Paul Edward Gabriel

PAUL EDWARD GABRIEL, vocalist, songwriter, and guitar stylist.

A life dedicated to Music: this best describes the background of PAUL EDWARD GABRIEL, vocalist, songwriter, and guitar stylist.

Born Paul Bettencourt in 1957, he is a Rhode Island native, and the son of musical parents. He was a graduate of West Warwick High School (1975), briefly attended University of Rhode Island (Fall 1975), and ultimately graduated from Boston’s Berklee College of Music (1980) with a Bachelor of Music degree in Composition.

His first commercial recordings were as lead guitarist and co-vocalist with the local 80’s Power-Pop trio, “Visions”; specifically, the vinyl E.P.’s “If You’ll Come Back” (1982) and “Street Dreams” (1983).

PAUL EDWARD GABRIEL’s first actual solo release was the eclectic 1994 CD, “Guilty As Charged”. It was a wide-ranging compendium of styles, incorporating Melodic Alternative Rock, R&B, and Acoustic Pop. Recorded at Triad Recording Complex (then Warwick, RI; now Pawtucket, RI), the production, arranging and advanced technology created something of a musical studio tour-de-force. The CD was released in minimum quantities, without benefit of a distributor or touring band, throughout the 90’s. GABRIEL eventually came to the conclusion that a more focused, song-oriented effort would be called for.

Hence, the 2007 independent release of “Love, Courage And The Open Road” ; PAUL EDWARD GABRIEL’s 10 - song definitive statement. Almost entirely home-produced with digital technology ( and plenty of pure musical effort), the CD grew through a 3-year evolution, with several different song line-ups, and multiple recorded versions of the resulting final tracks. These acoustic & electric Folk-Rock selections were hand-picked from an 11-year period of GABRIEL’S writing (1989 to 2000).

2012’s “Taking Stock” CD continues the blend of highly melodic acoustic & electric material, spread out over 12 varied and distinctive tracks.

Both CD’s are available on the PAUL EDWARD GABRIEL website. “Taking Stock ” is also on CD Baby (cdbaby.com), an on-line music marketing website, as digital downloads.

PAUL EDWARD GABRIEL has been a regular featured

live act in East Greenwich, Rhode Island’s MAIN STREET STROLL since its inception in 2004.

The Wheel
Paul Edward Gabriel

You step right up, you place your bet,
you spin the roulette wheel.
You win a few, you lose a few, but you learn
how to call and deal.
You’ve gotta play the Wheel of chance
You need to play the Wheel and dance
(You’ve gotta take that risk)
So you call her up, your Lady Luck
to set a rendezvous.
This could be heaven, or this could be hell
but you won’t know until you do
You’ve gotta play the Wheel of chance
You need to play the Wheel and dance
(You’ve gotta try your luck)
You throw your hat into the ring
to trade it for the crown
They’ll either carry you on their shoulders
or they’ll throw you to the ground
You’ve gotta play the Wheel of chance
You need to play the Wheel and dance
(You need to take the risk)

(C) 1992 Hesperus Music (BMI)