The band showed a diversity of musical styles. Singles "Speak Like a Child" (with its loud soul-influenced style), the extended funk of "Money-Go-Round", and the haunting synth-ballad "Long Hot Summer" all featured Talbot on keyboards and organ. Near the end of 1983, these songs were compiled on Introducing The Style Council, a mini-album initially released in Japan, the Netherlands, and the United States only. The Dutch version was heavily imported to the United Kingdom.
In 1984, the single "My Ever-Changing Moods", backed with the Hammond organ instrumental "Mick's Company", reached #29 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. The song remains Weller's greatest success on the American charts (including his efforts in The Jam and as a solo artist), while the group reached the peak of its success in the United Kingdom with the 1985 album Our Favourite Shop.
To Weller's fans, the decision to split up The Jam at the height of their commercial success was met with considerable controversy[citation needed]. Weller deliberately distanced himself from The Jam's sound and style, with his use of new musical arrangements and instruments in a much slicker, more heavily produced style. In the place of the Bruce Foxton-Rick Buckler rhythm section were drum and bass parts done entirely on synthesisers.
Structurally, many of the band's early singles were not far removed from The Jam's latter-day soul-pop efforts such as "Town Called Malice" and "Beat Surrender", but they were often criticised as overproduced, despite Weller's impressive songwriting[citation needed]. Also, many observers saw even the early albums as indulgent and overly experimental; Trouser Press called Café Bleu "too schizophrenic to be a good album".
The Style Council took a more overtly political approach than The Jam in their lyrics, with tracks such as "Walls Come Tumbling Down", "The Lodgers", and "Come To Milton Keynes" being deliberate attacks on 'middle England' and Thatcherite principles prevalent in the Eighties. Weller was also instrumental in the formation of Red Wedge with Billy Bragg. However, he later said that this began to detract from the music: "We were involved with a lot of political things going on at that time. I think after a while that overshadowed the music a bit"
In 1986, the band released a live album, Home and Abroad, and, in 1987, the album The Cost of Loving was launched, followed later in the year by the upbeat non-album single "Wanted", which reached #20 in the United Kingdom. However, Confessions of a Pop Group, released a year later, sold poorly. This led to their record label Polydor rejecting their final album (Modernism: A New Decade), which was heavily influenced by the contemporary house scene. A greatest hits album, appropriately called The Singular Adventures of The Style Council, was released internationally in 1989; it included the non-album single "Promised Land", which had reached #27 in the United Kingdom earlier that year.
In 1989 members of The Style Council went under the name of King Truman to release a single on Acid Jazz titled "Like A Gun". This was unbeknown to Polydor and the single was pulled from the shops only 3 days prior to release. Acid Jazz founder Eddie Piller said "The pair offered to make a single for my new label, which I'd just started with Radio 1 DJ Gilles Peterson as a side project. Mick and Paul took pseudonyms Truman King and Elliott Arnold." [1]
The Style Council broke up in 1989. The cover of "Promised Land" (originally by Joe Smooth) was the only release which surfaced from the Modernism sessions at the time; however, the entire album was released in 1998, both independently and in a 5-CD box set, The Complete Adventures Of The Style Council. After the split, Weller embarked on a successful solo career (still featuring Steve White on drums, who had left The Style Council by the time Confessions of a Pop Group was released, having only played on a few of its tracks). Talbot and White released two albums as Talbot/White — United States of Mind (1995) and Off The Beaten Track (1996). More recently, Mick Talbot and Steve White have formed The Players with Damon Minchella and Aziz Ibrahim.
All of The Style Council's UK releases (including singles, 12" maxis, albums, compact discs and re-issues thereof) featured the work of graphic designer Simon Halfon, who often collaborated with Weller to hone his ideas into a graphic form. Weller and Halfon began working together at the end of The Jam's career, and continue to work together to this day on Weller's solo material.
Since 2007, the song "Walls Come Tumbling Down" has been used as the theme song for the German TV series Dr. Psycho – Die Bösen, die Bullen, meine Frau und ich.
Stand Up Comics Instructions
The Style Council Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You hold your own and they'll hold their's,
Hold their glasses - can't hold their beer
Tell 'em the one about the fucking queer.
Do the one that always works,
'Bout the lazy blacks that don't like work,
And once you got 'em, keep 'em there
Raise their spirits! Raise their cheer!
Do that one that never fails,
'Bout the gang of white thugs and the Asian male,
And once you got 'em, they'll be with you!
See this lot's loyal, through and through.
Tell Irish jokes and you can't miss,
Do the building site one and how they're all thick.
Keep 'em laughing - you'll have it made,
We're a friendly lot and you'll be well paid.
But keep 'em laughing don't let it stop
Or the truth might catch up and spoil the plot.
The Stand Up Comic's Instructions is a satirical critique on the apparent insensitivity of stand-up comics towards minorities and marginalized community. The song employs irony to expose the ridiculousness of racist, homophobic, and xenophobic jokes that are often told by stand-up comics. The lyrics instruct the comic to keep the audience laughing by recounting jokes that degrade and stereotype different communities. The first verse instructs to "Tell 'em the one about the f*cking queer" and "Do the one that always works, 'Bout the lazy blacks that don't like work." The chorus urges the comic to "Raise their spirits! Raise their cheer!" and "Keep 'em laughing - you'll have it made."
In the second verse, the song continues to lampoon, urging the comic to tell the jokes that "never fail" like the one about "the gang of white thugs and the Asian male." The song then offers Irish and construction worker jokes as additional fodder for laughs. The final verse serves as a warning to the comic, intimating that if they stopped performing jokes, the audience might realize the hurtful nature of the humor, and the truth might catch up to the jokester.
The Stand-Up Comic's Instructions by The Style Council subverts the idea that comedy should be harmless and instead uses humor to shed a light on the oppressive nature of derogatory jokes. The lyrics place the comedic profession in the role of cultural gatekeepers and urge comedians to take their responsibility seriously. By critiquing an aspect of popular culture, the song invites reflection and promotes greater sensitivity towards minority groups.
Line by Line Meaning
Get 'em laughing - keep 'em there,
Start the show with a real bang, then it's easy -- keep it going!
You hold your own and they'll hold their's,
If you can carry it off, they'll love you, and that means your drinks are on them.
Hold their glasses - can't hold their beer
They'll drink anything -- but watch out! They'll be sick very quickly.
Tell 'em the one about the fucking queer.
It's always great fun to insult someone different from you. It doesn't mean anything! Just a bit of harmless humor.
Do the one that always works,
You know the one -- it's always a big hit. Do it!
'Bout the lazy blacks that don't like work,
Another classic! It doesn't matter that it's not true -- just tell it, and watch the laughs roll in.
And once you got 'em, keep 'em there
You've got them eating out of your hand -- don't let it slip!
Raise their spirits! Raise their cheer!
Keep them giggling, and they'll feel great about themselves -- and you!
Do that one that never fails,
You know the one -- you've told it a hundred times, but they love it every time.
'Bout the gang of white thugs and the Asian male,
Another hilarious bit of nonsense! It doesn't matter if it's racist -- it's funny!
And once you got 'em, they'll be with you!
You've got them in the palm of your hand, and they'll follow you wherever you go.
See this lot's loyal, through and through.
Isn't it great how much they appreciate your bigoted, ignorant humor? They'll always be there for you!
Tell Irish jokes and you can't miss,
Everyone loves a good Irish joke! It doesn't matter if you're not from Ireland -- they'll still be hilarious.
Do the building site one and how they're all thick.
Those working-class fellows are always fun to make fun of! They won't mind -- they're too busy drinking beer and cheering you on.
Keep 'em laughing - you'll have it made,
As long as you keep them laughing, you'll be a success! They'll elp you through thick and thin - especially if the pay is good.
We're a friendly lot and you'll be well paid.
As long as you keep the bigotry coming, we'll be the best friends you ever had! And we'll make sure you get plenty of cash for it too.
But keep 'em laughing don't let it stop
Whatever you do, don't let anyone think too hard about what you're saying! Keep them distracted with laughter and they won't realize how hateful and mean-spirited you really are.
Or the truth might catch up and spoil the plot.
If anyone catches on to what you're really saying, your whole act might fall apart. Better hope nobody figures out what you're really like!
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: PAUL JOHN WELLER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind