Morris Belknap Jesus Saves

They say faith can move mountains; it did that and much more for Morris Belknap. Born in the small Apache Reservation town of San Carlos, Arizona in 1947, Morris' earliest years were spent at home with his eight older sisters and three younger brothers. With no formal school system in place in San Carlos at the time, Native youth were sent around the country to boarding schools throughout the U.S. in order to learn various trades and occupational skills. Morris' first boarding school experience was in Los Angeles; here he took up both the mechanic trade and guitar, which he would play with his brothers and friends to pass the time. Once back in San Carlos, Morris spent much of his time playing guitar and formed various Rock & Roll bands with friends and siblings to play local social events and dances. Morris' second boarding school experience was at Haskell University in Lawrence, Kansas. There he went on to play football, while also growing his knowledge of the automotive mechanic trade. After Haskell, Morris began a life of hard labor, taking his knowledge of the mechanic trade to Superior, Arizona copper mines as well as landing various other hard labor jobs in Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Carlos. Years of rambling, pain, and strife gradually turned to addiction and abuse; until one faithful evening when Morris found the answer he had been searching for in the dresser of his Superior motel room. That answer was the Bible.

From that point on Morris was a changed man. He did not feel it necessary to repent for his past, for to him nothing was more important than his undying faith in the scripture. Thus, Morris' inspiration from the Bible turned into song, and he quickly found a place in San Carlos playing original Gospel folk music for the sick and needy in local clinics. It was this service that brought Morris and his wife Lorraine together, and ultimately led to the creation of Morris' only LP, "Jesus Saves". Recorded in 1975 at Soundtech Studios in Phoenix, "Jesus Saves" is a testament to the power of faith, and how one man's past can seemingly be uplifted by unbridled devotion.

Morris went on to establish the first Church in San Carlos, beginning as a couple of seats around a tree and eventually sprouting into a full community congregation. Morris took on a life of hard blue-collar work as a heavy equipment operator and construction foreman in San Carlos, but he never ceased writing and playing music. When they found the time, he and Lorraine would take their camper van throughout Native reservations in Arizona, Montana, The Dakotas, and up to Manitoba playing and spreading the message he had received from the Bible. It was during these trips that Morris would distribute "Jesus Saves" for free to anyone who cared, or needed to listen.

• The first official repressing of Morris Belknap's forgotten San Carlos, Arizona folk classic
• Strict limited pressing of 300 copies
• Completely remastered audio by Greg Reierson at Rare Form Mastering
  
• Included are a download card, and an exclusive insert detailing everything which led up to this LP, and Morris life afterwards

• Handling Note: **Please allow an additional 5 business days for this item's shipment.**
• Format: Vinyl
• Internal ID: JIT
• Genre: Folk
• Format Detail: LP Black
• Released: 10/12/23