Owen Paul
Encyclopedia
Owen Paul is a Scottish
singer, best known in the UK
for his 1986 #3 hit
single
, "My Favourite Waste of Time
", a cover version
of a song that was originally written and recorded by American
singer-songwriter
Marshall Crenshaw
. The track
featured an appearance from future Thunder
bass
player, Mark 'Snake' Luckhurst
.
As a youngster Paul was taken on as an apprentice with Celtic Football Club, but after hearing the Sex Pistols
he decided to pursue a career in music. In 1989 he produced Japan
ese rock band Buck-Tick
's album Taboo
. After releasing a couple of singles he had a fall-out with his record label
resulting in him leaving the music industry for 15 years.
Paul has made two television
appearances to forget: the first was on the BBC
live programme Pebble Mill, when he was meant to mime to "My Favourite Waste Of Time", but due to a technician's mistake, he missed his cue. The second came much later, as the unfortunate guest of a neighbour to The Osbournes
, when as a result of playing music
in a neighbouring garden, he provoked Ozzy
and the rest of his dysfunctional family
into throwing food.
Reverting to his full name of Owen Paul McGee, he returned to the music scene in 2002 with the album
, About Time.
After touring and recording with Mike + the Mechanics, and a spell with Scottish supergroup Four Good Men, he is now back on the road as the lead vocalist for Ex-Simple Minds
.
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
singer, best known in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
for his 1986 #3 hit
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
, "My Favourite Waste of Time
My Favourite Waste of Time
"My Favourite Waste Of Time" is a single recorded by Scottish singer Owen Paul and released in 1986. It remains his biggest hit single, reaching number 3 in the UK charts in July 1986....
", a cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of a song that was originally written and recorded by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Marshall Crenshaw
Marshall Crenshaw
Marshall Crenshaw is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist best known for his song "Someday, Someway".-Biography:...
. The track
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
featured an appearance from future Thunder
Thunder (band)
Thunder were an English hard rock band, who originally formed in 1989 when the band Terraplane broke up, leaving lead singer Danny Bowes and guitarist/main songwriter Luke Morley to form a new group, namely Thunder...
bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
player, Mark 'Snake' Luckhurst
Mark 'Snake' Luckhurst
Mark Luckhurst, and nicknamed Snake was a founding member of the British hard rock band Thunder, playing bass on their first two albums. Backstreet Symphony and Laughing on Judgement Day. He parted company with the band at the end of 1992 citing 'personal differences'...
.
As a youngster Paul was taken on as an apprentice with Celtic Football Club, but after hearing the Sex Pistols
Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band that formed in London in 1975. They were responsible for initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspiring many later punk and alternative rock musicians...
he decided to pursue a career in music. In 1989 he produced Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese rock band Buck-Tick
Buck-Tick
Buck-Tick is a rock band formed in 1983 in Fujioka, Japan. The band has consisted of Atsushi Sakurai , Hisashi Imai , Hidehiko Hoshino , Yutaka Higuchi and Toll Yagami for the majority of its existence...
's album Taboo
Taboo (Buck-Tick album)
Taboo is the fourth album by Buck-Tick, released on January 18, 1989. It was released on cassette, two record vinyl set and CD. The album was digitally remastered and re-released on September 19, 2002, with two bonus tracks. It was remastered and re-released again on September 5, 2007...
. After releasing a couple of singles he had a fall-out with his record label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
resulting in him leaving the music industry for 15 years.
Paul has made two television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
appearances to forget: the first was on the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
live programme Pebble Mill, when he was meant to mime to "My Favourite Waste Of Time", but due to a technician's mistake, he missed his cue. The second came much later, as the unfortunate guest of a neighbour to The Osbournes
The Osbournes
The Osbournes is an American reality television program featuring the domestic life of heavy metal singer Ozzy Osbourne and his family. The series premiered on MTV on March 5, 2002, and in its first season, was cited as the most-viewed series ever on MTV...
, when as a result of playing music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
in a neighbouring garden, he provoked Ozzy
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
and the rest of his dysfunctional family
Dysfunctional family
A dysfunctional family is a family in which conflict, misbehavior, and often abuse on the part of individual members occur continually and regularly, leading other members to accommodate such actions. Children sometimes grow up in such families with the understanding that such an arrangement is...
into throwing food.
Reverting to his full name of Owen Paul McGee, he returned to the music scene in 2002 with the album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
, About Time.
After touring and recording with Mike + the Mechanics, and a spell with Scottish supergroup Four Good Men, he is now back on the road as the lead vocalist for Ex-Simple Minds
Ex-Simple Minds
Ex-Simple Minds are a Scottish New Wave/rock band, formed in 2009 by Derek Forbes and Brian McGee, both former members of the New Wave bands Simple Minds and Propaganda...
.
Singles
- 1986: "My Favourite Waste of Time"
- 1986: "Pleased to Meet You"
- 1986: "One World"
- 1987: "Bring Me Back That Spark"
- 1987: "Mad About the Girl"
Albums
- 1986: As It Is
- 2002: About Time
- 2007: Rewired - Mike + the Mechanics (as backing vocalist and vocal arranger)