Paul "Wix" Wickens is an English musician best known as keyboardist and musical director of Paul McCartney's touring band since 1989.[1][2] In a career that started in 1973, Wickens has also worked with artists including Nik Kershaw, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Bon Jovi, Edie Brickell, Kevin Coyne and many others.

Wix Wickens
Wickens at RDS Arena in Dublin, Ireland, in 2010
Background information
Birth namePaul Wickens
Born (1956-03-27) 27 March 1956 (age 68)
Brentwood, Essex, England
Occupation(s)Musician, producer
InstrumentKeyboards
Years active1973–present

Early life

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Wickens attended Brentwood School, Essex where he became a friend of fellow student Douglas Adams. Wickens composed the music for the sequel radio productions of Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Tertiary to Quintessential Phases and performed at his memorial service in 2001.[citation needed]

Career

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In the early 1980s Wickens was a member of Woodhead Monroe, a band that issued two singles distributed by Stiff, "Mumbo Jumbo" and "Identify".[citation needed]

Wickens began touring with Paul McCartney in 1989. Since then, Wickens has served as the musical director for many of McCartney's tours. He continues to tour with McCartney (as his keyboardist, occasional guitarist and backing vocalist), and is the longest serving of the four musicians in McCartney's touring band.[citation needed]

Wickens played on albums by Tommy Shaw of the American rock band Styx, the Damned, Tim Finn, Paul Carrack, Nik Kershaw, Jim Diamond, Boy George, and David Gilmour, and was the co-producer of the first Savage Progress album. He also was the keyboardist and programmer for Edie Brickell & New Bohemians album, Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars – which was where he first met Chris Whitten. Wickens was also involved in making the 2008 album Bandaged in aid of BBC Children in Need.[citation needed]

Wickens played accordion on the The's minor UK hit "This Is the Day", from their album Soul Mining.[3] He also recorded a version of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit".[citation needed]

Selected discography

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Music producer

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Year Album Artist
1986 Desire for Freedom Jim Diamond
1988 Creeping Up on Jesus The Big Dish
1992 Sleeping Satellite Tasmin Archer
1992 Great Expectations Tasmin Archer
1993 In Your Care Tasmin Archer
1996 Big White Room Melanie Garside
1996 She Knows Melanie Garside

Performer

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Year Album Artist
1978 Dynamite Daze Kevin Coyne
1978 Millionaires and Teddy Bears Kevin Coyne
1979 Babble Kevin Coyne And Dagmar Krause
1983 All I See Is You Eddie and Sunshine
1983 Do What You Wanna Do / Movin' On Chris Thompson
1983 Perfect Strangers Eddie and Sunshine
1983 The Golden Section John Foxx
1983 Soul Mining The The
1984 Human Racing Nik Kershaw
1984 Un autre monde Téléphone
1984 The Riddle Nik Kershaw
1984 The Bad and Lowdown World of the Kane Gang Kane Gang
1985 In Mysterious Ways John Foxx
1986 Hi Ho Silver Jim Diamond
1986 Radio Musicola Nik Kershaw
1986 Big Canoe Tim Finn
1986 Get Close The Pretenders
1987 Blue Slipper Helen Watson
1987 American English Wax
1987 Ambition Tommy Shaw
1987 To Be Reborn Boy George
1988 Ain't Complaining Status Quo
1988 What Up, Dog? Was (Not Was)
1988 From Langley Park to Memphis Prefab Sprout
1988 Creeping Up on Jesus The Big Dish
1989 One Good Reason Paul Carrack
1989 Gatecrashing Living in a Box
1989 The Works Nik Kershaw
1989 Flowers in the Dirt Paul McCartney
1989 Mind Bomb The The
1990 Stolen Moments John Hiatt
1990 Other Voices Paul Young
1990 Tripping the Live Fantastic Paul McCartney
1991 Places I Have Never Been Willie Nile
1993 Off the Ground Paul McCartney
1993 Paul Is Live Paul McCartney
1996 Big White Room Melanie Garside
1996 Desire for Freedom Jim Diamond
1997 So Help Me Girl Gary Barlow
2002 Back in the US/Back in the World Paul McCartney
2003 Seven Years – Ten Weeks David Sneddon
2007 Memory Almost Full Paul McCartney
2009 Good Evening New York City Paul McCartney
2013 New Paul McCartney
2018 Egypt Station Paul McCartney

References

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  1. ^ Canhoto, Bela, Interview With Paul "Wix" Wickens, archived from the original on 22 May 2008, retrieved 19 January 2009
  2. ^ Regen, John, VIDEO - Wix Wickens' Touring Rig with Paul McCartney, retrieved 29 April 2018
  3. ^ Simpson, Dave (25 April 2022). "'It means more to me now I've lost family': how the The made This Is the Day". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 April 2022.
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