Payolas

Payolas were a New Wave band active in the Canadian music scene for a decade from the late 1970s. The band's name was a reference to the payola scandal in the United States in the early 1960s. The group was formed in Vancouver, British Columbia and recorded mostly at Vancouver's Little Mountain Sound. Through several lineup changes and name changes (the band also played as The Payola$, Paul Hyde and the Payolas and Rock and Hyde), the Payolas core members remained Paul Hyde and Bob Rock, who together wrote virtually all of the band's songs. As well, Rock engineered and mixed virtually every Payola$ recording. Although the band always seemed poised for a big international breakthrough, The Payola$ never quite broke out despite their artistic growth and popular success. They were, however, one of the most prominent and successful platinum-selling Canadian bands of the early 1980s. After a long hiatus that saw Bob Rock producing Metallica and a host of other bands and Paul Hyde recording four solo albums, they got back together in 2007 and released 'Langford Part One', a seven song mini C.D., distributed by EMI records. Plans for 2008 include a full C.D. to be released in the summer and a tour of Canada.