Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Tift Merritt celebrates the 20th anniversary of her landmark album Tambourine today with a two-part release: a vinyl reissue of the record and Time and Patience, a companion album of unreleased demos and home recordings from the early 2000s. Both are available now via One Riot Records.
Originally released in 2004, Tambourine earned Merritt a Grammy nomination for Best Country Album as well as multiple nods from the Americana Honors & Awards, including Album of the Year, Artist of the Year, and Song of the Year. Despite the acclaim, Merritt was dropped before her next release. While she describes the period as standard major label education, celebrating Tambourine as a career-defining record that continues to resonate twenty years later is a salute to Merritt's milestone, as well as her ongoing, accomplished career and quiet integrity.
Featuring contributions from Mike Campbell, Maria McKee, Neal Casal, and Don Heffington, the record became a cult favorite and a foundational text for a generation of Americana and folk artists. Now reissued on vinyl for the first time in years, Tambourine restores its expansive analog warmth for longtime fans and new listeners alike.
Paired with the reissue is Time and Patience, a deeply personal collection of demos, cabin recordings, and long-lost songs that offer an intimate glimpse into Merritt’s writing process during the Tambourine era. The album includes raw kitchen recordings, tracked with nothing more than her spiral notebook, her voice, and her dog Lucy at her side, alongside studio gems that never made the original release.
“When I hear my 27-year-old self belting these songs, I hear my dreams,” Merritt says. “I hear my intentions — and those intentions are true. Writing songs and singing them was where I went to be free.”
Merritt arrives at this milestone on the heels of a triumphant return to international stages, including her return to Glastonbury Festival and a feature on BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour. This fall, she will return to AmericanaFest in Nashville for multiple appearances, including a Paste showcase, a performance on the NPR Music/World Cafe/WMOT Day Stage, several official panels, an in-store set at Vinyl Tap, and more.
With these two releases, Merritt reframes a defining chapter of her career through the lens of reflection, while reminding audiences why her voice remains one of the most enduring and essential in Americana today.
Listen to Time and Patience (out now) here: https://ffm.to/tmtimeandpatience
Order Tambourine (20th Anniversary Reissue) on vinyl here: https://stores.portmerch.com/tiftmerritt/
For more information, please visit https://www.tiftmerritt.com/.
