>> Greg Brown’s newest album, a live recording of his August 2005 performance at the Peterson Auditorium in Ishpeming, Michigan, is a raw, reverent commentary on the times we live in and a testament to the artist’s love for the wild lands and waters of the Upper Peninsula. Greg Brown performed the concert to benefit the Yellow Dog for free, and, after arriving two hours late because of flight delays, he treated the audience to a fresh batch of brand new songs and reworkings of old favorites.

"I brought out my notebook tonight. I'm gonna sing a bunch of stuff I never sung before. I figure it's been kind of a nutty day already, why not just take it on home that way.", Brown said. "I'm proud to be here. Pround to stand up for a little river."

All proceeds for the album will go to the Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve, an organization dedicated to protecting the Yellow Dog River. A metallic sulfide mine has been proposed within the Yellow Dog Watershed. The Department of Environmental Quality will hold hearings on the proposed mine from 1 to 10 p.m. March 6-8 at the University Center at Northern Michigan University in Marquette. The DEQ plans to make a final decision in May. Public commentary is welcome and encouraged. Earthwork Music is offering a buy one, get one free deal for the new record to all those who come to the hearing to support the Yellow Dog Watershed.

Despite public outcry from the residents of the Yellow Dog Watershed, the MDEQ granted preliminary approval to Kennecott, a British mining corporation, to build the proposed Eagle Mine, set to begin construction in late 2007. The trouble with sulfide mining is that its inevitable by-products are sulfuric acid and heavy metals. The proposed plant is at the headwaters of the Yellow Dog Watershed, and threatens to irreversibly damage the ecosystem. The Yellow Dog Plains are home to some of Michigan’s most beautiful wilderness and plentiful trout streams.

For 12 years the Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve has operated as a non-profit whose primary objective is to preserve the Yellow Dog Watershed in its most natural state for the use of the public, now, and for the benefit of future generations. The organization sponsored the 2005 benefit concert now immortalized by Yellow Dog.

Earthwork Music, which will be releasing the album, is a Michigan-based independent record label, songsters collective and community of friends. Believing in the intrinsic and historical power of music to raise both community and self-awareness, Earthwork Music is proud to be part of the effort to preserve and protect Michigan’s ecological heritage. Yellow Dog is the first release in the Earthwork Archive Series.

Greg Brown, an internationally renowned musician, has for years enjoyed the Yellow Dog as a fisherman and naturalist and has insisted that all proceeds from the album go to benefit the Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve. Greg Brown's songs have been performed by the likes of Willie Nelson, Carlos Santana, Ani DiFranco, Lucinda Williams, and Mary Chapin Carpenter.­­ The live album captures Greg Brown playing a handful of never-before recorded songs, intimate versions of fan favorites with new verses, and cameos from a few Michigan folk artists who were fortunate enough to share the bill with him on that magical occasion. The album is charged with the spirit of the evening; concern for our most precious natural treasures and a great reverence for life and water the world over. <<

Here's a video of "Better Days":

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And here's the album:



>> 2007 -- "Notebook Songs Live in the Upper Peninsula!" The beloved songwriter debuts a bouquet of new songs -- and some old favorites -- one evening at the Peterson Auditorium in Ishpeming MI; with special guests on two songs: Drew Howard on pedal steel, bassist Dominic Suchyta, Seth Bernard on guitar and the humming Daisy May Erlewine. Proceeds to benefit the area's Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve -- all in an earth-friendly bifold digipak. Contents: 1. Intro 2. Cold + Dark + Wet 3. Dream Cafe 4. Better Days 5. Conesville Slough 6. Oily Boys 7. All of Those Things 8. Canned Goods 9. "Pitchin' In..." 10. Laughing River 11. Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone <<

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000PBTRMQ/?tag=imwan-20