We saw Natalie Merchant in concert last night backed by an orchestra. What a treat! She’s the consummate performer with a voice that achieves amazing volume and emotion and notes. She also knows how to humorously chide the few latecomers and the guy whose flashbulb shined in her face, but she did it in a friendly way.
Her songs included my favorites from Leave Your Sleep and she satisfied those not famiiar with this work by singing older songs from her solo and 10,000 Maniacs careers. The liner notes in the night’s program stated that “…Natalie Merchant embarks on a new artistic path, creating songs from literary inspiration which are composed for expanded musical emsembles and orchestra.” And last night’s performance was a prime example.
And to top it all off, she nonchalantly said that she saw the devastation on Long Island caused by Hurricane Sandy and the night’s profits will go towards relief on Long Island…and then she moved on to more songs. I told Susan on the way out that Natalie Merchant just seems like a nice person. She lives in upstate New York. Hmmmmm! How far can that be from Warwick?
In closing, if you ever have the chance to hear Natalie Merchant live, jump at the opportunity.
Two Heads Together 
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