I Didn't Know
Native North America (Vol. 1): Aboriginal Folk, Rock, and Country 1966–1985
In the fall of 2013, back when I was but a wee babe and new to the SS LITA crew, Matt asked me to proofread some liner notes for a project that was in the pipeline. What he didn’t tell me was that these liner notes were more of a short novella than a traditional essay. He also neglected to tell me how the music would blow my mind and change my life, completely turning me onto a special slice of 1960s-1980s folk/rock/country unlike anything I’d heard. It was raw and moving, somehow both foreign and familiar. The more I read, the more I learned about the musical influences and sociopolitical landscape that informed these songs. Proofing the lengthy booklet appx. 900 times also helped burn the cultural history of our Indigenous neighbors to the north into my heart, eardrums, and mind’s eye, ensuring I would never forget this release.
Early on, I realized that this wasn’t a “regular job.” Thinking back to all the random tasks associated with bringing this release across the finish line, my mind jumps to one afternoon when I had to shut myself in the old promos closet at the LA office in order to be able to hear the ever-so-faint and faraway voice of one of the artists from the comp. I can’t recall which artist it was or why I needed to call him (was it royalty payment info? was it photo licensing?), but what has stayed with me is the softest, kindest, most fragile voice on the other end of the line, sounding like we were talking through tin cans, the crackling, community center phone line forcing you to strain with your ears to decode the words barely whispered across so many miles. It put our stark lifestyle difference into clear perspective from my step stool in a closet in Los Angeles, iPhone in hand.
This week, as you revel in family, friends, & food, let’s not forget whose land we’re on. I write to you from the traditional lands of the Skaruhreh/Tuscarora people, situated along the banks of the Tar River, originally named “Taw” by the Tuscarora, or “river of health.” I’m forever thankful for the Indigenous voices on this comp that reveal their struggle, joy, pain, and soul. I still stand by it; this is one of, if not the best LITA release to date. Sit back, relax, and revel in the wonder that is Native North America (Vol. 1): Aboriginal Folk, Rock, and Country 1966–1985 in its entirety.
p.s. The 3xLP is soldout, but you can still snag the CD/Digital!
p.p.s. If you’re into stuff like this (aka a true audiophile nerd), we’ve included the complete liner notes booklet for download below!
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