Today I am in a dub mood.  I think it’s going to be a dub summer for me.  Catch the vibes from this crucial dub mix by DJ Moffo and Cheso.  All killer, no filler!

King Tubby

]]> http://midnightraverblog.com/2012/04/25/upsetter-back-at-the-controls/ Wed, 25 Apr 2012 09:18:09 +0000 marleyrkives http://midnightraverblog.com/2012/04/25/upsetter-back-at-the-controls/ Please CLICK HERE to read my latest post on www.worldareggae.com about Lee Perry’s new project.

Lee Perry w/ Max Romeo 1976

© David Burnett

That being said, it’s time to start sharing the real shit.  I’m talking the stuff you haven’t heard in years and wondered if you’d ever hear it again.  The stuff you heard on the local reggae show while driving in your car, but missed the artist and track info-never to be heard again.

Tonight I share with you a very rare Lee “Scratch” Perry BBC 6 Mix.  Perry took over the BBC 6 Mix show during Trojan Records Celebration weekend in May 2007 and dropped the heaviest mix imaginable.   Perry has enjoyed a long and fruitful relationship with Trojan Records from number 5 hit single ‘Return of Django’ in 1969 through to recordings made at his Black Ark studio in the mid-70s and beyond to Jamaican ET in 2002.

Sometimes more than a little eccentric and cryptic in interviews, Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry’s good relationship with Trojan and the BBC makes for a brilliant session in which he introduces his own productions alongside records that have influenced him (including Bob Dylan, Fats Domino, The Temptations and Wilson Pickett). ‘Scratch’ also explains his unique approach to record production and gives his account of many of the legends that surround him.

Track Listing

Return of Django – The Upsetters
Sick and Tired – Fats Domino
Going to the River – Fats Domino
Turn Back the Hands of Time – Tyrone Davis
Dark End of the Street – James Carr
To Love Somebody – James Carr
Doctor Dick – Lee Perry and the Soulettes
I am the Upsetter – Lee Perry
People Funny Boy – Lee Perry
Tighten Up – The Untouchables
Son of Thunder – Lee Perry
Clint Eastwood – Lee Perry
Prisoner of Love – Dave Barker
My Cup – Bob Marley and the Wailers
Duppy Conqueror – Bob Marley and the Wailers
Soul Rebel – Bob Marley and the Wailers
Kaya – Bob Marley and the Wailers
Small Axe – Bob Marley and the Wailers
Keep On Moving – Bob Marley and the Wailers
Keep on Moving – The Impressions
People Get Ready – The Impressions
In the Midnight Hour – Wilson Picket
Cry to Me – Solomon Burke
Beat Down Babylon – Junior Byles
Curley Lock – Junior Byles
Hurts So Good – Susan Cadogan
Cloak and Dagger – Tommy McCook & The Upsetters
Enter the Dragon – The Mighty Upsetter
Babylose Burning – Maxie, Niney & Scratch
I Shall Be Released – Bob Dylan
Blowin’ In the Wind – Bob Dylan
Foundation Solid – The Upsetters
Babylon Thief Dub – Augustus Pablo

I’m also sharing a very rare vinyl rip of the Black Panta/VS Panta Rock 10″ Auralux Recordings – LUXX003 by Lee Perry and the Upsetters (1973).  Written, arranged and produced by Upsetter Lee Perry, the a/b side appears on the classic 1973 dub album Dub Blackboard Jungle.  As crazy a Scratch concoction as you will find!

Photo: David Burnett

Hugh Mundell is a teenage prodigy who makes one of the greatest reggae roots records of the “golden age of reggae” at the age of 16.  “Africa Must Be Free” is produced by Augustus Pablo.  Mundell writes all the tunes, thereby earning himself the nickname of “The Blessed Youth.”

Introduced to reggae by his neighbour, Boris Gardiner Mundell records his first session at the age of 13, and at the time of his death in 1983 had produced 5 LPs and numerous singles.

What seems likely to be one of the brilliant careers in reggae is cut short when Mundell is shot to death in a car while travelling with Junior Reid. Accounts of the incident are muddled, with some accounts reporting that it is over an argument about a refrigerator. Others assert that it is in revenge for a burglary, while others still say that it is over a woman. Whatever the reason, his death robs the world of a brilliant star in the making.  He is 21 years old.

The included video footage is one of those rare beautiful moments in the history of Jamaican roots music.  We find Augustus Pablo and a young Hugh Mundell meditating and reasoning in the hills.  The highlight of this video is a rare acoustic performance which I won’t even try to describe with words.

As far as I know, “Africa Must Be Free” is a real rarity which is currently out of print.  Although I have a copy of the RAS records 2003 reissue, at the time of this post the album is not available commercially.  Not to worry.  I have shared it here, along with the dub tracks, in lossless (FLAC) audio.  If you are a true fan of reggae roots music, you cannot pass this up.

“Jah Will Provide”

Record date: 1978

 1) Hugh Mundell – Let’s All Unite
 2) Hugh Mundell – My Mind
 3) Hugh Mundell – Africa Must Be Free By 1983
 4) Hugh Mundell – Why Do Blackman Fuss And Fight
 5) Hugh Mundell – Book Of Life
 6) Hugh Mundell – Run Revolution A Come
 7) Hugh Mundell – Day Of Judgement
 8) Hugh Mundell – Jah Will Provide
 9) Hugh Mundell – Ital Slip
10) Augustus Pablo – Unity Dub
11) Augustus Pablo – Africa Dub
12) Augustus Pablo – My Mind Dub
13) Augustus Pablo – Western Kingston Style
14) Augustus Pablo – Levi Dub
15) Augustus Pablo – Revolution Dub
16) Augustus Pablo – Judgement Dub
17) Augustus Pablo – Sufferer Dub

Produced by: Augustus Pablo & Hugh Mundell
Engineered by: Phillip Smart, Errol Thompson & Sylvan Morris
Mixed by: Prince Jammy
Recorded at: Harry J, Joe Gibbs, Channel One & Black Ark
Mixed at: King Tubby‘s

DOWNLOAD FLAC FILES

THE DEATH OF HUGH MUNDELL

CLICK TO READ ON ISSUU

Hugh Mundell

Augustus Pablo at Channel One

Hugh Mundell (far left) with Augustus Pablo and bredren

Rare Photo of Mundell performing

If you were to ask me, outside of Bob Marley and the Wailers, who is your favorite roots reggae collective?  I would have to say “Well, The Congos of course.”

In my opinion, The Congos are the most spiritual of the acts that came out of that “golden age of roots reggae.” They are mandatory listening for me every day.  Their debut album The Heart of the Congos is considered by many to be one of the most influential dub albums ever produced by one Lee “Scratch” Perry.  Notwithstanding their debut masterpiece, Congo Ashanti is probably the best album to emerge from the “golden era.”

Sporting musicians like Sly Dunbar, Willie Lindo, Ernest Ranglin and Tommy McCook, its an impossibility that Congo Ashanti would be anything but an instant classic. Recorded at Harry J’s studio, the move away from Lee Perry gives the album a less dub-heavy sound allowing for Cedric Myton to fully explore his sublime falsetto.

I could talk for days about The Congos but I will spare you.  I have included a link to a blog which contains downloads of the debut release by the Jamaican vocal harmony duo, released on a Lee Perry Upsetter Disco Cork 12″ and one of the best from the Black Ark Studio in Washington Gardens, Kingston.

Also included is text by David Katz, who’s books on Lee Perry and Reggae music are well worth getting hold of…

http://killyourpetpuppy.co.uk/news/?p=1675

12″ Disco Cork “Nickodeemus”

12″ Disco Cork “Solid Foundation”

Max Romeo e Lee Perry no Black Ark, em 1976, nas gravações do clássico 'War Ina Babylon'. A banda de Perry, Upsetters, acompanhou Romeo

Se liga no vídeo abaixo e conheça o verdadeiro Lee Perry, algo que vai além do que você ouve nos discos. Um passeio pelo Black Ark Studio, guiado pelo próprio, que conduz uma molecada em clima de excursão marcial – com direito a bater continência antes dos exercícios.

Mas o general Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry não carrega armas, como fazia Phil Spector. Carrega no canto da boca um charuto parecido com os cubanos, mas de fumaça muito mais densa e difícil de dissipar, é claro. Entre um devaneio rasta e outro, ele diz coisas muito legais e sempre com imagens fodas — é muito legal ver esse templo por dentro. Templo em que ele entrava descalço.

Esse vídeo é de 1982. Em 1983, o estúdio foi consumido pelo fogo. A família diz que foi um curto-circuito. Ele diz que cuidou pessoalmente de queimar o local que estava tomado por espíritos ruins.

Naquelas salas — cheias de coisas penduradas, espalhadas pelo chão e até em cima dos instrumentos — ele gravou e produziu, além dele próprio, umas pessoas bem mais ou menos: Bob Marley, Augustus Pablo, Max Romeo, Heptones, The Congos, Junior Murvin, entre as preciosidades jamaicanas.

E tem muito mais nessa lista, que ainda conta com uma boa quantidade de gringos fraquinhos também. Caso de The Clash e Paul McCartney, por exemplo. O beatle, aliás, frequentou o espaço entre 1972 e 1979. Um ano depois ele lançou, com o Wings já desfeito, o disco ‘McCartney II’, que tem a esfumaçada ‘Check My Machine’ como melhor música. É claramente um dub inspirado em Perry, como você pode ouvir logo abaixo. Um detalhe: nesse disco, Paul tocou todos os intrumentos, fez todas as vozes, produziu e foi engenheiro de som. Ou seja: fez tudo sozinho.

The Heart of The Congos

The Congos – The Heart of The Congos

If you’ve seen the film Rockers,

then you know who Kiddus I is. For those of you who haven’t seen the Jamaican-made reggae reinterpretation of The Bicycle Thief , then I’d recommend that you go see it immediately. Within the first 30 minutes of the film you will be introduced to Kiddus I, the dreadlocked musician laying down vocals in Jack Ruby‘s studio. The clip from the film can be seen here:

It’s a fantastic scene that always sends chills down my spine; Kiddus’ vocals tend to have that effect on me. The scene is also notable for documenting the manufacturing process of making vinyl records. If you want to, you can use your imagination with me and imagine that the record pressed in the video is the one that I have digitized for you all tonight.

It’s nothing too special really. Just a 12″ Single with two of Kiddus I’s songs produced by Lee Perry at the Black Ark Studio. It’s a perfect match between Lee Perry’s virtuosic production and Kiddus I’s soothing voice. The first song, Security in the Streets is one of those songs that never fails to get me up  and dancing. But there’s more to it and it’s something that’s missing from the dance music of today. There’s a positive message of freedom, compassion, community, peace and  a hint of anarchy. The song is about a community taking responsibility into their own hands and looking after themselves. It’s about combating crime with the power of goodwill and love instead of violence. It’s an empowering song. So play it next time you feel that “get-together spirit” with the ones that you love.

The next song is “Too Fat”, a song mainly about greed. Think of it almost as a reggae version of “Taxman” by The Beatles. It’s a mellow song, with Kiddus getting soulful over a typically groovy Perry “riddim”.

So enjoy these two.

Download

Junior Murvin rolled his hit in 1976 under the production auspices of [lastfm link_type="artist_info"]Lee “Scratch” Perry[/lastfm]. It essentially came out of thin air, the lyrics coming to Murvin as he sat in Perry’s Black Ark studio, listening to the house band jam on the song’s instrumental track. The lyrics were added, the song was recorded that day, released within 48 hours and became a Jamaican smash.

His falsetto delivery and the song’s classic beat stormed out of the radios of England a few years later, when it was a Top-25 hit in May 1980.

The [lastfm link_type="artist_info"]Clash[/lastfm] had recorded the song for their debut a few years earlier and [lastfm link_type="artist_info"]Paul Kelly[/lastfm] has since name-dropped Murvin in one of his songs.

Murvin’s last collection of new material was recorded in 1995.

If it was Big in Britain, and we wrote about it, you’ll find it here…

mazungu:

Lee Perry and the Upsetters

Initially I wondered if it might be a piece of folk art (a relic from a former community centre perhaps, or the conscious work of some Blackheart Man here in White Hart Lane), but while I was photographing it I had a short conversation with the person who lived there and they told me that the map had been a prop for some animation sequences in the 2010 feature film Africa United. But actually what it made me think of was that great Junior Byles song for Lee Perry, ‘A Place Called Africa’, which is featured in numerous reggae compilations including volume 3 of Trojan’s great old Creation Rockers series. The song is also very easy to find online, as is the version featuring toasting from Winston Prince, a.k.a. Dr Alimantado.

The Congos are a vocal group from Jamaica maan who in 1977 went deep into the Black Ark with the immortal and mind-expanding Lee Scratch Perry to record an album which would come to be known as Heart of the Congos which if you listen below to a cut from that record you’ll see that they produced some heady results. I haven’t listened to dub in a long time, but this album brought it all back for me; the colorfulness, the murkiness (henceforth known as murky rainbow quality), and that certain vibing with no curtains on the windows.

Mp3: Congos - La La Bam-Bam

Avareii and Plinky travel by Black Ark

Avareii is going to travel with her favourite Cold One, Plinky.

Dark Elves like to ride Cold Ones.

Well, maybe not “like”. They just do it. More than with unicorns.

Dark Elves love unicorns. To eat.

Avareii and Plinky will travel to Ulthuan on a Black Ark. Black Arks are very big ships that Dark Elves use.

Can you guess what colour they are?

Right now, lots and lots of Black Arks are going to Ulthuan. They are taking lots of Dark Elves on holiday.

Some Dark Elves don’t want to go to Ulthuan.

They don’t trust the water there, and the High Elves take all the beach towels.

Naughty High Elves!

1. Toots & The Maytals – Louie Louie
2. Toots & The Maytals – 54-46 Was my Number
3. Jacob Miller – I´m a Rastaman
4. Bob Marley & The Wailers – Small Axe
5. Jacob Miller – Tenemend Yard
6. The Abyssinians – Satta Massagana
7. Junior Murvin – Police & Thieves
8. Junior Byles – Fade Away
9. Jimmy Cliff – The Harder They Come
10. Peter Tosh – Downpresorman
11. Third World – 1865
12. Bob Marley & The Wailers – Mr. Brown
13. Max Romeo – Chase The Devil
14. The Congos – Fisherman
15. Althea & Donna – Uptown Top Ranking
16. Rico Rodriguez – Children Of Sanchez
17. Sugar Minott – Give Me Jah Jah
18. Sound Dimension – Real Rock
19. Horace Andy – Skylarking
20. Wailing Soul – Things & Time

Deskargatu 02-REGGAE