Paul Thompson (born 13 May 1951) is an English drummer, who is best known as a member of the rock band

Roxy Music Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry—who became the band's lead vocalist and principal songwriter—and bassist Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson. The other longtime members are Phil Manzanera ...

. He is a member of Andy Mackay's project with the Metaphors and joined

Lindisfarne Lindisfarne, also called Holy Island, is a tidal island off the northeast coast of England, which constitutes the civil parish of Holy Island in Northumberland. Holy Island has a recorded history from the 6th century AD; it was an important ...

in 2013. He was also the drummer for

Oi! Oi! is a subgenre of punk rock that originated in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The music and its associated subculture had the goal of bringing together punks, skinheads, and other disaffected working-class youth. The movement was ...

band

Angelic Upstarts Angelic Upstarts are an English punk rock / Oi! band formed in South Shields in 1977. AllMusic calls them "one of the period's most politically charged and thought-provoking groups". Angelic Upstarts Biography AllMusic. accessed 3 July 2006 Th ...

and the American

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

band

Concrete Blonde Concrete Blonde was an American alternative rock band from Hollywood, California. They were initially active from 1982 to 1995, and reunited twice: first from 2001 to 2004, and again from 2010 to 2012. They were best known for their album ''Bloo ...

Early life and education

Thompson was born in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

, Northumberland. He lived in

Jarrow Jarrow ( or ) is a town in South Tyneside in the county of Tyne and Wear, England. It is east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is situated on the south bank of the River Tyne, about from the east coast. It is home to the southern portal of the Tyne ...

, north-east England from the age of six months and attended West Simonside Infants and Junior School.

Career

In 1965, Thompson joined The Tyme who played at local youth clubs. His next group was a local band called The Urge which he joined when 17 years old. Fatigue from performing with them seven nights a week in local clubs and pubs led him to fall asleep on his job as an apprentice metalworker, resulting in his dismissal. Alongside John Miles he became a member of The Influence. Thompson joined

in 1971 and was credited as drummer on six albums, as well as touring and performing on solo records with his bandmates

Bryan Ferry Bryan Ferry CBE (born 26 September 1945) is an English singer and songwriter. His voice has been described as an "elegant, seductive croon". He also established a distinctive image and sartorial style: according to ''The Independent'', Ferry an ...

Phil Manzanera Phillip Geoffrey Targett-Adams (born 31 January 1951), known professionally as Phil Manzanera, is an English guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He is the lead guitarist with Roxy Music, and was the lead guitarist with 801, and Quiet Sun. ...

, and Andy Mackay In 1980, Thompson took leave from Roxy Music due to an arm injury. Later that year he left the band, owing to musical differences between himself and Bryan Ferry. During this period Thompson played with rock band

. In 2001, he reunited with fellow Roxy Music band members for a tour. He also toured with Ferry, supporting his '' Frantic'' album in 2003 and appeared at the

Isle of Wight Festival 2005 The Isle of Wight Festival 2005 is the fourth revived Isle of Wight Festival on the Seaclose Park site in Newport on the Isle of Wight. The attendance of this festival was around 50,000, a 15,000 increase on sales of the year before, which was ...

on 11 June 2005 with Ferry. During this period Thompson played live gigs with Andy Mackay and The Metaphors and was credited on their self released live CD ''London! Paris! New York! Rome!'' in 2009. He joined the

in 2013. Thompson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019 as a member of Roxy Music.

Influence and following

Drummer

Roger Taylor Roger Taylor may refer to: *Roger Taylor (Queen drummer) (born 1949), drummer for Queen *Roger Taylor (Duran Duran drummer) (born 1960), drummer for Duran Duran *Roger Taylor (author), author of epic fantasy Hawklan series *Roger Taylor (college pr ...

of the new wave band

Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. With the addition of drummer Roger ...

has stated that Thompson's drumming was a big influence over his development. Fans of Thompson nicknamed him "The Great Paul Thompson", because of his drumming skills and power.

Other interests

In 1987, Thompson joined the

Royal Auxiliary Air Force The Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF), formerly the Auxiliary Air Force (AAF), together with the Air Force Reserve, is a component of His Majesty's Reserve Air Forces (Reserve Forces Act 1996, Part 1, Para 1,(2),(c)). It provides a primary rein ...

. As a member of 2624 Squadron, based in

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

, he attained the rank of corporal before leaving the RAuxAF in 1993.

References

External links

Paul Thompson atDiscogs
*
Vivaroxymusic.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Paul 1951 births 20th-century English musicians 21st-century English musicians Art rock musicians Concrete Blonde members English rock drummers The Gary Moore Band members Glam rock musicians Living people Musicians from Newcastle upon Tyne People from Jarrow Musicians from Tyne and Wear Roxy Music members 20th-century drummers 21st-century drummers 801 (band) members Lindisfarne (band) members