Tift Merritt
Tift Merritt | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Catherine Tift Merritt[1] |
Born | [2] Houston, Texas, U.S. | January 8, 1975
Origin | Raleigh, North Carolina |
Genres | |
Occupation(s) |
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Instrument(s) |
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Years active | 1998–present |
Labels | |
Website | tiftmerritt.com |
Catherine Tift Merritt (born January 8, 1975) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She has released seven studio albums, two for Lost Highway Records, two for Fantasy Records, and three for Yep Roc Records.
Early life and education[edit]
Merritt was born in Houston and grew up in Raleigh.[2] She credits her father's eclectic taste in music as a major influence.[3] At the age of 20, Merritt enrolled at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to study creative writing.[4]
Career[edit]
Merritt joined a band called the Carbines and played small clubs in the cities of Raleigh and Chapel Hill, North Carolina.[5] In 1998, the band released a 7-inch single, "Jukejoint Girl"; in 1999 they released an album, The Two Dollar Pistols with Tift Merritt on Yep Roc.[6]
In 2000, Merritt won the MerleFest's Chris Austin Songwriting Contest[7] and in 2002 released her debut album, Bramble Rose. The record was in the top ten lists for both Time and The New Yorker; it was called the best debut of the year by the Associated Press.[8] While touring to promote Bramble Rose, she opened for fellow North Carolinian Ryan Adams, who had helped her secure her first management and record contracts.[9]
Her follow-up release, 2004's Tambourine, was produced by George Drakoulias; Benmont Tench, Mike Campbell, Neal Casal, and Don Heffington were in her backing band on the album.[citation needed] The album was nominated for a best country album Grammy Award in 2004.[10] She was nominated for Americana Music Association: Album of the Year, Artist of the Year, and Song of the Year in 2005[11] Her performance on Austin City Limits was released as a DVD on New West Records.[12] A sold-out concert at the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh was released under the title Home Is Loud in the same year.[13]
Another Country[edit]
Released on Fantasy Records in 2008, Another Country featured guitarist Charlie Sexton. Merritt wrote the album in a Paris apartment.[14][15] Paste magazine gave the album a four-star review.[16] The song "Broken" was nominated for an Americana Music Award for Song of the Year.[17][18][19] While touring England, Merritt recorded the album Buckingham Solo, which was released on Fantasy Records in April 2009.[citation needed]
Merritt's EP, Please Break the Silence of the Middle of the Night, was released later in 2008.[citation needed] She has been the opening act for Joan Baez,[20] Kris Kristofferson,[21] and she sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" for then-Senator Barack Obama at his last campaign rally as a senator.[22]
See You on the Moon[edit]
Merritt's album, See You on the Moon, was released in June 2010 on Fantasy Records.[23][24] Traveling Alone, her first album on Yep Roc Records, was released in October 2012.[citation needed]
Reception[edit]
Merrit's sound has been described as "sonic short stories and poignant performances."[25] She has been compared to artists like Joni Mitchell[26] and Emmylou Harris.[27]
A review in The New Yorker lauded her[27] and The Wall Street Journal included her in a weekend feature on singer-songwriters, describing her as being "in the tradition of Joni Mitchell, James Taylor and Leonard Cohen".[26]
Personal life[edit]
In 2009, Merritt married Zeke Hutchins;[28] they separated in late 2013.[29] In 2016, she and Eric Heywood had a daughter named Jean.[30]
Discography[edit]
Studio albums[edit]
Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Sales | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US Country [31] |
US [32] |
US Heat [33] |
US Indie [34] |
US Folk [35] | |||
Bramble Rose |
|
47 | — | — | — | — | |
Tambourine |
|
— | — | 21 | — | — | |
Another Country |
|
— | 156 | 1 | — | — | |
See You on the Moon |
|
— | — | 6 | — | 7 | |
Traveling Alone |
|
— | — | 10 | 46 | 12 | |
Night (with Simone Dinnerstein) |
|
— | — | — | — | — | |
Traveling Companion (Traveling Alone expanded version) |
|
— | — | — | — | — | |
Stitch of the World |
|
— | — | — | — | — |
|
"—" denotes releases that did not chart |
Live albums[edit]
Title | Album details |
---|---|
Home Is Loud |
|
Buckingham Solo |
|
Love Soldiers On (Concert at the Historic Playmakers Theatre) |
|
Extended plays[edit]
Title | Album details |
---|---|
The Two Dollar Pistols with Tift Merritt |
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Please Break the Silence of the Middle of the Night |
|
Sweet Spot |
|
Singles[edit]
Year | Single | Peak positions | Album | |
---|---|---|---|---|
US AAA [37] |
US Country [38] | |||
2002 | "Neighborhood"[39] | — | — | Bramble Rose |
2004 | "Good Hearted Man" | — | 60 | Tambourine |
"Stray Paper"[40] | — | — | ||
2008 | "Broken" | 28 | — | Another Country |
2010 | "Mixtape"[41] | — | — | See You on the Moon |
2012 | "To Myself"[42] | — | — | Traveling Alone |
2016 | "Dusty Old Man"[43] | — | — | Stitch of the World |
2017 | "Proclamation Bones"[44] | — | — | |
"—" denotes releases that did not chart |
Music videos[edit]
Year | Video | Director |
---|---|---|
2002 | "Virginia, No One Can Warn You" | Douglas Avery[45] |
2004 | "Good Hearted Man" | Philip Andelman[46] |
2008 | "Broken" | Martyn Atkins[47] |
2010 | "Engine to Turn" | John Hulme[48] |
2013 | "Only in Songs / Night and Dreams" |
Appears on[edit]
- 2003: Chatham County Line – Chatham County Line (Bonfire)
- 2003: John Eddie – Who The Hell Is John Eddie? (Lost Highway
- 2003: Portastatic – Autumn Was a Lark (Merge)
- 2004: Chris Stamey – Travels in the South (Yep Roc)
- 2006: Sally Spring – Mockingbird (Sniffinpup)
- 2007: Charlie Louvin – Charlie Louvin (Tompkins Square)
- 2007: Teddy Thompson – Upfront & Down Low (Verve Forecast)
- 2010: Reto Burrell – Go (Echopark)
- 2014: Andrew Bird – Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of… (Wegawam Music)
- 2016: Andrew Bird – Are You Serious (Loma Vista)
- 2016: Hiss Golden Messenger – Heart Like A Levee (Merge)
Awards and nominations[edit]
Year | Association | Category | Result |
---|---|---|---|
2004 | 47th Grammy Awards | Country Album of the Year – Tambourine | Nominated |
2005 | Americana Music Association | Album of the Year – Tambourine | Nominated |
Artist of the Year | Nominated | ||
Song of the Year – "Good Hearted Man" | Nominated | ||
2008 | Americana Music Association | Song of the Year – "Broken" | Nominated |
References[edit]
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. p. 275. ISBN 978-0-89820-177-2.
- ^ a b Deming, Mark. "Tift Merritt: Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved April 27, 2017.
- ^ "Interview: Tift Merritt brings soulful rock to Louisville's Waterfront Wednesday [Music". Louisville.com. July 21, 2010. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ [1] Archived July 11, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Kast, Sheilah. "Tift Merritt Performs in NPR's Studio 4A". NPR. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ "Yep Roc Records > Store". Store.yeproc.com. Archived from the original on July 14, 2012. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ Merlefest's Chris Austin Songwriting Contest Winners Archived July 24, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Product Categories". Grand Central Music. Archived from the original on March 11, 2012. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ Harrington, Richard (April 15, 2005). "Start of rightcontent.inc". The Washington Post.
- ^ Kast, Sheilah (November 7, 2004). "'Tambourine,' Tift Merritt's 'Rock Soul Throwdown'". NPR. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ "Tift Merritt". ABC Country. August 24, 2009. Archived from the original on May 5, 2012. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ "Live From Austin TX: Tift Merritt: Tift Merritt: Movies & TV". Amazon. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ "Blue Rose Records". Bluerose-records.de. Archived from the original on April 11, 2012. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ Franco, Michael (February 25, 2008). "I Felt Like Another Country Myself: An Interview with Tift Merritt < PopMatters". Popmatters.com. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ Pareles, Jon (November 9, 2007). "A Tribute to Bob Dylan, Both Reverent and Rowdy". The New York Times.
- ^ "See You on the Moon" (PDF). Concordmusicgroup.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 29, 2012. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ "Americana Music Awards – Nominees for the 2008 Americana Music Association Honors and Awards". Folkmusic.about.com. September 18, 2008. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ "Edmonton Folk Music Festival/Festival Archive". Official Website. Edmonton Folk Music Festival. 2010. pp. Festival Archive/Past Performers 2009 (M). Archived from the original on December 14, 2010. Retrieved January 9, 2011.
- ^ "Blitzen Trapper adds dates to summer outing". Livedaily.com. May 14, 2010. Archived from the original on May 28, 2010. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ "Joan Baez Appears on Pier Tonight". Santa Monica Dispatch. July 9, 2009. Archived from the original on March 11, 2012. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ [2] Archived January 6, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "On the Beat: David Menconi on music – Tift Merritt sings for change | newsobserver.com blogs". Blogs.newsobserver.com. Archived from the original on March 21, 2012. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ Overdub Lane
- ^ "Tift Merritt's 'See You on the Moon' Gets Tracked And Covered". Music.mync.com. March 23, 2010. Archived from the original on February 26, 2012. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ "Full Album: Tift Merritt – See You On The Moon". Wxrt.radio.com. February 6, 2010. Archived from the original on February 1, 2013. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ a b Jurgensen, John (August 13, 2010). "The Secrets of Songwriters". The Wall Street Journal.
- ^ a b Greenman, Ben. "Tift Merritt's "See You on the Moon," review". The New Yorker. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
- ^ Jones, Amy (July 16, 2010). "Tift Merritt makes her own brand of music at Asheville's Orange Peel". Asheville Citizen-Times. Retrieved July 16, 2010. [dead link]
- ^ "Tift Merritt's homecoming show centers on 'Bramble Rose' album". newsobserver. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
- ^ "Live in Denver: With Baby on Board, Tift Merritt Finds Comfort, Joy and Everlasting Love". May 24, 2017.
- ^ "Tift Merritt Album & Song Chart History: Country Albums". Billboard. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
- ^ "Tift Merritt Album & Song Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
- ^ "Tift Merritt Album & Song Chart History: Heatseekers Albums". Billboard. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
- ^ "Tift Merritt Album & Song Chart History: Independent Albums". Billboard. Retrieved October 11, 2012.
- ^ "Tift Merritt Album & Song Chart History: Folk Albums". Billboard. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
- ^ Bjorke, Matt (March 5, 2017). "Top 10 Country Albums Sales Chart: March 6, 2017". Roughstock.
- ^ "Tift Merritt – Chart History (Adult Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
- ^ "Tift Merritt – Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
- ^ "Going for Adds (Triple A)" (PDF). Radio & Records. April 26, 2002. p. 34.
- ^ "Going for Adds (Triple A)" (PDF). Radio & Records. January 7, 2005. p. 19.
- ^ "Mixtape - Single by Tift Merritt". Apple Music. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
- ^ "To Myself - Single by Tift Merritt". Apple Music. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
- ^ "Tift Merritt - Dusty Old Man". Daily Play MPE. December 13, 2016.
- ^ "Tift Merritt - Proclamation Bones". Daily Play MPE. March 22, 2017.
- ^ "CMT : Videos: Tift Merritt : Virginia, No One Can Warn You". Country Music Television. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
- ^ "CMT : Videos : Tift Merritt : Good Hearted Man". Country Music Television. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
- ^ "CMT : Videos: Tift Merritt : Broken". Country Music Television. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
- ^ "Engine to Turn". Vimeo. Retrieved February 3, 2013.
External links[edit]
- Official website
- Tift Merritt at AllMusic
- Tift Merritt discography at Discogs
- 1975 births
- Living people
- American rock musicians
- American alternative country singers
- American women country singers
- American country singer-songwriters
- Musicians from Raleigh, North Carolina
- Lost Highway Records artists
- Fantasy Records artists
- Musicians from Houston
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni
- Singer-songwriters from North Carolina
- Singer-songwriters from Texas
- 21st-century American singer-songwriters
- 21st-century American women singers
- Country musicians from Texas
- Country musicians from North Carolina
- Yep Roc Records artists