I recently had the pleasure of seeing Tift Merritt in concert a few weeks back at one of my favorite venues in Atlanta, Variety Playhouse in Little Five Points. Tift’s opening act was Teddy Thompson, which really meant nothing to me at the time. In fact, even after having been on stage for fifteen minutes, I still really wasn’t feeling this guy. There was nothing wrong with his live act, but the audience and the artist weren’t sparking off each other and things just seemed to fall flat. The songs kind of plodded along, and, even though his personality seemed to help him immensely, I just couldn’t connect the way I wanted to.
After the concert was over and I was able to say in hindsight that I enjoyed the evening (and how could I have not? Tift Merritt singing live is an occasion not to be missed),I decided to give the guy a second chance and I picked up A Piece of What You Need, which, in all seriousness, turned out to be exactly what I needed. The songs, the voice the lyrics, everything, it’s a great CD that deserves to be heard.
From the gentle strumming of the first track, “The Things I Do”, with the slightest bit of electronic flourishes to the end of the final track which slowly unwinds and dismantles itself, there’s not a filler to be heard. Teddy’s voice is engaging, defiant, angry and curious. On “What’s This” he catches himself in a happy moment only to reply “Oh shit” , while on “Turning the Gun on Myself” he sings about doing just that. The highlight “In My Arms” should be blaring out of everyone’s cars. It’s a great mid tempo rocker about what he has and has to offer in his arms. And the chorus just soars…
