Paul Warren Dean (born February 19, 1946, in Vancouver, British Columbia) is a Canadian musician and the lead guitarist of the Canadian rock band Loverboy which reached huge fame in the early 1980s.[1]

Paul Dean
Paul Dean Performing at the Snoqualmie Casino on June 16th 2018
Paul Dean Performing at the Snoqualmie Casino on June 16th 2018
Background information
Born (1946-02-19) February 19, 1946 (age 78)
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
GenresRock, hard rock, soft rock
Occupation(s)Musician
Instrument(s)Guitar
Years active1970–present
LabelsCapitol, Columbia

Biography edit

Growing up in Calgary, Alberta, Dean first started out playing washtub bass at the age of 12, followed by a plastic wind-up ukulele, which he received for Christmas at 13. He received his first guitar 2 months later, an acoustic, which he commenced to smash using it as a badminton racket. He next saved to buy his first electric guitar later that summer.[1]

Dean's early musical influences included Duane Eddy, Luther Perkins, Hank Marvin, The Ventures, The Fireballs, Johnny and the Hurricanes, and later Led Zeppelin, Jeff Beck, The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and Boston.[1][2]

Dean's first bands included Cannonball, the Great Canadian River Race, Canada and Scrubbaloe Caine. Scrubbaloe Caine released one album, Round One in 1973 before dissolving by 1975.[3]

Dean then met drummer Matt Frenette and joined Streetheart in Regina, Saskatchewan, in 1977.[4] Dean, along with singer Kenny Shields, keyboard player Daryl Gutheil, bassist Ken Sinnaeve and drummer Matt Frenette released their debut album Meanwhile Back in Paris in 1978.

In 1979, Dean and Frenette left Streetheart and returned to Calgary where they formed Loverboy with singer Mike Reno.[4] Loverboy has since produced seven studio albums plus compilations and live albums, and a number of hit singles in Canada and the United States.

In 1982, Dean won the "Composer of the Year" Juno Award along with Reno for writing "Turn Me Loose" from Loverboy's self-titled 1980 debut album.

 
Dean performing at the Bayfront Center in St. Petersburg, Florida, circa 1983.

In 1989, Dean released his first solo album called Hard Core. The album is composed of nine tracks with songs co-written by other 80's artists such as Bryan Adams and Paul Stanley (of Kiss fame). His second solo album, 1994's Machine, featured a blues sound with guest appearance from Reno.[4] Dean released a third solo album in 1997 titled Blackstone.

Dean continues to tour and play live shows with Loverboy. The band's album, Just Getting Started, was initially released exclusively through Wal-Mart on October 30, 2007, and is now available on iTunes. Loverboy had a headlining spot at the 2007 Grey Cup party in Toronto.

At the 2009 Juno Awards Dean was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame as a member of Loverboy. The band's latest album was released in 2014.

Personal life edit

Paul Dean currently lives in Vancouver with his wife and son.

Equipment edit

Dean plays modified Fender Stratocaster and Gibson Les Paul guitars with Gibson T500 pickups, GHS Boomers guitar strings, modified Marshall 900 50 watt - 4500 amplifiers, Marshall 1960 speaker cabinets, Sennheiser wireless systems, TC Electronic G-System and Dunlop 60 guitar picks.[1]

Discography edit

Studio albums edit

  • Hard Core (1989)
  • Machine (1994)
  • Blackstone (1997)

with Scrubbaloe Caine edit

with Streetheart edit

with Loverboy edit

Soundtrack appearances edit


Title

Release With Soundtrack
"Dangerous" 1984 Loverboy Metropolis
"Heaven in Your Eyes" 1986 Top Gun

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d "Paul Dean Interview". Guitarhoo!. Guitarhoo.com. December 21, 2012. Archived from the original on February 1, 2018. Retrieved March 9, 2013.
  2. ^ "Paul Dean Fave 5 Record Reviews". Guitarhoo!. Guitarhoo.com. January 7, 2013. Retrieved March 9, 2013.
  3. ^ "Scrubbaloe Caine Biography". CanadianBands.com. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
  4. ^ a b c "Paul Dean Biography". CanadianBands.com. Retrieved 2009-05-05.