Information/Write-up
Chief Dan George, Co-Salish Tribe
Arliene Nofchissey Williams, Navajo
Rick Brosseau, Mohawk/ Iriquois
Fred Carter, Jr.: acoustic guitar (6 and 12 string)
Billy Williams: acoustic rhythm guitar, fills
Tony Migliore: piano
Steve Schaffer: bass
Jim Wolfe: drums
Joe Corral: flute
Cathy Bowen Strings: strings
Background vocals by Lea Jane Berinati Singers: Lea Jane Berinati, Duane West, Tom Brannon.
Indian singing and effects by John Rainer, Carnes Burson.
Indian children singers: Alan D. Williams, Angela Williams, ShannaMay Williams, Kimberly Williams (Navajo/Comanche), Carol Mason (Navajo/Sioux), Dollie Dosela, Kimball Dosela (San Carlos Apache).
Produced by Stan Bronson. An Elppa Rednet Production.
Recorded at Fred Carter, Jr. Recording Studios, Nashville, Tennessee.
Arranged by Billy Williams and Stan Bronson.
Strings arranged and conducted by Billy Williams.
Narratives and special effects recorded at Osmond’s Kolob Recording Studios, Provo, Utah. Engineered by Jon Hollaman.
Sixteen track mix at Soundtech Recording Studio, Phoenix, Arizona. Engineered by Billy Williams. Technician: Jim Waldon. Narrative edit: Tracy Jorgensen.
Cover design by Ralph Reynolds. Cover photography by Brian Kelly, Ted Van Horn, Wallace Barrus.
Production advisors: Grant Williams, Brian K. Kelly, Mary Ann Bronson, Thomas Aust, Richard A. Bickerton.
Album title Proud Earth conceived by Mary Ann Bronson. Sponsored by Utah Navajo Development Council Arts and Crafts Media.
Side 1
Chief's Lament
[Arliene Nofchissey Williams]
Rhymes and Reasons
[John Denver]
Kindred Spirit
[Allen and Leonie Hunt]
Here Is Heaven, Here Is Home
[Allen and Leonie Hunt]
Moentimmi
[Arliene Nofchissey Williams]
Side 2
Proud Earth (The Song of the People)
[Arliene Nofchissey Williams]
Canyons
[Stan Bronson]
Spring (from "Season Suite")
[John Denver, Mike Taylor, Dick Kniss]
The Eagle and The Hawk
[John Denver and Mike Taylor]
Mountain Air
[Allen and Leonie Hunt]
SIDE 1
CHIEF'S LAMENT (BMI 2:58)
(Arliene Nofchissey Williams)
Chief Dan George - narrative
Arliene Nofchissey Williams - vocal
Come not near my song
You who are not at peace
Lest from pain comes hate
I cry for my people
There is no more Buffalo
I cry for the Eagle
His wings they heal very slow
Come not near my song
You who know not love
Lest from guilt leaps shame
I cry from the mountain
I cry from the plain
I cry when its sunshine
I cry when it rains
I cry for all the brave men
Who died fighting for this land
Oh why! Why don't these wars
"The Children and the Flowers Are My Sisters and My Brothers"
(John Denver)
Chief Dan George - narrative
RHYMES AND REASONS
(John Denver)
Rick Brosseau - vocal
So you speak to me of sadness and the coming of the winter
The fear that is within you now that seems to never end
And the dreams that have escaped you, and the hope that you've forgotten
And you tell me that you need me now, and you want to be my friend
And you wonder where we're going, where's the Rhyme and where's the Reason
And it's you cannot accept
Arliene Nofchissey Williams - vocal
The beat of my heart is kept alive in my drum
And my plight echoes in the canyons, the meadows, the plains
And my laughter runs free with the deer
And my tears fall with the rain
But my soul knows no pain
I am one with nature
Mother Earth is at my feet
And my God is up above me
And I'll sing the song, the song of my people
Come with me, take my hand, come alive with my chant
For my life already knows wisdom, balance, and beauty
Let your heart be free from fear
And your joy meet with mine
For the peace we can find
We are one with nature
Mother Earth is at our feet
And our God is up above us
And we'll sing the song, the song of the people
And we'll sing the song, the song of the people
"When the new morning begins (52)
And light breathes the color of life into the rocks, the sand, the canyons
Is the sun satisfied?
Yes
It is good
It is as it should be
Man, since his beginning, has searched for answers
Is man satisfied?
No
That is good
It is as it should be
He will find his answer"
(Arliene Nofchissey Williams) Chief Dan George - narrative
CANYONS
(Stan Bronson)
Rick Brosseau - vocal
Arliene Nofchissey Williams - vocal
Painted stone and sand reaching forth forever
Frame a desert sky
Wider than the mind, canyons echo mysteries
In tunes of sight
Voice as old as time
I wonder now
Does sun above take rest when he goes down at night
Fingers painted gold raised to prove the sun still lives
Tho gone from sight
Canyons made of stone, but still the wind
Will echo forth their sigh
Voice as old as time
I wonder now
Do canyons still live on when darkness steals the light
Moon above the wall, looking down on shadows
Painted cool and black
Beauty in itself, no one cries for sun
To give the color back
Voice as old as time
I wonder—
"Man is reflected in the Seasons The Great Spirit made it so"
(Arliene Nofchissey Williams)
Chief Dan George - Narrative
SPRING
(From “Season Suite”)
(John Denver, Mike Taylor, Dick Kniss)
Arliene Nofchissey Williams - vocal
Open up your eyes and see the brand new day
A clear blue sky and brightly shining sun
Open up your ears and hear the breezes say
Everything that’s cold and gray is gone
Open up your hands and feel the rain come down
Taste the wind and smell the flowers’ sweet perfume
Open up your mind and let the light come in
The earth has been reborn and life goes on
Do you care what's happening around you
Do your senses know the changes when they come
Can you see yourself reflected in the seasons
Can you understand the need to carry on
Riding on the tapestry of all there is to see
So many ways and oh so many things
Rejoicing in the differences, there's no one just like me
Yet as different as we are we're still the same
And oh! Love the life within me
I feel a part of everything I see
And oh! Love the life around me
A part of everything is here in me
THE EAGLE AND THE HAWK
(John Denver and Mike Taylor)
Chief Dan George - Narrative
Rick Brosseau - vocal
"I am the Eagle, I live in high country
In rocky cathedrals that reach to the sky
I am the Hawk and there's blood on my feathers
But time is still turning, they soon will be dry
And all those who see me, and all who believe in me
Share in the freedom I feel when I fly"
Come dance with the West wind and touch on the mountain tops
Sail o'er the canyons and up to the sky
And reach for the heavens, and hope for the future
And all that we can be, and not what we are
"You can have your lofty mansions in their gardens of cement
Keep your daily dose of nature in a jar
But for me! I'll take the free land, just the way God let it lie
And I'll breathe the Mountain Air till the day I die"
(Allen and Leonie Hunt)
Chief Dan George - narrative
MOUNTAIN AIR
(Allen Leonie Hunt)
Arliene Nofchissey Williams - vocal
Walking through the canyons with the sun warm at my back
Feeling like I'm walking through a dream I had a long long time ago
‘Bout a place where there were blue skies and the grass was really green
A place some people stop believing in because they never find it so
You can have your city freeways, you can have your fancy stores
You can have your own community back yards
But for me! I'll take the free land, just the way God let it lie
And I'll breathe the Mountain Air till the day I die
Breathing in the shadows of a million fragrant pine
Floating through the diamonds in a meadow where the sun has found the dew
Friendly with a young doe as she lifts her head to see
Pausing in the timeless task that will the doe and fawn somewhere renew
You can have your dim-lit night clubs with their artificial joy
You can keep your penthouse on Fifth Avenue
But for me I'll take the free land, just the way God let it lie
And I'll breathe the Mountain Air till the day I die
See the birth of twilight as she creeps across the sky
Echoing the fading of the night that went before the morning dawn
Can you feel the peace in being where all living things are one
Melody and harmony, a symphony of Eden here and gone!
You can have your lofty mansions in their gardens of cement
Keep your daily dose of nature in a jar
But for me I'll take the free land just the way God let it lie
And I'll breathe the Mountain Air till the day I die
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