Lee “Scratch” Perry, the eccentric man of reggae who died in his native Hanover parish, Jamaica on August 29, never forgot his rural roots despite attaining international fame.
Perry, who was 85 years-old, lived mainly in Switzerland for the last 30 years of his life. He spent winters at his home in Negril, the tourist town in neighboring Westmoreland parish.
One of his childhood friends was Roydell “Ashanti Roy” Johnson of roots-reggae group, The Congos. They were both born in Kendall, a farming district in Hanover.
“Wi grow together, went to the same primary school. His parents knew my parents very well,” said Ashanti Roy.
He added that Perry’s love for theatrics came from his mother, Ina Perry, whom he described as “a traditional woman” who performed in stage productions.
It was Perry who produced On Top, Ashanti Roy’s first song in the early 1970’s. Shortly after, the singer formed The Congos with Cedric Myton and Watty Burnett, who were among the acts who recorded at the producer’s infamous Black Ark studio in Kingston, Jamaica.
It was there that Heart of The Congos, their seminal 1977 album, was done.
“Scratch was a very good producer. Because he was a dancer he knew the beats he wanted. And he always used the best musicians… (guitarist Ernie Ranglin), (organist) Winston Wright and (bassist) Boris Gardiner,” Ashanti Roy recalled.
A former hustler for producer Clement “Coxson” Dodd, Perry established himself as a producer through his Upsetters label by working with groups like The Wailers which comprised Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Livingston (later Wailer).
He guided the group on songs like Duppy Conqueror and Mr. Brown.
The Black Ark — where classic songs by Max Romeo, Junior Byles and Junior Murvin were done — mysteriously burned to the ground in the late 1970’s.
Perry moved to Europe and became an artist with a massive audience on that continent and parts of the United States.
In 2003, he won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album with Jamaican E. T. He was awarded the Order of Distinction, Jamaica’s sixth highest honor, in 2012.
By Howard Campbell—
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