Upsetters

The Upsetters functioned for years as the core studio ensemble behind producer Lee "Scratch" Perry, contributing to many of reggae’s most celebrated releases, among them the Wailers’ earliest successes. Perry’s 1968 chart-topping single “The Upsetter” supplied both the group’s name and the title of his label, though the roster shifted constantly, drawing in whoever happened to be present when recording began; key Jamaican players who moved through the ranks included brothers Aston and Carlton Barrett along with Sly Dunbar, Glen Adams, Winston Wright, and Boris Gardiner. While they notched a few successes of their own, notably the 1969 track “Return of Django,” the ensemble’s lasting impact came from its supporting role on the Wailers’ late-1960s and early-1970s recordings, among them the landmark cuts “Duppy Conqueror,” “Small Axe,” and “Soul Rebel.”