Lee 'Scratch' Perry (centre) dripping with 'jing bangs', with promoter Worrell King (partly hidden left). At right is Perry's wife.

Show promoter Worrell King, whose annual 'celebration of the triumph of good over evil' looked tentative in the early evening last Saturday, must have been relieved when the torrential rains eased up and it became clear that his Western Consciousness show would go on.

Luckily for King, the rain also provided an easy scapegoat for massive production failures, which - like evil in the face of good - presented a real and ominous threat to the success of the show. In the end, talent, professionalism and passion for reggae music triumphed, and the few hundred people that braved the weather witnessed a show certainly worth getting muddy for.

For one, the opportunity to witness reggae genius Lee 'Scratch' Perry perform at home for the first time in over 30 years was priceless, even if his performance was hampered by the absence of his regular band.

"I had a programme but I don't know, maybe because of the rain, but I don't see my musicians, and I have to be playing with dem man here, but I don't know them," he mumbled between performances of his most successful creations including Inspector Gadget, Curly Locks, Duppy Conquerer and Small Axe.

Judy Mowatt, regal in white, delivered an impressive set.

Although Perry, with his trademark 'madman jing bangs' hanging off his person from head to toe, complained bitterly through his abbreviated set, it was in his final number that his true genius was revealed, a seven-minute presentation of the original version of Exodus, the song made famous by reggae icon Bob Marley.

Halfway through his performance, when the band arrived, King interrupted to allow a band change, as well as to present Scratch with a plaque to commemorate his long service to reggae music. In his response, Scratch was contrite, explaining to the audience how he managed to look and sound so good for a 70 year-old man.

"I did not come here to show off, I come here to bless you, so I sent the rain ahead of me. I'm sorry it spoil the show but I didn't have any other blessing, so I give you the rain," he said, his Swiss wife by his side. After collecting the award, Perry left the stage and did not return.

His performance was not the only one cut short. Most of the planned sets were curtailed because of the rain. It was almost four hours past the scheduled start time that MC Cordell Green began introducing the first acts, begging the sparse audience at the Llandilo Cultural Centre in Savannah-La-Mar to empathise with the light, sound and venue problems that delayed the show. A string of creditable performances from reggae's next generation kicked off the show, notable among them sets by Hawaiian songstress Irie Love, Mr Lucky You, Nanko, and Nateesha Stream, niece of former dancehall star Tiger, who energised the gathering with soulful renditions of popular R&B songs.

Former I-Three Judy Mowatt, who it was advertised would start the show, graced the stage at precisely 12:40 am, and in a sense, her performance did indeed start the show. Sister Judy, still one of the best female voices in Jamaican music, ran through just a taste of her catalogue, interspersing gospel songs like Thank You Lord and Ordinary Servant with roots faves like Black Woman, all the time gathering the accolades befitting an artiste of her standing.

A most forgettable performance by Iley Dread proved hard on the ears, but thankfully, Rising Stars winner Chris Martin who followed offered the total opposite. Martin was spot on with his selections and his pitch and range proved why he won, but left one wondering when he will focus more on original material.

John Holt, Jimmy Riley and Tarrus Riley provided a lesson in contrasts - their talent and professionalism versus the utter ineptitude of the backing band.

Besides playing totally wrong bass lines, SANE couldn't keep simple beats consistently, visibly annoying Holt to the point where he cut some of his best songs short. (How is it that any reggae band can get the music to Tribal War wrong?)

Reggae music fans were then treated to two solid hours of some of reggae music's best as singers Richie Spice, Barrington Levy, and Freddie McGregor followed in quick succession, all delivering top-notch sets. McGregor's set was a case study in how to give people their money's worth. He sang 11 songs, 'preached' very little (as today's singers like I-Wayne are wont to do), and needed no distraction like a flagman to keep the crowd interested. When he left the stage dripping with sweat, the small crowd could do nothing but beg for more.

They didn't get it, nor did they get to see Jah Mason, Admiral Tibet or the 'fiyaman' Capleton, the promoters being bound by their word to switch off all sound by 6:00 am, extended from 4:00 am due to the late start.

The rising of the Westmoreland sun brought Fanton Mojah to the stage legitimately, unlike last year when his unscheduled appearance and inappropriate performance caused a premature end. Screaming incoherently and prancing barefooted across the stage, Mojah energised the slumbering 'massive' but was roundly unimpressive with the quality of his set.

In the end it was Perfect. He closed the show, perhaps unintentionally, walking offstage to cheers and screams at 5:59 am, capping a night of largely great performances delivered against the mounting odds.

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