Flashing Echo - Lee 'Scratch' Perry Presents Jungle Lion The Upsetter Singles 1973 / Chapter 2

1973 was a pivotal time for Lee "Scratch" Perry, as it was the year he built his fabled Black Ark studio, where he created much of his most celebrated work, and he released Upsetters 14 Dub Blackboard Jungle, often noted as the first full-length dub album. Up until then, he worked as a freelance producer, often recording at King Tubbys studio. Flashing Echo, part of Doctor Birds comprehensive series of Perrys single productions, compiles one last batch of material before he had fully switched over to recording at Black Ark. During this period, Perry was working with deejays and toasters like Dillinger, I-Roy, and U-Roy as well as singers including Leo Graham, David Isaacs, and Junior Byles. Several of these tracks appeared as singles on Perrys own Black Art Records. A few songs here reflect socially conscious and political themes, particularly Perrys own "Justice to the People" (emphasized by the sounds of crying babies and roaring crowds) and "Blackman Time." Other tracks are highly futuristic, both in their innovative use of synthesizers and tape effects, as well as their subject matter (see I-Roys interstellar voyage "Space Flight"). Theres also an abundance of whimsy and playfulness on display, from the nursery rhymes of Dillingers "Ensome City Skank" to Perrys bubbly ode to personal hygiene, "Bathroom Skank." Perry narrates the boxing-themed "Sunshine Showdown," which is filled with dubby interjections and applause. Leo Grahams "New Flash" is a simple, highly catchy reggae-pop tune with a soaring refrain, and its dub version "Flashing Echo" lives up to its title while providing a compact description of the sound of dub reggae itself. The Upsetters "7 3/4 Skank" also deserves mention as an inspired and prophetic bit of lunacy, as it switches between seemingly unrelated rhythms, predicting techniques that would be commonplace among hip-hop and dance DJs and producers for decades to come. David Isaacs dreamy vocal version of easy listening chart-topper "Stranger on the Shore" also deserves a mention. The second disc of the compilation features a few tunes sung by the little-known Annette Clarke, including "Sinner Man" (unrelated to the Nina Simone song) and "Just Wanna Be There," which sounds unusually high-pitched once she begins singing, then gradually accelerates, making it clear that Perry is speeding up the tape. (A YouTube clip of the song presents it at regular speed, so its a mystery why it sounds the way it does here.) The Upsetters "Kuchy Skank" is an absolutely killer hard funk rhythm, and the immediately following "Kentucky Skank" mixes futuristic sounds (spacy Moog synths, rushing tape effects) with biblical-inspired lyrics. By 1973, Perry had already explored reggaes outer limits for years, and Flashing Echo is a snapshot of the era right before he truly blasted off and made history with the Black Ark. ~ Paul Simpson