VIDEO: Lee “Scratch” Perry honored with documentary film and new book
If you are a serious fan of reggae music, then you will know of the name Lee “Scratch” Perry. Perhaps some of you have already examined his music. It would be impossible for anyone to have heard everything he has recorded, for he still has a few master tapes and multi-tracks fermenting in rich Jamaican soil, or he may have given a few tracks to aliens who have visited him. Nonetheless, if you are aware of the beautiful strangeness of Perry, or want to know more, you’ll want to see a forthcoming documentary that a number of critics have given praise, called The Upsetter: The Life and Music of Lee Scratch Perry. It will open in select theaters (i.e. it’s not going to be in every city that Harry Potter will open), so check it out if it plays near you.
In the mid-1990′s, the Beastie Boys magazine Grand Royal dedicated an issue to Perry, which prompted not only music fans to discover who he is, but also moved Island Records to releasing the incredible Arkology box set. Journalist and longtime reggae fan Jeremy Collingwood will have his book on Perry’s discography released in the U.S. this Friday called Kiss Me Neck: The Scratch Story in Words, Pictures and Records. Dub plate junkies, unite!
