ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JULY 5, 1985
By Steve Newton
A&M Records have done more than well getting behind such Vancouver talent as Bryan Adams and the Payola$. The latest local act to get the big push is a fellow by the name of Paul Janz, who is riding high on the success of his first single “Go to Pieces”, taken from his debut A&M LP High Strung.
Janz, 33, was born in the small town of Three Hills, Alberta, and grew up in Europe. While in Germany he joined a band called Deliverance, who had a couple of albums released internationally, and a single that went up to the middle of Billboard‘s Hot 100. But the band was forced to call it quits when handed a lawsuit for–believe it or not–“stealing the identity” of the banjo duo in the movie Deliverance!
Janz moved to Vancouver four years ago, and has been doing studio work, making jingles, writing, and producing small projects. During his time in the studios he’s made friends with a number of local musicians, many of whom helped out on his album project. Guitarists David Sinclair (Body Electric) and Harris Van Berkel (Skywalk) played on High Strung, as did well-known bassist Dougie Edwards and keyboardist Dave Pickell. “Specialists” for various tracks include Jim Vallance (Bryan Adams’ songwriting partner) on drums, percussionist Jim McGillveray (Skywalk, Wildroot Orchestra), and the Payola$’ Chris Taylor (who played drums on “Go to Pieces”).
Janz is currently rehearsing for some upcoming local gigs, so Vancouver night-clubbers will soon have a chance to see what all the fuss is about. His live band includes keysman Colin Wiebe and guitarist Tim McKenzie (both ex-Billboard Heroes), bassist Rob Press (from the Villains), drummer Mike Root (Thor, MT Vessels), and second keyboardist Rob Bailey.
To hear the full audio of my 1985 interview with Paul Janz subscribe to my Patreon page, where you can eavesdrop on over 500 of my uncut, one-on-one conversations with music legends since 1982.
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