IBWO Fans and mp3 Fans Unite!

A friend, who asked me to promise to not reveal what I know to anyone about the IBWO dispute, sent me an mp3 to make up for the fact that the entire world scooped me on this story. Anyway, I want to share this song with you; The Lord God Bird (mp3 link), was written by Sufjan Stevens at the request of my heroes, National Public Radio (NPR). The Lord God Bird (and I do mean the song and not the bird) exists because independent radio producers Dan Collison and Elizabeth Meister were curious about how Stevens writes his songs, which, much like their own work, are filled with stories of places and people. So, they introduced Stevens to the Arkansas town of Brinkley, located close to where the IBWO was first rediscovered. Stevens then wrote a song about the IBWO, locally known as the "lord god" or "great god" bird because of its breathtaking appearance. The Lord God Bird is currently rated as the 72nd most popular download by The Podcast Directory and is only available from NPR.

Ivory-billed Woodpecker, Campephilus principalis.
1. Adult female; 2. Adult female; 3. Adult male; 4. Adult female.

2002, David Allen Sibley.