Natalie Merchant - Leave Your Sleep

George
Hey George. I got lotta respect for this endeavor by Ms. Merchant. I bought it for two reasons: I like her Tigerlily for her simple and perfect musicianship and because of the
label this time out. Nonesuch gave a lot of room for Laura Viers' creativity and production by a very sympathetic and talented bandmate that worked for me on Carbon Glacier.
This album by NM is a labor of love and a statement album. This release must have cost her a fortune (she is a co-producer), you know. Once again, Nonesuch has risen to the occasion. Things sound as good as I was hoping for and the musicianship is great. This isn't an album of NM songs. It is an album of favorite poets of hers put to music. Most are very old. Ogden Nash? That surprised me to say the least. e.e. cummings did not, exactly. Robert Louis Stevenson, well, you get the idea. All the songs are surrounded by sympathetic acoustic musicians and arrangements. So (?), I didn't think this was one I would be listening to much, respect it as I may. But I listened to it again tonite and it made me wanna comment and listen some more.