VH1 Storytellers - Sarah McLachlan

More than just the mind behind Lilith Fair, Sarah McLachlan is the lush voice from some of the most beautiful and haunting melodies in recent memory. The Canadian songstress broke out in 1993 wit her third album, Fumbling Towards Ecstasy, inspired by her experience working on a documentary about poverty and child prostitution. Then came Mirrorball, which gave rise to enchanting songs like "Building a Mystery" and "I Will Remember You." And we"ve got them right here in rock's most setting, so sit back, relax, and get ready to go one-on-one with the artists you love " and the songs you only thought you knew. Includes Good Enough, Building a Mystery, Ice Cream, Sweet Surrender, Hold On, Elsewhere, Possession, Witness, Angel .com ---- The relative intimacy of the Storytellers stage is appropriate for an artist like Sarah McLachlan, who in the course of this 10-song, 55-minute performance establishes an easy and close rapport with her audience. In truth, empires will neither rise nor fall, and few lives are likely to be changed, on account of McLachlan's music. But the guiding light of Lilith Fair is an honest, unpretentious artist with a lovely voice (those distinctive little swoops at the end of melodic phrases bring to mind fellow Canadian Joni Mitchell) and a passel of tunes that reflect the self-professed influence of writers like Cat Stevens, Joan Baez, and Peter Gabriel. There's no "I Will Remember You" here, but McLachlan and her excellent band (including husband Ashwin Sood on drums) perform strong versions of the catchy "Ice Cream," the heartfelt "Hold On," and others, with Paula Cole guesting on "Elsewhere" and McLachlan also performing solo at the piano. She doesn't rock like Sheryl Crow; she's not odd like, say, Tori Amos; and she (like pretty much everyone else) lacks the burning originality of Mitchell. But simply being Sarah McLachlan is plenty good enough. --Sam Graham

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