"I see the studio must be like a living thing, a life itself. The machine must be live and intelligent. Then I put my mind into the machine and the machine perform reality. Invisible thought waves - you put them into the machine by sending them through the controls and the knobs or you jack it into the jack panel. The jack panel is the brain itself, so you got to patch up the brain and make the brain a living man, that the brain can take what you sending into it and live." Lee Perry
A BRIEF HISTORY OF SCRATCHThe amount of work that Scratch has been involved with over a 35 year career is nothing short of staggering. Scratch's story is more or less the story of Jamaican music: from humble beginnings, the groove takes root, grows strong and wide, and contains many branches. From the ska era to the first wave of reggae and the magnificence of the 1970s, Scratch was there all the way. Yet, there seems to be some confusion about Scratch's career by people who aren't hip to all of the periods he's done work in. Most people know him for his Black Ark masterpieces, others only know his later, more eccentric work, and some have never heard his early ska scorchers. As a reggaeologist, I started thinking about all of the distinct periods in Scratch's career, and therefore present the following seven eras for your consideration:
1. The Ska Era (1959 - 1966)
Mainly working behind the scenes for Coxsone Dodd at Studio One, Scratch didn't get behind the microphone as much as he wanted, but when he did the results were usually solid. His music from the ska era does nothing to suggest that the young "King" Perry would one day become The Mighty Upsetter, yet many of his ska songs established a thematic cornerstone that he would use for the rest of his career.
Best examples: Pussy Galore, Chicken Scratch, Help The Weak, What A Good Woodman.
2. The First Wave Era (1967 - 1970)
Although Scratch is best known for his more innovative works, many of his productions are straightforward rock and soul inspired first wave reggae. However, considering that Scratch more or less invented the new reggae beat, his sound from this era is killer. With a few wild exceptions such as "Kimble", "People Funny Boy" and "The Tackro", there still wasn't a lot to suggest that Perry would soon live up to his Upsetter nickname. With a solid base of popular artists such as David Isaacs, The Bleechers, Dennis Alcapone, and The Shadows, Scratch mashed up the place with some of the catchiest tunes ever.
Best examples: Return Of Django, Live Injection, Medical Operation (The Upsetters), Tighten Up (The Untouchables), Leaving On A Jet Plane (David Isaacs), Prisoner Of Love (Dave Barker).
3. Proto Black Ark (1970 - 1974)
The first truly upsetting era, as Scratch's work began to take on a deadlier, weirder quality. Scratch's collaboration with Bob Marley was - of course - not only a turning point in both of their careers, but in the history of reggae. The new technique of dub entered Scratch's arsenal, as well as new technology such as synthesizers and special effects units. Many of the songs from this era foreshadow his Black Ark work.
Best examples: Mr. Brown, Fussing & Fighting, Duppy Conqueror (The Wailers), Cow Thief Skank (Lee Perry & Charlie Ace), Kentucky Skank (Lee Perry), Cane River Rock, Sipreano (The Upsetters).
4. Early Black Ark Era (1974 - 1976)
Now in command of his own studio, Scratch now could exercise complete control over everything from auditions to the final mix. One gets the feeling that for the first couple of years, Scratch was making a final set of test flights before blasting off for real - many of these first Black Ark tracks sound as if they were recorded earlier, at another studio. The "dirty" sound of the Black Ark hadn't emerged quite yet, but was just around the corner...
Best examples: Talk About It (The Diamonds), Yagga Yagga (Lee & Jimmy), Public Jestering (Judge Winchester), Cross Over (Junior Murvin), Brotherly Love (The Jolly Brothers).
5. The Black Ark Era (1976 - 1979)
Dreader than dread, dis ya one heavier than lead. During this time, Jamaica's most magnificent and memorable music was being made, and Scratch was responsible for much of it. The trademark "hissing / falling rain / chains in the dungeon" sound that the Black Ark is famous for finally emerges. Now at the height of his craft, Scratch ensures that the Black Ark was the cornerstone of the deadliest music in reggae.
Best examples: Police & Thieves, Roots Train (Junior Murvin), War Ina Babylon, Norman, Uptown Babies Don't Cry (Max Romeo), Children Crying, Ark Of The Covenant, Congoman (The Congos), Dreadlocks In Moonlight, Roast Fish & Cornbread (Lee Perry), Zion's Blood (The Upsetters), Vibrate On (Augustus Pablo).
6. Judgement Ina Babylon Era (1981 - 1987)
After the torching of the Black Ark in 1979 and his subsequent breakdown, Scratch drifted for several years. Gone were the days of producing other artists as the Upsetter concentrated on his own volatile songs, many of them aimed straight to the head of his (perceived) enemies. While most of his works from this period are quite wild, the complete "stream of consciousness" approach had not taken shape quite yet.
Best examples: Judgement Ina Babylon, Bed Jammin', Bafflin' Smoke Signal, Holy Moses, Eradication Squad.
7. Secret Laboratory Era (1987 - present)
With the magnificent Time Boom X De Devil Dead album (1987), Scratch more or less laid down a blueprint for all of his subsequent work: hard, fast, crazed lyrics delivered over electronic rhythm tracks with strange happenings around every corner. Scratch's famous "word salads" began to get tossed, as songs stopped having definite coherence and went off on wild tangents along the way. In this period, Scratch really stopped being a singer/musician per se and instead became more or less a performance artist. Art may imitate life, but for Scratch there's no difference between the two, as he uses water, fruit, paint, crazy clothes, and other things to create a mood and a vibe rather than just music.
Best examples: Kiss The Champion, Jungle, I Am A Madman, all of From The Secret Laboratory, Thank You, Heads Of Government, Train To Doomsville.
(copyright http://www.upsetter.net/scratch Mick Sleeper on Eternal Thunder
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Also known as Scratch, the great Lee Perry, whose daring at the mix controls was beyond compare during the period (mid-to late 70s) when he was making dub albums such as Blackboard Jungle and Super Ape. Unlike many other dub mixers, Scratch disrupted his more commercial songs with dub effects - "Cow Thief Skank", "Bathroom Skank", "Police And Thieves" - and made whole albums with singers that throbbed and groaned in a bizarre counterpoint to their efforts. Always an eccentric (he once torched his legendary Kingston Black Ark studios to the ground), his recent music has seen him descend into self-parody and (possibly) actual (as opposed to sonic) madness David Toop