Paul Field (musician)
Paul Field |
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Paul Field (born May 3, 1961 is an Australian musician and businessman. He is best known as one of the founding members of the Sydney pop music group The Cockroaches and for being general manager of operations for the children's music group The Wiggles.
Field is a high school teacher by training; he has a diploma from Australian Catholic University and a diploma of religious education from Aquinas Academy in Sydney.[1] In 1979, while still in secondary school (St. Joseph's College, Hunters Hill, a prestigious boarding school), he and his brothers John and Anthony formed the pop group The Cockroaches. Paul Field served as lead vocalist for the band, which enjoyed some success in Australia with five albums and three top 40 hits.[2]
In September 1988, while The Cockroaches were on tour in Queensland, Field's eight-month old daughter died of SIDS.[3] Her death "had a devastating effect on everyone involved",[3] but The Cockroaches went back on tour to "create a sense of normality"[3] and because he "had bills to pay".[4] By early 1989, however, "nothing was ever the same again";[3] Anthony Field left the band to attend Macquarie University to study Early Childhood Education,[5] and The Cockroaches disbanded. Anthony formed The Wiggles in 1991, with Murray Cook, Greg Page, and fellow Cockroaches band member Jeff Fatt, and they dedicated their first album to his neice.[3]
In 1996, at the request of his brother Anthony, Field became general operations manager of The Wiggles. At first, he booked venues at unusual settings throughout Sydney, New South Wales, and Eastern Australia,[6] "mainly pre-schools, RSLs and theatres".[1] By 2007, he produced and directed their videos and oversaw their consumer products.[1] As general manager of The Wiggles, Anthony Field has said, "I totally trust Paul; he is an honest man".[4]
Field has expressed an appreciation for the development of The Wiggles coming out of the tragedy of his oldest daughter's death. "When I think of how much joy [The] Wiggles have brought to children, it's good to know that out of an event so horrifying, something good has come", Field has said.[3] Field has daughter's name tattooed on his right arm, and the names of his four other children on his left arm, something his younger brother Anthony has emulated when he had the names of his three children tattooed on his arms.[4] Field's children have appeared in several of The Wiggles' videos and television programs.[6]
References
- ^ a b c Elliott, Tim (2007-01-07). "It's a wiggly, wiggly world". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "The Cockroaches". MySpace.com. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
- ^ a b c d e f Stapleton, John (2008-06-07). "Death of little girl gave birth to the Wiggles". The Australian. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ a b c O'Neill, Helen (2008-06-07). "Double Take". The Australian. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "About Us". The Wiggles Official Website. Retrieved 2007-08-01.
- ^ a b Scott, Paul (2006-04-02). "Kid Rock". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-06-24.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help)