Paul Ryan (singer)

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Paul Ryan
Birth namePaul Sapherson
Born(1948-10-24)24 October 1948
Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, England
Died29 November 1992(1992-11-29) (aged 44)
London, England

Paul Ryan (born Paul Sapherson; 24 October 1948[1] – 29 November 1992)[2] was an English singer, songwriter and record producer.

Biography[edit]

Early life[edit]

Born in Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, England, Paul and his twin brother Barry were the sons of singer Marion Ryan.

Career[edit]

Ryan's success came as a singing duo, with his twin brother Barry Ryan during the 1960s, known simply as "Paul & Barry Ryan". However, the stress of public attention caused Paul to retreat into the background,[3] while Barry went solo.

Later career[edit]

Paul Ryan wrote Barry's 1968 hit "Eloise", the 1971 hit "Who Put the Lights Out?" for Dana and another of his songs, "I Will Drink the Wine", was a top-20 hit on the UK Singles Chart for Frank Sinatra.[4]

In the 1970s Ryan relocated to the United States, and in 1976 released an album, Scorpio Rising, but later left the music industry. After returning to the UK in 1985, he earned his living from operating a chain of hairdressing salons.[5][6] The gothic punk band the Damned reached number 3 in the UK Singles Chart in 1986 with their cover version of "Eloise".[7]

Death[edit]

Ryan died of lung cancer in 1992 in London at the age of 44.[2][8]

Songwriting credits[edit]

Both of the above Sinatra tracks appeared on his 1971 album Sinatra & Company.[9]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "October - Birthdays and Deaths". Bittersuiteband.com. Archived from the original on 29 August 2018. Retrieved 28 December 2015. [unreliable source?]
  2. ^ a b Doc Rock. "The Dead Rock Stars Club 1992 - 1993". Thedeadrockstarsclub.com. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  3. ^ "Geocities.com/badcatrecords". Archived from the original on 28 October 2009. Retrieved 5 October 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) [unreliable source?]
  4. ^ a b "Paul Ryan | Songs". AllMusic. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  5. ^ "Paul & Barry Ryan | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  6. ^ Talevski, Nick (2006). Rock Obituaries - Knocking On Heaven's Door. Omnibus Press. p. 565. ISBN 978-1-84609-091-2. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  7. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 138–139. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  8. ^ "Barry Ryan". Alexgitlin.com. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  9. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Sinatra & Company - Frank Sinatra | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 28 December 2015.

External links[edit]