Featured Artist: Paul Hardcastle

A producer and keyboardist from London, Paul Hardcastle debuted as a solo artist and achieved some acclaim for his early singles, notably in 1984, the electro-funk/freestyle/instrumental track, "Rain Forest", which along with the track, "Sound Chaser" hit number two on the dance chart. "Rain Forest" also hit number five on the soul chart and number fifty-seven on the Hot 100. The following year he scored the international hit  "19," an electro-oriented song about America's involvement in the Vietnam War and the effect it had on the soldiers who served, using sampled dialogue from an American television documentary about the post-traumatic stress disorder suffered by veterans. It became a major hit in his native country; in the U.S., it topped Billboard's club chart.

Hardcastle enjoyed several further hits in the UK, including "Don't Waste My Time" (with vocals by Carol Kenyon) (UK No. 8) and "The Wizard", a UK No. 15 hit that became the theme tune for BBC Television's music chart show Top of the Pops from April 1986 until September 1991. He also had a hit with "Just For Money", which reached No. 19 in the UK and featured Bob Hoskins and Laurence Olivier. Earlier, he had cut a cover version of D-Train's most influential hit "You're the One For Me", segued with his own compositions "Daybreak" and "A.M." Hardcastle also wrote the theme tune for Saturday Live, a popular entertainment show which ran from 1985-1987.

He also made the hit single "The Voyager", which was used for the BBC One programme Holiday. Paul now acknowledges he was behind the "N-N-Nineteen Not Out" track with Rory Bremner.

After 1986, Hardcastle started to specialise in television soundtracks and remixed work, for artists as such as Five Star, Barry White, Third World, Sinitta, Johnny Logan, Hiroshima and Ian Dury.

In 1988, Hardcastle released the concept album, No Winners, which focuses on the potential negative effects of the Cold War arms race. In 2000, he released Hardcastle III, which included a remake of "Rainforest" and a hit single, "Desire."

Later, he produced and did remixes for artists such as Ian Dury and Phil Lynott. He continues to sell well in the speciality dance market and occasionally releases records as part of the duo Kiss the Sky (with Jaki Graham) while also operating under names like the Def Boys, Beeps International, and Jazzmasters. Working regularly with vocalists such as Helen Rogers, Becki Biggins, and Margo LeDuc, Hardcastle has recruited several saxophonists including Gary Barnacle (on the first album), Snake Davis, Phil Todd, Tony Woods, and Rock Hendricks. All these albums have been played on smooth jazz radio in the United States, where some of the most played tracks include "Northern Lights", "Lost in Space", "Desire", "Shine", and "Serene". He won the Billboard Smooth Jazz Artist Of The Year award in 2008. Zero One (1985), Jazzmasters II (1994), and Hardcastle 2 (1996) were among his most popular releases through the '90s, while the two-disc Cover to Cover (1997) assembled his greatest hits, along with a bonus record of newly recorded cover versions.

Hardcastle kept the Jazzmasters series running through 2010, the year the sixth volume was issued. The track "Touch and Go", featuring his son Paul Jr. on saxophone, reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Jazz songs chart, becoming his tenth number one on the Smooth Jazz chart in total. He also continued his Hardcastle series of smooth jazz-oriented affairs through its own sixth volume, Hardcastle VI, released in 2011 which features yet another remake of "Rainforest"—this time mixed with R&B legend Marvin Gaye's signature song, "What's Going On."

Paul Hardcastle can be heard regularly right here on Island Radio.