Motherland (Natalie Merchant album)

Motherland
Studio album by Natalie Merchant
Released	November 13, 2001 (2001-11-13)
Recorded	June 15 – September 9, 2001
Studios	Allaire Studios (Shokan, New York); Clinton Studios (New York City, New York); Sunset Sound and Cello Studios (Hollywood, California).
Genre	Folk rock
Length	58:22
Label	Elektra
Producers	Natalie Merchant T-Bone Burnett
Natalie Merchant chronology
Live in Concert (1999) Motherland (2001) The House Carpenter's Daughter (2003)
Singles from Motherland
"Just Can't Last" Released: September 2001 "Build a Levee" Released: 2002 "Tell Yourself" Released: 2002

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	79/100
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
Billboard	(Favorable)
E! Online	B+
Entertainment Weekly	B
Jam!	(Favorable)
Mojo
Q
Rolling Stone
Slant Magazine
Uncut

Motherland is the third studio album by Natalie Merchant, released on November 13, 2001, by Elektra Records.

History

Originally, a song named "The End" was supposed to appear on the album instead of "Not In This Life". Merchant noted that: "I'd take out one song, 'Not in This Life,' because it seems frivolous to me now. And I'd put back a song called 'The End,' which probably would have gotten me in trouble. Part of the lyric goes: 'That'll be the end of war/ the end of the law of Bible, of Koran, Torah.' I really wanted to put it on the record, but I felt there was so much serious material already that I chose something lighter, for balance." "The End" later appeared on Merchant's self-titled sixth studio album (2014).

Two tracks from Motherland, "Tell Yourself" and "Not in This Life", appeared on the television series Felicity and Alias respectively. The song "Henry Darger" is about "posthumously appreciated outsider artist" Henry Darger.

Track listing

All songs written by Natalie Merchant.

1. "This House Is on Fire" – 4:42
2. "Motherland" – 4:44
3. "Saint Judas" – 5:44
4. "Put the Law on You" – 5:01
5. "Build a Levee" – 4:46
6. "Golden Boy" – 4:10
7. "Henry Darger" – 4:24
8. "The Worst Thing" – 5:46
9. "Tell Yourself" – 5:14
10. "Just Can't Last" – 4:31
11. "Not in This Life" – 5:22
12. "I'm Not Gonna Beg" – 3:40

Personnel

Production

• T-Bone Burnett – producer
• Natalie Merchant – producer, package design
• Mike Piersante – recording
• Ryan Boesch – recording assistant
• Kevin Dean – recording assistant
• Brandon Mason – recording assistant
• Keith Shortreed – recording assistant
• Jim Scott – additional recording, mixing
• Jennifer Hilliard – mix assistant
• Robert Read – mix assistant
• Bob Ludwig – mastering at Gateway Mastering (Portland, Maine)
• Paul Ackling – production assistant, guitar technician
• Lili Picou – package design
• Laura Wilson – photography
• Gary Smith – management

Charts

References

External links

• Motherland Lyrics