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Lex Nichols: High Plains are inspiration for his Native American music

Karen Madorin

Lex Nichols:

I was born and raised in Rocky Ford on the Arkansas River.  My dad still has a farm there.  Part of the Cherokee Trail ran through there up to Pueblo, Fountain and I believe it went on up and hooked to the Overland Trail that went up to Wyoming. My father has been working the field and plowed up some “mitades” and so we know that they stayed there. When I do recordings, I record my bird sounds and use them in my recordings, I try to do everything natural.

For me, being out where the Native Americans were – You know, we have it so good now. It is so much different than living in the dirt.  But, living in a place where you can experience the hardships that they had to go through.  For me, it’s a wonderful thing.  I love the peace and quiet. I know that they felt the same way about those things.

Being close to Bent’s Fort and the Santa Fe Trail – It’s all part of our history.  I try to focus my music on things like that.  There’s a song called Summer Rain.  It’s a poem about how precious water is in a thirsty land.  You know, Native Americans had to have water wherever they would go.  Reading through Empire of the Summer Moon with the Comancheswhen they got out there away from water, you were gonna die if there were no ways to have water or things like that.  You can get out in the middle of a barren place and if you don’t have access to water – your primary thing, you’re not gonna make it very long.

You know being a musician and an artist, I can appreciate the peace and quiet.  Native American music focuses a lot on nature. A lot of my stuff is nature.  I can just imagine what the Native Americans – as they were pass ng through.  Just being out where they were is a neat thing.  Seeing, finding fire rings out where they were.  Just the peace and quiet.  Being out where they were. That’s where I get a lot of my inspiration – from those kinds of things.

Credit Kathleen Holt
HPPR's Brandy Roberts talks with Lex Nichols at a recent event in Lamar, Colorado.