Upsetters, The
Double Seven
"Double Seven, released by Trojan in late 1973, was the last album Lee Scratch Perry would release on the label for some considerable time, and it was essentially the final album project he put together before establishing his own Black Ark studio. Opening track Kentucky Skank sets the tone with a slow creeper whose frying sounds underscore its role as a praise song to the Colonels KFC recipes; the cosmic Moog blips come courtesy of Ken Elliott at Camdens Chalk Farm studio, also prominently featured on U-Roys double-tracked, stereo-panned gambling ode Double Six. David Isaacs Just Enough was cut a few years prior, which makes it slightly out of phase with the rest of the set, though the enigmatic In The Iaah sounds mightily fresh, with its uncredited chorus said to come courtesy of the Wailers. Perrys own Jungle Lion has hilarious roars from the maestro at the start, strangely grafted atop a reggae re-make of Al Greens Love and Happiness. "Overall, Double Seven melds the soul, funk, reggae and dub elements that were constant in Perrys work during this phase. His enhanced audio spectrum and endless reference points would keep his music continually apart from that made by his peers." -David Katz (excerpt from the liner notes)