About Opentopia
Opentopia Directory Encyclopedia Tools

Lee "Scratch" Perry

Encyclopedia : L : LE : LEE : Lee "Scratch" Perry

To meet Wikipedia and [WikiProject Music/MUSTARDWikiProject Music guidelines], this article or section may require [Cleanupcleanup].
Please discuss this issue on the . is available.
This article has been tagged since April 2006 and violates the following proposed [WikiProject Music/MUSTARDMUSTARD] guideline(s):
    


Lee "Scratch" Perry

Enlarge

Lee "Scratch" Perry







Lee "Scratch" Perry (born Rainford Hugh Perry, on March 20, 1936, in Kendal, Jamaica) is one of the most influential people in the development of reggae and dub music in Jamaica.





Contents





Career

Perry began his career in the late 1950s working with Clement Coxsone Dodd's sound system. He eventually performed a variety of important tasks at Studio One as well as recording about 30 songs, but the pair eventually stopped working together due to personality and financial conflicts.


thumb


Working with Joe Gibbs, Perry continued his recording career, but once again, financial problems caused conflict. Perry broke ranks with Gibbs and formed his own label, Upsetter, in 1968 (see 1968 in music). His first single "People Funny Boy", which was an insult directed at Gibbs, sold very well. It is notable for its innovative use of a sample (a crying baby) as well as a fast, chugging beat that would soon become identifiable as "reggae" (the new sound did not really have a name at this time).  During the 1970s, Perry released numerous recordings on a variety of record labels that he controlled, and many of his songs were popular in both Jamaica and the UK. He soon became known for his innovative production techniques as well as his eccentric character.


In the early 1970s, Perry was one of the producers whose mixing board experiments resulted in the creation of dub. In 1973, Perry built a studio in his back yard, The Black Ark, to have more control over his productions and continued to produce notable musicians such as Bob Marley & the Wailers, Junior Byles, The Heptones, and Max Romeo. With his own studio at his disposal, Perry's productions became more lavish, as the energetic producer was able to spend as much time as he wanted on the music he produced. It is important to note that virtually everything Perry recorded in The Black Ark was done using rather basic recording equipment; through sonic sleight-of-hand, Perry made it sound completely unique. Perry remained behind the mixing desk for many years, producing songs and albums that stand out as a high point in reggae history. By 1978, stress and unwanted outside influences began to take their toll: both Perry and The Black Ark quickly fell into a state of disrepair. Eventually, the studio burned to the ground. Perry has constantly insisted that he burned the Black Ark himself in a fit of rage, but it was most likely an accident due to faulty wiring. After the demise of the Black Ark in the early 1980s, Perry spent time in England and the United States, performing live and making erratic records with a variety of collaborators. It was not until the late 1980s that Perry's career began to get back on solid ground again, after working with British producers Adrian Sherwood and Neil Fraser, better known as Mad Professor.


thumb

Perry now lives in Switzerland with his wife Mireille and two children. Although he celebrated his 70th birthday in 2006, he continues recording and performing to enthusiastic audiences in Europe and North America. His modern music is a far cry from his reggae days in Jamaica; many now see Perry as more of a performance artist in several respects. In 2003, Perry won a Grammy for Best Reggae Album with the album Jamaican ET. More recently, he teamed up with a group of Swiss musicians and performed under the name Lee Perry and the White Belly Rats, and made a brief visit to the United States using the New York City based group Dub Is A Weapon as his backing band.  The definitive feature length film about his life story entitled "The Upsetter" is currently being made by filmmakers Ethan Higbee and Adam Bhala Lough.



Discography


Albums


Early career


Black Ark era


Other albums


  • The Return of Pipecock Jackxon (1980)
  • Mystic Miracle Star (1982)
  • History, Mystery & Prophecy (1984)
  • Battle Of Armagideon (Millionaire Liquidator) (1986)
  • Time Boom X - De Devil Dead (with Dub Syndicate) (1987)
  • On the Wire (1988)
  • Chicken Scratch (1989)
  • Mystic Warrior (1989)
  • Mystic Warrior Dub (with Mad Professor) (1989)
  • From The Secret Laboratory (with Dub Syndicate) (1990)
  • Satan's Dub (with Bullwackie) (1990)
  • Lord God Muzik (1991)
  • Sounds From The Hotline (1991)
  • The Upsetter and The Beat (1992)
  • Excaliburman (1992)
  • Spiritual Healing (1994)
  • Black Ark Experryments (with Mad Professor) (1995)
  • Experryments at the Grass Roots of Dub (with Mad Professor) (1995)
  • Super Ape Inna Jungle (with Mad Professor) (1995)
  • Who Put The Voodoo Pon Reggae (with Mad Professor) (1996)
  • Dub Take The Voodoo Out Of Reggae (Mad Professor with Lee Perry) (1996)
  • Dub Fire (with Mad Professor) (1998)
  • The Original Super Ape (1998)
  • Son of Thunder (2000)
  • Jamaican ET (2002)
  • Earthman Skanking (2003)
  • Encore (2003)
  • Panic in Babylon (2004)
  • Alive, more than ever (2006)


Compilations


  • Chicken Scratch (produced by Coxsone Dodd) (1963-1966)
  • Open The Gate (1989)
  • Upsetter Collection (1994)
  • Upsetters A Go Go (1995)
  • Introducing Lee Perry (1996)
  • Words Of My Mouth Vol.1 (The Producer Series) (1996)
  • Voodooism (Pressure Sounds) (1996)
  • Arkology (1997)
  • The Upsetter Shop Vol.1: Upsetter In Dub (1997)
  • Dry Acid (1998)
  • Lee Perry Arkive (1998)
  • Produced and Directed By The Upsetter (Pressure Sounds) (1998)
  • Lost Treasures of The Ark (1999)
  • Upsetter Shop Vol.2 1969-1973 (1999)
  • Words Of My Mouth Vol.2 (The Producer Series) (1999)
  • Words Of My Mouth Vol.3 (Live As One/The Producer Series) (2000)
  • Scratch Walking (2001)
  • Black Ark In Dub (2002)
  • Divine Madness ... Definitely (Pressure Sounds) (2002)
  • Dub Tryptych  (2000)


Cameos and other appearances


  • Dr. Lee, PhD on the album Hello Nasty (1998) by Beastie Boys


References


  • David Katz, People Funny Boy. The Genius of Lee "Scratch" Perry, 2000, Payback Press, UK, ISBN 0862418542
  • David Katz & Jeremy Collingwood, Give Me Power: A Complete Discography, Trax On Wax
  • Gary Simons, Super Scratch: The Almost Complete Lee Perry Discography, 1999, Secret History Books


Video


  • Lee Scratch Perry: The Unlimited Destruction, 2002, USA
  • Lee Scratch Perry: In Concert - The Ultimate Alien, 2003, USA
  • Lee Scratch Perry With Mad Professor, 2004, USA
  • Roots Rock Reggae - Inside the Jamaican Music Scene 1977


See also



External links




























 





From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.














Search Titles









0123456789
ABCDEFGHIJ
KLMNOPQRST
UVWXYZ?










E-mail this article to:



Personal Message: