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/
Standing on the Edge
Paul Young Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The door was open and you're shaking in anticipation
Let your down just when you let him in
Now you only have to dance away the night again
Lately, lonely
He was old but never felt so young
Like a lion to the slaughtered lamb
He watched you crumble
Still he says that he has loved you
Like he loved no other
The best kept secret hidden years
Is still wrapped up with pride and fear
Standing on the edge of love, moving round in circles
Turning
Standing on the edge of love, moving round
Back to safety, back to well worn womb
Back to someone who is nothing more than passing time
Back to dreaming all that love lost grooms
Does it make you want to scream in anger, cry with rage
The best kept secret hidden years
Is still wrapped up with pride and fear
Standing on the edge of love, moving round in circles
Turning
Standing on the edge of love, moving round
"Standing on the Edge" by Paul Young is a poignant and sorrowful song about the aftermath of a broken relationship. The first verse introduces the singer of the song who has been hurt deeply by someone whom they trusted. The verse speaks of the perpetrator being sold a secret, implying that he or she was told something very personal and private about the singer. The door was open, but the singer still feels uncertain about what's going to happen next. Letting their guard down, they allowed the other person to enter their life, only to be hurt again. Hence, the singer only has the option of dancing away the night again, to try and forget about the hurt and move on.
The second verse talks about how the perpetrator feels after they have hurt the singer. It seems as if he's aging, but he's never felt so young before because he has found someone whom he could take advantage of. His treatment of the singer is compared to a lion attacking a lamb - it is cruel and vicious. He watches helplessly as the singer crumbles, but he doesn't expect to dance with her, indicating that he's not capable of being honest or truly loving. He still claims that he has loved the singer like no other, but the whole situation is marred by the best-kept secret, which is still wrapped up with pride and fear. The chorus repeats the title of the song "Standing on the Edge of Love" as a reminder that the singer is in-between the circle of love, unable to move on or stay still.
Line by Line Meaning
He has had the secret sold to him
He has learned of a secret that was sold to him by someone
The door was open and you're shaking in anticipation
The door was open and you were nervous and excited to see what was waiting for you behind it
Let your down just when you let him in
You let your guard down as soon as you let him in
Now you only have to dance away the night again
Now, you will have to dance the night away without him
Lately, lonely
Recently, feeling lonely
He was old but never felt so young
He was old but felt youthful when he was around you
Like a lion to the slaughtered lamb
He watched you helpless, like a lion watching its prey
He walked away before the dance begun
He left before anything could start
Still he says that he has loved you like he loved no other
He still claims that he loves you more than anyone else he has ever loved
The best kept secret hidden years is still wrapped up with pride and fear
A secret that has been hidden for years is still being kept out of pride and fear
Standing on the edge of love, moving round in circles, turning
Being unsure about being in love, moving in circles and turning around
Back to safety, back to well worn womb
Going back to a comfortable and safe place
Back to someone who is nothing more than passing time
Going back to someone who isn't very important to spend time with
Back to dreaming all that love lost grooms
Going back to dreaming about past loves that have been lost
Does it make you want to scream in anger, cry with rage
Does it make you feel like shouting and crying out of anger and frustration?
Standing on the edge of love, moving round in circles, turning
Continuing to be unsure about being in love, moving in circles and turning around
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: ANDREW BARFIELD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind