Build the Ark cover
Recorded
1970-1979
Released

This was one of several two-CD sets that were put together around the turn of the 1990s by the Trojan label, pulling together singles produced in the infamous Black Ark studio by the even-more-infamous producer Lee “Scratch” Perry. Featuring artists like Sharon Isaacs, the Meditations, Eric Donaldson, and the Congos, Build the Ark paired each song with its dub version, thus simultaneously showcasing both the quality of artists that were drawn to Perry’s studio during its 1970s heyday, but also Perry’s own groundbreaking — not to say utterly insane — style of remixing. Perry’s influence on reggae and on pop music generally has been both deep and broad, and this compilation is an ideal introduction to his art.

Rick Anderson

Recommended by

Suggestions
Open the Gate cover

Open the Gate

Lee "Scratch" Perry
Y in Dub cover

Y in Dub

Dennis Bovell, The Pop Group
El Rocker’s cover

El Rocker’s

Augustus Pablo
Super Ape Inna Jungle cover

Super Ape Inna Jungle

Douggie Digital, Juggler, Mad Professor, Lee "Scratch" Perry
On All Frequencies cover

On All Frequencies

Subatomic Sound System
African Dub All-Mighty, Chapter 3 cover

African Dub All-Mighty, Chapter 3

Joe Gibbs & The Professionals
From Zero cover

From Zero

Indubious
Meditation cover

Meditation

Nazarenes