwise to me there's no point
in doing it, you know?

[Paul] It was liberating for me

to, um, to start again really.

To feel I've started again,
you know, after The Jam.

My brother was in a band
with me

called the Merton Parkas.

A payment plan
That's so unique

One hundred now
And the rest next week

You need wheels

If you wanna make deals

[Mick] Danny had met Paul

and he gave him a copy
of our first single.

Paul didn't like it,
but he played the B-side

and there's a piano solo in it.

["I Don't Want You To Know"
by Merton Parkas playing]

[Paul] It was finding somebody
that was the sort of

same age as me

who was into the same
sort of music

and someone who could play,

more importantly,
could play Hammond organ.

There wasn't too many of those
people around really, you know?

So, he contacted me.
He said, like, you know,

"I'm gonna try
and start something

that's a lot more loose,
not so regimented,

but I'd like you
to be involved."

And to find out a bit more about
what Paul's gonna do tonight,

I'll ask him. Paul,
can you hear us?

What you-- What are you--
What are you gonna do,

and what's it called?

Um, I dunno, what is it?

[audience laughs]

We don't know,
we don't know, Pete.

[Peter] Just make it up.

It's kind of-- We kind of fit
into the electro pop duo thing.

-[Peter] Right.
-We kind-- We kind of--

-We align ourselves--
-[audience cheers]

we align ourselves
with, like, Blancmange,

Tears for Fears,
that sort of thing.

[Peter] Right.

That's why we're wearing makeup.

[Peter] I understand,
I can see it.

I kind of had ideas
of what I wanted it to be,

The Style Council to be.

But nothing too set at all,

and kind of just sort of
open really.

[Mick] He particularly mentioned

that he wanted to use
the Hammond quite a lot.

[Paul] And I just wanted to, um,

to see where this thing
could go to,

this new-- this new band
could go to, you know.

I didn't wanna
tour for a while, you know,

kind of had enough of that
for a little bit.

The space between us for days
Has been so far

Ah

I've spent a lonely week

Now I wanna be where you are

We've got a head start

For happiness
For our part

Guess we must be kissed
By this force

I feel inside

Now I'm not gonna hide

[Paul] And just to have
a completely open mind

on it all, really, you know,

on music, on the band, on life.

Who I was. You know,
all those things, really,

all those big questions,
really.

Paul lent me a box of records,

it might have been two boxes,

but they were all sevens

and a lot of them
were quite rare soul.

Just the feel
and the instrumentation

really influenced a lot
of what we were doing

and Paul was saying, "This is
what I've been listening to."

Some of 'em were sort of
more commercial jazz things,

but in the main
they were soul records.

That was a font
of sort of, uh, inspiration.

[Paul]
By the sort of January of '83

we were kind of in the studio
really, doing the first single,

you know,
and it just went on from that.

Your hair hangs
In golden steps

You're a bonafide
In every respect you are

[Martin] It felt fresh
is what it felt,

it felt exciting to me.

It felt new, like it was--
like it was enjoyable.

You know, coming in
with the double-edged sword

rather than all the onus
being on him.

I imagine that was quite nice.

Mick, obviously, you know,

brought a very different,
kind of, sort of flavor

to what Paul was doing.

You have to make
A bargain with me now

[Martin] I mean,
The Style Council is half Mick,

you know, it's not Paul Weller

and then a bit
of this other bloke.

Like, it's-- I totally see them
as a unit, you know.

I think because Mick
is such a laid back

kind of person,
I mean, he's very dry,

he's very funny,
and I think that

came out in Paul, you know?

That was the thing that probably
surprised a lot of people

about The Style Council
after The Jam,

was that, "Oh, there's Paul
and he's got a sense of humor."

I really like it
When you speak like a child

The way
You're so proud to be

Oh, so free and so wild

[Paul] We got Dee in to do
some backing vocals on--

I can't remember what song,

I know it's a very early single
anyway.

You know,
she was a very busy girl

at that time, you know?

We were aware of her
through Wham!

and Animal Light Eye, you know.

[Dee C] When I first got there,
to Solid Bonds,

I did notice these gold discs
on the wall

and they're all saying,
"The Jam," so I said to Paul--

And for some reason, I really
did not recognize him

from the pictures in it
to the person

who was standing in front of me.

So, um, I did say, um,

"You know, who are these guys?"
you know.

He said, "Oh, some shit group
who record here," he said to me.

And I totally fell for it,
and I went

"Oh," didn't say anything else.

We liked her and she seemed
part of us,

so kind of everything
just kind of naturally

just happened, you know.

I actually think
if I had realized--

if I had actually realized
who Paul was,

I might not have taken the job,

'cause I think I might have been
a little bit, um, overwhelmed.

The first thing she sung with us
was Money Go Round,

and it just worked, you know.

No good praying
To the pristine alters

Waiting for the blessing
With Holy water

[Paul]
We was auditioning for drummers,

'cause I think, probably
for our tour maybe,

I don't know,
I'm not sure anyway.

But anyway, we met Steve White,
he came down,

he was like the last drummer
of the day.

I think we thought
we had a drummer.

I think Steve turned up

and he wouldn't take no
for an answer, you know?

[Steve] Paul said then, "I think
we're sorted," you know.

I said, "Can't I at least
have a play?"

And he went, "Oh, I ain't
really got time."

I said, "Go on,
let me have a play."

And he says, "Oh, go on then,
go on, have a go."

I said, "So what sort of stuff
are you into?"

He went, "Well, I like a lot
of blue note."

"Art Blakey?"
"Yeah, yeah, Art Blakey."

And I started to playing
like-- terrible impression

of Art Blakey.
"What else are you into?"

He said, "Elvin Jones."

Terrible impression
of Elvin Jones, you know.

It was very fast
and very dexterous

and quite explosive.

But it seemed to have
a lot of passion.

He was just amazing.

He was only a kid,
like 17 or something like that.

I just thought, "Right,
if he can do that,

I suppose, you know,
he can do anything."

[Steve] And he says, um,
"So tomorrow, we're doing this

Kid Jensen show."
We weren't gonna use a band,

you know,
but if you wanna do it,

turn up, Maida Vale,
at five o'clock or whatever,

we're going on at like 6:00."

"The evening show, Kid Jensen,
13 million people listening."

I'm like, "What we gonna play?"

"Oh, we'll sort that out
tomorrow." That was it, he went.

I think that was the first time
we played, um,

"The Paris Match."

["The Paris Match"
by The Style Council plays]

I was just kind of singing it
to him,

I was sitting next to him
on the drum stool.

And that was it,
we did the session.

...where you are

You sort of clouded my mind

[Paul]
We got our studio, Solid Bond,

which was the old, um,
Phonogram studio,

and before that
it was the Phillips studio

where they did Dusty
and Scott Walker

and all those people.

So it had a real history to it.

I really liked that studio,
I'd used it a few times

when it was still Phonogram,

and that became the playground,
really.

[Mick] I could tell
that Paul was, you know,

had many studio hours
under his belt.

He was very at ease,
there's no red-light fever.

[Dee C] We were literally
in the studio every day,

nine til 5:00, like a--
like a real sort of, you know,

like a real 9:00 to 5:00 job,
but just working on music.

Being around Paul
for a little while,

you start losing
your kind of inhibitions.

[Steve] It was like
a place of work

but a very--
a very kind of, um, humor.

There was lots
of humor going on.

[Dee C] It was a very
family orientated studio.

Paul's mum, Paul's dad
run in and everything,

we had Kenny,
we had Paul's sister.

We had a little caretaker guy,

God bless him, Arthur.

[Mick] To me, it kind of felt
very un-rock and roll.

It really felt
properly down to earth,

and that's from John downwards,
you know.

Just very realistic,
normal people.

Not a very pressured environment
but a lot come out.

[announcer] And here at three,
The Style Council.

And of course, at
number three The Style Council

with the EP À Paris

from which for the very
first time on Top of The Pops,

here he is, with Paris Match.

[cheers and applause]

["The Paris Match"
starts to play]

Empty hours spent
Combing the streets

Daytime showers
They've become my beat

[Mick] There was an idea
that we were gonna do

these themed EPs,
and I think, uh,

Paul saw them as sort
of musical postcards.

So, you know, we got as far
as doing one,

and that was the À Paris EP.

I think we were out there
for five days or something...

at a studio and got four
pretty good tracks out of it.

I liked all the sort of chic
sort of, you know, bars abroad

and they were the antithesis
of all the stale old pubs

that were around at that time,
it wasn't like it is now,

that's what you gotta remember,
you know.

They were still sort of smoky,
dirty,

fucking places really,
a lot of 'em.

I'm only sad
In a natural way

And I enjoy sometimes
Feeling this way

The gift you gave is desire

The match
That started my fire

Ah

[Martin]
The whole European thing,

however true it was
or however authentic it was,

it was a statement of intent,
you know.

It was, "We're not gonna be

a parochial little
suburbanite band

just for people who are wearing
parkas and bowling shoes,"

you know, and that bitterly
disappointed a lot of people.

We just wanted to move it away
from just--

from just being English, really.

["The Paris Match"
continues in French]

[song fades]

[Mick] I like the fact
that we stuck with the EP format

and I think À Paris
is a really good

encapsulation of four strands
of The Style Council,

and I think that's a really good
beginning.

The match that started
My fire

[cheers and applause]

[Steve] After we done
the recording in Paris,

it was-- very quickly
it was turned round,

"Long Hot Summer" came out.

["Long Hot Summer" playing]

[Paul] Two days up in Cambridge

and the weather
was brilliant that year,

it was '83, right,
great summer.

And just great,
just go up and down the Cam,

on the River Cam.

They tell me that it helps

But I know when I'm beaten

[Boy George] "Long Hot Summer"
was the one

that really made me prick
my ears up, you know,

it was, uh-- 'cause, you know,
this is Great Britain,

you know, we always
write people off. [chuckles]

If you've had a moment,
you can't have another one.

And if you have another one,
it can't be good.

So when it's kind
of next level good...

I wanted to give it
this very summery

sort of sexy feel.

But obviously the sexuality
that appeared in the end video

was, well, to be honest,
was fairly homoerotic,

which I thought was great,
because I thought

that completely played
with Paul's image

and the fact
that he was not afraid

to go there
and to be seen like that

I thought was
absolutely brilliant.

Tim was very--
kind of cutting edge,

and he was the go-to guy
for videos at that time.

And so, I think they wanted
to be seen as something--

they weren't doing, you know,

kind of straight performance
video,

it had to be something that
had kind of a bit of an edge

and a bit of fun to it.

And Tim brought a lot to that,
certainly, and they trusted him.

[Paul] Yeah, we loved Tim, yeah.

He was bonkers and eccentric
and we loved him.

We thought he was great.

And I remember meeting him
and he was saying to me,

"Well, you know,
what you up for then?"

"What can we do and not do?"

And I was going,
"Just fucking whatever really,

you know, just let's do
something different," um...

which we certainly did.

Don't matter what I do

'Cause I end up hurting you

[Steve] I said,
"Can I be in a video?"

And Paul's like, "Well,
you can be in the video

as long as you wear
a Brunton jumper,

a little goatee beard,
a beret and play the bongos."

So I'm like, "Yeah, I'm in."
[chuckles] That was it.

The long hot summer
Just passed me by

[Simon] I think Paul knew
full well,

and Mick knew full well that,

"Oh, this is gonna throw
another sort of

fly in the ointment
for certain people."

[Boy George] It was interesting,
'cause it was like

Paul being someone
completely different.

Do you know what I mean?
It was a bit more playful.

["A Solid Bond" playing]

[Martin] I loved the video
for "A Solid Bond."

They look amazing.

They both look beautiful,
great suits.

I love the references
to the, you know,

like the early '70s reference

of them being sort of
suedeheads together

to a sort of, you know--

which, for an English pop record
at the time,

was pure fucking Northern Soul.

It's a great record,
I love that.

A solid bond in your heart
Yeah

A solid bond in your heart

[Boy George]
It was kind of Motown

and a bit of Stax, but it was,
you know,

but it still had that kind of
English kind of understanding

of soul that's a little bit
sort of irreverent.

Respectful, but you know,
I'm not gonna try my hardest

to sound too much like
an American, you know,

sort of R 'n' B musician,

I wanna sound
a little bit British.

I just want to build up

A solid bond in your heart

[Paul] It was me and Mick
reliving our youth, really.

You know, all the sort of
post skinheads,

suedehead days really.

[Mick] I don't think
those characters that we were,

course they're me and Paul,

I think they're people
that we aspired to be

when we were like, 11.

And they were people
that we looked at

who were about 16 or 17.

If you look at that video,

it's got all Paul's styles
in the audience, you know?

It's like a feeling
Deep inside

Please don't ever try
To hide

That solid bond
In your heart

Yeah, a solid bond
In your heart

Aha

Hoo-hoo

["My Ever-Changing Moods"
playing]

I think it was 1984,

um, that they did their first,
you know, kinda proper tour.

[Billy] They opened the show.

The Style Council opened
and got everybody in the room

for The Questions.

And then I came on,
and then The Style Council

came on again at the end.

And I've never seen
anyone do that before.

Daylight turns to moonlight

And I'm at my best

[Billy] But Paul's commitment
to the artist,

commitment to those of us
who were on the-- on the bill

was, uh, it was something that
was really an eye opener for me.

The calm after the storm
Oh, the cool before the warm

[Paul] Yeah, it definitely
confused people,

'cause the headlining act
come on first

and they also finished the show
as well,

but we were just trying
to present something different,

you know?
We were trying to get away

from just the support act
and then the main act

and all that.
We wanted it to be

a complete experience
and like a total sort of, uh,

evening for people, you know?

It was a strange thing
to get used to though,

because you kinda just feel like
you're warmed up

and then you're off and then
it's just someone else is on.

But it's nice like, you know,
you sort of feel like,

"Oh, this is like it was

at Sunday Night
at the Palladium,"

or something, you know?

Being on the old school
variety bill, you know?

It's not dead.
Or we didn't think it was.

We might have helped kill it,
but...

The love after the hate
The love we leave too late

[Helen] Musically, you know,

there was nothing like
being on stage

when that band was-- was in,
you know,

in full swing.

Ba ba ba da ba da ba

[cheers and applause]

[Paul] Thank you.

The early '80s, you know,

we saw this kind of surge
of what they were calling,

you know, kind of "new pop."

You know, bands like ABC,
you know, Haircut 100,

Culture Club and Wham!.

I don't know if we actually
fitted into

the box that the '80s
might have liked us to.

I thought we were outside
of the culture of the '80s.

But it's really hard to do that,
I think.

Whether you like it or not,

you are still
a product of your time, I think.

I said oh heavenly thing
Please cleanse my soul

I've seen all on offer
And I'm not impressed at all"

[Simon] They were doing
all the same TV shows,

whether it be Top of the Pops

or the Saturday morning
kids shows.

So they were sort of
playing the game,

but they were sort of--
I think they felt,

and rightly so,
that they were playing the game

to their own beat.

I said send me a sign
To save my life

'Cause at this moment
In time

There is nothing certain
In these days of mine

[Jason] And the reference points
were soul music.

I heard Marvin Gaye in there,

I heard, um, Curtis Mayfield
in there.

I heard jazz in there.

And it just made sense to me.

It was like a series
of reference points

that really impressed me,
the fact that

there was somebody
doing this stuff now.

[Gary] I mean, it was pop music,
you know,

they were written about in,
you know, Smash Hits,

and Record Mirror,
and Number One,

but also interviewed by,
you know, your NMEs

and your Sounds
and your Melody Makers.

Um, but they were a pop band,
but a pop band with substance.

I could be discontent
And chase the rainbow's end

I might win much more
But lose all that is mine

[Boy George] I think
"You're The Best Thing",

it sounds like another song.
It sounds like a cover.

When you first heard it,
it was like,

"Oh, is this an old song?"

And that's when you know,
you know,

when someone's kind of
emulating that kinda mood,

but they get it so right that
you feel like you knew the song.

It's just a beautiful song.

It's very simple, you know,
just kinda touches you,

you know, sits nice
on your ears.

Slides all over your bones,
you know, it's a good one.

It's like you dream
of writing songs like that.

["Blue Cafe"
by The Style Council plays]

[Rev. Richard] "Of days
such as these,

it's here in the Cafe Bleu
where amidst the smoke,

steam and colors present,

I'm to be found passing
the hours of mortal time."

"Sometimes
exchanging the views."

"Sometimes with my think cap
in full view

so that those around me respect
my wish for solitude and refrain

from the chit-chat until
I signal for some, that is."

[Gary] Some people got really
wound up by the sleeve notes

and I can remember,
you know,

sort of letters of indignation
in the, uh, you know,

the kind of music mags
or music papers.

Uh, you know,
"What's he going on about?"

at the time, you know.
So, job done,

I suppose in a way really.
That's what they wanted.

Yeah, it was just to have a bit
of fun, really.

"The Cappuccino Kid."
It was a way of being able

to vent some views,

um, but not have them attributed
necessarily to yourself.

And, uh-- But it was just a bit
of fun, you know,

and it was aping, um...

uh, Colin MacInnes' style
in Absolute Beginners, really.

And that book was a huge
influence as well on me

and The Style Council
for forming The Style Council.

[Mick] I always thought
that it had elements of those

early Stones albums as well,
like, getting some strength

and dialogue from a really
good novel,

and using it as a kind of
language that was pertinent

just to one band.

And I just had a kind of another
rebirth of Mod

when I read that book, really.

And I thought, um,
that was the kind of, uh,

sort of blueprint, really,

for Modernism,
I thought, really.

You know, kind of embracing
of all these different cultures

and not being xenophobic

and, um, suspicious
of anything foreign.

[Rev. Richard] "For I say
unto thee that verily thou

hast forsaken your brothers
and sisters to allow the sordids

their space. And much like
the donkey's parable,

have been deceived
by their golden carrots."

A reading from Cafe Bleu.

According unto
The Style Council.

["Mick's Blessings" playing]

[Mick] I don't know why,
this album worked very well

in shoe shops.

[Paul] Well looking at it now,
right, I mean,

there's like the first
three songs on this record

are instrumentals, right?

And then there's "Paris Match,"
which I didn't even play on it,

I don't think.

So I don't make an appearance
until the fifth track

on "Ever Changing Moods,"

which was different
from the single version as well,

it's just on piano, I think.

And then followed by another
instrumental.

Followed by "A Gospel,"
which was a rap track,

'cause Dizzy Heights did a rap.

So it's a strange little record,
really.

The cool before the warm,
The calm after the storm

Oh the cool before the warm,
The calm after the storm

I wish to stay forever

Letting this be my food

Oh but I'm caught up
In a whirlwind

And my ever-changing moods,
Yeah

[Steve] I know that this record
really bravely said,

"Enough, that was then
and this is now."

And you kind of think
about an artist

that would do that now.

I appreciated the fact
that how courageous they were,

you know. And I'm sure
they weren't trying

to be courageous,
they were just literally

following their nose

and just wanting
to do that more.

But a lot of people stopped
themselves doing that.

Especially when there's money
to be made and lost

and fans to be lost.
And there's no way

they didn't know that
by releasing a first album

with a lot of instrumental jazz
on it,

that that was gonna be a risk,
there's no way

they didn't know that.

Recently a lot of people
seem to think that

because we do change a lot
and there's a lot

of different things going on
that we kind of see things

and treat things, you know,
in a very fickle way.

As if we, you know,
almost as if

we don't really care
about what we do,

which is just, you know,
it's just totally wrong.

I mean, the only reason,
you know, we use

so many different styles
and different ways

of presenting things,
is just, um--

it's just to keep it
interesting, you know.

[interviewer] It's not that
you're confused in what you do?

No, it's not. I mean,
I just get a feeling

you know, that a lot of people
think this but I don't, no.

It's not for that reason,
you know?

["Strength Of Your Nature"
plays]

[Paul] This song's called
"The Strength Of Your Nature."

[Gary] There was a lot
of expectation for Cafe Bleu.

You know, they'd released
a couple of singles,

a couple of EPs,

but they made us wait
for the album.

When you gonna find
The strength of your nature

[Steve] I love this record,
I love, um,

I love the humor in it,

I love the, uh, expansion
of sounds that we got.

It probably gave us a lot
of confidence, you know,

to keep at this kind of
experimental thing.

When you gonna let
Yourself take control

[Steve] I was 18 at that point.

Paul and Mick were only 25,
you know, it was fantastic.

I think Paul was just
getting into kind a of thing

where he was listening
to a lot of Blue Note records

and stuff. And he had
a new awareness

of some of that music,
but we were very appreciative

of the kind of sleeve design
of things like that.

[Simon] You know, at that time
we were sort of thick and fast

into our kind of Blue Note
influence and Reed Miles

and all those great covers
from that era.

It was a fun time.
Again, we went to Paris

to do a photo session
with Peter Anderson

taking the pictures,
and we came back

with such great photos
from that trip.

We achieved exactly
what we set out to do

because it was supposed to be
that kind of

paparazzi-style
feel in a Blue Note setting.

[Martin] From the packaging
to the way that they dressed,

you know, all the aesthetic
side of it,

I think they would survive
better than most.

But because I suppose
The Style Council

were already partly drawing
on an age that had gone by,

whether it was, you know,
the French New Wave,

or Ivy League,
or general Modernism,

it sort of couldn't date
as quickly as, you know,

"Rio" video.
Do you know what I mean?

'Cause that dates very,
very quickly.

It was something a bit more
classic about it, I suppose.

It kind of had
all these reference points

that I related to.

And, um, even though
they were kind of disparate,

I kind of had a sense
that there was--

he was heading in the direction
that I kind of wanted to be

in as well. So,
it kind of-- it just resonated.

He's taking loads more
influences,

all fundamentally Mod, you know,
but just from different places,

you know, like existentialism.

Film, books,
the whole kind of next wave

of Mod was coming out
of Paul's imagination

from the sleeve notes
to the clothes,

to the way the sleeves looked,
to the sound.

["One Night In Rio"
by Louie Austen plays]

[Jason] You know,
if you're a Mod

then this is really what Mod is
about now.

And so he completely embraces
the contemporary.

It's music for now.

[Eddie] The Style Council
are much more Mod than The Jam,

and he was just saying,
"Here it is, boys,

you don't have to be like that
anymore."

So I think it was much more
contemporary,

but it still had an eye
on his Mod routes,

but trying to change it
for the future.

It was a lovely--
a lovely melting pot

but I think-- I think
there was a, you know,

an awareness of like, I think,
you know, if that kind of part

of his career was turn left,
I think he wants to turn right.

You know, which was great.

It just all went
in the melting pot, you know,

and it come out in different
ways, I suppose really.

Sometimes successful,
really successful

and other times it wasn't,
you know,

but that's just what happens
when you experiment with,

or try and see where
your limitations are

and if you can go beyond
those limitations.

["Dropping Bombs
On The White House" playing]

[Hilary] It felt like we were
taking so many influences

from so many different places.

I think Paul described it
as musicians who like jazz

rather than jazz musicians.

We shied away from calling
ourselves jazz musicians.

I think we felt that
we were competent in playing

what we wanted to play
and jazz was an influence.

But it's another one
of these things that I feel...

genres of music
and... cults of fashion,

and once you start putting
a label on it, it's like,

you know, you have to fit in
with the rules,

so it was an important influence
but I don't know

if we were part
of the '80s jazz scene.

I was really getting into it
at that stage, anyway.

But we weren't jazz band
or whatever,

you know what I mean?
It wasn't like that.

We were-- We were influenced--

Our influences were varied
and they ranged

from Tony Hancock to...

to, uh, Horace Silver,

do you know what I mean?
It was like that.

There was a big breadth
of things that-- that, um...

that influenced us
in lots of ways,

you know,
lots of cultural things.

Daylight turns to moonlight

And I'm at my best

[Eddie] The best music
transports you

to a different time and place,

and that's what Cafe Bleu
did to me.

[Gary] You know, there's four
or five classic songs

on that album, um, you know,

"The Paris Match,"
"Headstart for Happiness,"

you know, different versions
of "You're The Best Thing"

and "My Ever-Changing Moods."

Doesn't get much better
than that.

Letting this be my food

[Paul] I was proud of it
at the time

and that's all that matters
to me in my mind.

You know, you can only commit
to what you feel at the time.

You can't think
how you're gonna feel ten years

down the line or 40
or 30 or whatever.

And I liked it at the time
and that's good enough for me.

Its Christmas time

There's no need
to be afraid

[Paul] Bob called me up
and just said,

"Look, you know,
we're doing this--

I wanna do this record,
this charity record

and would you come
and do it with us,

or sing on it?"

And, um,
they played me the track,

which I thought was just fucking
dreadful really, you know?

God bless 'em,
but it was just, oh, Jesus.

Throw your arms around
The world at Christmas time

"It's Christmas time
there's no need to be afraid."

[laughs] But, you know...

Strange--
Strange opening line, no?

The greatest gift
they'll get

This year is life

I was surprised that Paul
had done it,

given the number of people
that were involved

in the project
that weren't of his stamp.

I've gotta say, I think
it was admirable,

um, I don't think...

He looks very uncomfortable
in the video, you know?

I don't think Paul
liked being in Band Aid.

You couldn't help but smile
a little bit because, of course,

you now, Mr. Weller's surrounded
by this, uh, you know,

this, um, you know,
array of pop stars who, um,

you know, how can I put this?
He wouldn't have been

too kind about in, um,
in, you know,

the music magazines and papers.

And, um, you know, he looks like
a little bit of a fish

out of water to kinda
say the least, really.

A thing I really admire
about him is he's resolutely

not played a pop star
most of the time.

You know, or he's not tried to
fall for the trappings of that.

Um, you know,
"I'm just gonna come along

and make a record,
I'm gonna make a record

for charity," and sometimes
that can be almost too,

you know, sometimes you think,
"Fuck it,

enjoy yourself a bit mate,
you can enjoy some things."

But I like the fact
that he was--

he seemed to be there in a very,
very understated way,

he wasn't pushing himself
front and center.

And, you know, he was a big act
that that time.

It's easy to forget that.

[Paul] I was probably just like
the grumpy sort of...

little grumpy bloke
in the corner, really, you know,

I wasn't really digging it.

And I didn't relate to almost
anybody there.

They were very much, um,
pop stars,

and I didn't feel any affinity
with that at all.

I wasn't really into that.

Feed the world

Let them know
It's Christmas time again

[Paul] You know, the outcome

sort of speaks for itself,
really.

If you're raising money
and possibly,

hopefully saving
people's lives,

the cause is far greater

than your own personal opinions
of it.

What it did, I suppose,

you couldn't really argue
with, you know.

Well tonight thank God
It's them instead of you

["A Stone's Throw Away"
plays]

[announcer]
The Style Council present

Our Favourite Shop.

Fourteen classic tracks
including the hit single

"Walls Come Tumbling Down,"
available on record,

cassette and compact disc.

In your favorite shop now.

["Walls Come Tumbling Down"
plays]

[announcer] Our Favourite Shop
by The Style Council.

Probably the best pop group
in the world.

[Mick] I think we got to
a point with Our Favourite Shop

where we had a more kind of
set line-up

and we kinda became aware
of our strengths more.

From the playground
To the wasteground

Hope ends at 17

Sweeping floors
And filling shelves

Forced
Into government schemes

Eleven years spent
To dig out ditches

Forget your school day
Dreams

Guarantees and lie-filled
Speeches

But nothing's what it seems

Qualified and patronized
And with everything to lose

Ooh

[Paul] This was more
of a very definite album.

You know, we kind of set up,

"This is gonna be
the next record."

I think it's probably our most
consistent album, musically.

And it may be
the most accessible.

I bought the paper
Yesterday

And I saw the obituary

And I read of how you died
In pain

Well I just
Couldn't understand it

There was a more of a cohesive,
you know, band sound.

And awash with, uh, you know,
the-- these wonderful,

beautiful melodies.
I thought that was them

at the top of their game.

It's a real sort of
galvanization of all

of our ideas and our commitment
to things that we were into.

But you were always
Chained and

Shackled by the dirt

Our Favourite Shop
is a fantastic snapshot

of a slice of Britain in 1985.

The miners, Thatcher,
Pinochet, all sorts of things

in a-- in a pop record.
You know?

And taking on racism,
homophobia.

It was all the things
that as a young lefty,

you wanted your favorite group
to be doing.

Well Thatcher came to power
in '79, I think,

and that was the first time
I was old enough to vote.

Where there is discord,
may we bring harmony.

Where there is error,
may we bring truth.

Where there is doubt,
may we bring faith

and where there is despair,
may we bring hope.

No peace for the wicked

There's only war
on the poor

They're batting on pickets
Trying to even the score

It's all inclusive
And the dirt comes free

And you can be all
That you want to be

After that
was the Falklands, '82.

And I think it just all,

just bit by bit,
all went downhill, really.

Shutting down of the mines

and trying to dismantle
trade unions.

I think it was really them
getting their revenge back

on what had happened
to Ted Heath, isn't it?

That was-- I thought
it was the vibe I always got.

I thought there was this sort of
determined plan to smash

the working classes
and the trade unions

because of the power they'd had
and brought down a government,

almost really.

[Rev. Richard] Many themes
emerged from this collection

and for instance,
check the first tune out,

which tells sad of a family torn
and broken in two

by the curse of unemployment.

The two young sons in London,
one in search of work,

the other looking to revenge
this outrage

whilst the father
who has been marked,

made redundant, stays behind,
his wiles swept with nostalgia

as he blames all except
the real enemy.

Good morning day
And how do you do

I wonder what will you do
For me

[Mick] "Homebreakers" was a tune
that I had, and Paul said,

"I think I've got some lyrics
for that."

He wanted me to sing it
because my dad and my brother,

they were both
in the printing union,

and SOGAT
was getting ripped to shreds.

My dad did get made redundant.

It's 30 years with one firm.
I think he was like 33 years

with the same firm
and that was personal to me,

but it was everyone's story

and it was going on
all over the place.

And also, it kinda
cocks a snook

at the Norman Tebbit
"get on your bike,"

that famous speech.

...and he kept looking
till he found it.

If you can't find work

In your own town

[Paul] When you saw
the nightly news

during the miners' strike

of the police beating shit out
of the miners,

it was just incredibly fucking
depressing,

really, it was just like,
"Is this our country?

Is this what it's come to?"

These people are heroes
a few years before that.

Going down deep
into the fucking ground,

digging out coal, right?

Uh, which ain't the most
pleasant

of jobs, I can imagine.

And all of a sudden
they are, um, being beaten

and, uh...
and vilified by the media

for standing up
for their livelihoods, man.

The sign says closed
It's a sign of the times

Like everything else
It's all gone away

[Billy] For me and Paul,
I think the miners' strike

was a class war,

and if you had a working class
background

like Paul did
and like I did, you're--

you know, you realize
these are our people,

-we have to take sides here.
-There are definitely

a working class

mass of people
who didn't have a voice

and were being completely
neglected.

But somewhere
The party never ends

And greedy hands rub
Together again

Shipping out the profits
That they've stolen

[Martin] They were one
of the most effective acts

at getting
a political message across

in an absolutely pop way.

You don't have to take
This crap

You don't have to sit back
And relax

You can actually try
Changing it

[Billy] What a great anthem
that was.

The whole dynamic of that song,
it's got the energy of punk,

it's got the beauty of soul,

and it's got the anger
of the 1980s in it.

Are you gonna try to make
This work

Or spend your days
Down in the dirt

You see things can change

Yes and walls
Can come tumbling down

[Eddie] All that kind of stuff
is very clever political music

that makes you wanna dance.

If you're on the dancefloor
first, the message

doesn't come back 'til later,
you know?

It's a very clever way
of doing it.

There were other political
groups around at the time,

but they weren't getting
in the top ten, really.

And they weren't doing it
with beautiful melodies

and they weren't doing it
looking like

they could have been
on the cover of Smash Hits,

and being on the cover
of Smash Hits, you know.

Are you gonna be
Threatened by

The public enemies
Number ten

Those who play
The power game

They take the profits,
You take the blame

When they tell you
There's no rise in pay

[Steve] The attention to detail
in the Our Favourite Shop sleeve

is absolutely brilliant,
you know,

from the homoerotic post card
to Georgie Best, you know.

And I think for the fans
of the band at the time,

it was absolutely fantastic
to have all that detail.

It was supposed to be
just everything we loved

and believed in.

I've heard a lot of people say
that they've checked out things

that they've randomly seen on it
and it's led them somewhere.

And that's the way me and Paul
got to where we were going,

really, just pursuing things
like that.

You got Otis,
you got Georgie Best,

you got Tony Hancock
Another Country,

yeah, all sort of things here,
man.

All the books up there,

Joe Horton, see these
are influences on us.

And there's the Lennon
and McCartney

shot by David Bailey
that's on the wall,

which we then mirrored
as the band's portrait inside

and we all brought along
lots of different things.

There's a picture
of Terry Thomas, Michael Caine.

Lots of-- yeah. I think
even Paul's Rickenbacker,

again, so that was a look
to the past.

But that was just
an opportunity for us

to have a bit of fun.

[Mick] There's lots of things
I know are there

that you can't really see
are there.

But it-- it kind of means a lot

that we bothered
putting them there.

And there were things
on this cover,

things that I learned about
from this cover and things

that were confirmed to me
about things I already liked.

I liked Carry Ons
and I love Tony Hancock

and you know,
I already like that stuff.

Um, obviously like The Beatles,
and I love George Best.

And it's funny how just
a half-blurred image of some,

you know, torn up novel
or something

can lead someone younger
somewhere else, you know?

It's great.

[host] You've just released
a new single,

while we're on the subject,

it's called
"Come to Milton Keynes,"

and itself caused a stir
in this week's press

so we ought to have a look
at that

before we talk
about anything else.

["Come To Milton Keynes"
plays]

May I walk you home tonight

On this fine
And lovely night tonight

We'll walk past
The luscious houses

Through rolling lawns
And lovely flowers

Our nice new town

Where the curtains
are drawn

Where hope is started
And dreams can be borne

You upset a few people
with that

and you haven't even been there.

-Yeah.
-[host] Why did you write

about Milton Keynes?
What's the meaning of it?

It was more about, um,
the kind of new towns,

you know, I mean,
the fact we used Milton Keynes

is neither here or there, I mean
they're up in arms about it,

apparently, but big deal,
you know?

And, um--
But it's more about, um...

the way that Britain's values
are changing,

and us as a race
are changing as well, I think.

And the kind of, um,
materialistic values

which we seemed to have adopted,

-quite American, I think.
-Was it the advert

about Milton Keynes
that made you think of doing it?

Well, there's a horrible kind
of Ronald McDonald figure

in the adverts isn't there?

-That's very American.
-[host] Mm.

[Paul] It's all showbiz,
you know?

This fine conservative night
I was looking for a job

So I came to town

I easily adopt when the chips
Are down

Can I do an impersonation
while I'm on here.

[host] Why now,
do you wanna do it now?

Which camera shall I face?
This one there?

Are there any agents
watching this?

Viewers at home,
see if you can--

see if you can guess
who this is.

-That's quite good that.
-[host] That was good.

Yeah, Christopher Lee that was.

God bless you all. God bless.

[Richard Skinner]
It's 12:00 noon in London,

7:00 AM in Philadelphia

and around the world,
it's time for Live Aid.

Sixteen hours of live music

in aid of famine relief
in Africa.

[Eddie] Everyone knows
where they were

when that event happened.

It must have had
such an international impact.

It's almost like Woodstock.

We went down there fairly early
on. We were the second on.

Status Quo were the first act,
we were second.

And as we were that early,

there had been
no sound checking,

but they just said
to the first few acts,

"If you wanna get a feel
for the stage and go up there

or try the gear out, you can."

So we were told
we could do that.

But at the same time, they said,
uh, "Prince Charles and Diana

are turning up
and you can meet them."

And we just went,

"We'll do the sound
check shall we?"

["God Save The Queen" plays]

[Steve] We knew
that it was gonna be

like obviously big
but not as big

as when you kind
of looked out onto the,

you know, the audience.

That was pretty breath-taking.

I don't think anyone
had ever seen

a crowd like that before.

It was just-- It was incredible.

I've always had
a coping mechanism

of just getting on with the job
and not listening too much

to what's going on and how many
people are outside and all that.

But there was no way no to see
what was happening

on the day of Live Aid.

[Helen] Before we went on stage,
someone asked us

to hold our arms up
and we were...

all like that.

You know, not only playing
to 19,000 people up front,

which is pretty, um,
scary as it is,

but also, the millions of people

watching it as well, you know?

And it's all live, so.

The closer you got,
the more it felt like,

"It's quite a big gig, this,
it's quite bit news, this."

"This is sort of going around
the world,"

and it was a very important day.

I might shoot to win

And commit the sin

I wanted more than
I've already got

I could runaway
But I'd rather stay

In the warmth of your smile
Lighting up my day

The one that makes me say

You're the best thing
That ever happened

[Paul] What a monumental thing
to organize, really.

Hats off to Bob,
really, for doing it all.

I know we've always been
Taught to rely

Upon those in authority

But you never know
Until you try

How things just might be

If we came together
So strongly

[Martin] There were
some awful things that happened

at Live Aid, you know,
like artistically,

but there were also some
really good ones.

There was, you know,
and I--

'cause this was even before
I was a fanatic.

Objectively, I thought
they were one of the best things

about that day.

Thank you!

[indistinct]

[Janice] Well, I mean, stupid
question, but how did it feel?

Uh, I thought it was very good,
you know, I was a bit--

I was a bit nervous
but I enjoyed it.

What about you, Mick?

Well, it was very nerve-wracking
before we went on,

but we went out there
and once you saw that crowd,

you know, you just had
to enjoy it, really.

The crowd were like amazing
and it was a beautiful sunny,

beautiful day. But then we had
to get on the bus

and go down to Kent,
we were doing

"Come to Milton Keynes"
on a TV show.

["Come To Milton Keynes"
playing]

And then we got
on the coach

and went all the way back
to Wembley.

And the Christmas bells
That ring there

Are the clanging chimes
Of doom

Well tonight thank God
It's them

Instead of you

Everyone!

When you knew
that you were witnessing,

you know, something, you know,
very, very special...

It's one of the biggest
events musically of all time.

[Steve] Looking back on it,

it's hard to kind of quantify
because everybody that was there

was just like the top
of their game.

[Mick] I guess the finale
involves

a show of strength
and standing at the back,

watching ambitious backing
vocalists

fight to get near the front.

Feed the world

Let them know

It's Christmas time again

[crowd cheering]

[Mick] Billy Bragg noticed

the same people turning up
at benefits.

Um, The Style Council,

Communards,
him and a few other people.

[Paul] Billy came to us
with this idea

trying to get young people, uh,

engaged with politics and also
for them to use their votes.

[Billy] Red Wedge came together
after the end

of the miner's strike
where a lot of the bands

that had been doing gigs
for the miners were like,

"Well what happens now?
We just go back

to being on Top of the Pops,
is that it?"

It just was "I'll see
you on Saturday morning TV?"

No. What's, you know,
"What can we do to get rid

of the Tories?"
And the next obvious opportunity

was the 1987 general election.

Um, and the only viable vehicle
for getting rid of the Tories

was the Labour Party.

You know, it kinda-- it sounded
like a good idea.

We had some, you know,
reluctance to get involved

with a party as such,
you know what I mean?

I didn't really...

I didn't feel any affinity
with them, really.

We didn't work
for the Labour Party.

We were an independent
initiative that went to them

and we worked with them,
rather than for them.

My involvement
with that whole thing

was to make a statement

that we cared
about what was going on

in our own country

and that we wanted change.

Right, we wanted the children,

the young people at the time

to view with an open mind
opposed to this closed narrative

that was being given to us

by The Conservative Party
of that time.

Strange when you think
Of the chances

That we'd both be
In a state of mind

Too cool to be careless

Just looking
For the right thing

Oh baby

Don't look any further,
Further

[Billy] Those events
were really, really powerful

because you-- it took us outside
of just singing about it,

it got us to actually
to come face to face

with the reality
of those people.

And do you think that people
who came to listen

to the Red Wedge tour,
do you think

you gained many converts or...

It's not like we're on
a missionary crusade

or something, you know,
we're just, um,

we're just delivering
the facts to people,

we'll let 'em make
their own minds up.

We're not out as a-- out to act
as a propaganda machine

for any political party at all.

But some might say that.

Some might say--
Some might say a lot of things,

you yourself, Baz,
seeing as you work

for the Daily Mail
or The Sun or people.

[laughs]

So you'd go to Liverpool,
and all of a sudden,

like, Derek Hatton's hanging
about backstage,

and it wasn't a great energy
with people like that, you know?

It felt like this is probably
a good time to just step back

a little bit. 'Cause it became
a bit all consuming.

From a very genuine attempt
to engage young people

in politics,

it didn't work, and the reason
it didn't work

is because the politicians
weren't genuine.

And I think that is
what resonates to this day.

[Paul]
With like any politicians,

there's always some ulterior
motive, isn't there, you know?

So it just fucking put me off
really, I just thought,

you know, it is--
they are as I imagined

they would be,
you know what I mean?

Day o umba day o

Mambu ji ay o

[Billy] Whatever you think
about the politics of Red Wedge,

whatever you think
about what became

of that campaign and what it did
and didn't achieve,

the gigs were really,
really special gigs.

I still meet people who were
at a particular Red Wedge gig

and it just sort of blew
their minds

to see us all up there playing.

I'm a grown man now,

I don't really want politics.

If I perceive something
as having politics

rammed down my throat,
I totally turn off.

So I get-- if people felt that,

I understand why
they wouldn't have liked it

as much
as "You're The Best Thing."

I do get it.
I happened to be a little

rabid lefty then.
So I was like,

"Great, I'm getting
the best of all worlds."

But even I, by the-- by the time
I was kind of 16, I was like,

"No, what I really like
about this group is the music."

["Have You Ever Had It Blue"
playing]

[male producer]
Cue lights.

Cue grams.

["It Didn't Matter" playing]

[Simon] Cafe Bleu
and Our Favourite Shop

and all the singles in between,

it still had a freshness to it,

and everything was about doing
something new and different,

but I think you could only do
something new and different

so many times.

I remember
All the early days

Trying to think
Of the right things to say

I can remember,
we spoke about it, Paul and I

and he said, like, you know,

"We could sort of make
Our Favourite Shop Part 2,

but I don't want to."

And I-- And I sort of agreed
with that.

It-- It would have done better,

certainly better
than The Orange Album.

I mean, I think The Orange Album
is, not because it's orange.

[laughs]

I'm not gonna be colorist.

It-- But it is
a big turning point.

And I think The Orange Album
turned a lot of people off.

Heavens above
What have we done?

We've killed off
The thing we had so little of

[Martin] This is not in any way
a fun or funny album.

In that-- It's very "dur"
and very, um, straight.

I guess the music they were
trying to channel,

like a contemporary
American R 'n' B,

isn't very camp,
do you know what I mean?

It's not known
for its musical references.

And I think they were just
channeling that.

I think we were keen
on having something that sort of

was reflecting
a modern soul sound,

and I think we got a bit lost
in the superficial sound

of the production
rather than the material.

When you have a new album out,

if you've got three
or four singles off it,

you've got to do three
or four sing-- uh, promos,

videos.

So we thought, "Maybe we can do,
like, a short film."

[Paul] Me and Mick did
an advert, right,

for some Japanese,

I think it was like a cassette
or a tape company

or something like that.

[announcer speaks Japanese]

Now we are together

[announcer] UD, special version.
[speaks Japanese]

[announcer 2] Maxell.

So the money we got paid
from that,

we put into this film.

Go back, go back for my parts
to freeze.

Thus I say, "Go back."

I think we got a bit
indulged by people

that we made videos with.

[narrator] Behind him,
his partner, Michael Talbot,

dressed in a gold lamé cloak
and sporting the Edwardian,

was busy
with his mighty plonkalodium.

[Dee] Don't ask me
what that was about,

'cause I have no idea,
but we did get a chance

to dress up and act really
stupidly,

so that was all right.
[laughs]

It's a totally bizarre film
that generally

does not hang together
as a piece,

but I've watched it many times
and loved it every time.

Observe, if you will,
England's beauty.

A land within a land

that doth flower
both in joy and delight.

That does take
no heed of poison,

and yet offers infinite healing
to the soul wearied.

[narrator] Indeed, my lord,
and wisely said.

[Martin] For a pop group
who had a lot to lose,

it was going out on a limb,
you know.

Two middle class guys,
bored with life,

bored with grammar school,

wanna rock out a little,
you know?

I phoned him, yeah, and he says,
"Yeah," and here we are.

There were points
trying to be made,

there was humor
trying to be made.

We tried.

[laughs]
And people found it trying.

I have been thinking
that if America

were a pair of jeans, England
would be its back pocket,

for as every five minutes,
its owner dips his hand in,

removes money
and deposits terror.

I think we maybe took the piss
taking a little far.

The in jokes became
a little too in.

We'd show it,
it'd be the support

on one of the tours at the time.

This big screen would come down
on the stage

and we'd show this film.

And then the screen would go up
and then we'd start,

which just fucking baffled
everyone, really. [laughs]

Maybe the-- that rolling energy
that we had

in those first couple of years,
it just got dissipated

and then maybe
just a little bit,

the foot had come off
the gas a little bit.

That's what I--
That's what I felt.

[Paul] At some point you have
to grow up,

and that was Mick
and his missus having the kids,

and then me and Dee
getting together.

Um...

And, you know, so all those
things take their place,

you know, as they have to.

Mother's playing bingo

She's hoping for a big win

She buys the daily papers
To see how 10% live...

The last sort of little shout
from us was, uh,

Confessions Of A Pop Group,

and that was kind of like
our farewell, in a way, really.

I don't know if we said
that was the end of the band

but it certainly felt like
it could be, you know.

[Gary] I thought Confessions
was a very, very good album.

You know, returning
to that manifesto really,

that they had, that they said
that they were gonna do

right at the beginning
which was to, you know,

kind of experiment really
and shake things up.

Changes of clothes
And summer showers

Like changing the guard

It only lasts for hours

Wondering what
And where did it go

Crying over nothing
Worth crying for

Once in a while

I still think about

The smile on your face girl

The first time around

[Paul] The influences
on that record

were quite deep, you know.

We were sort of thinking
about Debussy and Sarti,

and so there was elements
of classical music in it,

and it seemed to be like

a little bit
kind of pretentious,

but really-- it wasn't
I don't think.

It was just what I was listening
to at the time, you know.

Things like "The Story
of Someone's Shoe," right,

with the Swingle Singers
was a direct influence, right,

from the MJQ,
the Modern Jazz Quartet, right,

who made an album
called Place Vendôme

with the Swingle Singers.

Such a great concept.

This jazz band with these--
with these singers.

It's either,
Something in their eyes

Or something in the drink

But whatever it is
They both stop and think

Yeah, the songs
were still there, but I think

what that album
showed was Paul's willingness

to explore different things.
But I just think

the record company, you know,
the record company want hits,

you know, they were happy
with the first couple of albums

'cause it was top ten hit
after top ten hit,

number one albums. And when
that's not there anymore

as good as the music might be,

that's not always
what's relevant in their eyes.

She threw it all away

Oh I wonder if she's there
To stay

[Paul]
It wasn't liked at the time.

It was pretty much
sort of slated, really.

And I don't think it did
that well commercially,

so the record company
weren't happy, obviously.

I always considered that
to be the last record, really.

That's our last album, you know?

Even though there was one more
after it,

which never came out
at the time, though.

Oh, yeah

Oh, yeah

Oh, yeah

Oh, yeah

[Paul] Around that time,
I was really getting

into a lot of the house sounds
that were around,

what people were calling
"garage" and all that stuff

as well, but I just thought
it sounded really soulful,

you know, and I could hear
the kind of gospel

in a lot of those tunes,
you know.

[Mick] I think initially,
we may have thought,

"acid house" was a bit gimmicky
but then once we heard

what they called "garage"
and "deep house,"

you could see
a strong connection to...

Philadelphia Records
that were like

a lot of four
on the floor stuff.

And I loved the kind of rawness
of 'em.

I loved the fact it sounded
like they were done

in someone's bedroom.
I'm not saying they were,

but that's, you know,
had a bit of that vibe to it.

All you needed
was a 909 drum machine

and a keyboard, and off you go.

Even though the instrumentation
was very modern

and technical sounding,

it had kind of returned
to some soulful gospel roots

in dance music,
which was really interesting

and quite inspiring
for us at the time.

As I always am, whenever I get
sort of turned on to something,

I just wanna-- "Yeah,
I'm gonna do this now,

this is, you know,
this is where we're gonna go,"

and I was in that spirit.

Taking different trajectories,
taking different paths

was what The Style Council
was about.

It was about style.

And to me, he would take
a certain style of music

and invigorate it,
or invest his own personality

and taste level in that music.

So, house music, um,
quiet storm, soul music, funk,

whatever the genre was,

the Style Council
had every right to invest in it.

Dry your eyes
They will call

Sure is sure
We'll be one

[Steve] The record company,
you know,

were being a little--
I think, a little vicious

in denying this a release.
They didn't have to do that.

But there was a point
to be proven in my opinion.

I think it stands up in the arc
of what the band was about,

to go from Kenny Burrell jazz
to Chicago influence house music

in seven years, I think
is a pretty amazing thing.

La la

La la la la la

[Mick] Paul and I had already
chatted about winding it up,

it was like, you know,
the game's up.

But we had an album
that we thought we believed in,

and we thought there'd be
a few singles coming off it

and we thought we'd tour it
round the world.

So we were projecting,
"Maybe a year hence,

let's knock it on the head

unless this really just blows up
like in an unusual way."

So we'd already made
that decision,

but it just kinda got rushed.

It happened a year earlier
than we would have done.

[Paul] Well it did feel to me

like it was all
coming to an end.

So there was a definite sense of
it sort of slowing down a bit,

I think we weren't doing so much
live stuff for a start.

And then we came back
and we did maybe two shows

at the Albert Hall, yeah.

We might have done two
or three old songs.

It was stuff we were working on,

it was house, the house record
we made.

And then there was some
other people we had with us,

some other singers and they did
a song as well,

so it was kind of a bit
of a mix thing as well.

[Mick] It's almost like
the first album, Cafe Bleu,

it had seven instrumentals
or something, out of 13 tracks.

And even the vocal tracks,
it's not always Paul singing.

So it was in the tradition
that we had

but just six
or seven years later, you know,

in a live format.

And we'll walk hand in hand

Sisters, brothers

We'll make it
To the Promised Land

[Mick] But we weren't
particularly playing big hits

and I think Our Greatest Hits
had just been released

by Polydor, which we didn't have
any power over,

but that's almost a bit like
the death now,

I think, when they start
knocking them out.

[Paul] People fucking
hated it man, anyway.

You know, it was just totally,
totally out of step, you know.

We were getting more and more
out of step with people,

or they were out of step,
whatever way it works.

But I think that was
the last straw, really.

People ripping up their programs
and, you know,

sort of a modern
sort of you know,

Dylan going electric
or something. [laughs]

There was a weird tension
in the audience

that I'd never seen before.

I almost felt like there was
gonna be some kind of riot.

I think it would be a myth
to say, "Well, it was only me

and my brother who enjoyed it
or got it."

Lots of people got it.

But a lot of people didn't,
and vocally didn't.

But-- And I don't think
people enjoyed it

and some people left
before we ended.

Like, I don't really remember it
in great detail,

but from what I remember,
I liked it.

Um...

And that's all you can do, man.
You can only do

what you feel's right
at the time, you know.

["Speak Like A Child"
playing]

I got so much out of it.

I got to travel the world,
I got to see--

I got to do one of the most
iconic concerts of all time.

I played with some
great musicians

that have been--
remained friends

pretty much for 35 years.

The very best band
I ever worked with.

I'm just...

struck by what a lot of music
we turned around, really,

and generally, I'm pretty proud
of all of it.

My Favourite Shop's
a good record,

I think Confessions
is a good record.

Um... and there was
great singles, you know.

Great little run of singles.

But more than anything else,

it was a happy time for me
in my life, you know.

And yeah, it was just, when
I think of The Style Council,

I just think of fun.

All the fun we had.

["A Very Deep Sea" starts]

I keep on diving
Till I reach the ends

Dredging up the past
To drive me round the bends

What is it in me
That I can't forget

I keep finding so much
That I now regret

But no on I go
Down into the depths

Turning things over

That are better left

Dredging up the past
That is gone for good

Trying to polish up
What is rotting wood

Whoa, diving

I'm diving

Diving

Diving

Diving

Something inside
Takes me down again

Diving not for goblets
But tin cans

Dredging up the past
For reasons so rife

Passing bits of wrecks
That once passed for life

But I'll keep on diving
Till I drown the sea

Of things not worth
Even mentioning

Perhaps I'll come
To the surface

And come to my senses
But it's a very deep sea

Around my own devices

Whoa, diving

Diving

Diving

Diving

Diving

Perhaps I'll come
To the surface

And come to my senses

Perhaps I'll come
To the surface

And come to my senses

Perhaps I'll come
To the surface

And come to my senses

Perhaps I'll come
To the surface

And come to my senses

Diving

Diving

I'm diving

Diving

["Le Depart" playing]

After a hard day on the set,
there's nothing I like better

than a cool,
refreshing pint of milk.

Cheers.

Chairs with our names
on actually.