Sunflower (Paul Weller song)

"Sunflower"
Single by Paul Weller
from the album Wild Wood
B-side	"Kosmos SXDub 2000" "Bull-Rush/Magic Bus" (live) "That Spiritual Feeling" (new mix)
Released	5 July 1993 (1993-07-05)
Length	4:11
Label	Go! Discs
Songwriter(s)	Paul Weller
Producer(s)	Brendan Lynch Paul Weller
Paul Weller singles chronology
"Above the Clouds" (1992) "Sunflower" (1993) "Wild Wood" (1993)
Music video
"Sunflower" on YouTube

"Sunflower" is a song by British singer-songwriter Paul Weller, released in July 1993 by Go! Discs as the first single from his second solo album, Wild Wood (1993). ^{[1] [2]} The song was written by Weller and co-produced by him with Brendan Lynch. It peaked at No. 16 on the UK Singles Chart upon its release. ^[3] Its accompanying music video was directed by Pedro Romhanyi. ^[4]

Critical reception

Larry Flick from Billboard magazine wrote, "Sly beat and cool guitar chords promise some intriguing rock explorations. However, Weller's assertion that we have no future, we have no past proves only half true—the classic rockisms here in vocal and melody show Weller leaning heavily on the past." ^[5] Adam Higginbotham from Select complimented the song as "ace". ^[6] Uncut magazine called "Sunflower" a "shaggy, psychedelic exocet", placing it 23rd in its list of Weller's 30 best songs. ^[7] The Guardian ranked it number 11 in its list of Weller's top 30 tracks, stating that "more than any song, (it) set Weller's course in the 90s", and describing it as "a twitchy cocktail of Low Spark of High Heeled Boys-era Traffic and soul". ^[8]

Track listings

• CD and 12-inch single ^{[9] [10]}

1. "Sunflower"
2. "Kosmos SXDub 2000"
3. "Bull-Rush/Magic Bus" (live at the Royal Albert Hall, London, October 1992)
4. "That Spiritual Feeling" (new mix)

• 7-inch, cassette, and mini-CD single ^{[11] [12] [13]}

1. "Sunflower"
2. "Bull-Rush/Magic Bus" (live at the Royal Albert Hall, London, October 1992)

Charts

Chart (1993)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA) [14]	166
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100) [15]	62
UK Singles (OCC) [16]	16
UK Airplay ( Music Week ) [17]	29

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
United Kingdom	5 July 1993	7-inch vinyl 12-inch vinyl CD cassette	Go! Discs	[18]
Australia	30 August 1993	CD		[19]
Japan	1 September 1993	Mini-CD	Canyon International	[20]

References

1. "BBC Two - Later... with Jools Holland, Series 40 Live, Episode 1, Paul Weller - Sunflower (Later Archive 1993)". BBC. London, U.K.: BBC . Retrieved 16 April 2020.
2. ""Sunflower" de Paul Weller :Clip :MTV France". www.mtv.fr. France: MTV France. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
3. "Paul Weller - Official Charts". official charts.com. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
4. "On the hunt for Paul Weller : The Music Promo Videos and their Directors…". paulwellerfanpodcast.com. Retrieved 16 May 2025.
5. Flick, Larry (21 May 1994). "Single Reviews: Rock Tracks" (PDF). Billboard . p. 51. Retrieved 16 May 2025.
6. Higginbotham, Adam (October 1993). "New Albums". Select . p. 94. Retrieved 4 January 2025.
7. "Paul Weller's 30 Best Songs". uncut.co.uk. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
8. Petridis, Alexis (25 November 2021). "Paul Weller's 30 greatest songs – ranked!". theguardian.com . Retrieved 12 September 2022.
9. Sunflower (UK CD single liner notes). Go! Discs. 1993. GOD CD 102, 857 203-2.
10. Sunflower (UK 12-inch single sleeve). Go! Discs. 1993. GODX 102, 857 203-1.
11. Sunflower (UK 7-inch single sleeve). Go! Discs. 1993. GOD 102, 857 202-7.
12. Sunflower (UK cassette single sleeve). Go! Discs. 1993. GOD MC 102, 857 202-4.
13. Sunflower (Japanese mini-CD single liner notes). Canyon International. 1993. PCDY-00120.
14. "Paul Weller ARIA chart history 1988 to May 2025". ARIA. Retrieved 8 June 2025– via Imgur. N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart.
15. "Eurochart Hot 100" (PDF). Music & Media . Vol. 10, no. 30. 24 July 1993. p. 19. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
16. "Paul Weller: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
17. "Top 50 Airplay Chart" (PDF). Music Week . 31 July 1993. p. 16. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
18. "New Releases: Singles". Music Week . 3 July 1993. p. 19.
19. "New Release Summary – Product Available from : 30/08/93: Singles". The ARIA Report . No. 186. 29 August 1993. p. 18.
20. "ポール・ウェラー | サンフラワー" [Paul Weller | Sunflower] (in Japanese). Oricon . Retrieved 1 October 2025.