There’s a quiet kind of magic in the children’s book Goodnight Moon. If you’ve ever read it—or had it read to you—you might remember the room. It’s called “the great green room,” and it’s where the little bunny says goodnight to everything around him: the moon, the comb, the brush, the bowl of mush.
That phrase stuck with me. The great green room. It felt like more than just a cozy place in a story—it felt like a beautiful metaphor for this planet we all live on. The great, green room we’re lucky enough to wake up in every day.
In 2011, I wrote a song inspired by that idea. I called it The Great Green Room, and the lyrics say goodnight to the many beautiful parts of the natural world—trees, rivers, stars, and skies. It was meant to be a gentle reminder of what we’ve been given and what we stand to lose.
This year, for Earth Day 2025, I’m releasing a newly remastered version of that song—only available on Bandcamp (pay-what-you-want) and my website ($1). But this isn’t just a fresh coat of polish. It’s something more immersive.
I had the opportunity to include natural sound recordings from Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado—thanks to the National Parks’ sound library. You’ll hear the evening soundscape from Moraine Park, the dawn soundscape from the Sun Valley Trail, and a looped recording of crickets tucked gently beneath the music. They didn’t inspire any changes to the arrangement itself, but they added something that felt essential. A layer of beauty. A breath of life.
And that’s really what Earth Day is about, isn’t it?
Taking a breath. Looking around. Remembering how beautiful this place really is.
Sometimes we get so wrapped up in the noise and speed of everything, we forget we’re part of something much bigger—and quieter—than ourselves. This song was my way of pausing for a moment and saying thank you. Saying goodnight—not as a farewell, but as a gentle promise to care, to notice, and to preserve.
I hope you’ll give it a listen. Maybe even take a moment today to step outside and listen for yourself—no music required. The earth has its own soundtrack if we take the time to hear it.
Happy Earth Day, friends. Let’s take care of the great green room together.