Paul Weller, Opera House, Boscombe

ARMS aloft in acclaim of what had gone before, mile-wide grins cracking their exhilarated faces, those that stayed were in rapturous communal praise of a very rare treat - a second encore from an obviously equally joyous Paul Weller.

The uncomplicated cover of All You Need Is Love crowned a very special night at the Opera House, just reward for the sell out crowd's devotion, patience and generosity.

It all started a good two hours earlier with a rollicking opening salvo of Blink And You'll Miss It; a new song with a ferocious northern soul edge; and a jagged take on his punk-soul anthem From The Floorboards Up.

Looking lean, sounding mean, Weller has always been at his best when he feels his back is to the wall and there's a point to prove. On the eve of his 50th birthday - and the release of a new album, the epic 22 Dreams, perhaps the point to prove is that he has a point at all.

Whatever it is, he was having fun. "It's a long way from the Roxy," he laughed as he noted the Victorian venue's restored opulence in contrast to The Jam's roots in London's sweatbox punk clubs of 30 years ago.

Much of the new material being road tested at the Opera House had a swampy R&B, psychedelic feel and at times its creator seemed uncharacteristically giddy about it all, even restarting one particularly meaty beat stomp. He went on to vent his spleen on a malfunctioning mic stand, but minor niggles and needles aside, this was a triumphant, bravura performance.

Sat behind the piano for You Do Something To Me, Broken Stones and another fragile newie, he played the rarely heard Picking Up Sticks "because it's big in Dorset" then had the stage rearranged for an acoustic set that included Wild Wood and Jam highlight Butterfly Collector.

However, it's a full-blooded but still-valid return to another of his former band's past glories - The Eton Rifles - that earns the night's biggest response.

People's lives are bound up in these songs and Paul Weller's understanding of and respect for that clearly translates to his audience, the core of which is happy to accompany him on his more challenging musical adventures. I doubt he takes such fidelity lightly - it has to be earned and nourished.

While most of his new wave peers have long since dimmed their creative flames, Weller's refusal to stand still and willingness to take a fall keeps him in the game.

The Changing Man. Indeed.