VA - Lee 'Scratch' Perry Presents Soulful I: The Jamaica Upsetter Singles 1969-1970 (2024)

• Boss reggae productions from the legendary Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry.

• An abundance of rare tracks & alternate takes.

• A follow-up to the popular ‘People Funny Boy’ collection.

After making an explosive start to his career as an independent record producer with his groundbreaking hit, ‘People Funny Boy’, Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry further cemented his reputation as one of Jamaica’s most creative music makers with singles issued on his Upsetter label peppering the local charts throughout the remainder of 1968 and well into the next year. By this time, the UK’s leading Jamaican music specialists, Trojan Records were releasing his work in Britian, where both Jamaican ex-pats and the rapidly growing number of ‘skinhead’ reggae fans were drawn to his often-quirky instrumental recordings, performed by The Hippy Boys, a tight 4-piece combo that Perry credited rebranded as The Upsetters on his releases.

‘Soulful I’ picks up where the previous Doctor Bird collection, ‘People Funny Boy’, left off by collecting Perry’s Jamaican 7” singles from 1969 through to early 1970, while also featuring rarities from the period that remained all but forgotten in the Trojan archives until earlier this century. Along with the companion volume, ‘Clint Eastwood & The Many Moods Of The Upsetter’, this 2CD set not only provides a captivating insight into the development of reggae music and arguably its most accomplished creator during a fascinating period in the early development of reggae music and arguably its most accomplished creator, but also provides a hugely enjoyable listening experience.