Actually my wife used a midwife when we had our son, and we had an incredibly terrific experience.
I was a wreck, my wife was of course mildly incapacitated, but our midwife was in COMPLETE control- she knew her stuff, backwards and forwards. Not a complicated birth, but no cakewalk either, and she handled it like she had done it 4000 times, which of course she had.
I have nothing but good things to say about midwives for uncomplicated pregnancies. I helped deliver my son, and I kept the umbilical scissors I used to cut the cord - try that with your OB!
The interesting thing here is that my brother told me that, when they did the midwife thing, insurance will not help. But, if they went to the hospital (where the cost is quite a bit more) the health insurance is there to help. If this is true it is just crazy...