[Cover photo credit to Olivier Longuet]
Multi-award-winning Indigenous artist and guitarist Cary Morin has released his latest single, “Cain’s Blood.” It’s a cover of a classic song that goes back to 1975, when Michael Johnson first recorded the song for his album For All You Mad Musicians. Co-written by Johnson and Jack Sandrud, the song would go on to have a long life of its own, later covered by the country group 4 Runner and eventually landing back with Johnson himself as a Top 30 country hit two decades after its debut.
Fifty years after it was written, “Cain’s Blood” feels like it suits our times as “a meditation on the ancient, ongoing struggle between good and evil, temptation and conscience, that each generation seems destined to relearn.” Morin brings authentic expression to a track that speaks to the dichotomies in human nature, both wishing for peace and feeling the impulse to seek out trouble. The song illustrates how a person may struggle with their own choices, undermining themselves, and also how a country may find itself on the brink of violence. Which will it be today, Cain or Abel?
In Morin’s hands, the track “becomes both a tribute to Johnson’s songwriting legacy and a mirror held up to our present cultural moment.”
The song was recorded at Maple Street Studio in Fort Collins, Colorado, in July 2026. It features Cary Morin on music, lyrics, production, recording, mixing, and mastering, as well as acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass guitar, drum & percussion programming, and vocals. The cover art is also by Morin.
Cary Morin’s voice and fingerstyle guitar playing have captivated audiences for decades. His career catalog fuses American Roots music, including Blues, Folk, Soul, Bluegrass, and the sounds of the rural countryside. He has shared stages with Taj Mahal, Los Lobos, and Bonnie Raitt, among countless others, while earning multiple awards including two Indigenous Music Awards for Best Blues CD. When not performing across the US and Europe, Morin finds inspiration in Northern Colorado, which he proudly calls home. His most recent album is Pocket of Time.
