Lee "Scratch" Perry and his band
with Adrian Sherwood on the mix
11 June 2009
Opera Theatre
Sydney Opera House
Australia

Part of the Luminous Festival, curated by Brian Eno.

SP-CMC-20 > SP-SPSB-1 battery box > Edirol R-09 (16bit 44.1khz) > USB > Macbook Pro > Sound Studio (amplify left channel 4.00dB, tracking, fades) > xACT > fix SBEs > FLAC

01 instrumental intro
02 I am standing tall
03 Introducing myself
04 Blackboard jungle (Papa Was A Rolling Stone)
05 Secret laboratory
06 Perfect lover (Have some mercy)
07 Kilimanjaro
08 African blood is flowing through my veins
09 Fever
10 Everything start from Scratch
11 Pussyman
12 Black Ark
13 Curly locks
14 War Ina Babylon
15 Open door > band intros
16 encore
17 Rastafari live (ganja, full house, sellout, backyard, god, live, die, love)
18 Exodus > Send guns and roses > instrumental outro

total: 2:01:07
continuous recording, fades in + out

All titles are guesses except for War Ina Babylon, which is mostly an improvised rap based around the chorus. I'm no expert on things Scratch, so please share your knowledge if you can supply correct names for these workouts.

The Opera Theatre is smaller than the Concert Hall at Sydney Opera House and has superior acoustics. With the excellent sound system plus Adrian Sherwood's masterful work at the desk, this recording from the 8th row exceeded my expectations.

Even the drunken talkers in front of me are not as distracting as I feared. Fortunately they left about half way through. One of them used to be the singer in a band named after a former prime minister. He should know better. Maybe next time he's doing a solo show or gets another version of the band together to cash in on old memories ...

I'm sure all fans of Lee Perry will enjoy this.

suggested CD burn:
disc 1: 01-11 (78:31)
disc 2: 12-18 (42:46)

A gjfatty recording
shared at Dime: June 2009

Not for sale or commercial exchange.
Share the lossless version - keep mp3s to yourself!
Buy the albums too.

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BRIAN ENO TALKS ABOUT LEE 'SCRATCH' PERRY:
http://soh.viotv.com/?mediaId=7d812ad2-5653-4ef6-b1d8-1b71c70dfa2f

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Here's a review from the Sydney Morning Herald, included for your interest even though the reviewer doesn't seem to 'get' what it is that makes Scratch so enjoyable. Yes, the band is brilliant, but without his leadership and personality they could be just another bunch of good, but directionless, musicians. Plus, he adds the insult of not even mentioning Adrian Sherwood, another legend of dub.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/entertainment/music/laidback-legend-in-gold-boots-is-overshadowed-by-his-band/2009/06/12/1244664849358.html

Laid-back legend in gold boots is overshadowed by his band
Opera House, June 11
Reviewed by George Palathingal

He was playing reggae before the term had even been coined, and can lay a solid claim to helping birth dub. He has worked with artists from Bob Marley to the Beastie Boys via the Clash.

He's 73 and looks ridiculous - with gold boots, fluoro parka, beard dyed crimson and hat covered in badges, he dresses like some alien Rasta pearly king. Yet everyone still thinks Lee "Scratch" Perry is the bee's knees.

His fellow producer extraordinaire, Brian Eno, certainly does, having got Perry to play this show for his Luminous festival, as does the room full of fans who cheer Perry's every move. But putting aside the artist's important, influential past, is he still worth seeing live?

Well, kind of. The evening's enjoyment really comes down to his terrific live band. In about three minutes of instrumental dub before Perry even joins them, the five-piece offers more variety than there is in the otherwise likeable support act Sine's entire set.

Then, after you've paid your respects and gasped at Perry's stamina - he's hardly Mick Jagger but the septuagenarian still ambles around the stage for a good two hours - you might notice it's the band's thick basslines, snareless beats and hissing high hats that provide the pleasure, and not the barely comprehensible, sweet gent rambling on in front of them.

The more laid-back grooves are so languid you could float in them while the upbeat rhythms are tightly wound and beautifully controlled, their tension sustained to the last note for maximum effect. Pulsating dub at both these tempos dominates the set, with the occasional touch of sprightly reggae thrown in.

Perry may have created these sounds but he doesn't add much on the night. Still, as music lovers probably thought back in his creative heyday: it does warm the heart to know he's around, and as lovably eccentric as ever.

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