From his beginnings as the angry young man riding the crest of the punk wave to his current status as one of the grand old stagers of the British rock scene, Paul Weller has packed a punch for nigh on 40 years. He’s still trying new things, too: witness the experimental sounds on Saturns Pattern, his 12th solo album from 2015. The first section of this quiz is dedicated to Weller in all his incarnations, while part two covers a number of modern acts who arguably share something of his fiercely adventurous spirit.
Answers: here
1 What’s the title of Paul Weller’s 2004 covers album? Whose song ‘The Bottle’, a hard-hitting exploration of alcoholism, did he choose to include on it? (2)
2 The Jam covered a Wilson Pickett song on their second album and a Tamla Motown classic on their fourth: which two songs? (2)
3 What do the Jam songs ‘Smithers-Jones’, ‘London Traffic’, ‘Circus’ and ‘Don’t Tell Them You’re Sane’ have in common? (1)
4 On Setting Sons, what was Weller doing up on the hill? With whom did he have an extremist scrape? And who got fired? (3)
5 ‘They smelt of pubs and . . .’ What else? And on which Jam song? (2)
6 Ripped-up concrete, an electric train, damp on the walls and smelling stale perfume are all what? (1)
7 Which four Jam singles reached number one in the UK? (Two were double-A sides; either side is acceptable.) (4)
8 What was the only Jam single written by Bruce Foxton? And in which single, written by Weller and Foxton, did they watch the flames grow higher? (2)
9 Which title is shared by a collection of Jam covers by artists including Garbage, Noel Gallagher and the Beastie Boys, and a box set of Jam live performances released in 2015? Where does the title come from? (2)
10 Which Weller album is the best-selling record of his solo career? Where does the title come from? And what’s the name of the ballad from the record, now a live favourite, that reached the British Top 10? (3)
11 What was the only Style Council album to top the UK charts? Which comedian and TV presenter provided the vocals for ‘The Stand Up Comic’s Instructions’? (2)
12 Which favourite book of Weller’s, which he picked when he was on Desert Island Discs, was also the title of a late Jam single? (1)
For the next five questions, simply name the Weller solo album from which the following tracks are taken.
13 ‘Mermaids’, ‘Friday Street’ and ‘Brushed’. (1)
14 ‘Song for Alice’, ‘Sea Spray’ and ‘Echoes Round the Sun’. (1)
15 ‘With Time and Temperance’, ‘Back in the Fire’ and ‘Sweet Pea, My Sweet Pea’. (1)
16 ‘Has My Fire Really Gone Out?’, ‘Moon on Your Pyjamas’ and ‘Sunflower’. (1)
17 ‘Sleep of the Serene’, ‘Paperchase’ and ‘That Dangerous Age’. (1)
18 ‘Three Dollar Hat’, a song on the Dead Weather’s third album Dodge and Burn, is a duet between which two band members?
19 Cockahoop (2003) is the solo debut by which singer and future BBC 6 Music DJ? What’s the title of her 2012 collection of Christmas songs, taken from a duet she made with Tom Jones on his Reload album?
20 2D, Russel Hobbs and Murdoc Niccals: who or what are they? And who or what is missing?
21 Which Northern Irish singer and songwriter wrote the theme tunes for Father Ted and The IT Crowd? What’s the name of the band that occupies the majority of his time?
22 Which band’s commercial peak was the 1997 album Tellin’ Stories? What was the tragedy that befell the band halfway through recording it?
23 Which film-maker’s dialogue was sampled by Fun Lovin’ Criminals on ‘Scooby Snacks’? Where were they swashbucklin’ on their third album, Loco?
24 Who went to the top of the UK albums chart in 2005 with their second album, Tourist? What was the anthemic single that helped bring about their success?
25 Who was Aimee Mann with in 1995, according to the title of her second album? For which 1999 Paul Thomas Anderson movie did she provide the bulk of the soundtrack?
26 Steve Cradock is the guitarist in which Birmingham Britpop band? With which other major artist has he been a regular collaborator and touring musician for the last 20-odd years?
27 Speech Therapy (2009) and Dead (2014) were both Mercury Music Prize-winning albums released on the Big Dada label – but by which artists?
28 Which established Scottish band had a UK number one album with White on Blonde in 1997? Who is their singer and lyricist, who released a couple of solo albums before resuming her career with the band?
29 What did the weak become, according to the Streets in 2002? And what didn’t come for free for the group two years later?
30 Which 1990 number one by the Beautiful South featured a duet between Dave Hemingway and Briana Corrigan? In the group, Hemingway also shared vocal duties with which male singer?
31 Before his solo career as Fatboy Slim, Norman Cook had number one hits with ‘Caravan of Love’ (an Isley Brothers cover) and ‘Dub Be Good to Me’ – with which acts?
32 Alone with Everybody (2000) was the first solo album from which singer and songwriter? Which band did he front before going solo?