We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.
/

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      $1 CAD  or more

     

  • Buy the Full Digital Album

lyrics

When he came to the Territory . . .
The wild lands of the Blackfoot, the Blood, and the Cree.
Four thousand light years from his home on the Seaway,
Albert was his name. And the Lord was his fame.
And there’d be no more comfort, no fortune, just glory.
Where? . . . in God’s name.
An Oblate priest, He’d follow the plan,
With a mission as clear as the bell.
To work with the natives at Lac Ste. Anne,
And make them believe – pray tell!
How you never question your station,
Never cry when you grieve for your home,
And the priest, called Lacombe,
Like a castaway did roam!
Bearing his cross, like an albatross, on his heart.
Travelling far and away, the Lord’s word to impart.
Never ceasing in kindness, always stopping to pray.
Staying and talking, smiling and giving, boldly praising the day.
Blessing and healing, teaching and sharing, throwing himself in the way!
He’d say, “The Lord is our constant companion,
On this frozen earth that we roam!
And very nearby, there is Heaven,
To get there . . . just visit our home!”
As an honour in death the natives who called him Good Heart,
“Aah-sass-kit-si-pah-pi-wa’s* gone!”
a death cry did start.
A lake full of tears, they mystically praised the dead father,
And forever, amen, Lac Ste. Anne . . . will have healing water.
*Blackfoot for “The Good Heart”

credits

from Northern Sightlines, released January 1, 1999

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

John Spearn Edmonton, Alberta

You’ll instantly catch these deep influences threaded through John’s fine vocals, lyrics, and rootsy, guitar-mastered songwriting works. This is pure Canadiana: forgotten but deserving heroes, the humility in our international image, and a superb range of tender ballads through to raw, foot-stompin’ stories that need to be told. ... more

contact / help

Contact John Spearn

Streaming and
Download help

Report this track or account

If you like John Spearn, you may also like:

Bandcamp Daily  your guide to the world of Bandcamp

On Bandcamp Radio

Saxophonist Isaiah Collier chats about his new LP and the influence of Pharoah Sanders.
listen now