Rating:
Genre:
Reggae
Release Date: 09/18/2001
In the late '70s and early '80s, the legendary
reggae producer
Lee "Scratch" Perry left his longtime studio band,
the Upsetters, behind and traveled extensively in the U.S. and U.K., hooking up with various ensembles for brief (and often tumultuous) periods. He forged one such brief partnership with a white New York
punk-reggae band called
the Terrorists; their project produced a number of live performances and one 12" single, both sides of which are presented here:
"Love Is Better" and
" Guerrilla Priest" (a
dub version featuring typically disjointed toasting by
Perry). The rest of the band's work collected here is of uneven quality, though it is sometimes inspired. There are some excellent examples of homespun
dub, such as
"Anittoo" and the
Clash-influenced
"Drainidge." There is also an interesting rendition of the
roots classic
"Fade Away," about which the best that can be said is that
Ray de Angel is no worse a singer than
Ari Up.
Ska legend
Roland Alphonso guests on saxophone on several tracks, but is frankly not at his best. Overall, this is a useful document of an important
punk-reggae phenomenon, but not necessarily an essential purchase for most
reggae fans.
~Rick Anderson, All Music Guide
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