Paul Jones was one of
the young hopefuls who frequently “sat in” with
Alexis Korner's
Blues Incorporated
in 1962. Others included Brian Jones, who offered Paul
the job of lead singer in the group he was forming.
Today Paul has no regrets about turning down The Rolling
Stones. But the next time someone asked if he wanted to
be in a group, he said “yes”; it was The Mann-Hugg Blues
Brothers, later known as
Manfred Mann.
In 1963 Paul, Mike Hugg and Manfred came up with a piece
in response to a commission for a signature tune for the
TV programme “Ready, Steady, Go!”. The marriage
of show and song may have been mutually beneficial; it
certainly did the group no harm, providing their first
hit, “5-4-3-2-1”.
After several others, including two number ones, Paul
went solo in 1966 and had a few more, notably “I’ve
Been A Bad, Bad Boy”,
from the film “Privilege”, co-starring Jean Shrimpton.
This was followed by TV drama, a second film “The
Committee” (recently released on DVD) a couple of fringe
plays – and then a full-time theatre career, beginning
with “Conduct Unbecoming”, in which he acted at Bristol
Old Vic, London’s West End and on Broadway. Subsequent
roles included Romeo, Hamlet, leads in plays by Shaw,
Anouilh, and the odd musical such as “Pippin” and
“Joseph”.
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By 1979, Paul’s deep-rooted love of R&B was becoming
frustrated by his relentless acting schedule. He decided
the time was right for a band playing blues – and his
first call was to Tom McGuinness. The result was
The Blues Band.
After 18 albums and more than a quarter-century of
touring the world, the band continues to attract new
generations of blues fans.
Doctor of Music (from
the University Of Portsmouth) and President of The
National Harmonica League, Paul’s played on soundtracks
(several of which he composed) and many recordings by
artists including Percy Sledge, Tina Turner, Katie
Melua and Memphis Slim. His songs have been
recorded by an equally varied bunch, from early
Steppenwolf to Helen Shapiro to Ten Years After. His
weekly blues show on BBC Radio 2 is a must-listen on
Monday evenings, and his broadcasting commitments have
included writing specialist questions for “Mastermind”.
In 2001, Paul was honoured by the TV show “This Is Your
Life”.
Joining forces with
Digby Fairweather's Half Dozen
he brings you
his most popular hits rearranged in fabulous style by
Digby. Paul is also available as an after dinner
speaker; his witty account of his life in the theatre
and the music industry will amuse your guests and leave
a lasting impression of a wonderful evening! |
