XIT – End (recorded September 14, 1971)
This powerful, truth-telling Native American protest song was recorded at Motown's original Hitsville U.S.A. studio, from XIT's debut album Plight Of The Redman.
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On September 14, 1971, one of the most powerful, truth-telling Native American protest songs ever released was recorded at Motown’s original Hitsville U.S.A. studio in Detroit.
“End” (1972) by XIT came out as a B-side the following April on the label’s Rare Earth subsidiary. The back cover of the single featured the track’s powerful spoken word lyrics in the form of “An open letter to concerned Americans.”
It was co-written by XIT founder Tom Bee and unsung Motown songwriter and producer Michael Valvano, who co-produced “End” along with twin brothers Russ and Ralph Terrana. Russ mixed an amazing 89 number-one hit records while working as a Motown engineer during the 1970s.
XIT began life as the psychedelic group Lincoln St. Exit, formed in 1964 in Albuquerque, New Mexico by leader Tom Bee (aka Joseph Thomas Bee). They put out several singles before releasing their first full-length album Drive It! in 1970 on the Mainstream Records, with most of the tracks co-written by Bee and the group’s lead vocalist and lead guitarist Michael Martin. All of the group’s members were of Sioux descent, which also included R.C. Gariss on second lead guitar, bassist Mac Suazo, and Lee Herres on drums and percussion.
As Motown expanded its operations on the West Coast (even before it officially announced it was leaving Detroit in 1972), Berry Gordy’s oldest brother Fuller and Delores Wilkinson co-wrote a song with Bee called “(We’ve Got) Blue Skies.” Fuller Gordy and Wilkinson also co-wrote “Sad Tomorrows” with Marvin Gaye, the superb Mayfield-esque non-LP B-side to “Mercy Mercy Me ( The Ecology)” from What’s Going On. Bee was signed to a Motown songwriting and production deal after “(We’ve Got) Blue Skies” was recorded by the Jackson 5 and appeared on their fifth studio album Maybe Tomorrow, released in early April, 1971.
Lincoln St. Exit became XIT at this point, which stood for “Crossing of Indian Tribes.” They were signed to Rare Earth, and Valvano was assigned to the group as their producer and sent to Albuquerque to record their debut album. Along with Bee, he co-wrote every track on Plight Of The Redman, which was released in 1972, including “I Was Raised,” the hard rocking A-side to “End,” and the superb jam “War Cry,” which was issued as the B-side to “End” on an Italian single in 1973.
Valvano’s involvement with the group altered the course of his life, since while there he fell in love with a local and settled in the city for the next twenty years. He built his own Val-West recording studio, where in 1978-79 he produced the sadly unreleased (until 2010) disco comeback album by The Contours, including their phenomenal jam “Get In The Groove.”
XIT released one more album on Rare Earth, Silent Warrior, which came out on 1973. It was co-produced by Bee and Valvano and again co-written by the two of them, with several songs also co-written by Mac Suazo, the group’s bassist. The LP featured woodwinds and horns by the great Gene Page.
#soul #protestsongs #Michael Valvano #TomBee #XIT