This is the second of four discs (volumes 4, 5, 6 and 7 of this ten album series) of Wailers songs produced by the inimitable Lee "Scratch" Perry. When asked by folks how he got this particular nickname, Perry's usual answer is "Because - all things start from Scratch. So check it out - who am I?" The abrasive moniker is also related to a favored dance hall dubplate of his called Chicken Scratch. The modesty-challenged board master has often claimed writer's credit on many of the songs which he produced with the Wailers. Perhaps no one will ever know exactly what his contribution to the creative process really was. Observations range from Bunny Wailers' assertion that "Perry didn't write anything, not one line," to Perry's equally suspect assertion that he wrote everything. "Family Man" Barrett, the bass player of Perry's Upsetters, the peerless studio band of its time that became the nucleus of the later Wailers instrumental lineup, has said that often Bob and Scratch would repair to a private room at Randy's upstairs studio, located on Parade in downtown Kingston, and work together to craft new melodies and lyrics.

These were times when it was understood that\ they were not, under any circumstances, to be disturbed. Once these tracks were completed, Perry, riding the crest of great chart success in the U.K., sold them to Trojan records in England, which released a few singles, but mainly issued them as albums, beginning with Soul Rebel (comprised of tracks on Vol. 4 of this series) and next, Soul Revolution Part II, on which the Wailers truly hit their stride. Yielding tracks like Don't Rock My Boat, Put It On, Duppy Conqueror, Kaya and Sun Is Shining, these sessions were a treasure trove of musical gems that would be mined throughout the remainder of Marley's tragically short-lived international career, as better studios and new recording techniques combined with updated variations on the basic reggae formula to create new veins for exploration in the chaotic chamber that Lee Perry dubbed his "thrown room."

Leroy Jodie Pierson & Roger Steffens

Explore Soul Rebel and the More Axe portions of this boxset

Learn more about Bob, Bunny, Peter, Rita