I was sad to hear that Paul “Tonka” Chapman has died. He was A hugely engaging man and talented enough to replace Gary Moore in Skid Row when he was 15! He then replaced Michael Schenker in UFO! Paul was nicknamed “Tonka” because of his indestructible qualities – i.e. he could keep up with Pete and Phil on the drink and “party” fronts. The only person I ever saw drink him under a table was Phil Lynott’s Mum...
I was with UFO when they supported Ozzy on a huge US arena tour in 1982 and severe weather brought everything to a standstill in Portland, Maine. Outside, the snow was two stoned St Bernards deep and the hail pellets stung like rubber bullets. At one stage me and Tonka nipped out to the tour bus to watch Apocalypse Now and were lucky to get back. Two feet of snow had risen to crotch level in just three hours. Ronnie James Dio would have been buried alive. I hadn’t seen so much white stuff since I last saw Tonka chopping out lines...
We battled through 500 yards of blizzards and icy hell (Oscar! Oscar! – Ed) to the sanctuary of the hotel. Tonka was totally nonplussed by the ordeal. He perched happily under a sign saying ‘Proper Attire must be worn’ with the knees hanging out of his snow-sodden jeans and cheerfully said, “That reminded me of my first band. We were only 14 and we used to have snowball fights outside the gigs.” Which was a bit like comparing being stranded in a desert to a spot of sunbathing.
After joining Skid Row, Welshman Paul was voted ‘Ireland’s Top Guitarist’ when he was still 15! We talked about other guitarists and he seemed to have the greatest respect for the late great Randy Rhoads who had died tragically a couple of months earlier. He told me “I knew Randy really well. We used to exchange licks every night in the tuning room. We’d just sit and show each other how to play certain things – he was an excellent guitarist, he dedicated his life to playing guitar. Every time he got into a new town he’d go find a classical guitar teacher and go for a lesson, then come back and practice.” Randy’s death seemed to electrify Tonka’s playing. When we finally reached dry gigs, he was completely recharged. Undoubtedly he was the new star of the live shows. His guitar work was glorious and his solos were better than ever. Although there was a time in Texas when Tonka staggered into a stack on stage and managed to knock an amp over onto his head. Mercifully the amp was undamaged.”
R.I.P. legend.
GARRY BUSHELL