Track Listing

1. Wonder
2. San Andreas Fault
3. Beloved Wife
4. Space Oddity
5. Carnival
6. Dust Bowl
7. After the Gold Rush
8. Gun Shy
9. Gulf of Araby
10. Ophelia
11. Seven Years

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #20684 in Music
• Released on: 1999-11-09
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Live
• Dimensions: .12 pounds

Amazon.com
With just a pair of CDs--Tigerlily and Ophelia--in her solo-career arsenal, Natalie Merchant isn't an artist you'd expect to release a live album. Perhaps Merchant is fond of playing live, which shows throughout these 11 tracks despite her relaxed, unflappable vocal delivery. The former 10,000 Maniacs frontwoman leads an amped "Wonder" and then coos into "San Andreas Fault"; the latter is expansive and dramatic, a direction Merchant is exploring that's alternately off-putting and charming. Merchant's version of David Bowie's "Space Oddity" is even more philosophical and meditative. Add to that a languid take on Neil Young's "After the Gold Rush" and you have a full-scale portrait of Merchant's mindset. The ever-somber music is limited in its emotional scope, but there are few performers in mainstream pop who excel more in that range. --Andrew Bartlett

Customer Reviews

Natalie Merchant's Live CD Adds New Dimension to Songs
Since her early days with 10,000 Maniacs, Natalie Merchant has been an impeccable storyteller. Songs like "Like the Weather," "Trouble Me," and "These are Days" are not only catchy pop tunes, but they also relate to the human condition: the way in which the weather affects one's mood, the importance of the older generation, and the importance of remembering the good times.

After Ms. Merchant left the Maniacs and embarked on a solo career, her songs might not be considered the catchy pop tunes of the late 80s and early 90s, but they still reflect the frail emotional condition of humankind.

On Live in Concert, Merchant's songs are intimate yet powerful. She starts with "Wonder," her most Maniacs-like song, from her 1995 solo debut, Tigerlily. She proceeds to the poetic "San Andreas Fault," a parable about going to Los Angeles to "build a dream and watch it all fall down."

In addition to two Maniacs' songs, there are three new songs, all of which are covers. The most familiar is her cover of David Bowie's "Space Oddity." Though it doesn't vary much from the original, Merchant brings the loneliness and despair of the song to a more human level than Bowie's colder version.

The standout piece is "The Gulf of Araby," a song about inequality and about how cruel man can be to his fellow man. It's a song about "neighbors who are proud of their massacres" and prisoners who are "framed by a dirty judge." At just over seven minutes, it's the longest track on this sixty minute CD. The song's sense of urgency is delivered by Merchant's strong, soaring voice. The lyrics, coupled with Merchant's delivery, are goosebump provoking.

Noticeably absent, however, are songs from Merchant's 1998 release, Ophelia. Only the CD's title track is featured on her Live effort, and although a great performance, it isn't nearly enough from such a brilliant CD. "Life is Sweet," "Kind and Generous," and "Break Your Heart" would have been wonderful additions to this live set. But these omissions are forgivable - as long as they are included on a future live album that is equally as pleasing and gratifying as this one.

OK... I'll admit I was a skeptic, but I was wrong.....
After purchasing both Natalie Merchant studio CDs, why bother buying a live disc that just rehashes old stuff -- well, with Natalie what you see is often not what you get.

I find with her live performances a much more nuanced and pronounced vocal -- lyrics which were blurred and fuzzy on the studio disc are now out in front. NEWS FLASH, her songwriting is poetry. Give a listen to the smooth and haunting Ophelia as an example of what I mean...

Her concert versions of these tracks tell you so much more about them. If you like her, you need to buy this, simply so you can turn off the lights, turn up the volume, and pretend like you are sitting in the middle of the auditorium, watching her live in concert, new york city, june 13, 1999...

You won't regret it...

Solid Ground
I have never understood how Noatalie Merchant has ended up in the "Love Her"/"Hate Her" category of artists who draw adamant extremes of public and critics opinion (esp. critics). Perhaps its difficulty trying to relate to a strong, intelligent, compassionate woman who is in the business for arts sake. Never one to pander to the audience or critics with overt sexuality or stories about her personal life, Ms. Merchant has dedicated herself to making beautiful music only. All this being said as a preface to her wonderful new "Live in Concert" recording - a relaxed but reverent affair documenting her year long tour promoting 1998's "Ophelia" CD. A wonderful retrospective made primarily from her work as a solo artist (get 10,000 Maniacs "Unplugged" if you want the old stuff)Merchant shows the stellar results of spending the last 17 years on the road. My only criticism is the exclusion of some of her more updeat obscure songs say, "My Sister Rose," or even the rocker "Scorpio Rising" from the brilliant "Wishing Chair" CD. "Gun Shy" was a nice surprise though. All said this a a fine collection for old and new fans to savor until the next tour. Thanks for the early Christmas present Natalie.