Graham Coxon & Paul Weller, 2 elder statesmen of rock, show that they can still, well, rock with This Old Town…

Graham Coxon, Paul Weller, Zac Starkey & Mani perform This Old Town

Having got back from a lovely holiday last night, we were catching up on some TV which we had missed including the Jonathan Ross edition where those cheeky Northern Arctic Monkeys dressed up as clowns. But that wasn’t the only musical highlight – no, there was also Graham Coxon & Paul Weller showing that middle age rocks, as they hammered through their new collaboration, This Old Town.

Both Graham Coxon & Paul Weller have been underrated in their careers; Coxon due to the fact that people often disparage the work of blur now that Damon Albarn has discovered hip-hop (only 30 years or so late, but never mind); and Weller (as I’ve argued before) because Stanley Road lead to a lot of pale imitations (cough Ocean Colour Scene cough). Well neither of them seem particularly bothered.

The song This Old Town probably won’t be the high point of either of their careers, but they just look like they’re having a bloody great time, especially playing live on Ross with Zac (son of Ringo) Starkey & Mani (ex-Stone Roses, now Primal Scream). And Weller just keeps on looking like the most stylish man in British music. And he’s from about 10 minutes down the road from where I grew up.

This Old Town is already available on iTunes and comes out as a limited 7″ single on July 30th. And if you like This Old Town why not do what I did, and download (finally!) Coxon’s other recent highpoint, Freakin’ Out?