Tift Merritt

In the spring of 2002, Tift Merritt released her first album, Bramble Rose, to widespread critical notice, yet the versatile performer—a strong vocalist, inventive songwriter, and capable guitarist—had already accumulated years of practical experience. She entered the world in Houston, Texas, in 1975; her family relocated to North Carolina during her childhood, and she has remained there ever since. As a youngster she began exploring music by harmonizing with her father, whose own earlier experiments had touched on folk styles, and by her early teens she acquired a guitar whose first four chords he demonstrated. Although the defiant energy of punk and indie rock attracted her, she discovered deeper resonance with acoustic-based songwriters, above all Joni Mitchell, whom she once described to a journalist by saying, "I went through a Joni Mitchell phase -- and all girls go through a Joni Mitchell phase; if any girl tells you she never did, don't believe her." Emmylou Harris’s Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town introduced her to roots music, prompting her to dive into North Carolina’s thriving alt-country circles. She started performing regularly alongside the Two Dollar Pistols, trading vocals with frontman John Howie while supplying rhythm guitar; this partnership led to her inclusion on the band’s seven-song collection of vintage country material, issued in the fall of 1999. Seeking an outlet for her own compositions, she assembled the Carbines in 1998, enlisting drummer Zeke Hutchins, guitarist Greg Reading, and bassist Jay Brown; the group quickly became a regular presence on North Carolina stages and issued a favorably received 7" single. Through her dual involvement with the Carbines and the Two Dollar Pistols, Merritt gained visibility within the regional roots-music community, and by early 2000 she and her band appeared ready to finalize a contract with Sugar Hill Records. The agreement collapsed at the eleventh hour, yet her victory in the Chris Austin Songwriting Contest at that year’s Merlefest generated fresh attention. Fellow North Carolinian Ryan Adams alerted his manager, Frank Callari, to her work; Callari then sought label interest on her behalf and, after joining the A&R staff at the Universal-affiliated roots imprint Lost Highway, made Merritt one of his initial signings. Although she was contracted as a solo artist, she has continued employing the Carbines as her touring and recording unit, including on Bramble Rose. The album reached stores in June 2002 amid enthusiastic notices. Two years later came the George Drakoulias-produced Tambourine, followed in 2008 by Another Country and in 2009 by the live set Buckingham Solo, both issued on Fantasy Records. Traveling Alone, cut in Brooklyn with contributions from Marc Ribot, Andrew Bird, and additional guests, surfaced in the fall of 2012. That same period brought a distinctive partnership with classical pianist Simone Dinnerstein on the 2013 album Night, which interwove pop, folk, jazz, and classical selections. Merritt also joined Andrew Bird’s ensemble the Hands of Glory for their 2014 release, Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of.... Her seventh studio effort, Stitch of the World, produced by Sam Beam of Iron and Wine, arrived in 2017.