The Modfather himself Paul Weller was back in Manchester last night as he delivered an impressive two hour set that ranged from The Jam, The Style Council, his early solo material and more recent tracks to a packed out audience at The Apollo.
With energy that belies his 63 years, and looking as cool as ever, he moved effortlessly from piano to guitars - to tambourine even - his distinctive voice and spine tingling tone as polished and commanding as ever before.
For the nostalgic mods in the audience there was The Jam's That's Entertainment and A town Called Malice, real crowd pleasers, with an enthusiastic crowd moving along to the beat. Weller also delivered the up-tempo Style Council hit Shout to the Top as well as Have You Ever Had It Blue and his more recent, 2012 track Fat pop, from the album of the same name.
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Glitterball lighting raining down a confetti of gold as, at the piano, he sang the emotive You Do Something To Me, was the only visual in a set that needed no more than simply Weller himself - stage presence stratospheric - and his superbly talented band, complete with Ocean Colour Scene guitarist Steve Craddock.
Stanley Road, Wild Wood, The Changing Man and Broken Stones all featured in the set, all from the Stanley Road Album. Out front with his guitar, Weller also delivered a moving version of Above The Clouds from his first solo album.
When he said goodbye, the audience were having none of it, calling him back not once but twice - with Weller and his band applauding the crowd too and thanking Manchester for being such a great audience.
This was the fourth time I had seen Weller during a 20-year period and I was hoping for a poignant version of Time Passes but the song didn't make the set. But no matter how much time has passed since my first Weller gig to this most recent one, Weller's talent, voice and stage presence hasn't faltered.
The Changing Man he may be - but some things, luckily, remain the same.
