YMMV / The Jam

• Americans Hate Tingle: They never really caught on in America despite their huge success in their native UK. Arguably one of several examples from around this time who were simply "too British" to have widespread appeal stateside. They did manage to have some of the most-imported records to the US, though.
  • This is largely true of Weller's post-Jam career. The Style Council had a US top 40 hit with "My Ever Changing Moods," but otherwise, he and his music are unknown in America.
• Broken Base: The gradual genre shift toward sophisti-pop by the time of their final album, The Gift, was a source of contention between Weller and his bandmates and also caused a divide among their fans. Some welcomed the danceable funk and soul-driven sounds of "Precious" and "Town Called Malice", while others seethed with anger at Weller for 'selling out'. Some fans to this day refer to Weller's follow-up group as "The Shit Council".
• Fan Nickname: Weller's influence on Britpop through his work in the Jam, the Style Council and his solo work have earned him the nickname "the Modfather".
• Misaimed Fandom: "The Eton Rifles" is often treated as a simplistically left-wing anti-public-schoolboy song, but if you listen to the lyrics of the verses and the bridge, it's just as much an attack on middle-class left-wingers who incite working-class people into doomed "revolutionary" actions and never face the consequences themselves. ("What a catalyst you turned out to be / Loaded the guns and then ran off home for your tea") Let's not forget that David Cameron, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and member of the Conservative Party, as well as an Eton Old Boy (And let's not forget, famous for having sodomised a dead pig's mouth while at Cambridge) gave this in an interview as his favourite song while at school. Paul Weller has suggested he didn't actually read the lyrics.
• Suspiciously Similar Song: The bassline, drum part, guitar part, general musical feel and overall shape of "Start!" are essentially "Taxman" by The Beatles. All that's different are the melody, the chord sequence and the words.