Paul Louis Hardcastle[ (born 10 December 1957)]
Early life
Born in Kensington, London, England, on 10 December 1957,["Birth of Paul Louis Hardcastle", England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916–2005]
Career
Hardcastle began his career in 1981 when he became the keyboard player for British soul band Direct Drive.
Hardcastle achieved some success with his early singles, including the 1984 electro-funk/Freestyle music/instrumental track, "Rain Forest", which along with the track "Sound Chaser", reached number two on the dance chart.
Hardcastle is best known for the 1985 single "19", which went to No. 1 in the UK (for five weeks),
In 1986, Hardcastle released a remix to "One Wish" by Hiroshima.
The song "Don't Waste My Time" became Hardcastle's second UK top ten in March 1986.
In 1989, Hardcastle resumed working on First Light, collaborating with vocalist Kevin Henry, whom he had worked with on previous recordings.
Using his alias Deff Boyz,
Since the 1990s, Hardcastle has recorded several synth jazz albums, alternating releases under the pseudonyms Kiss the Sky (with Jaki Graham) and the Jazzmasters, as well as under his real name.
Personal life
Hardcastle married Dolores Baker in 1985.["Marriage of Paul Louis Hardcastle and Dolores Baker", England & Wales, Civil Registration Marriage Index, 1916–2005] They have three children, including British DJ and saxophonist Paul Hardcastle Jr. and singer Maxine Hardcastle, who both contributed vocals to Hardcastle's Transcontinental, a 2011 collection of new music recorded with Ryan Farish.
On 13 January 2026, Hardcastle announced the death of his son, Paul Hardcastle Jr., aged 35, in a road accident.
Discography
Studio albums
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| 1985 | Zero One
(with Universal Funk) | Bluebird Records, EMI music | — | — | — | — | |
| Rain Forest | Profile Records | — | 63 | 30 | — | |
| Paul Hardcastle | Chrysalis Records | 53 | — | — | — | |
| 1988 | No Winners | — | — | — | — | |
| 1989 | Sound Syndicate
(also known as Are You Ready...) | AJK Music, K-Tel International | — | — | — | — | |
| 1993 | Time for Love | Fast Forward Records, JVC | — | — | — | — | |
| 1994 | Feel the Breeze | JVC | — | — | — | — | |
| 1996 | Look to the Future | — | — | — | — | |
| 1996 | Star of the Story | — | — | — | — | |
| 1997 | First Light | Connoisseur Collection | — | — | — | — | |
| 2009 | Zer01 | Hardcastle Music | — | — | — | — | |
| 2012 | Perceptions of Pacha VIII
(remixed by Nacho Marco) | Pacha Recordings | — | — | — | — | |
| 2012 | 19 Below Zero | Hardcastle Music, Universal Music | — | — | — | — | |
| 2014 | Moovin & Groovin | Trippin 'N' Rythmn Records | — | — | — | 7 | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. |
Smooth jazz albums
Hardcastle series
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| 1994 | Hardcastle | Hardcastle Records, JVC, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | 182 | 35 | 2 |
| 1996 | Hardcastle II | — | — | 7 |
| 2002 | Hardcastle III | Hardcastle Records, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | — | — | 9 |
| 2005 | Hardcastle 4 | — | — | 2 |
| 2008 | Hardcastle 5 | Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | 176 | — | 5 |
| 2011 | Hardcastle VI | — | — | 4 |
| 2013 | Hardcastle VII | — | — | 3 |
| 2018 | Hardcastle VIII | — | — | 6 |
| 2020 | Hardcastle IX | — | — | 17 |
| 2022 | Hardcastle X | — | — | 14 |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. |
Jazzmasters series
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| 1993 | The Jazzmasters | Fast Forward Records, Hardcastle Records, JVC, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | 16 |
| 1995 | The Jazzmasters II | Hardcastle Records, JVC, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | — |
| 1999 | The Jazzmasters III | Hardcastle Records, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | 5 |
| 2004 | The Jazzmasters 4 | — |
| 2006 | Jazzmasters V | — |
| 2010 | Jazzmasters VI | Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | — |
| 2014 | Jazzmasters VII | 1 |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. |
Chill Lounge series
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| 2012 | The Chill Lounge, Volume 1 | Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | 12 |
| 2013 | The Chill Lounge, Volume 2 | 10 |
| 2015 | The Chill Lounge, Volume 3 | 11 |
Kiss the Sky with Jaki Graham
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| 1991 | Kiss the Sky | JVC, Motown Records |
| 1994 | Millennium Skyway
(also known as Kiss the Sky II) | Hardcastle Records, JVC |
Transcontinental with Ryan Farish
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| 2011 | Transcontinental (six-song EP) | Rytone Entertainment |
Compilations
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| 1993 | The Definitive Paul Hardcastle | Connoisseur Collection | — |
| 1996 | The Very Best (The Gold Collection) | EMI Music | — |
| 1997 | P.H. (Paul Hardcastle Works) | JVC | — |
| 1997 | Cover to Cover: A Musical Autobiography | Hardcastle Records, JVC, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | 12 |
| 2000 | Jazzmasters: The Greatest Hits | Hardcastle Records, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | 5 |
| 2003 | The Very Best of Paul Hardcastle 1983–2003 | Jazz FM Records | — |
| 2004 | Jazzmasters: The Smooth Cuts | Hardcastle Records, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | 17 |
| 2009 | Paul Hardcastle: The Collection | Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | 8 |
| 2011 | Desire: The Ultimate Seductive Album | Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | 6 |
| 2013 | Electrofied 80s: Essential Paul Hardcastle | Music Club Deluxe (division of Demon Records) | — |
| 2015 | 19: The 30th Anniversary Mixes | Nusic Sounds, Caroline International | — |
| 2016 | The History of Paul Hardcastle 1984–2016 | Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records | — |
| 2023 | Nineteen and Beyond: 1984–1988 | Chrysalis Records | — |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. |
Singles
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| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. |
Unreleased promotional tracks
This is a list of several unreleased tracks that were made by Paul Hardcastle that were originally intended to have been used to promote the Lego Bionicle toyline in 2001.
These tracks were originally meant to have been included with the Bionicle Power Pack CD package that was later released in the same year.
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| Bionic Age (also referred to as the Bionicle Age) | 2001 | Extreme Global Hardcore | Warner Chappell Music (division of Warner Music Group) |
| Killing Machines (also known as the original full version of The Bionicle Music track that was cut following the final release of the CD & later uses in commercials for the toyline) | 2001 | Extreme Global Hardcore | Warner Chappell Music (division of Warner Music Group) |
See also
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List of number-one dance hits (United States)
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List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart
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List of 1980s one-hit wonders in the United States
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List of performers on Top of the Pops
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List of smooth jazz performers
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List of synthpop artists
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List of artists who reached number one on the UK Singles Chart
External links
