Natalie Merchant brought her Autumn Acoustic Tour to Maryland Hall in Annapolis on Nov. 23, delivering an intimate, literary-leaning set that drew heavily from Motherland, Leave Your Sleep, and Keep Your Courage — her solo albums from 2001, 2010, and 2023, respectively.
James Todd Miller was there to photograph the show for this Snapshots photo feature.
This concert recap was drafted from the shows’ setlist to accompany photos by James Todd Miller.
Opening with a hushed “Motherland,” Merchant settled the room into a reflective mood before moving into whimsical nursery settings “Nursery Rhyme of Innocence and Experience” and “If No One Ever Marries Me.”
Watch Natalie Merchant and Erik Della Penna rehearse “If No One Ever Marries Me” live on YouTube:
Backed by guitarist Erik Della Penna, Merchant reworked older material with spare arrangements that highlighted her dusky, conversational vocals. 10,000 Maniacs favorites “Don’t Talk” and “Hey Jack Kerouac” arrived mid-set, warmly received and reshaped to fit the evening’s acoustic frame.
She leaned into deep-cut storytelling with “Cowboy Romance,” “Build a Levee,” and the antique-flavored “Come Take a Trip in My Airship,” then shifted to more recent songs like “Tell Yourself,” “Big Girls,” “Lulu,” “I’m Not Gonna Beg,” and a luminous “Wonder,” which functioned as a late-show singalong. The night closed on the bittersweet optimism of “Break Your Heart,” “Dust Bowl,” and “Life Is Sweet,” underscoring the balance of melancholy and resilience that’s defined her catalog for four decades.
Here are some photos of Natalie Merchant performing live at Maryland Hall on Nov. 23, 2025. All pictures copyright and courtesy of James Todd Miller.
