Monday, February 14, 2011

The John Trudell Page

This page was created by doc haynes as a tribute to a great man.
Very few of the words on this page are my own and with good reason, 
as this mostly is a place for people to learn what John has said and done.
John Trudell has expressly given his permission to freely share his works.

APPALOOSA PICTURES AND BALCONY RELEASING
PRESENT
T R U D E L L

A film about legendary Native poet and activist John Trudell.



"My goal is very simple: to communicate the human
experience at a level that human beings can recognize and
relate to. That may be a personal statement. It may be a
political statement. But whatever it is, it all comes from the
same point of reference: the experiences we share as
peoples of this planet." ~ John Turdell



Running time 80 minutes
Directed by Heather Rae
Produced by Heather Rae and Elyse Katz


S Y N O P S I S

TRUDELL follows the life work of Native American poet/activist John Trudell. Filmmaker Heather Rae has spent more than a decade chronicling his travels, spoken word and politics in a poetic and naturally stylized manner. The film combines archival, concert and interview footage with abstract imagery mirroring the coyote nature of Trudell himself.

Incorporating years of work, 16mm and Super 8 film, video, and archival footage, TRUDELL begins in the late sixties when John Trudell and a community group, Indians of All Tribes, occupied Alcatraz Island for 21 months creating international recognition of the American Indian cause and birthing the contemporary Indian people’s movement. The film goes to Alcatraz, returning to what John refers to as his “birth.” From Alcatraz we follow John’s political journey as the National Spokesman of the American Indian Movement (AIM)--this work making him one of the most highly volatile political ‘subversives’ of the 1970’s with one of the longest FBI files in history (over 17,000 pages.)

In 1979, while protesting the US government’s policy on American Indians, John burned an American Flag on the the steps of the FBI headquarters in Washington DC. Within a matter of hours his pregnant wife, three children and mother in law were killed in a suspicious arson fire on a Nevada reservation. This ended John’s involvement in organizational politics. He spent the next four years driving America in a car given to him by his friend and fellow activist, Jackson Browne. It was during this period that John’s voice as a poet began to surface. His gift as an orator carried him through his pain and he found a new way to represent his manifesto and cause.

In 1983 he began to put his words to music with the help of Kiowa guitar legend, the late Jesse Ed Davis, and Jackson Browne. Even his early recordings reflect an articulate sensibility and eloquence about the state of the world, moving him into the realm of social theorist and philosopher. John does not adhere to a dogma or school of thought but has created his own diatribe based in experience, having lived through and taken part in some of the most turbulent American political events of the past century. In an interview with Native actor, Gary Farmer (Dead Man), he referred to Trudell as “the Native people’s prophet of these times, our Socrates.” Trudell’s musical and film career have led him to work with the likes of Robert Redford (Incident at Oglala), Sam Shepard and Val Kilmer (Thunderheart), Kris Kristofferson, Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne, Amy Ray and more recently Angelina Jolie, who produced his current album, Bone Days.

The film combines interviews with his allies from the entertainment community, the ‘movement’ days, and his friends and family with archival footage, concert footage from all over the world and abstract imagery. TRUDELL is intended to be a film that steps outside of traditional forms, even for Native films, and explores a figure of our contemporary history in a way that fairly represents the evocative nature of his work and significance.

"I’m not looking to overthrow the American government, the corporate state already has."
John Trudell

"He’s extremely eloquent…therefore extremely dangerous." 
FBI memo









Short Biography of John Trudell


John Trudell is an acclaimed poet, national recording artist, actor and activist whose international following reflects the universal language of his words, work and message. Trudell (Santee Sioux) was a spokesperson for the Indian of All Tribes occupation of Alcatraz Island from 1969 to 1971. He then worked with the American Indian Movement (AIM), serving as Chairman of AIM from 1973 to 1979. In February of 1979, a fire of unknown origin killed Trudell’s wife, three children and mother-in-law. It was through this horrific tragedy that Trudell began to find his voice as an artist and poet, writing, in his words, “to stay connected to this reality.”


In 1982, Trudell began recording his poetry to traditional Native music and in 1983 he released his debut album Tribal Voice on his own Peace Company label. Trudell then teamed up with the late legendary Kiowa guitarist Jesse Ed Davis. Together, they recorded three albums during the 1980’s. The first of these, AKA Graffiti Man, was released in 1986 and dubbed the best album of the year by Bob Dylan. AKA Graffiti Man served early notice of Trudell’s singular ability to express fundamental truths through a unique mix of poetry, Native music, blues and rock. Since that time, Trudell has released seven more albums plus a digitally re-mastered collection of his early Peace Company cassettes. His 2002 CD, Bone Days, was executive produced by Academy Award winning actress Angelina Jolie and released on the Daemon Records label.



His latest double album, Madness & The Moremes, showcases more than five years of new music and includes special Ghost Tracks of old favorite Trudell tunes made with legendary Kiowa guitarist Jesse Ed Davis. This internet only release offers a full range of classic Trudell poetry – there are lyrics filled with penetrating insight and others with knock out humor, all put to some of the best music Bad Dog has ever made together. Madness and The Moremes is available now on www.johntrudell.com



In addition to his music career, Trudell has played roles in a number of feature films, including a lead role in the Mirimax movie Thunderheart and a major part in Sherman Alexie’s Smoke Signals. He most recently played Coyote in Hallmark’s made for television movie, Dreamkeeper.




KRIS KRISTOFFERSON AND THE HIGHWAYMEN

JOHNNY LOBO 1992

 Once upon a dusty reservation
 Somewhere in the land of sitting bull
 Johnny Lobo played with fire and dreamed of open spaces
 Locked inside a heaven gone to hell
 All the dreams were gone but not forgotten
 Murdered like the holy buffalo
 But Johnny Lobo knew the rules and grew into a warrior
 Fighting for his people and his soul
 Oh...... Johnny Lobo
 Oh...... Johnny Lobo

Loaded down with lessons that he carried
 Home from Viet Nam to wounded knee
 Johnny Lobo burned a flag he knew had been dishonored
 Paid the price for thinking he was free
 Someone set his house on fire, burned it to the ground
 With his wife and children locked inside
 Later when the bitter tears were falling to the ashes
 Something good in Johnny Lobo died
 Oh...... Johnny Lobo
 Oh...... Johnny Lobo

In a darkened corner of a tavern
 Burning down old memories again
 Johnny Lobo stares into the smoke and dream of clouds
 Running like wild horses with the wind
 Holy phoenix rising from the ashes
 Into the circle of the sun
 Johnny Lobo's warrior heart was burnished in the embers
 And the battle's just begun
 Oh...... Johnny Lobo
 Oh...... Johnny Lobo

(by Kris Kristofferson)
 



JOHN TRUDELL
I WENT SO WILLINGLY



JOHN TRUDELL

OUT OF THE BLUES  



JOHN TRUDELL

CRAZY HORSE - THE ORIGINAL VIDEO

 Crazy Horse

We Hear what you say
 One earth one mother
 One does not sell the earth
 The people walk upon
 We are the land
 How do we sell our mother
 How do we sell the stars
 How do we sell the air

Crazy Horse
 We hear what you say
 Too many people
 Standing their ground
 Standing the wrong ground
 Predators face he possessed a race
 Possession a war that doesn't end
 Children of god feed on children of earth
 Days people don't care for people
 These days are the hardest
 Material fields material harvest
 decoration on chains that binds
 Mirrors gold the people lose their minds

Crazy Horse
 We Hear what you say
 One earth one mother
 One does not sell the earth
 The people walk upon
 We are the land
 Today is now and then
 Dream smokes touch the clouds
 On a day when death didn't die
 Real world time tricks shadows lie
 Red white perception deception
 Predator tries civilizing us
 But the tribes will not go without return
 Genetic light from the other side
 A song from the heart our hearts to give
 The wild days the glory days live

Crazy Horse
 We Hear what you say
 One earth one mother
 One does not sell the earth
 The people walk upon
 We are the land
 How do we sell our mother
 How do we sell the stars
 How do we sell the air

Crazy Horse
 We hear what you say

Crazy Horse
 We hear what you say
 We are the seventh generation
 We are the seventh generation

Credited Trudell/Sahme (aka Quiltman)
 John Trudell spoken word




JOHN TRUDELL
CRY YOUR TEARS

For more information please browse the following links





They came first for the Communists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for me
and by that time no one was left to speak up.

(This quote is attributed to Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892–1984) about the inactivity of German intellectuals following the Nazi rise to power and the purging of their chosen targets, group after group.).



I think of that quote, when I listen to the anguish in people's words about how they are now seeing the government. The government has decided that a new group of undesirables is needed and many people are feeling that they are it. The new group is unhappy. Where was the anguished pleas for fair treatment when it was a "red man" that the government felt was expendable? Would you have marched to Selma with King to enforce your opinion that the "black man" is not expendable?
Few people seem to realize, that so long as we condone and allow our governments to oppress any group, we empower and encourage them to oppress all groups, even the one we are in.
I guess it all boils down to this; if you are not actively striving to end government oppressions of everyone, including groups you may not like or agree with, then don't expect anyone to cry for you, when it is your turn in the box.





2 comments:

  1. I miss some information here. Do you know that John Trudell is an FBI agent? You don't believe me..then go to that link and read what his own people think about him :
    http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2007/07/362371.shtml

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yeah right, so trudell is now co operating with those who supposedly murdered his family??....bogus....just a smear campain against Trudell, full of a lot of speculation. Bottom line none of us were there and to call him an informant just like that is absurd....what an idiot!!!!.......

    ReplyDelete

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