Bunny Lee

Edward O'Sullivan Lee OD (23 August 1941 – 6 October 2020), better known as Bunny "Striker" Lee, was a Jamaican record producer. He was known as a pioneer of the United Kingdom reggae market, licensing his productions to Trojan Records in the early 1970s, and later working with Lee "Scratch" Perry and King Tubby.

Early life Bunny Lee was born on 23 August 1941 and grew up in the Greenwich Farm area of Kingston, where his father was a shoemaker.

Career Lee began his career working as a record plugger for Duke Reid's Treasure Isle label in 1962, later performing the same duties for Leslie Kong. He then moved on to work with Ken Lack, initially in an administrative role, before taking on engineering duties. Lee then moved into producing (i.e. financing) records himself, his first hit record coming with Roy Shirley's "Music Field" on WIRL in 1967. Lee then set up his own Lee's label, the first release being Lloyd Jackson's "Listen to the Beat".

Lee was instrumental in producing early dub music, working with his friend and dub pioneer King Tubby in the early 1970s. Lee and Tubby were experimenting with new production techniques which Lee described as "implements of sound." Working with equipment that today would be considered primitive and limiting, they produced tracks that consisted of mostly the rhythm parts mixed with distorted or altered versions of a song. With all the bass and drum ting now, dem ting just start by accident, a man sing off key, an when you a reach a dat you drop out everything an leave the drum, an lick in the bass, an cause a confusion an people like it...

Lee encouraged Tubby to mix increasingly wild dubs, sometimes including sound effects such as thunder claps and gunshots. In addition to King Tubby, dub mixers Prince Jammy and Philip Smart also worked extensively on Lee's productions, with most of Lee's dubs from 1976 onwards mixed by Jammy.

In March 2020, Lee produced his last dub for the project "Sly & Robbie vs Roots Radics: 'The Dub Battle'". The song was "Dub My Mind" by Sly & Robbie feat. the Mighty Diamonds. https://dubblog.de/en/sly-robbie-vs-roots-radics-the-dub-battle/

Recognition In 1982 an episode of the Channel 4 documentary series Deep Roots was dedicated to Lee. Filmed in the control room of King Tubby's studio, it included a lengthy conversation with him and some of the musicians he has worked with over the years including Delroy Wilson, Johnny Clarke, Prince Jazzbo and Jackie Edwards. It then shows Lee producing a dub while Prince Jammy mixes. The program was released on DVD in January 2008.

In 2008 he was awarded the Order of Distinction by the Jamaican Government in recognition of his contribution to Jamaican music.

Personal life Lee had one son, Errol Lee (born 1968), with singer Marlene Webber. Errol was believed to be running a non-profit organisation, Caring Kids' Concerts, which mentors young people using music, as of October 2020.

At the time of Lee's death, his wife was Annette Wong-Lee, mother to four of his children: two sons, Edward Jr. and Kirk, and two daughters, Toni Ann and Bonnie Lee.

Death Lee died at the age of 79 from heart failure on 6 October 2020. He had been suffering from several health issues, including kidney problems relating to diabetes, for some time.