Natalie Merchant will give her first UK performance in over seven years on Monday November 16, 2009 at Conway Hall in London.

The date – an evening with Natalie Merchant – will showcase material from her forthcoming Nonesuch album release, as well as selections from her celebrated 28-year career.

Tickets are on sale now.

Buy Music:

Natalie Merchant on amazon.com

Natalie Merchant on amazon.co.uk

Monday November 16, 2009
An Evening with Natalie Merchant
Conway Hall, London
25 Red Lion Square, London WC1
(Tube: Holborn)
www.conwayhall.org.uk
Doors: 7.00pm | Performance: 8.00pm
Tickets: £25 from 0844 576 5483
and www.livenation.co.uk
All tickets subject to booking fee

On Friday November 13th Natalie Merchant will also participate in the gala concert at the Barbican that marks the opening of this year’s London Jazz Festival, performing with Guy Barker and the London Jazz Festival Orchestra.

On Thursday January 28th she will appear at Glasgow’s Royal Concert Hall as part of 2010 Celtic Connections.

The new album is due for release in Spring 2010. It will be Natalie Merchant’s first new studio recording in seven years and her first for Nonesuch Records.

Throughout her career Natalie Merchant has had tremendous popular and critical success. She has earned a place among America’s most respected recording artists with a reputation for being a songwriter of quality and a captivating performer.

Q has called her ‘Among the most compelling and distinctive voices of the last decade,’ while Vogue has said she is ‘One of the most successful and enduring alternative artists to emerge from the eighties – intact and uncompromised.’

Natalie Merchant began her musical career in 1981 as the lead vocalist and lyricist of the multi-platinum band 10,000 Maniacs.

In 1994 she began her solo career with a self-produced debut album, Tigerlily (1995), which sold more than four million copies.

In the years following, she released Ophelia (1998), Natalie Merchant Live (1999) and Motherland (2001).

In 2003, after 18 years, she left Elektra Records and independently released an album of traditional and contemporary folk music, The House Carpenter’s Daughter, on her own label, Myth America Records.

In 2005 she curated a collection of her own work for a double album entitled Retrospective.

Merchant has collaborated both on stage and in the studio with a wide range of artists: REM, Wynton Marsalis, The Chieftains, Mavis Staples, Daniel Lanois, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, David Byrne, Philip Glass, Billy Bragg, Wilco, Tracy Chapman, Cowboy Junkies, Ryan Adams, Lokua Kanza, Yungchen Lhamo, The Fairfield Four, Gavin Bryars, Jakob Dylan, Susan McKeown, Chris Botti, Lúnasa, The Klezmatics, Katell Keineg, Dan Zanes and Medeski, Martin & Wood.

Throughout her entire career Merchant has been dedicated to supporting a wide array of non-profit organizations lending both financial support and raising public awareness. She was recently appointed by the governor of New York to serve a five-year term as a member of the prestigious New York State Council on the Arts.

Further details about the forthcoming album and international tour dates will be announced shortly.

Buy Music:

Natalie Merchant on amazon.com

Natalie Merchant on amazon.co.uk

For the latest tour dates and information, go to:

Natalie Merchant Official Website

Corey Harris has recently released his latest album, ‘Zion Crossroads’ on Telarc Records. The CD is a “celebration of roots reggae, Ras Tafari, Ethiopia, and the African continent” and has received many accolades for being one of the best reggae albums of the year.

Originally from Denver, Colorado, Corey Harris released his debut solo acoustic album, ‘Between Midnight and Day’ in 1995 on Alligator Records. His debut was a delta blues style which was well received and soon after, he had an opening slot on tour with Natalie Merchant.

Since then Corey has continued to explore his musical roots, releasing more albums which included a move to Rounder Records for his 2002 release, ‘Downhome Sophisticate’, an album that “added layers of African and Latin music” – and he’s played genres ranging from funk to R&B, roots, reggae and hip-hop. Harris has toured in Guinea and Mali, West Africa, South America, the Caribbean, Europe, Japan, New Zealand and Australia.

In 2003, Corey Harris appeared in the Martin Scorsese documentary, Feel Like Going Home, an installment in the blues series that aired on PBS. In the film, Harris explores African-American blues on a journey that begins in the Mississippi delta and eventually takes him to Mali, where he discovers still more layers of African music to add to his repertoire.

Now with his 2007 release, ‘Zion Crossroads’, Corey has found his niche once again with an outstanding reggae release and is currently on tour in the US including upcoming shows in France and Australia. With his busy schedule, he’s taken the time out to answer some questions for Band Weblogs.

Corey Harris interview with BandWeblogs.com
Compiled by: Dave Tommo

Dave Tommo: Hi Corey. I’m listening to your ‘Zion Crossroads’ album and I love it. It’s my favourite type of reggae music. I read that you started out playing the blues. What made you cross over to reggae?

Corey Harris: Thank you. I don’t think of crossing over…Reggae and Blues are the same root, different branches. What made me cross over to Reggae? Living and travelling in Africa, knowing Selassie, Garvey, The Writings of Walter Rodney.

You play brilliant old school reggae, who are your biggest reggae influences?

Joseph Hill, Burning Spear, Sylford Walker, Augustus Pablo, The Gladiators.

I love your song, “Sweatshop”. What advice would you give to people who are shopping for clothes?

Try and be conscious in your purchases.

Who are your biggest blues influences?

Son House, Charley Patton.

What is your favourite type of relaxation?

Meditation, Bible Verses.

Do you cook? If so, can you tell us a meal that you like to cook up when at home?

–Raw papaya smoothie with ice, peanut butter, soy milk, honey, cinnamon and nutmeg
–Rice with yellow lentils and thyme
–Lightly steamed pumpkin, bok choy, carrot, onion, garlic with bragg liquid aminos and Mrs. Dash to taste
–Salad with walnuts, Blood Oranges, sprouts, avocado, Olive Oil, balsamic vinegar

Do you always gig with the same musicians?

Yes, same crew.

What other reggae bands have you played with or supported?

None. Have opened up for Burning Spear and Wailers.

How do you like playing in the UK and do you have plans to tour here in the future?

I would very much like to play the UK, but have not had any invitations yet to play there. I am ready to go.

What album are you listening to at present?

Utterance by Tuff Lion.

What album would you suggest for a first time reggae fan to listen to?

Any Trojan Reggae Compilation is a good start.

If aliens landed and said “take me to your leader”, who would you introduce them to?

I-Self!

What is the best thing about being alive?

Love and creation.

Where was your best gig and why?

The best gig is the next one…

For more information about Corey Harris, tour dates and to purchase his CDs, go to:

Corey Harris on Myspace