Paul Weller is live with his band in Cardiff tonight - last night he was due to play solo on BBC Radio 2's Janice Long Show

Listen again samples will be available from www.bbc.co.uk/radio1 for those who can't make Cardiff International Arena.

Weller is pushing his new CD, The Rolling Stone EP, with an arena tour of the UK - his biggest for some years.

The icon and former Jam frontman has been busy since last autumn, when he released his latest album, Studio 150.

It's a collection of 12 cover versions and follows up 2002's Illumination album, an experimental release with Simon Dine of Noonday Underground.

The covers are diverse and range from famous tunes such as Thinking Of You by Sister Sledge to the obscure Nolan Porter's If I Could Only Be Sure.

As leader of the Jam Weller also released cover versions including David Watts by The Kinks and Who's So Sad About Us by The Who.

"I'd been talking about recording a covers album for a very long time," says Weller. "Initially I had the idea to record a selection that resembled a compilation tape that you'd give to a friend, with all your favourite songs on.

"But I was worried that there would be too many disparate sounds that just wouldn't hang together.

"Instead I decided to cover songs that weren't particularly my favourites but ones I could reinterpret, play around with, and make my own."

Since Studio 150 Weller has played a Tsunami benefit gig in London with his usual band.

He also recorded Come Together, by the Beatles, which was released as a download from www.ukradioaid.co.uk/downloads.htm to raise money for the same charity.

His last single, Thinking Of You, was also a charity release, with 50p of all sales going to Children In Need.

In November he had to cancel three shows because of a serious throat infection.