LEE PERRY Schallplatten & CDs

Review: Here we have a welcome reissue of the Lee Perry-produced Conscious Man from The Jolly Brothers. Recorded in the late 70s but only released as an album in 1992, it shares its name with the standout title track, which became a massive hit when released as a single in 1977. The music still hits with that unmistakable Black Ark magic. Perry's production is loose, heady and live i tape hiss, endless reverb trails and all. The Jolly Brothers' harmonies are rough-edged but full of heart, delivering roots messages with an unmistakable mellow. 'Conscious Man' rightfully pulls focus, with its soulful vocals, phasing guitars and gorgeously lo-fi feel. It's dubby even in its vocal form. But there's plenty more to enjoy here, with a dusty optimism running through the whole record. As spiritually inclined as it is streetwise, it presents soul and roots in equal measure.

Review: Lee Perry & The Upsetters are responsible for no end of legendary dub sounds. The master producer, Black Ark studio owner and his trusty backing band rarely ever missed when they laid down sound and that is certainly true of 'Kiss Me Neck,' a popular jam from 1975 that now gets reissued. It's a cracking bit of 70s roots with heavy funk overtones and horns recorded at Black Ark. As is always the way, this one comes back with a killer dub and arrives in a thick Lee Perry & The Upsetter sleeve.

Review: Japanese music outlet Rock A Shacka reissues a compelling 2020 compilation, Play On Music: Lee Perry Black Ark Days, which captures the Upsetter for the best part of his key tenancy at the Black Ark Studio in Jamaica, which he built himself and which lasted from 1973 to 1979. Having died a legendarily bizarre death - during a manic episode amid an alleged fiscal entanglement involving being blackmailed for studio profits, Perry was alleged to have covered every available surface in black marker pen before burning the entire complex to the ground - the Black Ark Studio was martyred as not just a hitmaker but also a known out-turner of many an uncommon dub gem. Featuring such greats as 'Play On Mr. Music', 'Milte Hi Ankhen' and 'Bird In Hand', this comp also features brilliant rarities like 'Rejoice Jah Jah Children' by the Silvertones, as well as an unreleased take of Carlton Jackson's biggest tune 'History'.

Review: Stop us if you've heard this one before. Lee "Scratch" Perry walks into a Quasi Dub Development recording session somewhere in New York. He begins to freestyle in that surrealist, escapist, hallucinogenic kind of way we still love him for, and the results eventually make their way onto 2014's record, Little Twister. The rest, as they say, is history. Or maybe not quite. Four years after the world lost Perry's enigmatic poetry and pioneering contributions to dub, Pingipung, the label that carried that aforementioned LP, unearths the tape of one track from the collection the bosses clearly feel deserves more attention. 'Let's Communicate' is as intoxicating now as it was back then. Then contemporary UK dub don Elijah Minnelli steps up to deliver an alternative version that stands up on its own. No mean feat.