Aaron Smith & the Coal Biters - The Daughter of My People

The Daughter of My People (5:50)
In the third song of the cycle Sam reviews the events that led up to the present where he’s alone, hungry and cold, wintering in a cave after losing the trail of his sister’s captors. He has not found his sister and he hears news of his mother’s death. On the verge of losing faith, Sam has an experience that transforms him into a fiery prophet. To Sam, the people in the nearby town are to blame for not helping him find his sister. He ascends the bluff that would come to be known as “Sam’s Throne” and bellows out his fiery message against them. A friend referred to this song as a dark night of the soul, but I see it as a narrow miss. Sam avoids facing his disappointment by blaming others and assuming the role of prophet. I love George Holcomb’s beautiful clarinet playing on this track. It captures Sam’s loneliness and also the nobility of his intentions and ideals.