It was 33 years ago today…
They almost put Macca away!
Do you remember what a huge thing this was at the time?
This, of course, was not Paul’s first rodeo: he had been busted a handful of times, but he later admitted it was not his finest hour, thinking he could bring that much weed through customs. According to the man himself, he kept the mood light by orchestrating some impromptu sing-alongs with the other inmates. Can you imagine if footage of that existed?
Fortunately, the powers that be in Japan went easy on him. There was also considerable support amongst his peers and in the press. Macca was, and remains, a national treasure after all, and we can’t have our national treasures rotting in prison over some pot. Perhaps the most unlikely (though, in hindsight and upon closer analysis, most natural) ally arose from sunny Jamaica: Lee “Scratch” Perry, dub master and ganja enthusiast, took pen to paper on behalf of Macca.
The most excellent site, Letters of Note, has this historic missive preserved, HERE.
I first read this too-good-to-be-true missive when I acquired Perry’s EPIC 3-disc collection Arkology (used copies going cheap at Amazon here), and it was included in the generous liner notes.
There is a lot I could say here, but…what can I say?
This is the Upsetta. Lee Perry is an uber-original, there has never been anyone remotely like him.
(A bit more about this maestro, his history and influence, HERE.)
