For those not in the know, The Upsetters was the name given to the house band for Jamaican reggae producer Lee "Scratch" Perry.

The name of the band comes from Perry's nickname of Upsetter, after his song 'I Am The Upsetter', a musical dismissal of his former boss Coxsone Dodd.

The Upsetters were originally Gladdy's All-Stars, led by pianist Gladstone Anderson and it was they who originally recorded the international hits 'Live Injection' and 'Return of Django'.

The double A-side release of 'Return of Django' / 'Dollar in the Teeth' actually peaked at #5 in the UK Singles Chart in November 1969.

When other commitments prevented the All Stars from participating another band named The Hippy Boys were recruited to do the subsequent tour in the United Kingdom.

This line-up remained the studio band that is most associated with the name, going on to eventually form the nucleus of Bob Marley's backing band The Wailers.

The band included guitarist Alva Lewis, organist Glen Adams and brothers Aston "Family Man" Barrett and Carlton Barrett, on bass guitar and drums respectively.

Under Lee "Scratch" Perry's direction, the band backed Bob Marley on a full-time basis, especially with his 1969 groundbreaking works Soul Rebels and Soul Revolution.

By 1972 the Barrett brothers had joined The Wailers and Scratch brought in other musicians to replace them.

At that time the main Black Ark Upsetters became Boris Gardiner (bass), Mikey Richards, Sly Dunbar, Benbow Creary (drums), Earl "Chinna" Smith (guitar), Winston Wright (keyboards) and Keith Sterling (keyboards).

Just released via Sanctuary Records / Cherry Red Records UK is a 2CD set that includes two of the most collectable Lee "Scratch" Perry LPs of all time: Clint Eastwood and Many Moods Of 'The Upsetters'.

In 1969, Pama Records issued Clint Eastwood, a 12 track LP comprising a dozen sides from the producer’s recent catalogue, the majority of which had seen issue in the UK over the previous months as 7” singles on the company’s Camel and Punch subsidiary labels.

Disc One: Clint Eastwood
1. 'RETURN OF THE UGLY' – The Upsetters
2. 'FOR A FEW DOLLARS MORE' – The Upsetters
3. 'PRISONER OF LOVE' – Dave Barker
4. 'DRY ACID' – Cool Sticky & The Upsetters
5. 'RIGHTFUL RULER' – U Roy
6. 'CLINT EASTWOOD' – The Upsetters
7. 'TASTE OF KILLING' – The Upsetters
8. 'SELASSIE' – Reggae Boys
9. 'WHAT IS THIS' – The Reggae Boys
10. 'AIN’T NO LOVE' – The Reggae Boys
11. 'MY MOB' – The Upsetters
12. 'I’VE CAUGHT YOU' – Cool Sticky & The Upsetters
Bonus Tracks
13. 'DOWN IN THE PARK' – The Inspirations
14. 'STRANGE WHISPERINGS' – The West Indians
15. 'HARD TO HANDLE' – Carl Dawkins
16. 'NOT ME' – The Ethiopians
17. 'FACTS OF LIFE' – The Mellotones
18. 'CAN’T GET NO PEACE' – Monty Morris
19. 'FREEDOM TRAIN' – Ernest Wilson
20. 'I’LL BE WAITING' – The Termites
21. 'ANYWAY' – Lloyd Douglas
22. 'LOVE OH LOVE' – The Inspirations
23. 'BROKEN HEART' – Busty Brown
24. 'CUT DOWN ON YOUR SPEED' – The Ethiopians

Kicking things off in style, and as a precursor to the what was to come, the sweet smooth soul reggae vibe of 'Return Of The Ugly' is still such a joyous track to behold.

One of Perry's greatest productions comes next in the form of the rude boy stance 'For A Few Dollars More' and that's backed by both the cool soul slide of 'Prisoner Of Love' (Dave Barker) and the skinhead shuffle of 'Dry Acid' (Cool Sticky & The Upsetters).

The soulful preaching of U Roy's 'Rightful Ruler' is a nice touch as is hearing Perry on cowbells for the title track, to be honest. The suede head styling of 'Taste Of Killing' is next and is followed by one of my own personal favorites, 'Selassie' from The Reggae Boys.

Next up is the brilliant 'What Is This' and the lush 'Ain't No Love' (both from The Reggae Boys), with the original album rounding out with the reggae bounce of 'My Mob' (The Upsetters) and the wicked tune 'I've Caught You' from Cool Sticky & The Upsetters.

The bonus tracks start with 'Down In The Park' (The Inspirations), a track that still sounds vibrant and fresh today, and is then followed by both the ska of 'Strange Whisperings' (The West Indians) and an ace version of 'Hard To Handle' from Carl Dawkins.

The skinhead shuffle is in full effect on 'Not Me' from The Ethiopians and that's backed by addictive highflying spirit of The Mellotones' 'Facts Of Life,' the upbeat 'Can't Get No Peace' (Monty Morris), and both the delicious 'Freedom Train' (Ernest Wilson, although it was actually first recorded by James Carr on Goldwax Records) and the massive The Termites hit 'I’ll Be Waiting.'

This first disc then comes to a close with 'Anyway' from Lloyd Douglas (and was the B-side to David Isaacs' 'Can't Take It Anymore'), the stunning vibes of ''Love Oh Love' (The Inspirations), and then both the soulful preaching of Busty Brown on 'Broken Heart' and the ruff riders vibe on 'Cut Down On Your Speed' from The Ethiopians.

With that aforementioned album proving to be an instant best-seller, Pama needed little incentive to release a second collection of Perry’s work and the following year issued The Many Moods Of 'The Upsetters'; a similarly styled collection, featuring a mix of instrumental and vocal material.

Disc Two: Many Moods Of 'The Upsetters'
1. 'EXRAY VISION' – The Upsetters
2. '(‘TIL) CAN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE' – David Isaacs
3. 'SOUL STEW' – The Upsetters
4. 'LOW LIGHTS' – The Upsetters
5. 'CLOUD NINE' – Carl Dawkins
6. 'BEWARE FADE' – The Upsetters
7. 'SERIOUS JOKE' – The Upsetters
8. 'GOOSY' – Pat Satchmo
9. 'PROVE IT' – The Upsetters
10. 'BOSS SOCIETY' – Pat Satchmo
11. 'MEAN AND DANGEROUS' – The Upsetters
12. 'GAMES PEOPLE PLAY' – The Upsetters
Bonus Tracks
13. 'HIT ME BACK' – Dave Barker & The Upsetters
14. 'TRIBUTE TO A KING' – Busty Brown
15. 'LENNOX MOOD' – Lennox Brown & Upsetters
16. 'YOU BETRAY ME' – Dave Barker & The Upsetters
17. 'NEVER GET AWAY' – The West Indians
18. 'FEEL THE SPIRIT' – The Upsetters
19. 'SOUL JUICE' – Busty Brown & The Upsetters
20. 'WILL YOU STILL LOVE ME' – Dave Barker & The Upsetters
21. 'RAM YOU HARD' – The Bleechers
22. 'HELLO DOLLY' – Pat Satchmo
23. 'THE RESULT' – The Upsetters
24. 'SHOCKS OF MIGHTY' – Dave Barker & The Upsetters

This second disc begins with the tight and classy 'Exray Vision' from The Upsetters which is backed seamlessly by David Isaacs' big quality tune 'Til I Can't Take It Anymore,' and a soulful organ-enhanced duo from The Upsetters in the form of 'Soul Stew' and 'Low Lights.'

The irie Carl Dawkins pops in with the low funk sound of 'Cloud Nine' with The Upsetters back for another couple adding both 'Beware Fade' and 'Serious Joke' (although I can't stand that constant "clicking" throughout the song, sorry!)

The deep-throated 'Goosy' from Pat Satchmo is up next and is backed by the gentle, yet playful bounce of 'Prove It' (The Upsetters) before Satchmo is back again on 'Boss Society' (complete with a trumpet that sounds like an elephant throughout it!)

The original album then rounds out with two more from The Upsetters in the shape of 'Mean And Dangerous' and the old school steel drums of 'Games People Play.'

The bonus tracks included start off with 'Hit Me Back' from Dave Barker & The Upsetters and that's followed by the laid back testifying ska of 'Tribute To A King' (Busty Brown), the sax-heavy beauty 'Lennox Mood' from Lennox Brown & Upsetters (the B-side of The Upsetters' 'Clint Eastwood'), and then the dancefloor swagger of 'You Betray Me' from Dave Barker & The Upsetters.

As we head into the final curve we get the rapid reggae vibe of 'Never Get Away' from The West Indians, with a trio following along thereafter from The Upsetters in the form of the playful horn bounce of 'Feel The Spirit,' the feisty chant of 'Soul Juice' (with Busty Brown), and then 'Wil You Still Love Me' (with Dave Barker).

The second disc then comes to a close with the boss groove of 'Ram You Hard' from The Bleechers, the immense 'Hello Dolly' from Pat Satchmo (which is a turnabout take on what you expect it to be!), the window's down on a hot summer's day vibe of 'The Result', and then finally the loud and proud 'Shocks Of Mighty' from Dave Barker & The Upsetters.

Both of these best-selling albums feature on this must-have 2CD set that also includes all of the producer’s work released in the UK by Pama and Doctor Bird Records between 1969 and early 1970 – their number including a handful of tracks previously unavailable on CD.

This is an essential purchase for all fans of the musical genius that is Lee "Scratch" Perry and followers of the immensely popular boss reggae sound.

Official CD Purchase Link

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