Paul Tyler grew up square dancing at community dances in rural Indiana. He started his calling career in 1976 as a co-founder of the Detroit Country Dance Society. After 8 years of calling squares and contras for the Bloomington [Indiana] Old-Time Music and Dance Group, he moved to Chicago, where he plays and calls with the Volo Bogtrotters and others. He has called dances in half of the 50 US States and in one Canadian province.