Sarah McLachlan

Sarah McLachlan

Sarah Ann McLachlan (born January 28, 1968) is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is known for her emotional music. She was adopted and raised in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She went to the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, then moved to Vancouver, British Columbia.

Her recording company, Nettwerk, released her first album in 1988. After recording several albums, she organized the all-female music festival Lilith Fair in 1997, 1998, and 1999. Some of the money made from these concerts went to women's charities. McLachlan received the Elizabeth Cady Stanton Visionary Award in 1998 for helping women's music.

She married her drummer, Ashwin Sood, in 1997. They have a daughter, India, born in 2002.

McLachlan has been written about in magazines such as Rolling Stone, Time, and Entertainment Weekly. She has won Grammy and Juno awards for her music.

She funds a Vancouver program that helps poor children learn music. She has played at charity concerts, such as for victims of the December 26, 2004 tsunami and at the 2005 Live 8 concert in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.

Some of McLachlan's best-known songs include "The Path of Thorns", "Into the Fire", "Possession", "Building a Mystery", "Sweet Surrender", "Adia", "Angel", and "World on Fire".

Influences

McLachlan stated music artists like Cowboy Junkies, Kate Bush, Tom Waits, 10,000 Maniacs, Sinéad O'Connor, Joni Mitchell, Peter Gabriel, Cocteau Twins, Daniel Lanois, Kate & Anna McGarrigle, Laura Nyro, Sandy Denny, Suzanne Vega, U2, Rickie Lee Jones, Stevie Nicks, Anne Murray, Jane Siberry and Bruce Cockburn as influences.

Albums

Albums with only new songs:

• Touch (1988)
• Solace (1991)
• Fumbling Towards Ecstacy (1993)
• Surfacing (1997)
• Afterglow (2003)

Live albums

• Mirrorball (1999)
• Afterglow Live (2004)

Live EPs (shorter albums) were released in 1992 and 2004.

Other albums

• The Freedom Sessions (1994)
• Rarities, B-Sides and Other Stuff (1996)
• Albums called Murmers were released only for her fan club every year from 1995 to 2001.
• Two remix albums were released, in 2001 and 2005.