Jim Pepper
Listen/Download – Everything Is Everything – Witchi Tai To
Listen/Download – Everything Is Everything – Ooh Baby
Greetings all.
I hope you’re all well.
The boys and I have narrowly survived a week without my wife. That we made it this far without lapsing into malnutrition or all out war is nothing short of a miracle, and we’re all extremely happy that the Mrs has returned to the nest.
The tune I bring you today is one that I was aware of for many years in cover versions, but only found a copy of the original earlier this year.
‘Witchi Tai To’, which was based on a Native American peyote chant, has been covered many times since its initial release in 1969 by artists as diverse as Harpers Bizarre, Oregon, Brewer & Shipley and Jan Garbarek.
The tune was composed by Jim Pepper, a jazz rock saxophonist with Native American roots who originally recorded it with the band Everything Is Everything.
Pepper made his first recordings with the early jazz-rock band The Free Spirits, which recorded an album for Vanguard in 1966. That group was notable for the inclusion of guitarist Larry Coryell among its members, but it also included guitarist Chip Baker, and bassist Chris Hills who would go on a few years later to join Pepper in Everything Is Everything.
When I started to research this record I was surprised to discover that the Everything Is Everything version of ‘Witchi Tai To’ was a minor hit in early 1969, scraping the outer limits of the Top 40 in a lot of markets.
It is indeed a very catchy tune, and I can imagine a lot of the pop audience simultaneously enchanted and stymied by the chant that runs through the song.
I haven’t heard the rest of the album, but the flipside ‘Oooh Baby’ is very cool in a 1969-y kinda way. It’s only vaguely jazzy in that end of the decade free-festival, mud in between my toes kind of way, tuneful and poppy enough to be accessible, but loose enough to please the long-hairs.
Pepper went on to record frequently as a sideman (with jazzers like Charlie Haden and Paul Motian), and under his own name, as well as working on Native American causes until his untimely death in 1992.
I hope you dig the tunes, and I’ll see you on Monday.
Peace
Larry
Iron Leg 
Larry have you heard The John Schroeder Orchestra version of “Witchi Tai To’ (with I believe Jess Roden on lead vocals)? It’s killer!
I haven’t Bill. I have the Brewer & Shipley version (very long and mellow) and have heard Paul Winter’s version in the past.
I’ll throw it on a CD for you!
What an absolute hoot to see Everything is… The label scan is fabulous and brings me back to the days in 1969 sitting behind 4 16″ turntables, a brand new trasistorized RCA board & 5 Gates Criterion cart machines at WTRY and playing this record when it was new. Here is a great stereo dub of the track @ 128kbps (Not too bad)
\http://www.mediafire.com/?1bqsk7v68pszinp
I will make the file private in a week or so.
You keep up the great work at your blog. Iron Leg is soooo kuhl!!!!
This is really magical. i always though B&S was the original version… Live long enough, ya find it all out.
Does anyone remember what ‘ganster’ type movie this was used in?
Make that ‘gangster’…
Sleepers. i am looking all over for a copy of this version and cannot find it!
Thanks for this one Larry..brings me right back to late 60’s …and all the mind expansion going on at the time..this was a favorite, turned on to this by a close freind..haven’t heard it in 30 years or so..fantastic!
Go here for the mp3, original in stereo. It will be back to private in a few days.
http://www.mediafire.com/?1bqsk7v68pszinp
Dunno what this “going private’ stuff is but I am ted gehrke and i had the honor of producing the “Witchi-tai-to” single on apostolic vanguard records. The gangster movie was “Sleepers”. B. DePalma was a big Free spirits/Everything is everything fan. Hanging at the “Scene” in NYC. He cast Free Spirits best friend Chic Chicarelli (“Jonathan Warden”) in Greetings, his first feature. I asked onea the brewer and shipley guys once why they left the great Larry Coryell bridge off their version of Witchi-tai-to and they said they only had heard it on late night radio and couldn’t remember anything but the chant part. We are all hopin to get together and try to do a definitive version as soon as chip baker is feelin better. thanks for the interest!!