Duff Review: Lee "Scratch" Perry and Subatomic Sound System "Super Ape Returns to Conquer"

Subatomic Sound
CD/LP/digital
2017

(Review by Steve Shafer)

In Steve Barrow and Peter Dalton's "Reggae: The Rough Guide," they declare that Perry's 1976 dub album Super Ape was "one of the most progressive and imaginative sets of its time...Those who dismissed it for being over-produced missed the point entirely" (they also included it in their "Reggae: 100 Essential CDs," noting that "Super Ape, which together with the Congos' Heart of the Congos represents the fullest single album realization of the producer's unique vision"); and reggae reviewer/historian/selector David Katz called it "a veritable tour-de-force of Upsetter wizardry." In other words, Super Ape is one of Scratch's masterpieces (created at his legendary Black Ark studio, along with extraordinary roots classics like Heart the Congos, Max Romeo's War Ina Babylon, The Heptones’ Party Time, and Junior Murvin’s Police and Thieves)--which begs the question, why re-record it (and risk creating something inferior)? When the Jamaica Gleaner recently posed this question to Perry, he answered: "Well, my music comes from God. Me nah copy no man. Me listen to nature and the sounds of nature are God's music. So, my music is God's music and it will never get old and it will never die." (Ah...got it.)

Of course, before reviewing Super Ape Returns to Conquer, I pulled out my copy of The Upsetters' Super Ape to refresh my memory of the original tracks and compare them to the new takes on this material. What was truly revolutionary in the evolution of dub in 1976 still sounds brilliant and unearthly in 2017, yet also a bit tamer than expected, since both Perry and dub have progressed in all sorts of incredible ways in the 40 years since. After listening to both albums, it's clear that Super Ape Returns to Conquer is in no way an attempt at a note-for note/effect-for-effect recreation of the original (even the running order is jumbled)--it's simply a fresh and inspired interpretation of these tracks from this vantage point in time, experience, and technology.

Partially recorded at Perry's New Ark in JA and co-produced by Subatomic Sound System's Emch (who also played melodica, guitar, bass, keys, beats, and effects), the album features Subatomic Sound System members (who have backed Perry live since 2010) Larry McDonald (congas, percussions, vocals), Screechy Dan (vocals), Jahdan Blakkamoore (vocals), Omar Little (trumpet, cornet), Tory Shaka Simms (sax), and, of course, Perry on vocals and at the controls--these shimmering new recordings bring a clarity, expansiveness, depth, and sheer amped-up power to the often mesmerizing versions of these familiar songs, while maintaining the organic warmth and sonic inventiveness one expects of Scratch ("So It Conquer," a short new song apparently recorded live in concert, has the sound of ocean waves in the mix!). Everything sounds terrific--"Zion's Blood" (which still uses The Heptones' vocal track), "Chase the Devil," "War Ina Babylon" (Max Romeo appears on tape here, too, methinks), "Super Ape," "Underground Roots" (with Ari Up of The Slits in what must be one of her last recordings), "Dub Along," and "Three in One" all absolutely shine in their new iterations (and the album includes dubs of some of the vocal tracks--"Croaking Lizard," "Black Vest," and "Dread Lion" in particular are incredible).

So, while Super Ape Returns to Conquer may not be as historic or groundbreaking as its source, it comes mighty close to being its equal and is definitely a vital new entry in Perry's astounding body of work.

+ + + +

Life's Little Victories: Record Collecting #5 (The Slits' "Typical Girls" 7")

Over the summer, while rummaging through the bins at my favorite (and undisclosed!) used record shop, I came across the 12" version of The Slits' 1979 debut single ("Typical Girls" b/w "Heard It Through the Grapevine") for $15. For whatever stupid reason (wasn't feeling flush with cash that day?), I didn't grab it, but when I got back to work, I listened/watched videos of both tracks--and was particularly taken with their ragged, punky-reggay-ish cover of Marvin Gaye's hit (where Ari Up sometimes sings: "I heard it through the bass line..."). So, I checked Discogs and found that picking up a copy of this single (and I wanted the 7" version) from any US sellers would cost a pretty penny (let's just say that the $15 price at my favorite record haunt was very reasonable).

I now very much wanted this record.

I ended up being outbid on two separate eBay auctions, but finally stumbled upon a mint (!) copy of the 7" single that I was able to "Buy Now" for $20 (including shipping!)--which has a sleeve that folds out into a poster of Pennie Smith's photo that was used for The Slits' debut album, Cut (Smith also shot the cover of this single).

To be honest, I really didn't take to The Slits back when I was first introduced to them through Jon Savage's incredible and absolutely essential 1992 book "England's Dreaming: Anarchy, Sex Pistols, Punk Rock, and Beyond" (which led me to discover and buy albums from dozens of punk and post-punk bands) and catching the punk segments of the surprisingly good 1995 PBS/BBC documentary series "Rock and Roll: An Unruly History" (watch part of the punk segment that highlights roots reggae's relationship to 1970s UK punk rock and features interviews with Johnny Rotten, Paul Simonon, Don Letts, Mick Jones, Ari Up, Bunny Wailer, Mikey Dread, and Lee "Scratch" Perry here and here). But I get them now.

I'm in the midst of reading Slits' guitarist Viv Albertine's superb and brutally honest autobiography "Clothes Clothes Clothes Music Music Music Boys Boys Boys" (watch a recent interview with Albertine from Britain's Channel 4 here). One of the many great bits of info she shares is how her final break-up with Mick Jones of The Clash, whom she had dated on and off for years, led Jones to write "Train in Vain," which turns out to be an answer record to The Slits' "Typical Girls" (The Slits: "Typical girls stand by their man"; The Clash: "You say you stand by your man/Tell me something, I don't understand/You said you loved me and that's a fact/And then you left me, said you felt trapped/Well some things you can't explain away/But the heartache's in me till this day/You didn't stand by me/No, not at all/You didn't stand by me/No way"). Of course, "Typical Girls" lists all the "acceptable" behaviors imposed on women by 1950s and 1960s Western societies (and reinforced by their media)--and was everything that The Slits were defying and attempting to obliterate in the late 70s. It's smart, cheeky, and ironic feminist commentary, as well as an apt Slits mission statement--and it's made somehow all the more stinging and poignant by Jones' wounded reply to it. He wanted/expected the stereotypical 1960s girlfriend, but got one of the original riot girls instead.

It's very much worth it to check out the lyrics to this song--as, 35 or so years on, our male-dominated world still holds many of these same attitudes towards women...

"Typical Girls"

"Don't create
Don't rebel
Have intuition
Can't decide

Typical girls get upset too quickly
Typical girls can't control themselves
Typical girls are so confusing
Typical girls, you can always tell
Typical girls don't think too clearly
Typical girls are unpredictable, predictable

Typical girls try to be
Typical girls very well
Typical girls try to be
Typical girls very well, well

Typical girls are looking for something
Typical girls fall under spells
Typical girls buy magazines
Typical girls feel like hell
Typical girls worry about spots, fat
And natural smells, stinky fake smells

Typical girls try to be
Typical girls very well, well

Don't create
Don't rebel
Have intuition
Don't drive well

Typical girls try to be
Typical girls very well
Can't decide what clothes to wear

Typical girls are sensitive
Typical girls are emotional
Typical girls are cruel and bewitching
But she's a femme fatal

Typical girls stand by their man
Typical girls are really swell
Typical girls learn how to act shocked
Typical girls don't rebel

Who invented the typical girl?
Who's bringing out the new improved model?
And there's another marketing ploy
Typical girl gets the typical boy

Who invented the typical girl?
Who's bringing out the new improved model?
And there's another marketing ploy
Typical girl gets the typical boy, typical boy

The typical boy gets the typical girl
The typical girl gets the typical boy
The typical boy gets the typical girl
The typical girl gets the typical boy"

Duff Interview with Stubborn Records' King Django on 20 Years of Ska and Reggae!

Editor's note: With Stubborn Records' 20th Anniversary Show coming up on May 12th at the Knitting Factory in Brooklyn (see details on the poster below), we thought we'd better check in with musician, songwriter, engineer, producer, and label-head King Django (AKA Jeff Baker) and pick his mind regarding all that has gone down over the past two decades at Stubborn. (Thanks and respect to King Django for taking the time to answer all of our questions!)

The Duff Guide to Ska: When you created "Rude Awakening," the first skazine in NYC back in 1984, could you ever have imagined that you'd be here all of these years later, celebrating the 20th anniversary of Stubborn Records?

King Django: Actually, no! Looking back and realizing that at that time, I was not even a musician, I definitely could never have imagined the wild ride that was to come. I feel pretty lucky and blessed having been able to learn so much from some really great musicians including my contemporaries and many of the artists who were my heroes in my youth.

DGTS: The label's first release, "Tales of the Red," was from your own band Skinnerbox. So, part of your motivation to get the label up and running was to put out your own records, but what was the label's driving mission for its first decade of existence? What were your initial plans for the first few years and how many of them were you able to realize?

KD: To be honest, I never really had much of a long-range plan. The label was started because we had been jerked around so much trying to get the first Skinnerbox record out. We had a cool offer from a good label and were ready to go with it, but got stars in our eyes due to smoke blown up our collective proverbial orifice by some "industry" types and in the end wound up with nothing. Prince Buster and Coxsone had always been heroes of mine, so I decided we ought to just start putting the records out on our own. All of my "plans" really only involved what projects I wanted to release, and in that light, they were all realized. That being said, there's still a lot of irons in the fire, plenty of tunes here awaiting release.

DGTS: When I was at Moon, I have to admit we were definitely jealous--in an admiring way--of some of the releases that you were putting out. But we also viewed Stubborn's competition as healthy for the scene (and us)--and there were certainly more than enough good bands around to work with (and certainly no single ska label had the resources to put out records for all of them). At the time, how did you view Moon Records--and which of the label's successes did you emulate and which of their missteps did you learn from?

KD: I don't think I actually directly emulated any specific aspects of Moon Records, but I defiinitely do have to give props here to Rob "Bucket" Hingley, who was definitely a big inspiration and an early mentor of mine back in the days before he was called "Bucket." Having been around him from the inception of Moon Records when I was still very young, Rob was really a very direct inspiration for me. He was very helpful and forthcoming, sharing his knowledge of the business at that time.

By the time Stubborn Records was founded, I'd already been working with and around him for about six years. I have a deep respect for what Rob and you all were able to accomplish with Moon. My impression is that because of the rapid growth of the label and the realities of independent distribution at that time there arose a necessity to "fill the pipeline" with product. To meet the quantity requirements, I think the quality control became lax, which of course translated to lower sales at the end of the day, and possibly a ripple effect for the entire genre here in the States. I suppose the main things I took away from that situation were to take it slowly, keep a close watch on the scale of things, keep it real and realistic, and never to make records just for the sake of having more releases. I was really never motivated by trying to get "big" or make loads of money, I just wanted to make good records.

DGTS: What were some of the biggest challenges to running an independent label during the 90s (when people still bought recorded music in physical formats)?

KD: I think the single biggest challenge was navigating the independent distribution network, as mentioned above. Everyone who had an independent label at that time has essentially the same horror stories, just in different sizes. It was pretty easy to get your product into the distribution channels, but actually getting it sold through and collecting any money for it was impossible. It's too much for me to go into the sordid details here, but there were a load of classic tricks and scams perpetrated on the labels during that time.

DGTS: You and I have talked a bit in the past about the difficulties of trying to keep a label going in this era of rampant music piracy (i.e., music "file sharing"). Any thoughts about this that you want to share publicly? And what do you think might be the emerging business model, the way forward for independent record labels and bands to be paid for the fruits of their labor?

KD: I really don't know! I just hope people realize that if they want to continue hearing good, quality music, they should support artists they enjoy. If you have no need for a CD, buy a T-shirt, buy some stickers, anything, spend a few bucks. Heck, buy a CD and give it to someone. Buy an album download from iTunes or another legal outlet. It's so important, especially nowadays, that we support our arts communities! For some reason, it's very easy for people to spend $14 on two admittedly enjoyable pints which they drink down very quickly at the corner bar, or $10 to $15 for a crappy, indigestion-inducing, poison dinner at a horrid, corporate, national chain restaurant, yet it seems difficult to convince people to cough up a measly $10-12 for an album which will bring them joy and upliftment repeatedly for years to come.

DGTS: What were some of Stubborn Records' greatest achievements (and disappointments, such as bands that you wanted to work with, but who got away)?

KD: I think just sticking around this long and having maintained a pretty good level of quality in our catalog is probably the label's greatest achievement. They're not all the same or even similar, and they all have different strengths (and even weaknesses!), but I'm pretty proud of all of our releases in one way or another. Again, my goal was never to release loads of records, or be a huge label. I just want to put out good music that my friends and I enjoy making and listening to. At this point, I think I'm a musician, singer/songwriter, recording artist first, a producer and recording engineer second, and a label owner third. The single greatest sadness in the history of the label was the loss of my close friend and Jamaican music business mentor Mr. Bertram Brown. He was instrumental in the establishment and success of the Version City Jamaica vinyl label, and he will never be replaced. There was also a planned album with Derrick Morgan which had to be scrapped when Profile Records shut down. I was also really looking forward to doing some work with Cedric Brooks before his health took an ill turn.

DGTS: Which Stubborn Releases are your personal faves?

KD: I am working on music all the time, so I think whichever I am working on at the moment is my favorite. To be honest, I don't go back and listen to the catalog often. By the time the record goes out for reproduction, I usually know it more intimately than anyone else and have heard it more times and in more broken-down detail than most people ever will. I put the love and attention into the project at hand and try to do my best. The delicious enjoyment part is then for the listeners!

DGTS: Which ones were the best-sellers for the label?

KD: If you include all of our licensed or contracted output, Stubborn All-Stars Open Season is far and away the biggest record Stubborn's been involved in. The best-selling release on Stubborn label proper would hands-down be my own Roots & Culture album, which has been continually reprinted in CD and vinyl formats, more recently as a "Special Edition" version, remixed and remastered with bonus tracks. Following that, the other King Django material, the other Stubborn All-Stars stuff, Vic Ruggiero and Hub City Stompers would be our top performers. Even recently, all of the Version City 45s have sold very well, in fact I have sold out of multiple pressings of most of those titles as well.

DGTS: What's the latest on the Stubborn Records 20th anniversary show at The Knitting Factory Brooklyn? Can you give us any hints about unannounced "special guests"?

KD: I guess by now I have announced the full line-up, so I don't know if there will or will not be any special guests...

DGTS: Apart from the anniversary show, do you have other Stubborn Records 20th anniversary-related events/releases in store?

KD: We've just put out the King Django and Ari Up 45s in cooperation with Ska In The World Records from Tokyo, Japan. I'm sending Victor Rice's Dub Discoveries from Version City to print today! And I'm hoping to finish at least the next HCS album and at LEAST one new King Django album before the end of the year. We were cranking out loads of new titles in Kingston, JA when I was working with Mr. Brown, and I'd like to continue that line of 45s, too, so I am trying to re-establish a mechanism for steady 45 releases.

Duff Review: Ari Up "Forward" b/w "Rescue Mission"

Ska in the World Records/Stubborn Records
2012
Limited-edition 7" vinyl single

(Review by Steve Shafer)

This stellar single from the late Ari Up (of The Slits) is the second co-release from Ska in the World Records and Stubborn Records that is being issued in celebration of the latter's 20th anniversary (the other is King Django's "Anywhere I Roam" b/w "Career Opportunities"). King Django co-wrote (as well as played/programmed and produced) the two tracks here with Ari, which were recorded at the Version City Studios in April 2003. Anyone expecting Django's usual traditional ska/rocksteady sounds should have their head checked--this is the spectacularly unique post-punky-reggae musician Ari Up (AKA Madussa, which was the name she used when performing dancehall reggae in the mid-2000s) we're talking about here (though it won't surprise anyone who's aware of Django's forays into contemporary reggae and has picked up the dancehall singles on Stubborn imprint Version City Records from Prince Alla, Johnny Osbourne, Pampidoo, and others). This single is trippy electro-dancehall--and while I'm no expert in this sub-genre, I know what I like and know that this is damn good.

"Forward" is a personal and political plea-cum-directive for sexual/romantic partners to cut the crap and posturing in favor of honesty, transparency, and trust (the not-so-subtle subtext is to practice safe sex and be tested for HIV): "Let's go forward/I tell you not reverse/Me check for you/but I must love you first/But for to love you/me have to know you/Just like you should love me and know me, too...Me must take time/and think twice/Rush into things/don't want to pay the price/The price me might pay might cost my life..." In other words, wrap that rascal (and know your status) or there's no action. Sound public health advice, indeed.

"Rescue Mission" seeks to save the citizens of Jamaica, Ari's adopted (and true) home country, from its nation's grinding poverty and dependence on America's foreign aid handouts (with its many thorny strings attached): "Prices going up and we going down/If we don't protest and make some sound/Soon there be no left around...We raise, we raise the whole of Jamaica/We grow, we grow/with everyone there-a/Resurrect the dead and kill the living/When them a hear this bad boy riddim!" Kingston calling for Occupy Jamaica almost a decade before it breaks out in NYC...

I'm not really going out on a limb with this, but it's worth stating the obvious: Ari Up was one of the truly fearless and boldly unique musicians and personalities in the punk and reggae scenes--and this single is terrific way to remember and honor her talent and legacy.