Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Purchasable with gift card
$1USD or more
about
This song was written for Sandy River Outdoor School, of the Oregon state Multnomah Education Service District's 6th grade outdoor school program.
If you aren't yet familiar with Outdoor School, it is a phenomenal, hands-on, community-building educational program that has been teaching science, fostering diverse communities, and letting all Portland area children experience the wonder of the natural world since the 1960's. Due to recent budget cuts, Outdoor School has suffered many losses, including a cut from a week-long experience to a 3-day field trip. We want for it, we fight for it, and we need for it to be brought back to a full week program for all kids. Join us by donating to Friends of Outdoor School, purchasing this song (100% of proceeds go to outdoor school), and by visiting: www.friendsofoutdoorschool.org.
If you already do know Outdoor School, I know you already get it, and I hope this song helps you as much as it has me. Let's keep fighting the good fight!
Thank you for listening,
Rachel "Radish" Byron-Law
lyrics
Down here, there's a river
with a wide, sandy bend
big water rolling green and deep
by the fir and the cottonwood stands
kids that don't know each other
shouting as they play in the sandy
there's something 'bout a river
with a wide, sandy bend
Sandy River
bending true and deep
hope you never stop running
hope you'll always be
a haven to the hungry-hearted
for something ancient, unbroken, and free
there's something 'bout a river
makes a child feel free
Come evening we gather
by the bright the campfire
shooting sparks up to heaven
and back down to where we are
all screaming and singing together
as the frogs and the crickets creak
and the sound of the river
singing us to sleep
Sandy River
bending true and deep
hope you never stop running
hope you'll always be
a haven to the hungry-hearted
for something ancient, unbroken, and clean
there's something 'bout a river
makes a soul feel free
And as the week goes on
we can see the children change
they don't carry so much worry
their clothes all damp and dirty
their limbs all interlinked
say good-bye and we whisper a prayer
keep 'em safe form those cold, city streets
and thank God they've known a river
and what it's like to feel free
So I don't care about your budgets
or your broken economy
and I don't want to hear excuses
for the fake world that we've made
'cause when I'm down here by the river
I can see what you may not see
that there's something 'bout a river
makes a child feel free
and every child deserves a river
to set his soul free
credits
released December 1, 2013
Piano and vocal - Rachel "Radish" Byron-Law
Harmony vocal - Katie "Beet" Fitzgerald
Recorded and produced by Cliff Fitzgerald at Good Enuf Productions, in Menlo Park, California
Proceeds from this excellent new darkambient/neofolk comp from LEFT/FOLK goes to benefit American Near East Refugee Aid. Bandcamp New & Notable Jan 10, 2024
The Alabama duo's fifth album exults in dusty Americana, showcasing rich vocal harmonies alongside blissful folk instrumentation. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 31, 2024
More contemplative folk from the Minnesota singer-songwriter, sustained by raw full-band arrangements and philosophical lyrics. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 28, 2024
Irish singer-songwriter Oisin Leech's acoustic folk music is characterized by its muted beauty and intimate, solitary quality. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 16, 2024
A gorgeous journey through a kaleidoscopic array of sonic approaches melted together that feels old and new at the same time. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 5, 2024
