After the birth of her daughter in 2016 and her last full length, Stitch of the World, in 2017, Tift Merritt moved music to the backburner. She serves as a Practitioner-in-Residence at Duke University exploring the creative process. She also hosted a radio show called The Spark.
Fans of Tift rejoiced last year with demos from Tambourine released as Time & Patience. The title teased this year’s release of her first set of new material in nine years. Sugar feels lived in and familiar. Tift has lived much life since her last release and the time to consider shines through the album.
Starting with a guitar roll, “Generous” feels like a letter to a short-term lover. She sings, “Baby I know / how this part goes. / Changing girls / it’s just like changing clothes. / If you don’t look back / it won’t hurt much. / You just forget my heart / was generous.” The plaintive lyrics read like a diary. Tift shares a vulnerability in this song that reaches through the speakers. You can feel Tift’s heart honestly in the room.
With “Look What Love Just Did,” Tift sounds like the blue-eyed soul singer of yesteryear akin to her breakout Tambourine. The horns and rhythm section wouldn’t sound out of place on a 1970s R&B station. The song stands out as an upbeat sing-along. The first single “Finest Feelings” is a piano ballad that builds slowly. She sings, “Show me your finest feelings, what they’r? all about
/ I got nothing urgent, but your mouth / I got those finest feelings, wanna show you all about it / I got nothing urgent, but your mouth.” Tift is again reminding herself to stay in the moment with feelings.
About the author: Jeff is a teacher in the Boston area. When not buried correcting papers, Jeff can be found plucking various stringed instruments and listening to all types of americana music.