Wild Wood

Arguably Weller's best solo album, and certainly the one where all his influences first congealed into something uniquely his own. WILD WOOD's template would once again seem to be Traffic--Weller's surprisingly soulful vocals most often recall a gruffer version of Steve Winood, and there's even a jazz flute in the concluding "Holy Man" jam. Weller's songs however, are not so easily pigeonholed; an achingly beautiful acoustic ballad like "Country", for example, owes a stylistic debt to no one except its composer.

Q (12/99, p.76)
- Included in Q Magazine's "90 Best Albums Of The 1990s."

Q (6/00, p.63)
- Ranked #77 in Q's "100 Greatest British Albums" - "A warm, raw, uplifting but endlessly self-questioning record....this is the sound of an artist finding a more emotional voice..."

Q (7/00, p.141)
- Included in Q's "The Best Male Angst Albums Of All Time"

Rolling Stone (10/20/94, p.146)
- 3.5 Stars - Good - "...Resolutely pre-punk in its spirit, this album gives retrochic an unexpected twist. With its echoes of vintage Traffic...WILD WOOD could have been recorded in 1970..."

Entertainment Weekly (5/27/94, p.88)
- "...pits the gruff-punk charge of the band against the refinement and musicality of his later group, the genre-hopping Style Council....It's a record full of intricate nooks and crannies that begs for exploration...." - Rating: A-

Stereo Review (7/94, p.86)
- Performance: Extraordinary / Recording: Good - "...Weller has always possessed the uncanny ability to interlace the personal with the political, crafting lyrics that can be read on both levels. But it is as a musical force that Weller looms most impressively on WILD WOOD..."

Q (1/94, p.86)
- Included in Q's list of `The 50 Best Albums Of 1993' - "...showcases an artist maturing before our very eyes..."