Paul Weller on Barbie, Billie Eilish and being a granddad

The Jam's Paul Weller says he is very lucky to be "just another granddad" as he prepares to launch his new album.

The man nicknamed "The Modfather" says he is "always looking to develop what I do" ahead of the release of his latest record, Weller at The BBC Volume 2, which features live performances of his classic hits and interpretations of other artists' songs.

The singer also heaped praise on Billie Eilish whose single What Was I Made For?, from the soundtrack of the 2023 Barbie film, is one of the tracks covered by Weller.

On the inspiration for the cover, he said: "I heard it so much around my house because my youngest daughter loves Billie. I really love that song."

Weller, from Woking, Surrey, added: "I thought the melody was so beautiful and I really liked the lyrics, it was very clever.

"I just thought that could be a nice one to cover, and I knew my daughter would be thrilled as well."

Best known for his role in the mod revival of the late 1970s, Weller says he has stopped drinking and gets more from his music as a result, adding he is "more conscious of what I'm doing" and "more appreciative".

Reminiscing about his first gig when he was a teenager, he said: "We did a little Wednesday night around the Woking Working Men's Club and we sang to maybe 10 people who were all old boys who complained about the noise.

"It was a big deal for us because it was the first time we'd ever played some of our own songs.

"They were totally disinterested until after the bingo and then they had had enough to drink to get up and have a little jig about."

He has a studio in Ripley, where some of the sessions for the album were recorded. He said: "It's a great creative space. You just feel that you've got space to create there."

Weller, now 67, has two grandchildren, but played down the idea he was a cool granddad.

"I'm just another granddad around. I love to see that continuation in life and the next generation going on. I'm very lucky", he said.

He also said that, while he sometimes recommends songs to his eight children, he is not trying to "educate them", but rather that sharing of music is mutual.

"They will listen to new stuff, but they'll also know some really obscure old tunes as well.

"Whether it's soul or jazz or whatever it may be. And they don't seem to categorise things as much as my generation did."

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