Scratch was not crazy, says veteran producer

Veteran record producer, songwriter and entertainer, Winston 'Niney The Observer' Holness, has an encyclopaedia of stories about his 'bredren', Lee 'Scratch' Perry, the pioneering dub wizard who passed away last Sunday at the age of 85.

It is not unusual to see the word 'mad' hitched up somewhere near whenever Perry's name is mentioned, but Niney refutes the long-held belief about his friend's mental faculties.

"A long time me know him. Scratch nuh mad," Niney told THE STAR bluntly. "Him know everything what him a do. I am serious. Is a act. And him can't come outta the act, because the act did so real. I am serious."

He added, "Scratch is the 'Upsetter' and I am the 'Observer'. A mi bredren. Me, him and [singer] Maxie [Max] Romeo did have a group call Mutt Jeff and Turk. We do one song, Babylon Burning. Scratch tell me all the while to stop produce artiste, even Dennis Brown, 'cause Dennis Brown can't write like you'. At the time, me did like mek riddim, so me never go out deh."

As writers, the two collaborated on songs, the biggest of which was Wolf and Leopards, for which Niney took production credit only.

" Wolf and Leopards ... is me and Scratch write it. Scratch did get a car from a man name Reggie but everything never right, but Scratch never know. And when police a look for somebody, a Scratch dem hold on to. Anyway, little after the incident, we inna the studio and see some police a come and Scratch seh, 'See di wolf and leopard a come yah,' and me seh 'Why? Fi kill di sheep and shepherd?' Scratch seh 'Too much wagonist' and me seh 'Too much antagonist'. Scratch ask for a pen same time and go inna the bathroom and roll off the tissue. A tissue Wolf and Leopards write pon," Niney recalled.

At that time, Niney was producing Brown, who he wanted to "send out with an original tune", so he put Scratch and Brown's names as writers, even though "a one line Dennis put inna di tune".

Sharing that "is a lot of things me and Scratch go through", Niney recounted a fight between him and Bob Marley. He said that Scratch had told Marley that he had dubbed his song Duppy Conqueror but it wasn't so.

"So Bob go a studio and hear my song a play and grab it off the turntable and is so the fight start. Bunny, Peter [Tosh] and other man watch we a fight it out, until a yute get involved and stab me and I had to go hospital," he said. But all's well that ends well and Niney shared that "after that everybody turn back friend again".