Frankie Paul

All Music Guide:

Frankie Paul is often referred to as Jamaica's Stevie Wonder, and not just because of his visual impairment; like Wonder, he was a talented multi-instrumentalist with a tremendous vocal range. He was also extraordinarily prolific; part of the first wave of dancehall artists, he started his recording career in earnest during the early '80s, and has since flooded the market with product, releasing countless singles and well over 30 albums. That's made his career difficult to track for all but the most ardent fans, but it's also ensured that he's never been too far out of the spotlight on a constantly changing reggae scene.

Paul was born Paul Blake in 1965. He was blind at birth, but an operation on a hospital ship succeeded in giving him a small visual capacity; he later went to New York to obtain a pair of high-powered glasses that helped even further. He attended a Salvation Army school for the blind, where he first began singing. When Stevie Wonder visited the school, Paul sang for him, and an impressed Wonder encouraged him to go into music. Paul learned the piano, drums, and guitar while still in school, and was most influenced as a singer by Dennis Brown in his early days. As Frankie Paul, he made his first recording, "African Princess," in 1980, when he was still just 15. In 1983, he appeared on two volumes in Channel One's Showdown series, one with Sugar Minott and the other with Little John. The former LP contained Paul's first major hit, the Henry "Junjo" Lawes-produced "Worries in the Dance," which aligned him with the emerging dancehall sound. Lawes also produced 1984's Pass the Tu-Sheng-Peng, whose title cut -- an ode to ganja -- was a huge, star-making hit in Jamaica.

Paul reached his prime in the mid-'80s, cutting excellent albums like the George Phang-produced Tidal Wave (1985) and Alesha (1987), and the Philip "Fatis" Burrell-produced Warning (1987). His hit singles included "Tidal Wave," "Alesha," "Cassanova," "Sara," "Fire Deh a Mus Mus Tail," "Slow Down," and many others. Paul continued to record for a variety of labels in the '90s, with LP highlights including 1991's Should I and 1994's Hard Work. To keep up his prolific recording pace, he came to depend heavily on covers, whether of reggae classics or contemporary American R&B material. He continued into the new millennium as a tremendously active presence on the reggae scene.

Wikipedia:

Paul Blake (born 1965), better known as Frankie Paul, is one of Jamaica's best-loved and popular dancehall reggae artists. Born blind, he has been dubbed by some 'The Jamaican Stevie Wonder'.

Biography

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

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

Do not confuse Paul "Frankie Paul" Blake with Paul Blake of The Bloodfire Posse, a band formed in 1983. Notable works of Frankie Paul include the popular "Sara" and "Worries in the Dance".

Citation

"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)