Merrie Amsterburg

Merrie Amsterburg, a Boston-based singer and songwriter, launched her professional path as the frontwoman and guitarist of the Natives, an outfit active from the late 1980s into the early 1990s. The group nearly secured a contract with Gene Simmons of KISS and cut several tracks alongside Richard Gottehrer, the producer behind Blondie’s recordings. Neither venture reached completion, however, since Simmons’ label could not finalize distribution arrangements in time and the Gottehrer material stayed shelved; the band therefore disbanded soon afterward. Those setbacks in rock performance steered Amsterburg toward a more rewarding role as a solo songwriter, prompting her to weave in folk, jazz, and world-music textures while favoring more intimate lyrics. Her debut solo album, Season of Rain, appeared in 1996 on Q-Division records, the imprint tied to the studio where the sessions took place and where other Boston artists such as Aimee Mann and Jennifer Trynin have also worked. The record was reissued in 1999 by Zoe/Rounder Records, the same year that saw the arrival of her EP A World of Our Own Making. Little Steps arrived in mid-2000.