Black River

Album: 22 Dreams (2008)
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Songfacts®:

  • Paul Weller co-wrote this with Blur guitarist Graham Coxon, who also played drums, guitars and provided the backing vocals. Weller said of this song: "This was originally the B-side of the 'This Old Town' single I did with Graham Coxon, (which reached #39 in the UK in 2007). I didn't feel it got enough attention at the time so I thought I'd dust it off and give it a bit more exposure. You can hear the sound of me tap dancing on the chorus if you listen closely. I like to do a bit of tap!"
  • This was the first of several collaborations on the album, something Weller was not previously noted for in his solo career. Uncut magazine July 2008 asked the former Jam and Style Council frontman why this time so many of the tracks were co-written with friends. He replied: "I've often chatted to Bobby Gillespie or Noel Gallagher about co-writing, but I always feel a bit self-conscious doing the old-fashioned thing where there's two of you in a rehearsal room, slogging it out on acoustic guitars. But the collaboration with Graham Coxon changed my mind about that. It was more of a long-distance thing, which involved sending each other demos on tapes or CDs. One person would make changes and send back another disc, and you'd both chip away at the music. I'm much more comfortable working like that."

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