Earl Sundance Sheppard is a BlackIndian musician, lyricist, poet, and producer. Born in new york city and now making his home in the Hawaiian Islands. "...Known on Maui for spreading good vibes with his tropical rhythms and positive messages, Sundance titled his latest release "Ebony Indian" to reflect his African nad Native American ancestry. "It's like a return to the roots of my family tradition and acknowledging the bloodlines" he explains. This theme is reflected in the striking cover by Maui artist Jeannette Hablewitz. Honoring the triumph of civil rights leader Martin luther King, Sundance kicks off "Ebony Indian" with the rousing tribute "Egyptian Messiah," passionately delivered by singer Kelly Covington...While an infectios reggae groove percolates throuhout the album, Sundance adds latin,calypso and even West African juju flavors to his original compositions. One of the most fun tracks, "Bacchanal" encourages dancing celebration with a cool steel drum beat. For Sundance. playing reggae is just part of what he terms his tropical explorations, which he began while living in seattle in the 1970's. "I had a latin jazz group at the time and getting involved in reggae was a part of expanding a world beat sound" he says " I started finding out about Bob Marley and Peter Tosh" He was particularly attracted to "being able to express world happenings in song, the concept of message music"...Righteous messages abound on "Ebony Indian" from pleas to honor native wisdom{"Black Indian Nation"] to prayers to cherish our fragile planet earth on "Earth Blues" where Sundance delves into the Taj Mahal-style bluesy territory..."It's time to try to establish a connection with mother earth and live in harmony with this earth so we have something for the children" he says "A Northern Cheyenne teaching is that we take care of the earth for the next Seven generations." Maui Beat news article written by Jon Woodhouse for the maui news feb 9th 2004. So a musical journey awaits you in the realm of the "Ebony Indian."