By Elizabeth Dentan (page N4)
It's about 6 p.m. at Marine Midland Arena, and Natalie Merchant is battling a bad cold. She and her band take the stage for a pre-show sound check. This is a welcome-home concert of sorts for Merchant, a Western New York native and one of pop music's biggest stars.
With six musicians and eight crew members working around her, she's trying to make some last-minute changes before going in front of thousands of fans. There's a lot to worry about-- the lighting, the sound and the hundred other things that may go wrong.
In between the coughs and sniffles she seems to be having fun, joking with her band and playing host to two students from City Honors School in Buffalo. But it's not all fun. On stage, Merchant may seem petite, but she's clearly the leader of this group. She's not shy about making suggestions and giving out directions.
"I'm getting too much guitar," she says at one point.
One of the songs she performs during the sound check and later during the concert is Wonder, a tale of a woman handicapped from birth, abandoned by her parents and struggling with life. Like so many of Merchant'ssongs, Wonder seems to carry a strong social message.
"I tend to write about people," she said. "I find it fascinating and I like to tell their stories. I think through telling their stories, if I choose people who have challenges in life, they're usually the fascinating people. Sometimes very tragic and sad, and sometimes very powerful."
Merchant, during an interview with the two students, said a lot of her songs are designed to send a message to young people. The interview was arranged by the Shoshone Park Enrichment Program and Assemblyman Sam Hoyt, who has worked with Merchant on a lot of projects.
"I think the most important thing lacking in our society is respect," she said, when asked if there was one message she wanted to send to young people. "If we had respect, whether it be for ourselves, nature or our families, it would be a much better world."
Merchant wrote two songs, Break Your Heart and Life Is Sweet, for young people. She's also involved in the prevention of teen pregnancy.
Her mother had her first baby at 19, her second at 20 and Natalie when she was 21. Her mother did go back to college and now, at age 59, is completing her master's degree.
"I grew up with a mom who never had much freedom," Natalie Merchant said. "She went from her childhood right into motherhood."
She grew up in Jamestown, where there's a high teen pregnancy rate. Merchant has donated $45,000 to local youth programs.
At this concert, friends and family are in the arena, the only local stop of her Ophelia '99 tour, which will take her to Alaska and Japan. For many fans, this may be the first time they have seen Merchant the solo artist. She broke into the business as a member of10,000 Maniacs, a Western New York band that continues to perform.
"I wanted to write my own music," she said, when asked why she left the band for a solo career.
Merchant's roots here were on display during the concert. She sang a song about the Erie Canal and commented on local politics.
In many ways, it was a warm welcome home for Natalie Merchant.
Elizabeth Dentan is an eighth-grader at City Honors School.