August 11, 1997

Publication title: People Weekly, vol. 48, Iss. 6, pg. 30
Place: New York
Writer: Unknown

Sisters in song

Men are about the only thing missing from Lilith Fair, the novel, all-female Lollapalooza-like summer tour featuring a rotating lineup with such artists as Jewel, Sheryl Crow, Fiona Apple, Suzanne Vega, Tracy Chapman and Emmylou Harris. Headlining the fair is the woman who first envisioned it, Canadian singer-songwriter Sarah McLachlan, 29, who is playing all 37 dates and has just released her fourth album, Surfacing (Nettwerk/Arista), a long awaited follow-up to her 1994 double-platinum, Grammy-nominated disc Fumbling Towards Ecstasy.

Why did you start the tour?
I rarely get the opportunity to see any of the people I really love musically, so it was selfish, generally. And there’s such a wealth of talent that isn’t getting represented why not create a sisterhood?

Why name it Lilith Fair?
Lilith was Adam’s first wife before Eve [in Jewish folklore] and was essentially the world’s first feminist. He refused to treat her as an equal, so she left him. To call it a fair was to establish that it was a celebration. And fair meaning beautifuland equal. I liked the play on words. But from the beginning I said this has nothing to do with excluding men. Everyone should come and celebrate.

You’ve recently married. Have you thought about starting a family?
Oh, God, every day. But not for at least a year. I don’t want to be having morning sickness on the road.