Paul Louis Hardcastle (born 10 December 1957) is an English composer, musician, record producer, songwriter, radio presenter and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known for his song "19", which went to number one on the UK singles chart in 1985.

Early life Born in Kensington, London, England, on 10 December 1957, Hardcastle is the son of Joyce (née Everett, 1930–1991) and Louis Hardcastle (1915–2000)."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. In 1982, Hardcastle and lead vocalist Derek Green left the band to form a duo under the name First Light. They achieved some minor success in the UK chart, but the project was abandoned after two years and Hardcastle pursued a solo career.

Hardcastle achieved some success with his early singles, including the 1984 electro-funk/freestyle/instrumental track, "Rain Forest", which along with the track "Sound Chaser", reached number two on the dance chart. "Rain Forest" also hit number five on the soul chart and number 57 on the Billboard Hot 100. Rain Forest, the album both tracks were released on, was nominated for Best R&B Instrumental Performance (Orchestra, Group or Soloist) in the 28th Annual Grammy Awards. Musician by Ernie Watts would win the award that year.

Hardcastle is best known for the 1985 single "19", which went to No. 1 in the UK (for five weeks), as well as several other countries worldwide. It also reached number 15 in the U.S. Pop chart and number 1 in the U.S. Dance chart. The song received the Ivor Novello Award for Best-selling single of 1985. The follow-up single to "19" was "Just for Money", which reached No. 19 in the UK. It also charted in several other European countries.

In 1986, Hardcastle released a remix to "One Wish" by Hiroshima. In the same year, Hardcastle's "The Wizard" was adopted as the theme tune for the BBC's Top of the Pops weekly chart show. The theme tune was used from 3 April 1986 to 26 September 1991.

The song "Don't Waste My Time" became Hardcastle's second UK top ten in March 1986. It featured singer Carol Kenyon, a backing vocalist of Heaven 17. In late 1986, Hardcastle collaborated with the supergroup Disco Aid (later rebranded as Dance Aid in 1987) co-producing the charity single "Give Give Give".

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, Hardcastle released the single "Swing" in 1990. It reached number 84 on the UK chart, number 27 in Germany, and number 18 in the US Dance chart.

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 Year Title Label Peak chart positions CertificationsUKUSUS R&BUS Jazz1985 Zero One (with Universal Funk)Bluebird/10 Records, EMI Music — — — — Rain ForestProfile Records — 63 30 — Paul HardcastleChrysalis Records 53 — — — BPI: Silver1988 No Winners — — — —1989 Sound Syndicate (also known as Are You Ready...)AJK Music, K-Tel International — — — —1993 Time for LoveFast Forward Records, JVC — — — —1994 Feel the BreezeJVC — — — —1996 Look to the Future — — — —1996 Star of the Story — — — —1997 First LightConnoisseur Collection — — — —2009 Zer01Hardcastle Music — — — —2012 Perceptions of Pacha VIII (remixed by Nacho Marco)Pacha Recordings — — — —2012 19 Below ZeroHardcastle Music, Universal Music — — — —2014 Moovin & GroovinTrippin 'N' Rythmn Records — — — 7 "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

Smooth jazz albums Hardcastle series Year Title Label Peak chart positionsUSUS R&BUS Jazz1994 Hardcastle Hardcastle Records, JVC, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records 182 35 21996 Hardcastle II — — 72002 Hardcastle IIIHardcastle Records, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records — — 92005 Hardcastle 4 — — 22008 Hardcastle 5Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records 176 — 52011 Hardcastle VI — — 42013 Hardcastle VII — — 32018 Hardcastle VIII — — 62020 Hardcastle IX — — 172022 Hardcastle X — — 14 "—" denotes releases that did not chart.

Jazzmasters series Year Title LabelUS Jazz1993 The JazzmastersFast Forward Records, Hardcastle Records, JVC, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records 161995 The Jazzmasters IIHardcastle Records, JVC, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records —1999 The Jazzmasters IIIHardcastle Records, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records 52004 The Jazzmasters 4 —2006 Jazzmasters V —2010 Jazzmasters VITrippin 'N' Rhythm Records —2014 Jazzmasters VII 1 "—" denotes releases that did not chart.

Chill Lounge series Year Title LabelUS Jazz 2012 The Chill Lounge, Volume 1Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records 12 2013 The Chill Lounge, Volume 2 10 2015 The Chill Lounge, Volume 3 11

Kiss the Sky with Jaki Graham YearAlbumLabel1991 Kiss the SkyJVC, Motown Records1994 Millennium Skyway (also known as Kiss the Sky II)Hardcastle Records, JVC

Transcontinental with Ryan Farish YearAlbumLabel2011Transcontinental (six-song EP)Rytone Entertainment

Compilations Year Title LabelUS Jazz1993 The Definitive Paul HardcastleConnoisseur Collection —1996 The Very Best (The Gold Collection)EMI Music —1997 P.H. (Paul Hardcastle Works)JVC —1997 Cover to Cover: A Musical AutobiographyHardcastle Records, JVC, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records 122000 Jazzmasters: The Greatest HitsHardcastle Records, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records 52003 The Very Best of Paul Hardcastle 1983–2003Jazz FM Records —2004 Jazzmasters: The Smooth Cuts Hardcastle Records, Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records 172009 Paul Hardcastle: The CollectionTrippin 'N' Rhythm Records 82011 Desire: The Ultimate Seductive AlbumTrippin 'N' Rhythm Records 62013 Electrofied 80s: Essential Paul HardcastleMusic Club Deluxe (division of Demon Records) —2015 19: The 30th Anniversary MixesNusic Sounds, Caroline International —2016 The History of Paul Hardcastle 1984–2016Trippin 'N' Rhythm Records —2023 Nineteen and Beyond: 1984–1988Chrysalis Records — "—" denotes releases that did not chart.

Singles + List of singles, with selected chart positions Title Year Peak chart positions Certifications Album UK US US Dance US Jazz US R&B IRE SWI NOR GER NLD SWE ATR ITL FR AUS NZ "You're the One for Me / Daybreak / A.M." 1984 41 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — The Definitive Paul Hardcastle "Guilty" 53 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — "Eat Your Heart Out" 59 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Rain Forest "King Tut" — — 10 — 32 — — — — — — — — — — — "Rain Forest" 1985 41 57 2 — 5 — — — — — — — — — — — "19" 1 15 1 — 8 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 15 10 1 BPI: Gold Paul Hardcastle "19 (German Version)" — — — — — — — — 17 — — — — — — — "Just for Money" 19 — — — — 15 27 — 31 — — — — — — — "Don't Waste My Time" 1986 8 — 31 — 65 15 9 — 15 12 — — — — 66 20 "Foolin' Yourself" 51 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — The Definitive Paul Hardcastle "The Wizard" 15 — — — — 10 — — 51 — — — — — — — "Walk in the Night" 1988 54 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — No Winners "40 Years" 53 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — "Are You Ready" 1989 90 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Sound Syndicate "Galaxy of Love" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — "Serene" 2005 — — — 1 — — — — — — — — — — — — Hardcastle IV "Marimba" 2008 — — — 3 — — — — — — — — — — — — Hardcastle V "Lucky Star" — — — 1 — — — — — — — — — — — — "The Circle" 2009 — — — 8 — — — — — — — — — — — — Hardcastle VI "Rain Forest" / "What's Going On" 2011 — — — 16 — — — — — — — — — — — — "Easy Come, Easy Go" — — — 1 — — — — — — — — — — — — "No Stress (At All)" 2013 — — — 1 — — — — — — — — — — — — Hardcastle VII "Easy Street" — — — 2 — — — — — — — — — — — — "Unlimited Love, Pt. 1" 2014 — — — 7 — — — — — — — — — — — — Moovin & Groovin "Rhythm of Life" 2015 — — — 3 — — — — — — — — — — — — Jazzmasters VII "Echoes Rising" 2016 — — — 1 — — — — — — — — — — — — The History of Paul Hardcastle "Cut Loose" 2018 — — — 3 — — — — — — — — — — — — Hardcastle VIII "Amber Skies" — — — 5 — — — — — — — — — — — — "Happy Go Lucky" 2019 — — — 1 — — — — — — — — — — — — "Dancing Galaxies" 2020 — — — 1 — — — — — — — — — — — — "Latitude" — — — 1 — — — — — — — — — — — — Hardcastle IX "Welcome to the Beach" 2021 — — — 1 — — — — — — — — — — — — "Tropicool" — — — 1 — — — — — — — — — — — — "Wavelength" 2022 — — — 1 — — — — — — — — — — — — Hardcastle X "—" 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. TitleYearAlbumLabelBionic Age (also referred to as the Bionicle Age)2001Extreme Global HardcoreWarner 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)2001Extreme Global HardcoreWarner Chappell Music (division of Warner Music Group)

See also List of number-one dance hits (United States) List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart List of 1980s one-hit wonders in the United States List of performers on Top of the Pops List of smooth jazz performers List of synthpop artists List of artists who reached number one on the UK Singles Chart

References

External links Official website Trippin 'n' Rhythm Records Paul Hardcastle charts