Photo: Land Stewardship Project

In 2019 I was commissioned to write a song for the  Land Stewardship Project  and their Soil Builders program. Doug, my LSP liaison, gave me (a non-farmer) a few brochures, a few notes, and offered to connect me to some farmers to interview. It was all a plunge into the amazing world of Regenerative Agriculture.  Here are the first two songs (with video) from that work, recorded with the band Six Feet Deep. Click and listen.

Back to Soil  

Got Cover Crops 

[2022 update]
I’m happy to announce the release of four more songs that celebrate regenerative agriculture and sustainable farming. These songs also spring from a 2020 commission for the  Land Stewardship Project . Same great band! Click and listen below.

A Little Better 

Dead Dirt’s Coming Back

Boundless Earth 

Six Feet Deep

Writing these songs was an eye-opener, for sure. Knowing nothing about farming, much less regenerative ag, I went to a field day in Mower County, put on by farmer Tom Cotter, to tell other farmers about his work. About 25 farmers (and me) showed up. Amazing set of practices he’s blending together: no-till, no plow, cover crops 24-7-365, innovative grazing techniques, mycorrhizal fungi, science, ecology, joy, health, honesty. These farmers, doing what they’re calling regenerative agriculture, seem to have re-imagined their work as building soil for the long term, which not only leads to healthier food and better yield, but helps fight climate change by storing carbon in the soil. Next I went to visit another farmer from around Cannon Falls, Kaleb Anderson. A super fun conversation that further opened my mind to the work these folks are doing. He recommended a book called, Dirt to Soil, by North Dakota farmer Gabe Brown. So I read that, too: kind of a regenerative ag bible. And on and on.