songwriter, musician, composer, visual artist, educator, pacifist, and social activist. Throughout her career in all of these areas, her work has focused on issues of indigenous peoples of the Americas. Her singing and writing repertoire also includes subjects of love, war, religion, and mysticism.
In 1997, she founded the Cradleboard Teaching Project, an educational curriculum devoted to better understanding Native Americans. She has won recognition and many awards and honours for both her music and her work in education and social activism.
Buffy Sainte-Marie was born in 1941 on the Piapot Plains Cree First Nation Reserve in the Qu'Appelle Valley, Saskatchewan, Canada. She was later adopted, growing up in Massachusetts, with parents Albert and Winifred Sainte-Marie. She attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, earning degrees in teaching and Oriental philosophy and graduating in the top ten of her class. She went on to earn a Ph.D in Fine Art from the University of Massachusetts.
In 1964, on a return trip to the Piapot Cree reserve in Canada for a powwow she was welcomed and (in a Cree Nation context) adopted by the youngest son of Chief Piapot, Emile Piapot and his wife, who added to Sainte-Marie's cultural value of, and place in, native culture.
In 1968, she married surfing teacher Dewain Bugbee of Hawaii; they divorced in 1971. She married Sheldon Wolfchild from Minnesota in 1975; they have a son, Dakota "Cody" Starblanket Wolfchild. That union also ended in divorce. She married her co-writer for "Up Where We Belong," Jack Nitzsche, on March 19, 1982. He died from a heart attack on August 25, 2000. As of 2007, she lives in Hawaii.
Although not a Bahá'í herself, she became an active friend of the Bahá'í Faith by the mid-1970s when she is said to have appeared in the 1973 Third National Bahá'í Youth Conference at the Oklahoma State Fairgrounds, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and has continued to appear at concerts, conferences and conventions of that religion since then. In 1992, she appeared in the musical event prelude to the Bahá'í World Congress, a double concert "Live Unity: The Sound of the World" in 1992 with video broadcast and documentary. In the video documentary of the event Sainte-Marie is seen on the Dini Petty Show explaining the Bahá'í teaching of progressive revelation. She also appears in the 1985 video "Mona With The Children" by Douglas John Cameron. However, while she supports a universal sense of religion, she does not subscribe to any particular religion.
Sainte-Marie claimed in a 2008 interview at the National Museum of the American Indian that she had been blacklisted by American radio stations and that she, along with Native Americans and other native people in the Red Power movements, were put out of business in the 1970s.
In a 1999 interview at Diné College with a staff writer with the Indian Country Today, Sainte-Marie said "I found out 10 years later, in the 1980s, that President Lyndon B. Johnson had been writing letters on White House stationery praising radio stations for suppressing my music" and "In the 1970s, not only was the protest movement put out of business, but the Native American movement was attacked."
As a result of this blacklisting led by (among others) Presidents Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, and Nashville disc jockey Ralph Emery (following the release of I'm Gonna Be a Country Girl Again), Sainte-Marie said "I was put out of business in the United States".
Cod'ine
Buffy Sainte-Marie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I feel like I'm dyin' an' I wish I were dead
If I lived till tomorrow it's gonna be a long time
For I'll reel and I'll fall and rise on codine
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time
When I was a young man I learned not to care
Wild whiskey, confronted I often did swear
But the fate of their baby is many times worse
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time
You'll forget your woman, you'll forget about man
Try it just once, an' you'll try it again
It's sometimes you wonder and it's sometimes you think
That I'm a-living my life with abandon to drink
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time
Stay away from the cities, stay away from the towns
Stay away from the men pushin' the codine around
Stay away from the stores where the remedy is found
I will live a few days as a slave to codine
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time
An' my belly is craving, I've got a shakin' in my head
An' I've started heating whether my body said
Steady yourself with the grains of cocaine
An' you'll end dead or you'll end up insane
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time
An' my belly is craving, I got shaking in my head
I feel like I'm dyin' an' I wish I were dead
If I lived till tomorrow it's gonna be a long time
For I'll reel and I'll fall and rise on codine
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time
Buffy Sainte-Marie's song "Cod'ine" is a haunting tale of addiction and the consequences that come with it. The lyrics speak to the physical and emotional pain of drug addiction, particularly to the opiate painkiller codeine. The singer describes his intense cravings and the physical toll the drug takes on his body, as well as the way it consumes his thoughts and relationships. The song is a cautionary tale, warning listeners of the dangers of drug abuse and encouraging them to stay away from addictive substances.
The opening lines of the song set the tone for what follows: "An' my belly is craving, I got shakin' in my head / I feel like I'm dyin' an' I wish I were dead." The imagery is vivid and gut-wrenching, conveying the desperation and anguish of a person in the throes of addiction. The singer goes on to describe how codeine makes him stumble and lose control, noting that he wishes he could die rather than continue living with the addiction. Even the promise of a long life seems unbearable, as he knows that he will always be in the grip of the drug.
Later in the song, the singer reflects on his past struggles with alcoholism and how they pale in comparison to his addiction to codeine. He warns others to stay away from both drugs and the people who sell them, knowing firsthand the danger they pose. Ultimately, the song ends on a tragic note, with the singer resigned to living out his remaining days as a slave to codeine. Throughout the song, Buffy Sainte-Marie conveys the emotional toll of addiction in a powerful and unflinching way.
Line by Line Meaning
An' my belly is craving, I got shakin' in my head
I am experiencing severe physical discomfort and mental agitation
I feel like I'm dyin' an' I wish I were dead
My condition is so unbearable that I wish for death
If I lived till tomorrow it's gonna be a long time
My life will be unbearable for a significant amount of time if I survive beyond today
For I'll reel and I'll fall and rise on codine
My physical and mental state will be constantly fluctuating due to my dependence on codeine
An' it's real, an' it's real, one more time
This is not a hypothetical or imaginary problem, it is a real and urgent concern
When I was a young man I learned not to care
I had a reckless attitude towards my actions and their consequences when I was younger
Wild whiskey, confronted I often did swear
I frequently turned to alcohol as a solution to my problems
My mother and father said whiskey is a curse
My parents warned me about the dangers of alcohol
But the fate of their baby is many times worse
However, my situation with codeine addiction is even more dire than what my parents feared for me with alcohol
You'll forget your woman, you'll forget about man
Codeine addiction can cause a person to become so consumed by their need for the drug that they neglect their relationships with loved ones
Try it just once, an' you'll try it again
Codeine addiction can take hold after just one instance of use
It's sometimes you wonder and it's sometimes you think
At times, an addict may question their decisions and actions
That I'm a-living my life with abandon to drink
Addiction has caused me to live recklessly and carelessly
Stay away from the cities, stay away from the towns
Codeine addiction is pervasive and it is best to avoid areas where the drug is readily available
Stay away from the men pushin' the codine around
It is important to avoid individuals who may try to sell or facilitate access to codeine
Stay away from the stores where the remedy is found
Drugstores and pharmacies may carry legal forms of codeine, but individuals struggling with addiction should avoid these places to prevent temptation
I will live a few days as a slave to codine
Codeine addiction can quickly take over a person's life and become all-consuming
An' my belly is craving, I've got a shakin' in my head
The physical and mental symptoms of codeine withdrawal are intense and difficult to manage
An' I've started heating whether my body said
I am beginning to question whether my body can handle the effects of codeine in the long term
Steady yourself with the grains of cocaine
Some individuals may turn to other substances, such as cocaine, to manage the effects of codeine addiction
An' you'll end dead or you'll end up insane
Using additional substances to manage codeine addiction can lead to severe physical and mental health problems
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: BUFFY SAINTE MARIE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@slint69
And my belly is craving,
I got a shakin' in my head,
Feel like I'm dyin' and I wish I was dead.
If I lived till tomorrow that'll be a long time,
But I'll reel and I'll fall and rise on cod'ine
And it's real, and it's real, one more time.
Well, when I was a young girl I learned not to care
About whiskey and from it I often did swear.
My mother and father said whiskey is a curse,
But the fate of their baby is a many times worse,
And it's real, and it's real, one more time.
Stay away from the cities, stay away from the towns,
Stay away from the men pushin' the cod'ine around.
Stay away from the stores where the remedy is fine,
For better your pain than be caught on cod'ine,
And it's real, and it's real, one more time.
You'll forget you're a woman, you'll forget about men,
Try it just once, and you'll try it again.
You'll forget about life, you'll forget about time,
And you'll live off your days as a slave to cod'ine.
And it's real, and it's real, one more time.
But if I die tomorrow, still one thing I've done,
I'd heeded the warning that I got when I was young.
My one satisfaction it comes when I think
That I'm living my life without bendin' to drink
And it's real, and it's real, one more time.
And my belly is craving, I got a shaking in my head
I feel like I'm dyin' and I wish I was dead.
If I live till tomorrow that'll be a long time,
For I'll reel and I'll fall and I'll die on cod'ine,
And it's real, and it's real, one more time.
@andrewfiddes446
iv been an addict for 40 yrs tried every which way to get of it , its a lonely road , they song is beautiful and so real im glad i found it makes me realize im not alone , bless anyone who has to go through it , my names joe and im a life long addict ,
@jamiejohnson6227
Five years in just can't break it I fell its part of me now
@Mike-Wolfe
Just came off of 4 days of grooling sobriety, and came straight to this song. From black tar in the 90's, to O.G. yellow norcos in the 2000's, on to oxy 2010's, and now poppy pod tea for a total of over 30 years. My heart go's out to all the long term survivor's who can hold it together, work hard, and raise a strong family, survivor's of chronic physical, and or mental pain. God bless be safe, and always remember to hook a brother up.
@andrewfiddes446
I weened myself down of itnow straight for 1 weak though I'm not outta the woods yet but I'm happy for sobriety . Its the longest iv been sober for 40yrs I'm getting it tight but have cocooned myself away . And am trying very hard but boy is it tough . Can't eat nor sleep and I'm having out of body experiences . Which seem quite freaky. . . .
@ig-8887
One of the orgin points of psychedelic rock. Remember, psychedelic rock isn't just about Acid and Weed, it's about capturing the experience of perception-altering drugs, and in this case, it's Codine. The fluctuating tempo and droning, and lyrics, they are meant to evoke that experience. While this is definitely folk, its very intense and was a massive influence on rock.
@groovyguru5314
So many artists have covered this amazing song,nothing better than the original,love ya Buffy,!!!!
@randymiller7432
Janis Joplin did an AMAZING take on this song!!!
@yc4911
You need to hear the Sean and the Brandywines version, and later we talk
@danielbaker9764
This song is so awesome I just love hearing her singing this
@telequacker-9529
True words... but at the same time, it speaks to me, I've taken parts from 3 different versions mixed with my own to cover it. (A true folk tune, it seems....) This version has a musical complexity I could never match. Not to mention the singing. That voice... But I will carry the words to the emo/drank/oxycontin generation and as far beyond, as I can bring it through my days. The song is timeless. They will be singing it in 3000 years like Turn Turn Turn.