BY CECELIA CAMPBELL-LIVINGSTON Observer Staff Reporterlivingstonc@jamaicaobserver.com
SEVEN years after becoming a Christian, former dancehall singer Chuck Turner is determined revive his career after surviving life-threatening injuries.
Turner, best known for songs like I Miss You, Runaround Girl and Tears, says he has been to “hell and back”.
He endured a challenging period that began in March, 1989 when he was involved in an auto accident which left him in a coma for three days.
After his release from the Kingston Public Hospital, Turner (real name Norris Hill) went to the United States to continue treatment.
By October 1989 he was performing again, but while leaving a Manhattan club named Undergound with friends, he was robbed and shot in the head.
He was rushed to nearby St Vincent Hospital where he remained in a coma for five weeks.
According to 50-year-old Turner, he emerged from the coma “half the man I was”.
“I wasn’t able to walk, talk or see. I could hear talking but couldn’t see,” he recalled. “I also lost most of my memory and my face was disfigured. I had become so depressed I would cry every day.”
Turner says he was so depressed he attempted suicide.
Dr Alfred Dawes, a laparoscopic surgeon, says Turner is fortunate to be alive.
“It is possible to recover from a traumatic brain injury as it shuts down for a time until underlying conditions are reversed. He is a lucky man, though to recover twice,” Dr Dawes told the Jamaica Observer.
In 2006, Turner became a Christian and began recording inspirational songs. His latest production, Tribulation, was recently released.
It is the follow-up to another song, I Am a Real Blessed Man. Turner spoke about his change in lifestyle.
“I have managed to put all thoughts of revenge behind me now. I feel more at peace since I’ve started the Christian walk,” he said.
