Old Poems, New Songs

I was sleuthing around TED, looking for some inspiration, when I came across this video of Natalie Merchant singing songs from her new album, Leave Your Sleep. Natalie chose children's poems from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and set them to music - a modern twist on some verses, many of which would have long gathered dust in obscurity. My favorite is "Janitor's Boy," a song based on a poem written by a ten year-old Brooklyn girl, Natalia Crane, in 1927. I love Natalie's soothing, unique sound and hopefully you will too!