Guitarhoo! has issued an interview with founding member and guitarist for Canadian classic rock band LOVERBOY, Paul Dean, who takes some time out from touring with JOURNEY and PAT BENATAR to talk about his early roots as a musician in the Prairies of Canada, the

formation of Loverboy, songwriting, the secrets to his success and more.

A couple of excerpts follow:

Q: Loverboys debut and the band is excellent, a classic! You can really feel a band chemistry. Which songs came together quickly and which songs took some time?

A: "They were all pretty straight ahead. Mike (Reno, vocals) and I were very dedicated, and we would try anything, in any order, cutting up songs, a verse from this, a chorus from that. 'The Kid Is Hot Tonight' was a complete song, even without the title chorus. It actually has two choruses now. A friend, Bernie Aubin who was the drummer in the band for a while, told me he had this title for a song. I "spliced" it into the tune, changed a couple of transition chords, and topped it off with, 'But where will he be tomorrow'."

Q: Before headlining your own shows, Loverboy toured with giant acts like KISS, CHEAP TRICK, ZZ TOP, KANSAS, DEF LEPPARD and others. How was the experience and what are some of your fondest memories from that time?

A: "You actually missed our biggest tour, with JOURNEY in 1982. And here we are again, 30 years later. Nothings really changed, we still love to play for people. My fondest memory is playing in Munich in the 80's. (Is that vague enough?) We played in a wooden velodrome, and the one and only time the whole crowd was chanting our name over and over. Pretty powerful stuff. And then playing in Japan, where the security was so tight inside the hall during the concert, the fans weren't allowed to leave their seats, it was all about respect and restraint. Then we're leaving after the show, and it's total pandemonium outside. Ah, that's better, just how we like it!"

Q: Loverboy is still touring strong, what do you feel has given the band its longevity with music fans?

A "Decent songs, high energy, positive "message", good players and crew."

Read the full interview here.