Al Matthews 6 183 m born on November 21 1942 Scorpio in Brooklyn New York City New York USA is a Folk singer and musical performer who worked professionally while living in England He later turned to acting but continues to write and sing Matthews is noted for having made two significant historical firsts While on combat duty during the Vietnam War Matthews became the first black Marine to be meritoriously promoted to the rank of Sergeant E5 Williams was also the first black voice on Englands national station Radio 1 Al Matthews passed away on September 22 2018 in Alicante Spain two months away from what would have been his 76th birthday on November 21 He never married and left no survivors