Franklin Delano Alexander Braithwaite, better known as Junior Braithwaite (April 4, 1949 – June 2, 1999) was one of the founders of, and the first lead singer of The Wailers. April 4 is the 94th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (95th in leap years). ... 1949 (MCMXLIX) is a common year starting on Saturday. ... 2 June is the 153rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (154th in leap years), with 212 days remaining. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... The Wailers in the middle of the 1960s. ...

Junior Braithwaite was born in Kingston, Jamaica, in the same neighborhood where Bob Marley Bunny Wailer (aka. Livingston) and Peter Tosh later lived. Roy Wilson and Joe Higgs, one of the top harmonizing groups in Jamaica at that time, used to rehearse in his back yard. The friends Braithwaite, Livingston, Marley, Tosh and Beverley Kelso, inspired by Wilson and Higgs, started singing together under various names, and in 1963 they became known as "The Wailers". // There are a large number of places named Kingston: Jamaica Kingston, Jamaica, the capital United Kingdom Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England Kingston upon Thames, Greater London, England Kingston, Cambridgeshire, Cambridgeshire, England Kingston, Devon, Devon, England Kingston, Dorset, Dorset, England Kingston, East Lothian, East Lothian, Scotland Kingston, Hampshire... Robert Nesta Marley, OM, (February 6, 1945 – May 11, 1981) better known as Bob Marley, was a Jamaican singer, guitarist, songwriter and activist. ... Bunny Wailer, also known as Bunny Livingston, was an original member of reggae group The Wailers along with Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. ... Peter Tosh (October 9, 1944 – September 11, 1987) was a pioneer reggae musician. ... Joe Higgs was born on June 3rd 1940 and died of cancer on December 18th 1999. ...

Braithwaite was with The Wailers for eight months and sang lead on such songs as, "Habits," "Straight and Narrow Way," "Don't Ever Leave Me," and "It Hurts To Be Alone." He had the best voice in The Wailers according to Studio One's Coxsone Dodd, who discovered the bands talent. Bob Marley later commented that, "Junior used to sing high. It's just nowadays that I'm beginning to realize that he sounded like one of the Jackson Five. When he left we had to look for a sound that Bunny, Peter and me could manage." Studio One is one of Reggaes most renowned record labels, having been described as the Motown of Jamaica. ... Clement Seymour Sir Coxsone Dodd (Kingston, Jamaica, January 26, 1932 – May 5, 2004) was a Jamaican record producer who was influential in the development of reggae and other forms of Jamaican music in the 1950s, 60s and later. ... The cover to the Jackson 5s first LP, Diana Ross Presents the Jackson 5, released on Motown Records in 1969. ...

He left the band in 1964 and moved to the United States to pursue a medical career. He lived primarily in Chicago and southern Wisconsin for the next 20 years, and returned to Jamaica in 1984 to work with Bunny Wailer on a Wailers' reunion project. Chicago (officially named the City of Chicago) is the third largest city in the United States (after New York City and Los Angeles), with an official population of 2,896,016, as of the 2000 census. ... Official language(s) None Capital Madison Largest city Milwaukee Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 23rd 169,790 km² 420 km 500 km 17 42°30N to 47°3N 86°49W to 92°54W Population  - Total (2000)  - Density Ranked 18th 5,453,896 38. ...

Junior Braithwaite was murdered on the night of June 2, 1999 in the home of a fellow musician in Kingston. The death marks the second Wailer homicide, following the fatal shooting of Peter Tosh in 1987.

References

• Junior Braithwaite interviewed by Roger Steffens, 5 May 1985
• Junior Braithwaite Bio