Paul King | |
|---|---|
 Paul King in San Francisco – 1986 | |
| Born | Paul King November 20, 1960 Galway, County Galway, Republic of Ireland |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, musician, TV presenter |
| Spouse(s) | Gilly King (m. 2001) |
Paul King (born 20 November 1960) is a British-Irish singer, musician, VJ and TV presenter. King was the lead singer of the eponymous 1980s band King and has released five albums in his musical career.
Paul King was born in Galway, County Galway, Ireland and moved to Coventry, England, with his parents at a young age. After graduating from Coventry Drama School, King joined the West Midlands Police Cadets for two years before joining rock-ska band the Reluctant Stereotypes. King's line up of the band – which also contained record producer Paul Sampson – released an album The Label and three singles Confused Action, Plans For Today and Nightmares [1] in the early 1980s on the back of Coventry's vibrant 2 Tone ska scene. [2]
After the demise of the Reluctant Stereotypes, King formed the Raw Screens who perfected their act and style to what King and his manager Perry Haines called 'multi-tone', and then in 1983 relaunched the group as self-named 1980s band King. [3] As lead singer, King was famed for his cockatoo haircut and spray painted Doc Marten's Boots – a look described "like the Child Catcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. But, hell, the girls loved him," [4] while Richard James Burgess produced and drummed on most of the band's songs.
The band lasted just a couple of years, though both of their albums, Steps in Time and Bitter Sweet , went Gold, and they had two Top 10 singles with "Love & Pride" and "Alone Without You". Paul King then went solo with a 1987 album entitled Joy , produced by American musician Dan Hartman. [2] It produced a minor hit single on the UK Singles Chart, "I Know". [2]
After an unsuccessful solo career, King became a VJ on MTV in 1989, before moving over to VH1 in 1994, and then became known for his infomercials on 1980s collection albums. He is mostly remembered for the programmes MTV's Greatest Hits , 120 Minutes and XPO, later renamed First Look. First Look, programmed by Richard Godfrey, Peter Good, Peter Ruppert, [5] showed new singles and album releases and it was presented by VJ Paul King until 30 July 1994. [6] In 1998, a joint King & Paul King 18-track collection, entitled The Best of King – Love & Pride, was eventually released, with hit singles, stand-out tracks, B-sides and remixes. Paul King still works for MTV Networks Europe where he has produced shows for VH1 and MTV.
Except where otherwise stated, all are releases by the band King.
No Doubt is an American rock band formed in Anaheim, California in 1986. For most of its career, the band has consisted of vocalist and founding member Gwen Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont, bassist Tony Kanal and drummer Adrian Young. Keyboardist Eric Stefani, Gwen's brother, was also a former member when the band started to release albums in 1992. Since the mid-1990s, trombonist Gabrial McNair and trumpeter Stephen Bradley have performed with the band as session and touring musicians.
A Flock of Seagulls are an English new wave band formed in Liverpool in 1979. The group, whose best-known line-up comprised Mike Score, Ali Score, Frank Maudsley and Paul Reynolds, hit the peak of their chart success in the early 1980s.
Dire Straits were a British rock band formed in London in 1977 by Mark Knopfler, David Knopfler, John Illsley and Pick Withers. The band was active from 1977 to 1988 and again from 1990 to 1995.
ABC are an English pop band that originated in Sheffield in 1980, evolving from the earlier ensemble Vice Versa. The band's classic formation featured Martin Fry as the lead vocalist, Mark White on guitar and keyboards, Stephen Singleton playing the saxophone, and David Palmer behind the drums.
Eurythmics were a British pop duo formed in 1980, consisting of Scottish vocalist Annie Lennox and English musician and producer Dave Stewart. They were both previously in the Tourists, a band that broke up in 1980. They released their first studio album, In the Garden, in 1981 to little success, but achieved global acclaim with their second album, Sweet Dreams (1983). The title track became a worldwide hit, reaching number two in the UK Singles Chart, and number one in Canada and the US Billboard Hot 100. Eurythmics went on to release a string of hit singles and albums, including "Love Is a Stranger", "There Must Be an Angel " and "Here Comes the Rain Again", before splitting in 1990.
Patricia Mae Giraldo is an American singer and songwriter. In the United States, she has two multi-platinum albums, five platinum albums, and 15 US Billboard top 40 singles, while in Canada she had eight straight platinum albums, and she has sold over 36 million albums worldwide. She is also a four-time Grammy Award winner. She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in November 2022.
Jeremy David Hounsell Dammers GCOT is a British musician who was a founder, keyboard player and primary songwriter of the Coventry-based ska band the Specials and later the Spatial AKA Orchestra. Through his foundation of the record label Two Tone, his work blending political lyrics and punk with Jamaican music, and his incorporation of 1960s retro clothing, Dammers is a pivotal figure of the ska revival. He has also been acknowledged in his work for racial unity.
Terence Edward Hall was a British musician who came to prominence as the lead singer of the 2-tone band the Specials, and later recorded with groups such as Fun Boy Three, the Colourfield, Terry, Blair & Anouchka, and Vegas.
The Selecter is an English 2 tone ska revival band, formed in Coventry, England, in 1979.
The Hooters are an American rock band, which was founded in Philadelphia in 1980. They combine elements of rock, reggae, ska, and folk music.
The Beat are an English band formed in Birmingham, England, in 1978. Their music fuses Latin, ska, pop, soul, reggae and punk rock.
Paul Melvyn Carrack is an English singer, musician, songwriter and composer who has recorded as both a solo artist and as a member of several popular bands. The BBC dubbed Carrack "The Man with the Golden Voice", while Record Collector remarked: "If vocal talent equalled financial success, Paul Carrack would be a bigger name than legends such as Phil Collins or Elton John."
Paul Antony Young is an English musician, singer and songwriter. Formerly the frontman of the short-lived bands Kat Kool & the Kool Cats, Streetband and Q-Tips, he became a teen idol with his solo success in the 1980s. His hit singles include "Love of the Common People", "Wherever I Lay My Hat", "Come Back and Stay", "Every Time You Go Away" and "Everything Must Change", all reaching the top 10 of the UK Singles Chart. Released in 1983, his debut album, No Parlez, was the first of three UK number-one albums.
Bad Manners are an English two-tone and ska band led by frontman Buster Bloodvessel. Early appearances included Top of the Pops and the live film documentary Dance Craze (1981).
Sade are an English band, formed in London in 1982 and named after their lead singer, Sade Adu. The band consists of Adu alongside bassist Paul Denman, saxophonist and guitarist Stuart Matthewman, and keyboardist Andrew Hale. Founding drummer Paul Anthony Cooke left the band in 1984, while Dave Early, Cooke's replacement, left in 1985. Since Early's departure in 1985, the band has employed numerous session and touring drummers in absence of an official drummer. The band's music features elements of soul, quiet storm, smooth jazz and sophisti-pop. All of the band's albums, including compilations and a live album, have charted in the US Top Ten.
King were an English new wave band which formed in 1984. The band achieved chart success in 1985, and are best known for their hit single "Love & Pride", which reached number 2 in the UK. The band had two Top 20 albums and five Top 30 singles in the space of a year.
Diamond Life is the debut studio album by English band Sade, released in the United Kingdom on 16 July 1984 by Epic Records and in the United States on 27 February 1985 by Portrait Records. After studying fashion design, and later modelling, Sade Adu began backup-singing with British band Pride. During this time Adu and three of the original members of "Pride"—Paul Anthony Cook, Paul Denman and Stuart Matthewman—left the group to form their own band called Sade. After various demos and performances, Sade received interest from record labels and signed to Epic.
"Love & Pride" is the debut single by Coventry band King, produced by Richard James Burgess and featured on the band's first studio album, Steps in Time.
This article includes an overview of the famous events and trends in popular music in the 1980s.
David Freeman is a British singer, musician and songwriter, best known for being a member of the new wave duo the Lover Speaks during the 1980s.
| Authority control databases: Artists |
|---|
