Clarence Ewing: The Million Year Trip writesFriday MP3 Shuffle – Happy Birthday Lee “Scratch” Perry Edition

He didn’t invent Reggae or Dub by himself, but from the fundamental influence he had on the music of his homeland of Jamaica and the world at large, he might as well have. If you’re at all familiar with the unique grooves that poured from the Caribbean islands, chances are you’ve heard Perry’s work. He was a creative force of nature who worked in a truly independent spirit, starting out with Studio One, "The Motown of Jamaica," then building the legendary Black Art studio in his back yard only to burn it down when he could no longer stand the trifling interference of lesser minds (that story may not be true, but it’s too good not to be, so let’s just say it is).

Celebrate the arrival of Spring and the birthday of the ultimate Upsetter by taking your MP3 player, pushing the “shuffle” button, and sharing the first 10 songs that come up:

1. “I’m Official [Squada B]” by Clams Casino (Instrumental Mixtape) – The missing link between Hip-Hop and Ambient. I remember seeing him on a rainy evening at Pitchfork. The hazy weather was an excellent backdrop for his deep grooves.

2. “Theft, and Wandering Around Lost” by Cocteau Twins (Four-Calendar Café) – To me, every song this band did sounds special and like there's some kind of story behind each one.

3. “Inside the Devil” by Nosferatu (Gothic Rock) – A compilation of tracks recorded when “Goth” wasn’t nearly the punchline it seems to be nowadays. This song actually sounds a lot like something Judas Priest might have opened with once upon a time.

4. “Just out of Reach” by Delight (The Quill Records Story) – Some tasty '60s garage rock recorded by long-gone Chicago studio Quill Records, and remastered for modern-day release.

5. “Lissie’s Heart Murmur” by Warpaint (The Fool) – The last track from the band's breakthrough album. The band maintains a nicely shimmering, watery sound throughout the record, and ends it on a gently meditative note.

6. “Wide Lovely Eyes” by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (Push the Sky Away) – What a voice. This was one of the more well-regarded albums on CHIRP when it was a released in 2013.

7. “Last Night I Dreamt Somebody Loved Me” by The Smiths (Strangeways, Here We Come) – Side B of Strangeways starts with 2 minutes of what sounds like a recording of a riot, leading into one of the slower and louder Smiths tracks. Great song to have on hand if it's 3:00am and all hope is lost.

8. ”I’ll Get You (feat. Jeppe)” by Classixx (Hanging Gardens) – What makes Classixx great is that they are dance music, nothing more or less.

9. “Pleasure” by Spandau Ballet (True) - A quick dip into the '80s New Romanic pool courtesy of Tony Hadley & Co. They were a band very much of their time, if that makes any sense. Would their Armani suits, exotic video locales, and earnest love ballads play in 2015? The irony police wouldn't tolerate it.

10. “Love” by Soul Merchants (1985-1987) - A very good band out of Denver that seemed to emerge fully-formed, then vanish. This compilation has some excellent tracks with a definite Goth influence – "Save My Soul" is now one of my favorite Halloween songs. One of the pleasures of volunteering with CHIRP Radio is finding music like this.

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