Paul Reynolds is a British guitarist best known for being a member of the new wave band A Flock Of Seagulls in the 1980s. He is highly praised for having a unique guitar sound that differentiated his band from others of the time.
Biography
Reynolds joined A Flock of Seagulls at the age of seventeen, a few months after the band was formed, to replace original guitarist Willie Woo. The group's popularity soared in the early 1980s with the release of " Talking," and in 1982 the song "I Ran " was a hit in the US and at home. By the time he was twenty-one, the band had released an album, won a Grammy Award, got two more hit singles, and did a worldwide tour. Reynolds, whose "textural wash" contributed significantly to the group's sound, was praised for his "echo-laden" "unique guitar style", which differentiated A Flock of Seagulls from other synth-heavy bands of the period. Reynolds left the band in 1984, after the release of The Story of a Young Heart, two years before the band broke up. When it was reformed in 1989 by singer Mike Score, Reynolds and the remaining members decided not to rejoin. Reynolds and his fellow ex-members did, however, reunite with Score for a one-off performance in London in 2003 for VH1's Bands Reunited television program. Before the performance, Reynolds was interviewed about why he left the band; he claimed that he was too young for the "rock 'n' roll lifestyle" and that he was exhausted from all of the performances. Reynolds rejoined the original lineup in 2018 for their first new album together since 1984: Ascension.
Equipment
Reynolds played several guitars, including his 1980 Kramer XL-5, mostly used for performances between 1980 and 1984. His XL-5 was a uniquely shaped walnut-bodied electric with an aluminum-framed neck with wooden inserts. Another guitar that stood out was his red Gibson Firebird Studio, often used live to play songs like Wishing. It was also used in the clips for Wishing, Space Age Love Song and The More You Live The More You Love. Paul has recently been seen playing two different Fender Stratocasters. A black one was used in the Transfer Affection clip which he also played live during the band's return tours in 2004. Reynolds used a naturally-finished Strat in the clip for Space AgeLove Song with the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra in 2018. Reynolds has also played a Roland G-808 guitar synthesizer in songs like What Am I Supposed To Do.
