Morley Loon (1948 – 1986) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

First Nations musician, from

Mistissini Mistissini ( cr, ᒥᔅᑎᓯᓃ/Mistisinî meaning Big Rock) is a Cree town located in the south-east corner of the largest natural lake in Quebec, Lake Mistassini. The town is inside the boundaries of the Baie-James Municipality and is the ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. Loon played in several groups, including Red Cedar and Kashtin, but was mostly known for his solo work. He mostly wrote and performed in the

Cree language Cree (also known as Cree– Montagnais–Naskapi) is a dialect continuum of Algonquian languages spoken by approximately 117,000 people across Canada, from the Northwest Territories to Alberta to Labrador. If considered one language, it is th ...

, and was a prominent activist for First Nations issues.

Career

Loon was born 1948, in the village of Mistissini in what was then Baie-James, now

Eeyou Istchee Eeyou Istchee , crj, ᐄᔨᔫ ᐊᔅᒌ or , all meaning 'The People's Land'; ) is a territory equivalent to a regional county municipality (TE) of Quebec that is represented by the Grand Council of the Crees. On July 24, 2012, the Quebec ...

, in northern Quebec, to

Cree The Cree ( cr, néhinaw, script=Latn, , etc.; french: link=no, Cri) are a Indigenous peoples of the Americas, North American Indigenous people. They live primarily in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations in Canada ...

parents. He began singing and touring in the late 1960s, composing in Cree. In the 1970s, Loon was an active part of the Canadian First Nations political movement. Loon was part of the cast of ''Cold Journey'', a National Film Board drama filmed in 1971, and participated in protests over the sale of First Nation artifacts at a

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

auction. He recorded two albums with the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

's Northern Service in 1975, as well as a studio album, ''North Land, My Land,'' with Boot Records in 1981. A

cassingle A cassette single (CS), also known by the trademark cassingle, or capitalised as the trademark Cassette Single, is a music single (music), single supplied in the form of a Compact Cassette. The cassette single was first introduced in 1980 in mu ...

, ''North Country'', was released independently in 1984. Morley Loon was the first performer in the Cree language to see significant radio airplay in Canada. Loon influenced other First Nations musicians, such as Lloyd Cheechoo and Kashtin, to sing in their own languages. Cheechoo played backing guitar and toured with Loon in the late 1970s. With Inuit musician

Willie Thrasher Willie Thrasher (born 1948) is a Canadian Inuvialuit musician from Aklavik, Northwest Territories.

, Loon formed Red Cedar, based out of

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

. The group played at the Black Hills Survival Gathering in

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

Black Hills The Black Hills ( lkt, Ȟe Sápa; chy, Moʼȯhta-voʼhonáaeva; hid, awaxaawi shiibisha) is an isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, United States. Black Elk P ...

in 1980. In 1986, Loon died at age 38 after suffering a lengthy illness. His song "N'Doheeno" is featured on the 2014 compilation album '' Native North America, Vol. 1''."Light in the Attic Unearths the Forgotten History of First Nations Music with 'Native North America' Compilation"
''

Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features in-depth coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly Exclaim! print magazine publishes 7 ...

'', October 8, 2014.

Discography

* ''Songs in Cree Composed and Sung by Morley Loon, ''1975, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Northern Service * ''Cree Songs'', 1975, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Northern Service * ''North Land, My Land/Cette terre du Nord qui est mienne'', 1981,

Boot Records Boot Records was a Canadian country, bluegrass, and contemporary folk label formed in 1971 in Toronto by Stompin' Tom Connors and his manager, Jury Krytiuk. Early years Originally started as a format for Connors' recordings, Boot shortly after b ...

* ''North Country'', 1984, independently released

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Loon, Morley 1948 births 1986 deaths First Nations musicians Cree people People from Eeyou Istchee (territory) Musicians from Quebec 20th-century Canadian male singers Canadian male singer-songwriters Canadian folk singer-songwriters 20th-century Canadian male musicians