Nathaniel Rateliff is now sharing a cover of Leonard Cohen’s “There Is A War” performed with Kevin Morby and Sam Cohen. Produced by Sam Cohen (White Denim, Curtis Harding), the track marks the latest installment of The Marigold Singles Series, an ongoing project to raise money for Rateliff’s foundation, The Marigold Project, supporting community and nonprofit organizations working for economic and social justice. Listen to/share the song HERE.
“I really love the work that Sam and Kevin have done together in the past. So I asked them to be a part of the Marigold Singles. We all have a mutual love for Leonard Cohen’s writing and felt that ‘There Is A War’ speaks to the world we currently find ourselves in,” notes Rateliff.
“There Is A War” will appear on a limited edition 7” due early 2022 exclusively at http://shop.nathanielrateliff.com/. Proceeds will support The Highlander Research & Education Center, which is a catalyst for grassroots organizing and movement building working with people who fight for justice, equality and sustainability. Highlander’s commitment to ending segregation made it a critically important incubator of the Civil Rights movement as it served as a training center for Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr. Pete Seeger and numerous more.
The Marigold Project is also set for the release of a community cookbook, Meet Me At The Table, on November 10. Meet Me At The Table features a compilation of musicians’ original recipes alongside profiles of food justice organizations, with short-form essays from historic and present-day activists in the food system: Sean Sherman, Leah Penniman, Nano Riley and Will Allen. Pre-order the cookbook HERE.
Meet Me At The Table features original recipes from Rateliff, Adia Victoria, Ben Jaffe (Preservation Hall Jazz Band), Big Freedia, Courtney Marie Andrews, Eric Slick (Dr. Dog), Fantastic Negrito, Grace Potter, Jack Johnson, John Prine, Jon Batiste, Joseph Pope III (The Night Sweats), Kam Franklin (The Suffers), Lucius, Mark Shusterman (The Night Sweats), Matthew Vasquez (Delta Spirit), Nicole Atkins, Nikki Lane, Patrick Meese (The Night Sweats), Tanya Trotter (The War and Treaty), Tarriona “Tank” Ball (Tank and The Bangas), Valerie June, Wes Schultz (The Lumineers) and many more.
The cookbook’s goal is to acknowledge the history of food in America and shine a spotlight on the incredible work being done all across the country that values all people and the planet. Through centering the voices of activists, Rateliff’s foundation aims to spotlight issues of inequality and oppression as they exist in our food system. Proceeds from the cookbook will be split evenly among organizations profiled in the book, which include Agricultural Justice Project, Federation of Southern Cooperatives, Food Chain Workers’ Alliance, North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems, Rural Advancement Foundation International, Soul Fire Farm, The GrowHaus, United Farm Workers and more.
Rateliff established The Marigold Project in 2017. In 2018, The Marigold Project hosted a day of workshops focused on gun violence prevention and in 2019 the foundation hosted a summit in Denver concentrated on community and coalition building. Attendees learned from activists and advocates across the country with decades of experience in community building for positive and lasting change. In addition, the foundation launched The Marigold Singles series to raise money for community and nonprofit organizations. The first installment of the series was released in 2019, which featured Rateliff and John Prine performing Prine’s “Sam Stone” as well as a cover of Prine’s “Summer’s End” with Courtney Marie Andrews. Rateliff’s latest installment of the series, “Willie’s Birthday Song,” was released as a birthday tribute to Willie Nelson featuring Bobbie Nelson, Mickey Raphael, Lukas and Micah Nelson, Nikki Lane, members of The Night Sweats and more. Future releases of The Marigold Singles will feature notable musicians and collaborators and the beneficiaries will be chosen by the artists’ common beliefs and the subject matter of the songs.
The foundation grants to organizations working on income inequality, voter registration, food access, gun violence prevention and indigenous rights, among other issues. Grant recipients include Mauna Kea/Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation, Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition, Missouri Rural Crisis Center and Southerners on New Ground.
Website: The Marigold Project