Monday, 30 August 2021

RAINFORD HUGH 'LEE SCRATCH' PERRY 1936 - 2021

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The Woodentops VS Lee 'Scratch' Perry (Roundhouse Studios London 1988)

Sad for his family and friends. I heard much about him, noted people were nervous or scared about him, as he could be unpredictable. But for me i thought he was comedic in an almost monty python mode, really alert to what was happening in the studio, he really made me laugh with that sometimes super rude vocabulary. Some people swear very well and he was one.
I thought we might see another 10 years of him, he seemed indestructible. He was absolutely great with words. It wasn’t that I asked, but he saw my lyrics ready to go and found them inspiring to play with and ‘overwrote’ my words to be his words, concocting new rhyming couplets of word association which was furthering the meaning of the lines.
I'm not sure how I think I write, maybe more conversationally, but he played with the words in his delivery. Really out of the box lines coming out of him. People talk of cutting words together all that. Just run it through the head of Lee Perry would do the trick!
He made a huge impact on music and I liked all I heard, saw him with band a couple of times too. No one looked as good dressed in mirrors as he did. Funny when he took them off to relax. It wasnt easy? They were properly strapped on. Needed help or they’d be smashing as they dropped.
I don’t know about his health I hope Lee popped off in his sleep.

Listen:

The Woodentops VS Lee 'Scratch' Perry

Lee was delivered to the wrong recording studio by a minicab during the bus strike then. Rolo was in the forcourt and recognised him. He tried to help him on his way but invited him to the control room while he waited. He relaxed and started to have fun. He messed around with the backing track that was in production "wheels turning" He took the exsisting lyrics and customised them recording his own version. The second tune, "woodenfootcops on the highway" was written and recorded with Lee, Benny, Rolo & Frank all live, together.

These tracks were never completed