He is a singer-songwriter, guitarist, Native American flautist
and artist born with the Mohican name Fush-Ya Heay Aka (bird song) in northern
Wisconsin's Stockbridge-Munsee reservation.He began playing the guitar, getting his own when he was
12, and in his teenage years could be heard performing with several local
rock bands.He moved away from
the rock genre before too long though and after mastering the Native Indian
flute and switching to the acoustic guitar he concentrated more on
performances of bluegrass and folk music.After moving to Milwaukee in 1973 where he received a scholarship,
he studied at the Layton school of Art & Design followed by The University
of Wisconsin, and has since become recognised for many of his paintings and
other drawings.At the same
time he was becoming more and more interested in a musical career, settling
in Nashville as a singer-songwriter and recording his debut album in 1983.Many singers and musicians have noticed his work
and he has toured, co-written and performed in the studio with a great many
through the course of his career so far.They include The Bellamy Brothers, Kim Carnes, Nanci
Griffith, Arlo Guthrie, Richie Havens and Michael Martin Murphey, to name a
few, and Tori Amos sought him out after she had heard one of his albums and
this led to him being an opener for her on the Under the Pink tour.The albums he has appeared on
include his own The Art of Survival, Healing Waters, Hear Our Prayer, Loon
Mountain & Moon, Bill Miller and Native Sons, Native Suite - Chants,
Dances and the Sacred Earth, Old Dreams and New Hopes, Raven in the Snow, Red
Road, Reservation Road, A Sacred Gift, Spirit Rain, the 5-time Native
American Music Award winning Ghost Dance and the Grammy Award
winning Cedar Spring Songs as well as Beach House on the Moon
by Jimmy Buffett, Tools for the Soul by Danny Flowers, Prayer
That Mentions Everything by Stormie Omartian and Tramp On Your
Street by Billy Joe Shaver.2008 has seen him working on a regional arts center project in La
Crosse, Wisconsin, where he painted a six foot tall heron for auction,
having the world premiere of his co-composed "The Last Stand" symphony performed
by La Crosse Symphony Orchestra and still touring on a national and
international basis.
