Yeah, I could buy that assessment:

With only six months left in this first decade of the 21st century, the female singer who emerged during this period that has impressed me more than everyone else is Tift Merritt. On the basis of her first three studio albums–2002’s BRAMBLE ROSE; 2004’s TAMBOURINE; and 2008’s ANOTHER COUNTRY–the Texas-born, North Carolina-raised singer/songwriter has proven herself a force to be reckoned with, even if corporate radio won’t bite for her. On those albums, she bought together many different outside influences, particularly those of Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris, Maria McKee, and Sheryl Crow, and combined them with her own unique songwriting abilities to produce an original, roots-rock approach–an extremely rare quality nowadays.