PAUL DAVIS [21/04/1948] - 22/04/2008]

I first heard of singer-songwriter Paul Davis when the radio was playing the playful "Ride 'em Cowboy" in 1974. He went on to create his real popular classic "I Go Crazy" - and other distinctive hits such as "Sweet Life", "Do Right", "Cool Night", "65 Love Affair" and "Cry Just a Little".

I called this the Paul Davis Mystery Group because I knew nothing about him except his expressive and flexible voice and those great songs.

In the first two years, this group processed only five messages. In the following two years we had another sixteen. Finally in 2006 we became truly active!

To my delight, Paul himself joined in, and what a revelation that was. We discovered that he has written far more music than we realised, much of it for great artists like Tanya Tucker and the late Dan Seals. I believe Paul should be an enduring artist, widely admired, and I cherish the dialogue Paul established with members of the group.

Paul took keen interest in the constructive feedback from those who posted.

Sadly Paul took ill on the morning of his 60th birthday and died the day after, 22 April 2008. There remained a sense of mystery to the end. Paul will be sadly missed.

On 22 April 2009 members of this list remembered Paul with some more postings. The challenge is to ensure the legacy lives on although Paul does not.

George Burrell