RhoDeo 1201 Roots

Hello, we're still on that island with a huge place in the global music catalog, Jamaica. A production hothouse and they say the Weed makes you slow and lazy-go figure. Without the ganja driven reggae music Jamaica would have remained a Caribbean backwater and dare i say would never have given us Bolt, the fastest man in the world.

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Lee Perry is a towering figure in reggae , some call him a genius, others claim he's a madman. Truth is, he's both, but more importantly, -- a producer, mixer, and songwriter who, along with King Tubby, helped shape the sound of dub and made reggae music such a powerful part of the pop music world. Along with producing some of the most influential acts (Bob Marley & the Wailers and the Congos to name but two) in reggae history, Perry's approach to production and dub mixing was breathtakingly innovative and audacious -- no one else sounds like him -- others may have invented dub, many argue that no one experimented with it or took it further than did Lee Perry.

Perry began his surrealistic musical odyssey in the late '50s, working with ska man Prince Buster selling records for Clement "Coxsone" Dodd's Downbeat Sound System. Soon he was producing and recording for Dodd at the center of the Jamaican music industry, Studio One. After a falling out with Dodd , Perry went to work at Wirl Records with Joe Gibbs, but not much chemistry there either so in 1968, Perry left to form his own label, called Upsetter. The first release on Upsetter was a single entitled "People Funny Boy," which sold extremely well in Jamaica, it was the first Jamaican pop record to use the loping, lazy, bass-driven beat that would soon become identified as the reggae "riddim" and signal the shift from the hyperkinetically upbeat ska to the pulsing, throbbing languor of "roots" reggae.

From this point through the 1970s, Perry released an astonishing amount of work under his name and numerous, pseudonyms he came a major force in reggae music together with his band the upsetters they worked with every performer in Jamaica. He started his own studio the black ark . Where he recorded marley and the wailers who were subsequently pick up bt Island leaving Perry standing. All the hard work in the seventies didnt do his mental state much good and it is said that he burned down the black ark studio himself as he was convinced satan had taken up resedency there..

Despite the considerable lows in his career, Perry remained busy and, so it seemed, reasonably happy. Although he was less in demand as a producer, his solo work remained very strong, and his continuing influence could be felt in the contemporary dub music of the Mad Professor. In 1997, Island (the label started by the vampire Chris Blackwell) released Arkology, a well-received three-disc compilation of Perry recordings. That same year a collaboration with Dieter Meier of the Swiss electronica duo Yello called Technomajikal arrived on the Roir label. The project was made geographically possible by Scratch's move to Switzerland.

A reunion with Trojan label happened in 2002, when the new album Jamaican E.T. was released by the label. Two years later Panic in Babylon was recorded with the European outfit White Belly Rats, while his legendary Super Ape album would receive a limited-edition reissue on the Hip-O Select label. The 1973 release Upsetters 14 Dub Blackboard Jungle -- sometimes referred to as Blackboard Jungle Dub -- saw its definitive reissue appear.

In 2008, Perry reunited with producer Adrian Sherwood on an album called The Mighty Upsetter. Unlike the dancehall/pop oriented Repentance, The Mighty Upsetter returned to the dub/reggae styles for which Perry is known. In 2009, Perry collaborated with Vienna based Dubblestandart on their Return from Planet Dub double album, revisiting some of his material from the 1970s and 80s as well as collaborating on new material with Dubblestandart.

Perry now lives in Switzerland with his wife Mireille and two children. Although he celebrated his 75th birthday in 2011, 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. Over the years a number of compilations have been released some not so good, and many of Perry's tapes were stolen. Some of these recordings have shown up on poorly mastered, and expensive, anthologies.


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Purportedly the definitive Lee "Scratch" Perry compilation, the three-CD set Arkology is loaded with good intentions and is carefully constructed, but with a back catalog like Perry's -- where it's nearly impossible to find out what's what -- definitive in this case is a dream. Still, the compilers have done a fine job of providing an overview of Perry's career that makes sense musically, historically, and culturally. For those who want to jump headlong into Perry's world, this is the way to go. Arkology's foundation is the 1979 anthology Scratch on the Wire; the compilers took those tracks and added a significant number of remixes and a few previously unreleased dub tracks to give it some weight. So, all that said, is Arkology worth it? Absolutely. it provides a good overview and is an excellent introduction.

Lee Perry - Reel 1 - Dub Organiser (flac 447mb)

101 Lee Perry and The Upsetters – Dub Revolution Part 1 (Alternate Take) 4:44
102 Max Romeo – One Step Forward 3:52
103 The Upsetters – One Step Dub (Extended Mix) 4:06
104 Devon Irons – Vampire 3:17
105 The Upsetters – Vamp A Dub 3:16
106 The Heptones – Sufferer's Time (Alternate Take) 3:55
107 The Upsetters– Sufferers Dub (Extended Mix) 4:17
108 Junior Dread – Sufferers Heights (Alternate Mix) 4:32
109 The Congos – Don't Blame On I 4:05
110 The Meditations – Much Smarter 3:56
111 The Upsetters – Much Smarter Dub 4:42
112 The Meditations – Life Is Not Easy (Alternate Mix) 4:46
113 The Upsetters – Life Is Not Easy Dub (Alternate Mix) 5:07
114 Junior Murvin – Tedious (Extended Mix) 5:04
115 Max Romeo – War in A Babylon 4:51
116 The Upsetters – Revelation Dub 5:01
117 The Heptones – Mr. President 4:13
118 Max Romeo – Chase The Devil 3:28

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Lee Perry - Reel 2 - Dub Shepherd (flac 451mb)

201 Lee Perry – Dreadlocks In Moonlight 3:46
202 Mikey Dread – Dread At The Mantrols 3:47
203 Errol Walker – In These Times 4:39
204 The Upsetters – In These Times Dub (Previously Unreleased) 3:24
205 Max Romeo – Norman (Extended Domino Mix) 8:42
206 Junior Murvin – Police & Thieves 3:40
207 Glen DaCosta – Magic Touch 4:03
208 Jah Lion – Soldier & Police War 4:09
209 The Upsetters – Grumblin' Dub 3:18
210 Junior Murvin – Bad Weed (Alternate Mix) 4:02
211 Errol Walker – John Public 4:21
212 Errol Walker – John Public (Version) (Previously Unreleased) 4:23
213 Junior Murvin – Roots Train (Extended Mix) 8:59
214 The Meditations – No Peace 3:30
215 The Upsetters – No Peace Dub 4:20
216 Raphael Green – Rasta Train (Alternate Mix) 4:54
217 The Upsetters – Party Time Part 2 4:34

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Lee Perry - Reel 3 - Dub Adventurer (flac 428mb)

301 Augustus Pablo – Vibrate On (Alternate Cut) 4:40
302 The Upsetters – Vibrator (Alternate Cut) 4:35
303 The Upsetters – Bird In Hand 3:30
304 The Congos – Congoman (Alternate Vocal Take) 5:52
305 The Upsetters – Dyon Anasawa (Alternate Mix) 3:39
306 The Upsetters – Rastaman Shuffle (Alternate Mix) 5:16
307 The Heptones – Why Must I (Version) (Extended Mix ) 4:57
308 The Heptones – Make Up Your Mind (Previously Unreleased) 3:45
309 The Upsetter Review – Closer Together 6:15
310 Keith Rowe – Groovy Situation 3:26
311 The Upsetters – Groovy Dub 3:33
312 George Faith – To Be A Lover (Have Some Mercy) 7:56
313 Lee Perry – Soul Fire 3:58
314 Lee Perry – Curly Locks 4:09
315 The Congos – Feast Of The Passover (Extended Mix) 3:36
316 Lee Perry – Roast Fish & Cornbred (Extended Mix) 4:26
317 The Upsetters – Corn Fish Dub (Extended Mix) 4:26


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elsewhere

Lee Perry - The Upsetter Box (Africa's Blood 72, Rhythm ) ( 85 ^ 98mb )
Lee Perry - The Upsetter Box ( Shower 73 & Double Seven 74) ( 85 ^ 95mb)
Lee Perry - Super Ape (76 flac 154mb)
Roast Fish, Collie Weed & Cornbread ( 78 flac 174mb)
Lee Perry - Return Of The Super Ape ( 78 flac 150mb)
Lee Scratch Perry - Megaton Dub 1 (flac 217mb)
Lee Scratch Perry - Megaton Dub 2 (flac 182mb)
Lee Scratch Perry - Megaton Dub 1+2 (ogg 175mb)
Lee Scratch Perry – History, Mystery & Prophesy (flac 295mb)
Lee Scratch Perry – History, Mystery & Prophesy (ogg 116mb)