Growing the Future

Our Farming Fathers

Episode Summary

Blake Berglund, Musician and Author, takes us on a journey from the farm in Kennedy, SK., to the vibrant streets of Nashville, Tennessee, tracing the thread of lightning that connects him to his father. As he grapples with the passing of his father, he finds solace and inspiration in the stormy nights and the memories of his farm upbringing. Blake performs 'Farming Wives,' a song from his new album 'Left of the Right,' he shares thoughts on the importance of the matriarchy in the Berglund family. This episode captures the essence of love, loss, and the enduring connection to the farm that shapes the lives of the Berglund family. 

Episode Notes

Blake Berglund grew up on a horse operation in southeastern Saskatchewan doing two hours of chores before school and three after, with piano practice fitted around them and his brother and sister covering his mornings when an exam was coming.

He is a country artist and writer now, and this conversation reaches him in a farmhouse outside Nashville. It moves between the work that shaped him, the year he lost his father, and what he has built since.

What's Inside

- The horse operation his family ran through the nineties, and the division of labour between three siblings that made music possible at all

- Why he describes manual work as something closer to a spiritual practice than a chore, and what going back to the farm still does for him

- Losing his father, and what the family experienced in the room at the end

- Why he hopes the grief never fully leaves, and what he thinks it is evidence of

- Two years without alcohol, and what changed on the other side of that decision

- Building an independent music business rather than chasing radio, and treating songs as assets rather than promotion

- The concept record he made about all of it, and how subscribers get it

- A live performance of a song written for his mother and sisters

- This episode captures the essence of love, loss, and the enduring connection to the farm that shapes the lives of the Berglund family.  

Connect with Blake: 

The Straight & The Narrow Substack: https://blakeberglund.substack.com/

Instagram: www.instagram.com/blakeberglund

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blakejohnberglund

Website: https://blakeberglund.com/

 

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