Sharing Diva Space

I’ve always wondered about how awesome-sounding a Sarah McLachlan, Natalie Merchant and Tori Amos collaboration would be. I remember being blown away by their music back in the early ‘90s. They’re piano-playing singer-songwriters with disparate styles and musical approaches, so I often imagined them doing something really arty together, singing respectively penned verses and creating a keyboard and string-heavy arrangement as a unit. I can see the misty music video, the women dancing or twirling around their campfire like Three Fates or three sister Muses, singing about life, emotion, or disruption emotively, descriptively, liltingly. I dunno, I daydream about these things, sometimes.

Sarah sang with Jewel and the Indigo Girls a while back, in one of the Lilith Fair shows. The folk ballad’s called “The Water Is Wide,” and it’s just damn lovely. Unlikely duets (like the thrilling U2-Mary J.Blige remake of “One,” and Keith Urban and Alicia Keys’ live rendition of “Gimme Shelter”), and cause-oriented collaborations have always fascinated me. And speaking of gatherings, I saw a clip of Sarah and the Lilith performers singing and sharing lines from Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi” after one show years ago. Perhaps it’s the fact that such unbelievably gifted artists are together under one roof (or on an open stage) that appeals to me first. I like seeing them, to quote Madonna on collaborations, “share diva space.”

Back to the trio of rock muses. Here are my illustrations of the women and some quotes.

Sarah McLachlan:

“(Lilith Fair) wasn’t any social commentary thing. It was that I thought it’d be fun. That’s it! Nobody wants to hear that! They want me to be this big political/social innovator. I kind of became that by error.” (Entertainment Weekly, June 19, 1998)

The storm keeps on twisting, you keep on building the lie that you make up for all that you lack. (“Angel”)

I would be the one to hold you down, kiss you so hard. I’ll take your breath away. (“Possession”)

Tori Amos:

“I’ll manipulate a song the way I want to ‘cause I just like it that way. It’s like I’m saying to the muse, ‘Look, if you don’t want my input, go to Jewel.’” (Rolling Stone, Nov. 13, 1997)

Girls you’ve got to know when it’s time to turn the page, when you’re only wet because of the rain. (“Northern Lad”)

I’ve been looking for a savior in these dirty streets, looking for a savior beneath these dirty sheets. (“Crucify”)

Natalie Merchant:

“I’ve never met a groupie. I think I have a totally asexual aura. I tend to attract earnest poetry majors who just want to tell me they appreciate my work.” (Rolling Stone, Nov. 13, 1997)

Instead of love and the feel of warmth, you’ve given him these cuts and sores that don’t heal with time or with age. (“What’s The Matter Here”)

These are the days you might fill with laughter until you break. These days you might feel a shaft of light make its way across your face. (“These Are Days”)

Plus! More dream three-way collaborations:

Billy Joel, Regina Spektor, Vienna Teng

John Mayer, Jason Mraz, Jack Johnson

Paul McCartney, Joni Mitchell, Tina Turner

Leigh Nash, Dan Haseltine, Tiffany Arbuckle

Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, Prince

Ryan Tedder, Ben Gibbard, Chris Carrabba

Michael Stipe, Bono, Robert Smith

Sheryl Crow, John Mellencamp, Joan Osborne

Dar Williams, Jewel, Suzanne Vega

David Gray, Heather Nova, Aimee Mann