"Strange Town" shouted one Jam loyalist from a sweaty, packed crowd gathered to greet Paul Weller at the Carling Academy.

While each person in the audience was secretly hoping for a few Jam numbers, Strange Town was a lame request, as the Modfather had played a set here the night before.

Weller, who has just turned 50 - 31 years after he released In The City - took pity on his audience half way through the night and barked out a vicious version of Eton Rifles, but apart from that one song he was keen to show he is still a changing man.

His versatility could not be faulted. Weller peppered the set with a few good old-fashioned rockers, and C'mon Let's Go and From the Floorboards Up sit easily alongside The Jam's back catalogue.

But there were times when Weller strayed a little too far from the meat-and-veg 4/4 time numbers and I felt like I had walked into an episode of the Old Grey Whistle Test.

A cover of Rose Royce's Wishing on a Star was one of the encores and I would have preferred Hung Up or You Do Something To Me.

I shouldn't grumble. Have You Made Up Your Mind, one of the tracks on the new single, sounded interesting and Broken Stones was the highlight of a 90-minute set.

Weller's rendition of early nineties comeback classic Wildwood should have been the lighters-aloft highlight but it was marred by feedback, which appeared to be coming from the singer's microphone.

Hand on heart, I can't say I enjoyed this gig more than From the Jam's two recent visits. Perhaps the Changing Man's set-list was a little too varied.

10:13am Tuesday 13th May 2008

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