Songs From The Battleford Pow-Wow

Canyon Records 6142

Canyon Records
Singers: Alex Scalplock, Francis Greene, Pat Kennedy

I was in the early dawnlight that I returned from the Battleford Pow-Wow. It was a clear beautiful morning, and as I drove I could see the sunlight fires dancing upon the Eastern horizon almost in time to the songs I was attempting to sing – new songs that I had heard at the Battleford Pow-Wow. A feeling of gaiety permeated the whole four days of my being there. Some of the finest dancing, singing, and regalia that I have ever seen was there.

Although Battleford itself is not on a reserve, it is located in an area central to several reserves including: Mosquito Grizzly-Bear-Head, Red Pheasant, Sweet Grass, Poundmaker, Little Pine, Lucky Man, Onion Lake, Moosomin, and Saulteaux.

Battleford is at the junction of two rivers. From its source, the Battle River runs near the Ermine Skin Reserve in Alberta, the home of one of our singers, Francis Greene, and flows easterly into Saskatchewan and meets the North Saskatchewan River. Near this meeting of the rivers is a shallow area which gave Battleford its name. Here, before the bridges were built, people could ford the waters, and an early settlement and fort were built.

Battleford was, in olden times, a place where many tribal peoples met, traded, and held ceremonies. Today the tradition still goes on, but it has only been since 1962 that it has become one of the major pow-wows in Canada.

The singers on this album are considered by many to be perhaps the three top singers and song makers in pow-wow country.

Alex Scalplock is not only a top singer and song maker, but a superb dancer with a style that is uniquely his own. Many pow-wow songs are made by this man. Alex was one of the original members of the A-1 Club, well-known drum from the Blackfoot Reserve in Alberta.

Francis Greene began his singing as a young boy. He followed the pow-wows and listened to the various styles of singing and thus developed his own voice control, and is now a top singer. Francis is from Ermine Skin Reserve (Cree).

Wherever you go in pow-wow country, singers, dancers and audience are pleased to hear the golden voice of Pat Kennedy. He is indubitably a top singer in both Canada and the United States. The songs the he has made flow so smoothly that some of the southern style Indian singers have also adapted them over the years. Pat originally hails from the Battleford area on the Mosquiteo-Grissly-Bear-head Reserve. He now lives in Browning, Montana.

These singers worked on these songs during the days of the Battleflord Pow-Wow – composing a few new ones, readying some existing ones for this recording. It should become a classic.

Contrary to a somewhat prevalent belief, Indian music is not improvised. It is composed with rigid standards of composition and performance. Every Indian song has a plan or pattern that is followed each time it is sung. Often the best singers are also the composers of the new songs; yet, at the same time they know hundreds of their old tribal songs. Thus, old songs are kept alive and new songs are always being (made) composed.

This recording contains varied styles of singing which occur during a pow-wow. The songs tend to be inter-tribal and contain vocables only. Other tribal people may sing these songs, or young men who are now learning the art of singing, by listening to these songs, can adapt a good style of inter-tribal variation.

...Leroy B. Selam (S'waptsa)

Play song

Name

Performed by

Description

Native Words

Translation

Notes

War Dance Song 1 Blackfoot
Owl Dance Song 1 Blackfoot
War Dance Song 2 Blackfoot
War Dance Song 3 Blackfoot
War Dance Song 4 Blackfoot
War Dance Song 5 Blackfoot
Owl Dance Song 2 Blackfoot
War Dance Song 6 Blackfoot
Old Style War Dance Blackfoot
Traditional War Dance 1 Blackfoot
Traditional War Dance 2 Blackfoot
War Dance Song 7 Blackfoot