Lee Scratch Perry Research Paper

A major contributor to reggae music is the famous Lee “Scratch” Perry. Perry was a major reggae pioneer and later even a dub pioneer, which is a special form of music. Lee “Scratch” Perry served as a reggae disc jockey, producer, record salesman, songwriter, singer, and a commander in the development of Reggae (“Lee “Scratch” Perry”). He was born on March 20, 1936 in Kendal, Jamaica as Rainford Hugh Perry. Growing up, he had dreams of making it big in the music industry (“Reggae Artists”). He started off his music career as a DJ, later making his recording debut in the early ‘60s with “The Chicken Scratch”- giving him his name Lee “Scratch” Perry (“Lee “Scratch” Perry”). In the late 1950’s, Perry decided to pursue his big dream by starting

Still in 1968, Perry and the Upsetters released their first major hit, “People Funny Boy” (“Reggae Artists”). “People Funny Boy” was an unusually slow song for its time and became the first “real” reggae song. Other late ‘60’s hits the Upsetters had, all instrumentals, were “Clint Eastwood”, “Live Injection”, and “Return of Django,” which reached #5 on the UK’s top hits in 1969 and got them huge sales (“Lee “Scratch” Perry”). Along the way, they set up the new Reggae theme. As Perry’s fame grew, so did his bizarre behavior and sounds. He developed a peculiar addiction to wearing headdresses and costumes made of objects like coins, feathers, playing cards, and toys during interviews (“Reggae Artists”). His new and experimental sounds gave way to a new form of music called Dub. Dubbing by definition is “the reworking of a taped track by removing some parts and exaggerating others.” Perry’s use of technologies such as phase shifters and drum machines helped him create weird and new sounds, influencing the creation of dub and dancehall (“Lee “Scratch” Perry”).

According to Rolling Stone’s biography of Perry, his producing career was also at a high. He worked with Junior Byles, Gregory Isaacs, Max Romeo, Junior Murvin, the Heptones, The