Songs For Trees, by Norine Braun

Songs For Trees

by Norine Braun

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jadefaf Such beautiful album it really takes you a journey through the forest. Bravo!!

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21

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Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Adoption, Ascending Lullaby, Hunting Buffalo, Quest Before Me, Songs For Trees, Mother Tree, Red Maple, Sex In The Forest, and 13 more. , and , .

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1.	Going To The Forest 03:46	lyrics	buy track
GOING TO THE FOREST I hear you calling to me Your forgotten wisdom threw me Into air that drew me Softly creeping down to bow Going to the forest See shining flowers Sweet perfumed hours Wildness that towers And when the birds peeked out To sing of nature’s clout They whistled long and loud In the forest We bathe in the beauty Invited so cooly Embolden unruly Going to the forest Warm stones they find me In barefoot we tread deep The wet earth is squishy And all this time I’ve wasted I could have breathed and tasted Dived in wellsprings naked Longing to embrace the path Caressing rough edged darkness Bark and dogwood tresses Fill the spiral dresses Clothed in cosmic disarray Going to the forest See shining flowers Sweet perfumed hours Wildness that towers And when the birds peeked out To sing of nature’s clout They whistled long and loud In the forest We bathe in the beauty Invited so cooly Embolden unruly Going to the forest See shining flowers Going to the forest (x4)
2.	Footsteps Going 00:18		buy track
3.	Red Maple 03:32	lyrics	buy track
RED MAPLE Maple glisters out my window pane Smiling shyly as I speak her name Red maple bowing how she still remains Down her leaves fly helicopters Maple flowers and our memories rest In her brown arms where the crows made nests Dreams are woken beating robin’s breast Down her leaves fly helicopters And when I see her whether flush or withered dry Once the sun’s upon her Lifts me up with hue and clamour Red scarlet maple with her fiery mane Flows ever wildly as the wind reframes Dew eyed and wistful hummingbird refrains Down her leaves fly helicopters Maple autumn warms the chilly air Full moon it perches midst her branches bare Red maple leaves lying crisp declare Down her leaves fly helicopters ©Norine Braun SOCAN
4.	Footsteps Coming 00:15		buy track
5.	Cedar and the Eagle 03:55	lyrics	buy track
CEDAR AND THE EAGLE Cedar is a tree my dear Serving eagles in the air Boughs dust to brush the fear Pluming bright blue suns that sear Eagle clutched to tear the top Flew too fast the boughs he dropped From the buds lush vines cropped up Beside great water staves burn up Will knotted arms or greens bear fruit Or shall they wither and not take root. CHORUS Eagle flies with wingspan great Sits atop to heal and take An incense carries prayers to sky Cedar shakes makes shelters dry In the riddle lies the truth It’s up to you to find the muse CHORUS X 3 Your gifts are great and vast to see You only ask for space to be CHORUS © Norine Braun SOCAN
6.	Wind in the Trees 00:23		buy track
7.	Aspen Groves 03:50	lyrics	buy track
ASPEN GROVES I remember Aspen groves They were born from far below Underground and out of sight From one tree became the might Always standing in one place Ever watching holding space Seedling, sampling stately tall Cycles one becomes the all Of the land, gives it back to withstand The future of the aspen tells What looms for us who know as well Earth connected aimed for skies Conduits emerge belies Music of the aspen song Whispers easy makes them strong Dawn to dusk it lingers on Often dead before they know that they’re gone Ever on just one tree ©Norine Braun SOCAN
8.	Creekside 00:27		buy track
9.	Sex In The Forest 04:53	lyrics	buy track
SEX IN THE FOREST All the leaves have changed Summer ends again Rolling in evening breezes blow by Peace that flows away Sunset’s violet haze You breathe in what I breathe out endlessly Your roots are strong You don’t fear the wind Once clinging moss now loose dangling free Cast a cone before you Pollen slips down the grain Flying quiet for you Can you feel the rain Enmeshed in smallness sticky The cone basks swimmingly Swells, engulfs and binds you Douglas fir sways Germinates to find you Penetrates © Norine Braun SOCAN
10.	Bulldozed Blues 03:57	lyrics	buy track
BULLDOZED BLUES Clear the land For highways grand This promised land Ain’t what they tell you There’s a big demand They give us feather’s from the chicken But nothing’s in the frying pan Bulldozed for bacon Bulldozed for oil Bulldozed till barren Bulldozed and foiled Sneaked in around us to fell the sacred tree And when they said they were sorry They shouted it out with glee Bulldozed head on Knocked’em down Split toothed stone boated Slashed and burned Hallowed trees have no value Unless they’re all cut down But when the last trees are taken They’ll see we can’t eat money now ©Norine Braun SOCAN
11.	Rain 00:26		buy track
12.	Hurts 04:13	lyrics	buy track
HURTS Hurts so Hurts so much Silent fleeing touch Plucked out limbs grow cold Ultrasounds unfold Scream no one can hear Distressed tried to care Dismissed you’re not there Huddled hears the tune Reaching up to swoon Now we know You feel and you know Even when you cried Overlooked you don’t hide The saving grace inside You’ll save us all Without you we fall You’re rooted and you’re strong You simply grow you don’t wrong Breathing in branches long You’ll save us all Without you we fall We can’t forget this All the things you do Temper clime and you throw us all some shade How we’re foolish Now afraid Your very life is how we will sustain How we will remain ©Norine Braun SOCAN
13.	Campfire 00:21		buy track
14.	The Burning 04:28	lyrics	buy track
THE BURNING We are burning we are fireflies Caught forever as the dust flies Far below us in the twilight Calling timber as they fall us Descends darkness lands before me Gates of hell hounds in their glory We move lustful surging winds blow We move pointless, although hopeful But the third wave finds a huge bog Some are blinded by the mud hogs Mouth filled up now to the fourth realm Where the greedy roll up gold helms For each to swallow and to wholly lead astray Past the wrathful is a foul smell On the river angry souls howl To walled cities where lie flamed graves Burned out violence in the blood games Gnarled trees hang wretched limp dolls Lonely deserts scorching sand scalds We are one now with the burning of the sun ©Norine Braun SOCAN
15.	Nightfall 00:34		buy track
16.	Overstory 04:28	info	buy track
17.	The Man Who Planted Trees 03:35	lyrics	buy track
THE MAN WHO PLANTED TREES Desolation on a walking tour A young man set out Abandoned old dusty ruins No water and no hope Far away on the smoky land A shepherd digging holes Sheep lay on baking ground The old man waves him close The shepherd he barely spoke a word Shared his grief and planting ten thousand oaks Young man leaves to fight a war In 5 years he returns Yearning to breathe again He thinks the old man long gone Mountains now a carpet green With oak, beech and streams Finds old shepherd tending bees Rebirth from his scattered seeds The shepherd no longer speaks a word A life lived in solitude unheard Land thought devoid of hope has returned With his unselfish hands an unselfish soul he has earned A place among the gods He’s the man who planted trees …
18.	Songs For Trees 04:58	lyrics	buy track
SONGS FOR TREES Sitting near you Looking up through the green Shafts of sunlight break through Patient listening You offer a bridge A connection with all That you do Take me with you phloem both ways A xylem knowing one way Liquid moving grace Feed me inner veins filled sweetly Surround me as I breathe deep Atomic number 8 Songs for trees Life giving reacher saves us Songs for trees These sterling teachers saves us Songs for trees We cannot make it alone. Roots covered deep down Drawing water trunk through crown Leaves or needles gather rays Counting rings to measure their days Cambium quietly increasing space Xylem and phloem as effluence chase Heartwood is born from sapwood that dies No longer suckles with hardness survives ©Norine Braun SOCAN
19.	Mother Tree 05:57	lyrics	buy track
MOTHER TREE Mother Stands before me Passageway Earth to sky ascending Every day Hemlocks arch before me Heaven’s scape Leaves that quiver shaking Lead the way We are drops in the ocean Mother may I see how you open Heart bouquets Mother tree you have spoken Silk conveys Gentle songs they are lurking Underlay Mother hub you share Your light and sweets Threads to roots You’re pumping under feet Mother warns us ever to beware No returning when there’s no one there CHORUS Will they see this Our children after us Will they hear her feel the mother’s clutch Spells of magic with her healing touch CHORUS © Norine Braun SOCAN

about

I went for a walk that brought me into the west coast forests. There, immersed in fresh air and sweet sounds, I found joy, healing, and connection that kindled my reverence for these ancient souls. Listen closely and the trees will speak to you. They have messages for all who listen. Join me and we will walk together through the beauty of the forest. ‘Songs For Trees’ is my homage to these amazing spirits.

We live in a time of great peril. As I write these songs, a global pandemic refuses to diminish its grip on our world. My songwriting could not bring relief from the summer searing temperatures brought on by a heat dome that had my city and province in its grip. Hot days and sweltering nights brought death for too many vulnerable people. While recording this album, drought desiccated millions of sacred trees and exposed them to historic wildfires. Entire towns became cinder and ash. While mastering ‘Songs For Trees,’ an atmospheric river burst from the clouds and drenched our scorched earth. A month of rain poured down in 48 hours. Massive flooding brought landslides and entire cities became barren swamps. After the deluge, farmers became refugees and their animals perished by the thousands. None of us can turn away from the unrelenting catastrophes that challenge even the strongest among us. We are all interconnected, what happens to the trees happens to us. The trees know this. Examine them, spend time with them, learn from them and please help save them.

Trees are the lungs of the planet. They are the most crucial living organisms on earth, affecting our environment more than anything else. They are fundamental to the continuity of life on the planet. They are our salvation and the key to abating climate change at a pivotal time of the healing for this world. May you find solace, strength and wonder in the music. May ‘Songs For Trees’ inspire you to search out positive change. Plant trees, save the ancient ones, clean up garbage, live sustainably and go into the forest.

I dedicate ‘Songs For Trees’ to my dear, loving Mother who became ill and passed away while I wrote the lyrics and music for this album. Her spirit found me in the forest as I composed these songs. I also dedicate it to my birth Father who found me only days after I lost my Mother. My journey continues and I am forever indebted to the trees.

Special thanks to Canada Council for the Arts, First Peoples’ Cultural Council, Dr. Eldon Yellowhorn

10% of net profits from CD sales and digital downloads will be donated to TreeCanada.ca and OneTreePlanted.org

credits

released May 3, 2022

Musicians
Norine Braun Vocals, Acoustic and Rhythm Guitar, Navajo Flute on Overstory
Adam Popowitz Bass, Lead Guitar, Hand Percussion and Drum Programming
Elliot Polsky Drums and Percussion
Alice Fraser Keys (Organ, Synth, Piano)
Huggybear Leonard Blues Harp, Harmonica, Ocarina and Penny Whistle

Produced by Adam Popowitz at Rear Window Song and Sound

Words and Music by Norine Braun except Clair De Lune by Debussy
Mixed and Mastered at Rear Window Song and Sound.
Norine Braun Image Self Portrait
Makeup by Eve Ava
Cover Images Bruno Ismael Da Silva Alves
Graphic Design Gisele Grignet
Recorded on unceded Kwikwetlem Coast Salish Territory, Coquitlam BC Canada

With immense gratitude to the outstanding musicians who share their incredible talent on this album. I am blessed beyond measure for your continued love, support and creativity. Alice for her unwavering love and dedication, Adam’s amazing production for making the vision happen, Elliot and Huggybear your star shine is ever brilliant.

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about

Norine Braun Vancouver, British Columbia

Her signature funky folk-blues sound simply cannot be matched. Best listened to as loud as your neighbours will tolerate. Abortmag

Her music sounds like the union of Nick Cave with Patti Smith & City and Colour deep in the Canadian forests.
MTM

An imaginative display of fine musicianship, potent vocals and heartfelt lyrics, talent like hers doesn't exactly come around too often. Music Emission ... more

norinebraun.com

shows

May 24

The Roxy

Vancouver, BC

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