Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 18, 2026

Tinman

Paul David Dakeyne, known by his stage name Tinman, is an English house music producer/remixer from Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire. In 1994, his single "Eighteen Strings" became an international club hit. It was rumoured that the original bootleg recording of "Eighteen Strings" contained a sample of the riff from "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana, and that the usage of the sample was disallowed, therefore it was reproduced for commercial release. However, the riffs from the bootleg and commercial release were both produced by Dakeyne. The song was a Top 10 hit in both the UK and Ireland.

Last revised
Jul 18, 2026
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Tinman
Also known asDakeyne, DJ Dakeyne
Born
Paul David Dakeyne

(1961-01-30) 30 January 1961
Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England
Genres
Occupations
  • Record producer
  • DJ

Paul David Dakeyne (born 30 January 1961), known by his stage name Tinman, is an English house music producer/remixer from Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire.1 In 1994, his single "Eighteen Strings" (also written as "18 Strings") became an international club hit. It was rumoured that the original bootleg recording of "Eighteen Strings" contained a sample of the riff from "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana, and that the usage of the sample was disallowed, therefore it was reproduced for commercial release.2 However, the riffs from the bootleg and commercial release were both produced by Dakeyne.3 The song was a Top 10 hit in both the UK and Ireland.1

In addition to this commercial success, Dakeyne also remixed many tracks for DMC which were released on a "DJ Only" basis.4

Singles

Year Single Chart peak positions
UK
5 		AUS
6 		IRL
7 		NL
8
1992 "I Got You (I Feel Good)" (James Brown vs Dakeyne)9 72 — — —
1993 "Eighteen Strings" 9 16 9 21
1995 "Gudvibe" 49 — — —
References

References

  1. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 561. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  2. "Nirvana covers and tributes". Archived from the original on 24 May 2011. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  3. "Tinman '18 Strings' – The True Story | Paul Dakeyne". Pauldakeyne.com. Retrieved 27 April 2012.
  4. "Paul Dakeyne : DJ, Producer, Remixer". 2 August 2009. Archived from the original on 2 August 2009. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  5. "TINMAN – full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  6. "Australian charts portal". Australian-charts.com.
  7. "The Irish Singles Chart - All there is to know - Tinman". Irishcharts.ie. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  8. Hung, Steffen. "Tinman - Eighteen Strings". Hitparade.ch.
  9. "JAMES BROWN VS DAKEYNE – full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
External links