Peyote Cactus
Common Name
Botanical Name
The official sacrament of the Native American Church, peyote is a cactus native to the Rio Grand River Valley, parts of the southwestern United States, and northern Mexico. Peyote cactus contains the psychoactive alkaloid mescaline. The dried “buttons,” either whole or ground, plus a tea made from them, are consumed in all-night ceremonies to experience spirit directly.
Witchi Tia To
Recently, Chris made one of his appearances on The Dr Oz Show. The producers asked him to chant as part of a longevity program and he chose Jim Pepper's Witchi Tia To to sing on air. After the show aired, requests poured in from all directions. What are the words to the song? Where can I get that tune? Witchi Tia To struck a chord with The Dr Oz Show viewers. Realizing that there was an opportunity to provide people with a fresh new version of Witchi Tia To, we got together with the members of Blue Streak to record the song. We offer this version of Witchi Tia To with great joy and pleasure. We hope this song will inspire you as it inspires us.
Jim Pepper was a Native American jazz saxophone player of Creek and Kaw ancestry. Pepper was greatly admired by his musical peers, and played with some of the legendary jazz greats of his time. He died way too young, at age 51. Of all the songs Pepper wrote or played, Witchi Tia To was the one that rose to greatest prominence.
Witchi Tia To comes from a Native American Church peyote song that Pepper learned from his Kaw grandfather. When my friends and I found out the peyote connection with Witchi Tia To, that only further amplified the mysterious spell of the song.