Paul Spencer Denman (born July 1957) is an English songwriter and musician. With Sade Adu, Andrew Hale, and Stuart Matthewman, Denman gained worldwide fame as the bass guitarist of the English band Sade.[1] He is also a member of the English band Sweetback. In 2024, Denman, along with the rest of the band was nominated for the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame.
Early life
Born in Hull, from 1959 to 1979 Denman lived on Greatfield Estate, Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, where Mick Ronson (1946 - 1993) also grew up, as Denman cites in The Mick Ronson Story': "Paul Denman, bass player with Sade, grew up on the same council estate in Hull, albeit a few years later: 'Michael had ambition, very much like myself. I'm pretty sure if he was here now he'd say "Yeah, I can't wait to get out of Hull", and neither could I.'[2]
Showing a strong interest in music Denman’s parents bought him a bass guitar for his 13th birthday in July 1970. After watching Bowie and The Spiders from Mars audacious performance of Starman on the BBC's Top of the Pops prime time broadcast on Thursday 6 July 1972 that poignantly struck teenage Denman: "Every pop star I talk to from my generation... they all go back to Ziggy."[2]
At 15, he left Greatfield School to start a coppersmith apprenticeship at Hawker Siddeley, Hull, later British Aerospace in Brough, building military aircraft until leaving aged 22.
After serving his musical apprenticeship on the local Hull circuit, Denman was inspired by the Punk scene and the Sex Pistols and bought a one way train ticket to London in August 1981. An act that eventually resulted to Denman joining Latin/Funk band Pride, which then evolved into the creation of the band Sade.[4]
Instruments
Denman is a right-handed bass player and rarely uses guitar picks.
First guitar – a second hand bass £13 from a local charity shop
Description: A creative Latin / Funk collection of seven musicians with diverse influences.[7]
Notable live performances:
1982 – The band performed on a back of a lorry outside Le Beat Route, 16–17 Greek Street, Soho, London.
September 1982 – performance at The Fridge Club, London.
Thursday 16 September 1982 – performance at Danceteria, New York[8] (Sade Adu had already been in New York as part of the 21 Blitz Kids Invasion whilst designing for the Demob label as part of the Axiom fashion show at The Underground Club on 17 and Broadway on 5/6 May 1981).
Notable songs: Manhandled, Ecstasy, Pride, The President.
From Pride offshoot bands and other projects were formed including:
PSP - an instrumental jazz inspired live band, using the initials of the names of the trio (Paul Spencer Denman, Stuart Matthewman, Paul Anthony Cooke), all originally from Hull, Yorkshire.
Sade – from the abbreviated name of Helen Folasade Adu.
Thursday 30 August 1984 - Musik & Gäste, Züspa-Halle, Zurich, Switzerland
Friday 7 September 1984 - Inkstick Roppongi, Tokyo, Japan
Saturday 8 September 1984 - Laforet Museum Harajuku, Tokyo, Japan
Sunday 9 September 1984 - Laforet Museum Harajuku, Tokyo, Japan
Monday 10 September 1984 - Tsubaki House, Tokyo, Japan
Friday 14 September 1984 - Inkstick Roppongi, Tokyo, Japan
Saturday 15 September 1984 - Hibiya Yagai Ongakudou, Tokyo, Japan
Friday 21 September 1984 - Veronica's Rocknight, Ahoy, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Saturday 29 September 1984 - Mostra Internazionale di Musica Leggera, Palazzo dei Congressi, Riva del Garda, Italy
Sunday 30 September 1984 - Studio 3 RAI di Via Teulada, Rome, Italy
Monday 22 October 1984 - Alabamahalle, Munich, Germany
Tuesday 23 October 1984 - Newcastle City Hall, Newcastle, UK
Wednesday 24 October 1984 - Edinburgh Playhouse, Scotland, UK
Friday 26 October 1984 - Whitla Hall, Belfast, Northern Ireland
Saturday 27 October 1984 - The Stadium, Dublin, Ireland
Monday 29 October 1984 - Colston Hall, Bristol, UK
Tuesday 30 October 1984 - Dome, Brighton, UK
Thursday 1 November 1984 - Apollo, Oxford, UK
Friday 2 November 1984 - Odeon, Birmingham, UK
Sunday 3 November 1984 - Apollo, Manchester, UK
Monday 5 November 1984 - Royal Concert Hall, Nottingham, UK
Tuesday 6 November 1984 - Sheffield City Hall, Sheffield, UK
Thursday 8 November 1984 - Hammersmith Odeon, London, UK
Friday 9 November 1984 - Hammersmith Odeon, London, UK (recorded for BBC Radio 1 In Concert, first broadcast 29 December 1994, released on vinyl, and later CD)
Sunday 25 November 1984 - Alte Oper, Frankfurt, Germany
Thursday 7 February 1985 – Festival Delia Canzone Italiana di Sanremo
Wednesday 8 May 1985 – Golden Rose, Casino de Montreux, Montreux, Switzerland
Saturday 13 July 1985 – Live Aid, Wembley Stadium, London at 2.55pm - 3.10pm performing Why Can’t We Live Together, Is It A Crime, Your Love Is King. Cementing their success.
Sweetback (early 1994 – present)
Founded: New York / London / Los Angeles
Line up: Stuart Matthewman, Andrew Hale, Paul Spencer Denman with various guest vocalists
