Artist · chart history
Paul Dempsey
Solo artist Melbourne Australia Australian musician
Paul Dempsey is an artist from Melbourne. Paul Dempsey has 3 chart appearances on 3 radio countdowns from 1 station on RockLists, spanning 2009–2023. The most successful song on radio countdowns is “Edge of Town (originally by Middle Kids)”, which appears on 1 list with a best position of #31. The station that charted Paul Dempsey most often is Triple J (Australia (national)), with 3 appearances. The artist’s biggest year on year-end countdowns was 2009.
Paul Dempsey stepped out from behind Something for Kate in 2009 with Everything Is True, his first solo album, released that August and climbing to No. 5 on the ARIA Albums Chart. Born in Melbourne in 1976, he had spent years as the band's singer, guitarist and main lyricist, the guy whose words did most of the heavy emotional lifting, and the solo record kept that confessional streak while letting the songs breathe a little.
"Ramona Was a Waitress" is the one that stuck, warm and wide open, the sound of a songwriter who knows exactly how much to give away. Dempsey has been open about his struggles with depression and stretches of writer's block, and the best of his work carries that weight without wallowing in it.
He has kept busy off the marquee too, producing and co-writing albums for other artists, Mosman Alder among them, and in 2006 he married Stephanie Ashworth, the bass player in Something for Kate. Years later he turned up on the countdowns again with his take on Middle Kids' "Edge of Town", proof the voice hadn't lost any of its ache.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs by Paul Dempsey on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Peak year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Edge of Town (originally by Middle Kids) | 1 | #31 | – | – | |
| 2 | Ramona Was a Waitress | 1 | #32 | – | 2009 | |
| 3 | Edge of Town (Like a Version) | 1 | #88 | – | 2017 |
Albums with charting songs
Where each song was first released, from MusicBrainz.
Year-end chart timeline
Combined year-end countdown points per year. Taller bars mean more songs placing higher across more stations.
Every countdown appearance
| Year | # | Song | Countdown |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 31 | Edge of Town (originally by Middle Kids) | Triple J Hottest 100 of Like a Version (2023) |
| 2017 | 88 | Edge of Town (Like a Version) | Triple J Hottest 100 of 2017 |
| 2009 | 32 | Ramona Was a Waitress | Triple J Hottest 100 of 2009 |
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