IT'S taken 25 years but the once "Angry Young Man" of The Jam finally seems contented.

Back for his sixth solo album, Paul Weller has swapped his fight for social justice in favour of his slippers and an afternoon in the garden. Illumination is 13 tracks of Weller in relaxed mood, partying with celebrity mates Noel Gallagher, Kelly Jones and virtually all of Ocean Colour Scene.

The single, It's Written In the Stars, has already given Weller his biggest

hit for some time and is the highlight of an effort that plods along. It's not that Illumination isn't worthy - but it is background music.

You listen while you are doing something else. And when we are talking about Weller, that's an insult. There are positive moments. The catchy Leafy Mysteries and the beautiful Now The Night Is Here offer a glimpse that Weller can still produce when he puts his mind to it.

Illumination is a vast improvement on 2000's hugely disappointing Heliocentric but it reveals a Weller who has lost some of the spark that made Wild Wood and Stanley Road such defining records. He'll be horrified, but he's become part of the establishment.

Updated: 09:11 Thursday, September 19, 2002