Paul Lester is a British music journalist, author and broadcaster from Elstree, Hertfordshire.
He began his career as a freelance journalist, for Melody Maker in the early 1990s, as well as City Limits , 20/20 , Sky Magazine and The Jewish Chronicle . He covered grunge, shoegaze, Madchester and Britpop, also spending time with bands touring the UK and internationally. [1] [2]
In 1993, Lester became Melody Maker's features editor; then in 1997, left to join Allan Jones in launching monthly music and film magazine Uncut , remaining deputy editor until 2006.
Lester has written more than a dozen rock / pop biographies, co-authored the Virgin Encyclopedia of Albums and often appears as a radio / television music pundit. He has interviewed hundreds of thespians and musicians including Kylie Minogue, Janet Jackson, Mick Jagger and Snoop Dogg. He has also written sleeve notes on many, including: Todd Rundgren, Hall & Oates, The Smiths and The Sex Pistols. [3]
He currently resides in Hertfordshire, from where he has been freelancing since January 2007. He contributes newspapers, including : Guardian (daily columnist of 'Critics Picks' [4] and 'New Band of the Day' [5] ), The Sunday Times , the Daily Express , The Mail on Sunday , The Daily Telegraph and The Scotsman . He writes of other periodicals, including: Q (magazine) , GQ , Record Collector and The Jewish Chronicle (an autobiographical column about recently remarried life, as a father of three children).[ citation needed ]
In July 2011, he joined digital station Amazing Radio to present a weekly show dedicated to new music. [6] The programme continues to broadcast on Thursday afternoons between 1 and 3pm, on the national Digital One network in the UK and online via amazingradio.co.uk and the UK RadioPlayer.
In 2018, Lester became the editor of Record Collector magazine.[ citation needed ]
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Album title | Artist | Reviewed in |
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Sacred songs | Daryl Hall | Lester, Paul (December 2014). "Consecration piece". Buried Treasure. Mojo . 253 (6): 114. |
In 2008, Lester won the 'Breaking Music Writer' award at the Record of The Day Awards for Music Journalism and PR [7] for his 'New Band of the Day' column in The Guardian.