Natalie Merchant New Double CD: Leave Your Sleep

by Sudha Krishna | April 13, 2010 at 11:13 am

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Natalie Merchant, Ex-10,000 Maniacs Singer New Record Leave Your Sleep

Natalie Merchant a 46 year old singer songwriter most famous for her work with the indie group the 10,000 Maniacs, and for her stellar solo work including Tigerlilly and Ophelia is back with a new solo project called Leave Your Sleep.

Natalie Merchant took a break from recording in 2003 when she became a mother but now she is back with a double CD. Leave Your Sleep is a collection of old poetry, nursery rhymes, and lullabies from 19th and 20th century writers and artists.

Among the poets she chose for the 26 songs are Robert Graves, Charles Manley Hopkins, Edward Lear, Ogden Nash, and Robert Louis Stevenson.

Natalie Merchant has this this description of Leave Your Sleep on her official website.

“Leave Your Sleep is the most elaborate project I have ever completed or even imagined. Nearly seven years ago I set out to create a piece of work I hoped could capture the universal experience of childhood through poetry and music. ”

That the thoughtful and eclectic Merchant would take on a project like this should come as no surprise to her fans but the challenge for Merchant after not being in the spotlight after her long 7 year hiatus was re-entering a transformed music industry.

In an interview with the BBC Natalie Merchant said,

The thing that did concern me was the whole music industry had collapsed around my ears, or around someone else's ears while I wasn't paying attention. I think I got a pretty good ride on a giant that has now been brought to its knees. I remember in the '80s and '90s you'd have been thrown off a label for selling 50,000 records when now you are considered successful. It's a different world.