Frankie Paul

Born in Jamaica in 1965,[2] Blake was born blind but as a child had his sight partially restored by an operation on a hospital ship.[3][4] He sang for, and impressed Stevie Wonder when Wonder visited the school that Blake attended, prompting him to pursue a singing career.[3]

Adopting the stage name Frankie Paul, he first found fame in the early 1980s, and he recorded prolifically throughout the decade.[3] He recorded for virtually every producer/studio in Jamaica at some time, and was known to release several albums a year.

Notable works of Frankie Paul include the popular "Sara" and "Worries in the Dance".[5]

Paul resided in The Gambia from 1994.[5] In January 2016 he underwent surgery to amputate a foot and part of his leg.[6]

Frankie Paul died on 18 May 2017[7] at the University Hospital of the West Indies in Kingston, Jamaica.[8]

"Frankie Paul has a voice that improves with each release and, although initially compared with Dennis Brown, he has evolved a strange nasal, throaty style that makes him sound much older. It's the sheer exuberance of his best performances that give away his youthfulness, and his two London appearances have been joyous occasions." – NME (4 May 1985)[9]