“Precious” – The Jam
(Words/music: Paul Weller, available on The Gift, Polydor 1982)
By the end of the Jam’s run as a band, Paul Weller expanded his songwriting chops past the mod-punk of their first few albums. “Precious” is neither the best nor the most progressive of the Jam’s late period singles, but it’s perhaps the most immediately startling. The wah-wah drenched guitar dominates the early part of the track, and its slight delay seems strange from a band that usually draws on crispness and rhythmic intensity. Instead, “Precious” creates a funky haze using repetition to an almost trance-like effect. If other singles felt like they were moving quickly, this one feels like it’s settling in to a comfortable groove.
That being said, “Precious” isn’t an amorphous fog of guitar effects. Instead, it builds on top of the funky guitar with layers of defined rhythm. The fast hi-hats and snare on the fourth beat foil the seemingly free-floating guitar line and anchor it to the song’s pulse. However, the most rhythmically sound elements come from unlikely sources – the horn section and the vocals. The horns hit with the clipped precision of a big band by adding rhythmically interesting figures. Rather than provide harmony or melody, the horn section changes up the pace with a clearly defined line on top of the hazier guitars. Weller takes a cue from these horns by marrying his vocals to the beat as well. He gives his lyrics the same sort of clipped turns in phrasing that the horn players give their notes, and while the melody is nothing to dismiss, my ears key in on how Weller sings it rather than what notes he sings.More on The Jam: Allmusic | Amazon MP3 | Emusic | Last.fm
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hypem: somesongsconsidered: “Precious” – The Jam (Words/music:...
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