Our Favourite Shop

The album features fourteen original compositions (eight by Paul Weller, four co-written by Weller and Mick Talbot, and one co-written by Weller with Steve White), with one instrumental from Talbot, in its original British form.

Lyrical targets include racism, excessive consumerism, the effects of self-serving governments, the suicide of one of Weller's friends and what the band saw as an exasperating lack of opposition to the status quo. All of this pessimism is countered with an overarching sense of hope and delight that alternatives do actually exist—if only they can be seen. They also took a more overtly political approach than The Jam in their lyrics, with tracks such as "Walls Come Tumbling Down", "The Lodgers", and "Come to Milton Keynes" being deliberate attacks on 'middle England' and Thatcherite principles prevalent in the 1980s. "A Man of Great Promise" was Weller's eulogy to his school friend and early Jam member - Dave Waller - who had died from a heroin overdose in August 1982.^[2]

The track "With Everything to Lose", featuring a political lyric written by Steve White, used the backing track of the then unreleased song "Have You Ever Had It Blue" which had been written for the soundtrack to the film Absolute Beginners.^[3] Re-recorded with the original lyric and released as a single in 1986, "Have You Ever Had It Blue" charted in the top 20 in the UK and top 10 in Ireland.^{[citation needed]}

The majority of the album's material was released (with different sequencing and packaged with an entirely different cover design) in the USA as Internationalists by Geffen Records (which has been a sister label to Polydor Records, the band's UK label, since 1998, under Universal Music Group).

Included on the UK, US, and Canadian pressings, most countries omitted the track "The Stand Up Comic's Instructions"^[4] as it was believed that its ironic satire of racist attitudes would be misunderstood. The guest vocalist was the black British comedian, Lenny Henry imitating comedians such as Bernard Manning and Jim Davidson.^[1]

More information Review scores, Source ...

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[5]
Mojo	[6]
Q	[7]
Record Collector	[8]
Record Mirror	4/5[9]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[10]
Sounds	[11]
Spin	[12]
Uncut	9/10[13]
The Village Voice	B+[14]

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While receiving some mixed reviews on its release in 1985, it was widely considered to be the band's best work by contemporary critics.^[15]

In his "Consumer Guide" column for The Village Voice, Robert Christgau wrote: "One reason Paul Weller's rock and roll never convinced non-Brits was his reedy voice, which he has no trouble bending to the needs of the fussy phonographic cabaret he undertook so quixotically and affectedly after retiring the Jam. I'm sure the move has cost him audience, but the new format suits the specifics of his socialism."^[14]

Retrospectively, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that Our Favourite Shop "was still quite eclectic, but it didn't seem as schizophrenically diverse as Café Bleu", praising it as a "more cohesive and stronger" album.^[5]

All songs written by Paul Weller, except where noted.

Later CD issues included "Shout to the Top!" (Vision Quest Version) as a bonus track.

Additional track listing