Lilith Fair was a concert tour and travelling music festival in the USA, founded by Canadian musician Sarah McLachlan in 1997, and ran for just 3 years. It consisted solely of female solo artists and female-led bands, the first of it’s kind. In its initial three years, Lilith Fair rose over $10M for charity, and was revived again in 2010.
Over the years the festival has hosted legendary acts including Heart, The Bangles, Sheryl Crow, Jewel, Bonnie Raitt, Sinead O’Connor, The Pretenders, Dixie Chicks, Natalie Merchant, Indigo Girls, Missy Higgins and Tegan & Sara to name but a few.
To celebrate 20 years since the inception of the event, let’s take a look at some stand out songs by these incredible artists.
Bonnie Raitt – Love Me Like A Man
This song was written by Bonnie Raitt in 1972 and was an adaption of the original, less popular song, Love You Like A Man by Chris Smither. This live version of this song has so much feel in it, and Bonnie's guitar playing is just stunning. The holds on each note sound like she's playing slide.
Pretenders – Don’t Get Me Wrong
"Don't Get Me Wrong" became the group's second Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at #10. Their first Top 10 pop hit, "Back on the Chain Gang", had reached #5 in 1983. The song features a jangly guitar sound and an emphasis on melody, and of course Chrissie’s amazing voice.
Sheryl Crow – All I Wanna Do
"All I Wanna Do" is a song performed by Sheryl Crow and written by Wyn Cooper, Sheryl Crow, David Baerwald, Bill Bottrell and Kevin Gilbert, with lyrics adapted from Cooper's 1987 poem "Fun". It was Crow's breakthrough hit from her 1993 debut album, Tuesday Night Music Club. The song was the winner of the 1995 Grammy Record of the Year and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and was nominated for Song of the Year. The song is her biggest US hit, peaking at #2.
And, here’s a few live fan clips from Lilith Fair…
Jewel, Sarah McLachlan, Indigo Girls and Sheryl Crow
The Bangles – Walk Like An Egyptian – 2010
Meredith Brooks – Bitch – 1997
Heart – Barracuda – 2010
If you love a strong female front lady check out our ‘I’m Every Woman’ Spotify playlist
