Scientist
One of the leading dub artists of the '80s, Scientist was one of the most distinctive figures on the Jamaican music scene, known for his spacious production and mixing techniques as well as his wild album titles and cover artwork. Scientist's LPs found him using his skills at the mixing board to combat monsters, mythic villains, and video game characters. Scientist was born Overton Brown in Kingston on April 18, 1960. Brown was only 16 years old when producer/performer Errol "Don" Mais discovered and developed the considerable talents of this adolescent dub wiz.
Scientist learned basic electronics from his TV repairman father, skills that made him very popular with the mobile DJs and their not-always-functioning sound systems. A friend suggested he visit the legendary dub producer/mixer King Tubby, not to remix records, but to get some transformers with which Scientist could build his own amplifiers. Soon Scientist was an employee of Tubby's, fixing transformers and televisions. One day, after an animated conversation about mixing records, Tubby challenged Scientist to take a shot at remixing a record. Brimming with adolescent bravado, he took Tubby up on his challenge, and that led to an extended apprenticeship in dub experimentation under Tubby's guidance. It was while at Tubby's that the Scientist developed his idiosyncratic dub style, playful and very psychedelic, loaded with echo explosions and blasts of feedback -- a sound that caught the attention of Don Mais, who overheard the Scientist at the mixing board during a visit to Tubby's studio. With Mais supervising the production, Scientist, now all of 18, cut some wicked dub sides for the Roots Tradition label. At the end of the '70s, Scientist (now also referred to as "The Dub Chemist") left Tubby's to become the main engineer at Channel One Studios, and working with Henry "Junjo" Lawes, cut some best-selling dub LPs, only to leave for the greener pastures of Tuff Gong in 1982. In 1985, Scientist moved to Silver Springs, Maryland, where he worked as a recording engineer, designed electronics, and continued to record and release new dub material. In the 21st century, he took up a crusade to defend his rights as a recording artist and receive royalty payments for his work. Scientist filed suit against Greensleeves Records, insisting they had licensed and reissued his music without permission or payment; he also took the creators of the video game Grand Theft Auto to court for using some of his tracks as background music without asking his consent. Scientist's studio work and efforts to protect his catalog didn't keep him from creating new music; in 2017, he released two new albums, Untouchable and Allied Dub Selection.
© John Dougan /TiVo
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Burning Down Meets Scientist (Dub Mix 1)
Dub - Released by Sukanya Records on 25 Nov 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Fishes
Ska & Rocksteady - Released by 5683755 Records DK on 7 Oct 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kevin Barry
Ska & Rocksteady - Released by Dubiterian Records on 17 Mar 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Lost Stars of Draco (Scientist Dub)
AF13, Mitchell Yoshida, Scientist
Ska & Rocksteady - Released by Alien Dream Group on 20 Mar 2024
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Belly (feat. Empress Truth Akins)
Ska & Rocksteady - Released by 5683755 Records DK on 1 Feb 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Lead Me the Way To
Alternative & Indie - Released by 5683755 Records DK on 16 Mar 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
KHUFU
Ska & Rocksteady - Released by 5683755 Records DK on 16 Apr 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wadi Gad Meets Scientist: Dub Music
Dub - Released by D Rebell Productions - Shayegan on 10 May 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wadi Gad Meets Scientist: Reggae Music
Dub - Released by D Rebell Productions - Shayegan on 3 May 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rids the World of the Evil Curse of the Vampires (HD Remastered)
Vocal Jazz - Released by Reborn recordings on 17 Dec 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Heavyweight Dub Champion (HD Remastered)
Vocal Jazz - Released by Reborn recordings on 17 Dec 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Big Showdown (HD Remastered)
Vocal Jazz - Released by Reborn recordings on 14 Dec 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dub Landing (HD Remastered)
Vocal Jazz - Released by Reborn recordings on 17 Dec 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Scientist Meets the Space Invaders (HD Remastered)
Vocal Jazz - Released by Reborn recordings on 17 Dec 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Encounters Pac-Man at Channel One (HD Remastered)
Vocal Jazz - Released by Reborn recordings on 17 Dec 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
In Dub, Vol. 1 (HD Remastered)
Vocal Jazz - Released by Reborn recordings on 17 Dec 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Untouchable (HD Remastered)
Vocal Jazz - Released by Reborn recordings on 17 Dec 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo