Lee "Scratch" Perry, the wildly influential Jamaican singer and producer who pushed the boundaries of dub reggae, has died at the age of 85.
Key points:
- Perry built the backyard Black Ark studio in Kingston in 1973
- It was the birthplace of countless reggae and dub classics
- Perry was renowned for his creative sampling and sound manipulation
"My deep condolences to the family, friends, and fans of legendary record producer and singer, Rainford Hugh Perry OD, affectionately known as 'Lee Scratch' Perry," Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness said in a tweet.
The Jamaica Observer reported Perry died on Sunday morning at a hospital in Lucea. No cause of death was given.
A producer for a wide array of artists including Bob Marley, Perry's influence traversed time and genre.
He gained fame both in Jamaica and abroad, especially in Britain, drawing acclaim for his inventive production, studio wizardry and eccentric persona.
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Born on March 20, 1936 in the rural Jamaican town of Kendal, Perry left school at age 15, moving to Kingston in the 1960s.
"My father worked on the road, my mother in the fields. We were very poor. I went to school … I learned nothing at all. Everything I have learned has come from nature," Perry told British music paper NME in 1984.
"When I left school there was nothing to do except field work. Hard, hard labour. I didn't fancy that. So I started playing dominoes. Through dominoes I practised my mind and learned to read the minds of others."
"This has proved eternally useful to me."
He began selling records for Clement Coxsone Dodd's sound system in the late 1950s, while also cultivating his own recording career.
Perry broke ranks with Dodd over personal and financial conflicts, moving to Joe Gibbs's Amalgamated Records before also falling out with Gibbs.
In 1968, he formed his own label, Upsetter Records. His first major single, People Funny Boy — a jibe at Gibbs — was praised for its innovative use of a crying baby recording, an early use of a sample.
In 1973, Perry built a backyard studio in Kingston, naming it the Black Ark.
The studio went on to birth countless reggae and dub classics.
Adept at layering rhythm and repetition, Perry became a sampling grandmaster whose work created new courses for music's future.
The producer for a number of landmark dub records — along with Marley, he worked with Max Romeo, Junior Murvin and The Congos — Perry was key in taking Jamaican music to the international stage, crafting sounds that would endure for decades.
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'Salvador Dali of music'
Perry's layering techniques were the stuff of legend; he used stones, water and kitchen utensils to create surreal, often haunting, sonic density.
Legend has it he created drum effects by burying a mic at the base of a palm tree, and wove the sound of marijuana smoke blown into a mic into his works.
"You could never put your finger on Lee Perry — he's the Salvador Dali of music," Keith Richards told Rolling Stone in 2010.
"He has a gift of not only hearing sounds that come from nowhere else, but also translating those sounds to the musicians. Scratch is a shaman."
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Perry was a highly sought-after producer, with the likes of Paul McCartney recording with him.
He continued to mix and release his own music with his band the Upsetters, but began suffering mentally in the 1970s.
The Black Ark fell into disrepair, and ultimately burned down; Perry claimed he set it ablaze himself in the early 1980s.
Perry began travelling and living abroad, ultimately settling in Switzerland for a time with his family, and remained prolific until his death.
"Pure Innovation. Pure Imagination. This Man Was Plug Ins long before you studio cats today can simply press one button and instantly created sound chaos," wrote Roots drummer Questlove.
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"What a character! Totally ageless! Extremely creative, with a memory as sharp as a tape machine! A brain as accurate as a computer!" wrote the British artist Mad Professor, Perry's longtime collaborator.
Praising Perry's "pioneering spirit and work," the Beastie Boys also tweeted an homage: "We are truly grateful to have been inspired by and collaborated with this true legend."
ABC/AFP
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiY2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmFiYy5uZXQuYXUvbmV3cy8yMDIxLTA4LTMwL2xlZS1zY3JhdGNoLXBlcnJ5LWRpZXMtamFtYWljYS1yZWdnYWUtZHViLXByb2R1Y2VyLzEwMDQxNzQ3ONIBKGh0dHBzOi8vYW1wLmFiYy5uZXQuYXUvYXJ0aWNsZS8xMDA0MTc0Nzg?oc=5
2021-08-29 23:54:53Z
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