"Run for Cover" is a 1967

rocksteady Rocksteady is a music genre that originated in Jamaica around 1966. A successor of ska and a precursor to reggae, rocksteady was the dominant style of music in Jamaica for nearly two years, performed by many of the artists who helped establish ...

and

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

single by

Lee "Scratch" Perry Lee "Scratch" Perry (born Rainford Hugh Perry; 20 March 1936 – 29 August 2021) was a Jamaican record producer, songwriter and singer noted for his innovative studio techniques and production style. Perry was a pioneer in the 1970s development ...

, credited as Lee "King" Perry. The recording featured Perry, his band, Lynn Taitt on guitar and The Sensations as backing singers. It was recorded at Clifford Rae's WIRL studio and appeared on the WIRL record label in Jamaica, then in the UK on Graeme Woodall's

Doctor Bird (label) Doctor Bird (founded 1965) was a British and Jamaican record label named after the Jamaican doctor bird. It was founded by Graeme Goodall after his break from Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Univers ...

(DB 1073), both pressings with "Something You've Got" on the B-side. It was one of the first reggae singles to have two versions, with Perry recording an instrumental version as an alternative B-side. The lyrics of "Run for Cover" had a thinly concealed subtext attacking Perry's previous employer Clement Dodd (Sir Coxsone), a theme shared with his song " The Upsetter" and even the instrumental " Return of Django". The original version is on several compilation albums, both of Perry's songs and reggae classics, but the song did not receive a full album release until a version appeared on Perry's album ''Revelation'' (2010). The Wailers also released a song titled "Run for Cover" - their first release on

Tuff Gong Tuff Gong is the brand name associated with a number of businesses started by Bob Marley and the Marley family. 'Tuff Gong' comes from Marley's nickname, which was in turn an echo of that given to founder of the Rastafari movement, Leonard "T ...

- but this was based on Lee Perry and Marley's " Soul Rebel", not on Perry's "Run for Cover".Katz, ''People Funny Boy'', p. 116: "Shortly after the success of 'Duppy Conqueror,' Perry and the Wailers scored another hit with 'Soul Rebel,' ... The Wailers later issued alternate versions of the song with entirely different lyrics as 'Run For Cover,' which surfaced on ..."

References

{{reflist 1967 songs Songs written by Lee "Scratch" Perry Diss tracks