The band, initially located in Boise, Idaho, started as an instrumental rock outfit led by organist Paul Revere Dick (January 7, 1938 – October 4, 2014) (named in honor of the Revolutionary War hero), who in his early twenties already owned several restaurants in Portland, Oregon. Singer Mark Lindsay (March 9, 1942), joined in 1958. Originally called The Downbeats, their name was changed to Paul Revere & The Raiders in 1960 on the eve of their first record release for Gardena Records. The band scored their first Pacific Northwest regional hit in 1961 with "Like Long Hair", an instrumental. Revere was drafted, became a conscientious objector and worked at a mental institution for a year and half of deferred service. After reforming the band, they attracted national attention again with a cover of "Louie Louie", which was picked up by Columbia Records although beaten in the charts by The Kingsmen's version.
Known for their live high energy rock n' roll performances they consistently toured the Northwest - hitting the no-alcohol teen venues where the testosterone levels were as high as the high school beer buzzes that fueled the rowdy crowds of sweating dancers out for the transcendence of the music, or maybe just to get laid. The highlight of their gigs in the early 60's was the 6 foot high cardboard mock up of a can of Crisco that came on during the song "Crisco Party", which was about the delights of getting naked, smearing yourself and your teenage honey all over in Crisco and doing the diry boogie all night long. Never has an organ (Paul Revere's that is!) wailed so in tune with with the zeitgeist. Mark Lindsay was always out in front, on stage and into the crowds, but it was Paul Revere who lead the crowd involvement, bouncing the big Crisco barrel off the stage and into the dancehalls and dance floors of the teenage wastelands - before the Vietnam war changed the vibes and the audiences began to sit and listen to the lyrics and innocent horniness teenage was replaced by the searching for meaning in the midst of a war that threatened to kill them.
They would maintain a huge level of popularity in the mid-1960s beginning with "Just Like Me" (1965), which marked the beginning of a string of garage rock classics. The Raiders, under the guidance of producer Terry Melcher, increasingly emulated the sounds of British Invasion bands such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and The Animals albeit with an American R&B feel.
The band appeared regularly on national television, especially on Dick Clark's Where the Action Is, Happening '68, and It's Happening, the latter two of which were co-hosted by Paul Revere and Mark Lindsay. Here they were presented as the American response to the British Invasion. The group wore American Revolutionary War soldier uniforms and performed slapstick comedy and synchronized dance steps while the ponytailed Lindsay lip synched to their music. This farcical, cartoonish image obscured the proto-hard rock sound that their music often took.
Their hits from the mid-60's included "Kicks" (Billboard Pop Chart #4), "Him or Me - What's It Gonna Be?" (#7), "Good Thing" (#5), "Hungry" (#5), and "Great Airplane Strike" (#20). Of these, "Kicks" became their best-known song, an anti-drug message written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil that was especially akin to The Animals.
In mid-1967, with three gold albums to their credit, they were Columbia Records' top-selling rock band; their Greatest Hits album was one of two releases selected by Clive Davis to try out a higher list price for albums expected to be particularly popular, along with Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits.
Changing tastes in the late 1960s rendered the group unfashionable, but they still continued to have hits through the rest of the decade, "I Had A Dream" (1967 - #20), "Too Much Talk" (1968 - #18, and an illustration of their tendency towards Beatles imitations), and "Mr. Sun, Mr. Moon" (1969 - #18). Tensions between Lindsay and Revere increased during this time; Lindsay wanted to go more in the direction of hard rock acts like Led Zeppelin or the James Gang, while Revere sought a bubblegum pop direction. Lindsay's vision for the Raiders was represented on songs such as "Let Me" (1969 - #20 - Gold Single), "Powder Blue Mercedes Queen" (1972 - #54) and "Just Seventeen" (1970 - #70) and the 1970 album Collage. By the time of the release of Collage the band's name was officially shortened to The Raiders. "Freeborn Man", written by Lindsay and bassist Keith Allison, has since gone on to be a Country Rock standard, covered by The Outlaws, Junior Brown, and Glen Campbell amongst many others.
Ironically, their single release "Indian Reservation" (1971 - #1 - Platinum single) would be their biggest hit of all, after about a year and a half or so of no hits.
In 1972 The Raiders made one last attempt at a pop album with Country Wine but Columbia was sinking money into other acts, such as Mott The Hoople and Aerosmith, and Country Wine and The Raiders sank in the resulting quagmire.
Lindsay left the band in 1975 to continue his solo career as a country star of sorts, landing a hit single with Kenny Young's "Arizona". Country music was also the choice of short-lived member Freddy Weller, who had more success in this market. Revere continued to put together Raiders lineups with some success, but Lindsay had clearly been the star of the band.
The punk rock and New Wave eras would see a wave of interest in the Raiders' music; "I'm Not Your Stepping Stone" was covered by The Sex Pistols and Liverpool band The Farm (although The Monkees' cover version was more well known than the Raiders' original), and later "Just Like Me" would be covered by The Circle Jerks (as well as by more mainstream figures like Joan Jett and Pat Benatar). "Hungry" was also covered by Sammy Hagar. The Paisley Underground, garage rock revival, and grunge movements would all acknowledge the Raiders' influence.
Revere has continued to play shows on the oldies circuit and in Las Vegas with various Raiders. Lindsay is musically semi-retired and lives in Hawaii, but occasionally plays. Other members of the band constantly changed; bassist Keith Allison, who played in the Raiders from 1968 to 1975, is probably the best known of them, and has since gone into acting, and has appeared in the film Gods and Generals.
In 1997 the group's classic Midnight Ride lineup - Mark Lindsay, guitarist Drake Levin, bassist Phil "Fang" Volk, and drummer Mike "Smitty" Smith - reunited in full costume (though without Revere himself) for a one-off 30th anniversary performance in Portland. Smith died four years later.
Mark Lindsay performed as part of the "Happy Together" tour with the Turtles, Mickey Dolenz, the Grass Roots and the Buckinghams in 2010. The tour was well received in the US.
Lindsay was invited on stage by Mitch Ryder at the "Hippiefest" tour in Fort Lauderdale, FL, on July 31, 2010 and performed "Kicks" to a wildly appreciative audience at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts.
Indian Reservation
Paul Revere & The Raiders Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Put us on this reservation
Took away our ways of life
The tomahawk and the bow and knife
Took away our native tongue
And taught their English to our young
And all the beads we made by hand
Are nowadays made in Japan
Cherokee people
Cherokee tribe
So proud to live
So proud to die
They took the whole Indian nation
Locked us on this reservation
Though I wear a shirt and tie
I'm still part redman deep inside
Cherokee people
Cherokee tribe
So proud to live
So proud to die
But maybe someday when they learn
Cherokee nation will return, will return
Will return, will return, will return
The lyrics to "Indian Reservation" by Paul Revere & The Raiders speak to the injustices that Native Americans faced in the United States. The Cherokee people were forced to leave their homeland and were relocated to reservations, which were often far from their original territory. This relocation disrupted their traditional way of life and threatened the survival of their culture. The song laments the loss of the Cherokee's ways of life, including their language, customs, and traditional crafts.
The lyrics also highlight the pride that the Cherokee people still maintained despite being stripped of their belongings and culture. The refrain of "Cherokee people, Cherokee tribe, so proud to live, so proud to die" emphasize the resilience and determination of the Cherokee people, who refused to let their identity be erased. The last verse expresses hope that one day the Cherokee nation will return, indicating a desire for a future in which Native Americans can reclaim their lands and their way of life.
Line by Line Meaning
They took the whole Cherokee nation
The Cherokee people were forcefully removed from their land.
Put us on this reservation
They were placed on government-controlled land.
Took away our ways of life
The traditional Cherokee lifestyle was taken from them.
The tomahawk and the bow and knife
Their weapons were confiscated.
Took away our native tongue
The Cherokee language was forbidden.
And taught their English to our young
Their children were forced to learn English instead.
And all the beads we made by hand
Their traditional handicrafts were no longer valued.
Are nowadays made in Japan
Their crafts were now being mass-produced elsewhere.
Cherokee people
The Cherokee tribe.
Cherokee tribe
The Cherokee people.
So proud to live
They had a strong sense of pride in their heritage.
So proud to die
Their pride even extended to their willingness to die for their people.
They took the whole Indian nation
Not only the Cherokee, but all Native American tribes.
Locked us on this reservation
They were confined to a specific area of land.
Though I wear a shirt and tie
Even if they adopt a more modern lifestyle.
I'm still part redman deep inside
They still identify strongly with their Native American heritage.
But maybe someday when they learn
Perhaps one day, society will come to understand and value their culture.
Cherokee nation will return, will return
The Cherokee people hope to eventually reclaim their land and way of life.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: John D Loudermilk
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Jec0
Cherokee Nation’s Case For Congressional Delegate To Get A House Committee Hearing - https://www.huffpost.com/entry/cherokees-house-delegate_n_632e184be4b00e36d1af81be
@richieonguitarexperience7972
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGOVMfMC-Kk&list=RDVGOVMfMC-Kk&start_radio=1
@Cjnw
A Cserokí Nemzet!!
@lucaswinquist5671
About time
@debrakelly4505
Awesome- hoping the US gov't recognizes the treaty this time
@donnabrooks9445
Actually was know to play that in one day. True story
@godbluffvdgg
If you lived in the 70's, you heard this song a thousand times...Great song...
@rodluvortussilulltussilonr5556
YES !! !
@patrickkerr1396
2000
@tractorfone5567
And still playing this !