Growing up with an older brother Mark and a younger sister Joanne, Young first went to work at the Vauxhall Motors factory and in his spare time played in several bands as bass guitarist. The first group for which he became lead singer was Kat Kool & The Kool Kats. In the late 1970s he joined the Streetband, who had one Top 20 hit in the UK, with the humorous, novelty track "Toast", reaching No. 18 in November 1978.
In December 1979 the Streetband broke up and Young formed the Q-Tips, who established their name by playing live and supporting The Who on their 1982 tour but had no chart hits in the UK, although their single "Letter Song" did enjoy minor success in mainland Europe.
The Q-Tips went their separate ways in 1982, and Young was signed by CBS Records as a solo performer, uniting the fields of New Wave and Soul. His first two singles, "Iron Out the Rough Spots" and a cover of Nicky Thomas’ "Love of the Common People" had no success, but the third, a cover of the Marvin Gaye B-side "Wherever I Lay My Hat (That's My Home)" was No. 1 in the UK singles chart for three weeks in the summer of 1983, the first of fourteen British Top 40 singles.
Similar success followed all over Europe. In the UK, follow-up single "Come Back and Stay" reached No. 4, and a re-release of "Love of the Common People" made it to No. 2, while his début album No Parlez was certified platinum in various countries.
Young's style at the time was a warm, approachable white soul, though he sometimes received playful criticism for his fashion decisions. However, his choice of an Antony Price leather suit for the cover of No Parlez was impractical for stage, where an energetic show dictated more robust clothing.
1984 was a difficult year for Young, as his first heavy promotional and live concert tour of America affected his vocal cords to the extent that he couldn't sing at all for most of the year. He recovered, however, to famously perform the opening line to the Band Aid single "Do They Know It's Christmas?" and his second album, The Secret of Association, secured his future success in the U.S., Japan and Australia. Young's biggest worldwide hit came from this album in 1985 with a version of Daryl Hall & John Oates's album track "Everytime You Go Away". The song reached #1 on the U.S. pop charts.
His third and fourth albums, Between Two Fires, in 1986, and Other Voices, in 1990, were commercial failures (though the latter was a success in the US) but a popular duet, "Senza una donna-Without a Woman", with Italian blues singer Zucchero in 1991 and a corresponding greatest hits album (which also featured duets with Clannad and Joni Mitchell) returned him to success. It also included a new track, 'I’m Only Foolin Myself'. He sung "Radio Ga Ga" with Queen in 1992, at the tribute concert to the recently deceased Freddie Mercury.
In 1992, Paul Young formed Los Pacaminos, a Tex-Max style live band including other top-class musicians such as Jamie Moses and the late Matt Irving. The group have released two albums, with a third scheduled for released in 2024.
In 1993, Young released The Crossing, which produced his first solo Top 20 hit since 'Everytime You Go Away', 'Now I Know What Made Otis Blue'. After this, Young was freed from his contract with CBS. In 1994, he released the covers album Reflections, which was a commercial failure.
He reformed the Q-Tips for a short series of concerts that year in 1993. A year later he suffered significant vocal damage, which has followed him ever since. He contributed to the Vangelis album Voices in 1995. Young sang the British national anthem "God Save the Queen", on the eve of England's Euro '96 semifinal match against Germany.
In 1997, he released his final album to feature original material on EastWest Records. The album featured his final UK Top 40 hit, 'I Wish You Well' and abandoned soul in favour of a more country style somewhat similar to that of Garth Brooks. In 2006 and 2016, he released covers albums, Rock Swings On The Wild Side of Swing and Good Thing, with the former being only released in Germany.
Paul still actively tours solo and with Los Pacaminos and is releasing a new albums both solo and with his group in 2023. He spends his time with his family and following his past time of cooking.
www.paul-young.com/
I Wish You Love
Paul Young Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You remember though
Like it's yesterday
How you took my innocence and then you stole away
Never to return
Glad it's over now
I can laugh at now
You said I'm the one
And it's me who got burned
But you'll always stay in love they say
(With the first love, it's your last love)
And you'll always be a part of me
Wouldn't want it any other way
And I wish you luck
I wish you love
Wherever you call home
And you'll always be a part of me
May you never be alone
There's been many times
When I feel that I'm
Living in despair
And believing in a dream that nobody shares
Well you live and learn
But you'll always stay in love they say
(With the first love, it's your last love)
And you'll always be a part of me
Wouldn't want it any other way
And I wish you luck
I wish you love
Wherever you call home
And you'll always be a part of me
May you never be alone
But you'll always stay in love they say
And you'll always be a part of me
But you'll always stay in love they say
(With the first love, it's your last love)
And you'll always be a part of me
Wouldn't want it any other way
And I wish you luck
I wish you love
Wherever you call home
And I'm here to tell
I wish you well
May you never be alone
Paul Young's "I Wish You Love" is a song about heartbreak, growth and acceptance. The song is a message to a former lover who broke the singer's heart in the past. Young uses vivid imagery to describe the events leading up to his heartbreak, but also emphasizes that while the experience was painful, it has helped him grow and move on. He recognizes the role that his former lover played in his life, and while he is no longer in love with them, acknowledges that they will always be a part of him.
The lyrics, "But you'll always stay in love they say (With the first love, it's your last love) And you'll always be a part of me. Wouldn't want it any other way" show that the first love is something that stays with us forever. This could be because of the intensity of the emotions felt during the first love, or simply the fact that it is our introduction to the world of love and romance. He has accepted the fact that this person will always stay with him, and that he wouldn't want it any other way. Towards the end of the song, Young sends his former lover off with good wishes, wishing them love and luck and as well as hope that they never feel alone.
Overall, "I Wish You Love" is a beautifully crafted composition that portrays Young’s growth, acceptance and maturity towards his former lover who caused him heartbreak. The song helps one realise that while love can be painful, we can grow from it and learn to wish our former partners well, even if their love is no longer meant for us.
Line by Line Meaning
It was long ago
Referring to a past relationship that took place quite a while ago
You remember though
Though it happened long ago, it's still a memorable event
Like it's yesterday
The memories of the past relationship are still fresh in the singer's mind
How you took my innocence and then you stole away
The singer's ex-partner took away the singer's innocence and then left
Never to return
The singer's ex-partner will never come back
Glad it's over now
The singer is happy that the past relationship is over
I can laugh at now
The singer can now laugh about the past relationship
You said I'm the one
The ex-partner told the singer that he/she is the one
Then you lit the fuse and so amused you turned and run
The ex-partner ignited a spark but then left the singer unexpectedly
And it's me who got burned
The split from the ex-partner was painful for the singer
But you'll always stay in love they say
People often stay in love with their first love
(With the first love, it's your last love)
People feel like their first love will be their last love
And you'll always be a part of me
The memories of the past relationship will always be with the singer
Wouldn't want it any other way
The singer wouldn't want it any other way, even though the relationship ended
And I wish you luck
Despite the painful past relationship, the singer wishes luck to the ex-partner
I wish you love
The singer also wishes love to the ex-partner
Wherever you call home
The singer hopes that the ex-partner finds a happy home
May you never be alone
The singer hopes that the ex-partner never feels lonely
There's been many times
The singer has gone through tough times after the break-up
When I feel that I'm
During those times, the singer feels despair
Living in despair
The singer feels hopeless and unhappy
And believing in a dream that nobody shares
The singer believes in a dream, but nobody else supports or understands it
Well you live and learn
The singer has learned from the past relationship and has grown from it
And I'm here to tell
The singer is sharing a message with the ex-partner
I wish you well
The singer wishes well-being to the ex-partner
May you never be alone
The singer hopes that the ex-partner never feels lonely
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: PAUL YOUNG
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
William Bruce
One of the greatest pop voices EVER! EVER! ..so underrated today!
MsAppassionata
William Bruce I totally agree. He is really under appreciated here in the USA where I live. To be perfectly honest I had kind of lost track of him for awhile since you so rarely hear him on the radio here. I didn’t realize there was so much wonderful music of his that I had yet to hear. I’ve spent a lot of time catching up on him lately. I’m so glad I found him again.
Rosangela Bandeira
Você é um cantor maravilhoso 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏🇧🇷❤️🇩🇰🎄🎅
512kkg
Beautiful song! Never heard it before - glad I found it. Have always loved his voice - so soulful and sexy with so much emotion behind it. Thanks for sharing! :-)
stiffnurse
this will always be my fave song by Paul, says it all really, first love will always be the last love no matter how long you live. I may not be with him but he will always be my love. Thanks Paul for putting how i feel into words :)
Rob Murphy
I bought this the day it was released. The lyrics meant a lot to me 🙂
Jaylen Kylen
@Braylon Leon definitely, I've been watching on Flixzone for months myself =)
Braylon Leon
a trick: you can watch series on Flixzone. Been using them for watching a lot of movies lately.
THE BASSBAT 78
me too, I also got a demo weeks before it came out. I was working for Virgin in London at the time, i still have it on tape lol. i was 18 at the time, now 41.
Rosangela Bandeira
É maravilhoso te assistir Paul ❤️😍🇧🇷🇬🇧