Anyone watch the Lilith Fair documentary?
Posted by Top_Jaguar_5924@reddit | GenX | View on Reddit | 101 comments
I was a hardcore punk rocker for most of the 90’s and although I liked some of the artists that performed on the Lilith Fair tour it was kind of a joke amongst my peers and I. Nothing mean spirited but you know, just not our thing.
That said, my wife (also Gen x, also a punk and a raver) and I watched the documentary streaming right now and found it quite moving.
Aside from just the great artists ( Natalie Merchant, Sinead, etc) it just made me really miss the 90’s.
The way people were. The way things were. The way it felt.
Hard to put into words but people were just different souls back then. I hate speaking in generalities but people were just doing their thing, nothing performative.
I really miss it a lot.
Redwood_Moon@reddit
I enjoyed the documentary. It was a great time for music festivals.
Ryno-19@reddit
I too mis the 90’s. Got me thinking, I really don’t remember anyone ever say they miss the 70’s. What’s not to like? Bell-bottoms, leisure suits, disco…
classicsat@reddit
I listened to the radio (a lot more than I do), plus watched music video flows on MTV2 (no particular shows, they just aired music videos).
I am content in having moved on and let the younger people have figured out their own things.
JakeBanana01@reddit
What channel?
lrandolp@reddit
I think I happened on it on the CBC Canadian channel.
X2946@reddit
Exactly how boomers talk about their 20’s. Congratulations on getting old
LetThem_1972@reddit
Social media and smart phones are a massive differentiator and that's part of what OP was referring to. Completely different time because of those factors.
X2946@reddit
No. Perception. Tour state of mind was different. People have not changed. We had cameras. Do you not remember piles of photo albums.
Top_Jaguar_5924@reddit (OP)
Sorry but c’mon. Yes people had cameras but not very many. People’s behavior is sssooooooo different now, it’s hard to understand how you could dispute that. The level of narcissistic “main character “ behavior is one example. I live in NYC and every day I see people not taking pictures of NYC, but taking pictures of themselves, as if they are the point of interest. The fact that we are alm walking around with small powerful computers in our pockets has totally rewired many of us. Its a drag.
X2946@reddit
People‘s behavior is not so different now. It’s just been broadcast online.
Top_Jaguar_5924@reddit (OP)
Look, I was there. I am here now. People are different. My co-workers understanding of the world and how they navigate it, their modes of behavior, are completely different than my gen x peers were. Walked the streets of NYC where I live- the social habits, language, inflection, overall vibe- totally different.
X2946@reddit
Everyone acts their age. I don’t see any great differences. The world has changed but people are the same
LetThem_1972@reddit
nailed it
Original_Scholar_272@reddit
I went with a friend in ‘97(?). I think he thought we were going to pick up girls. We didn’t. But I saw Lisa Loeb on a side stage and fell in love.
Anxious-Ocelot-712@reddit
I went with a few friends to the one in Phoenix the first year (fifth stop of the tour in 1997). We took the day off of work and drove up from Tucson. It was a fantastic day, incredible show, and just a good time overall. We saw Suzanne Vega, Paula Cole, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Jewel, and Sarah McLachlan (and some side stage performances that I can't remember). I watched the documentary a few weeks ago and was just hit with wave after wave of nostalgia. Looking back, we didn't realize how good we had, but I guess it's always that way.
gopms@reddit
I saw it in the theatre with a woman my age and a much younger friend. For the friend who is my age, it was a fun walk down memory lane. My much younger friend was basically livid. We had that and they took it away! Why can't we have that again? She really felt like she had missed out on something that will never be replicated. I have been coming up with my hypothetical Lilith Fair line up for the reboot though, it looks pretty much like Lilith Fair from the 90s. I mean, you get Tracy Chapman up there, I'm in.
RoninRobot@reddit
“Maybe it meant something. Maybe not, in the long run . . . but no explanation, no mix of words or music or memories can touch that sense of knowing that you were there and alive in that corner of time and the world. Whatever it meant. . . .” -Hunter Thompson, Fear and Loathing
defixiones@reddit
Like Wordsworth at the French Revolution; Oh! pleasant exercise of hope and joy!
For mighty were the auxiliars which then stood
Upon our side, we who were strong in love!
Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive,
But to be young was very heaven!
Top_Jaguar_5924@reddit (OP)
This is so good, thank you
bionic_cmdo@reddit
Have not seen the documentary yet but I have been to it with my girlfriend in our twenties. Such a cool vibe. Everyone sat on the grass with their blankets. Very peaceful and relaxing atmosphere. Got a Lilith Fair cd of some of the artists there. Although I felt like I was the only guy there.
CharmingDagger@reddit
I need to watch it. I keep forgetting. Liz Phair inspired me to start playing guitar, and I loved the music of a lot of the Lilith Fair musicians.
Awkin-Sopwith@reddit
Yes, I saw the documentary. It was really interesting, even though I didn’t go to Lilith Fair.
Practical-Arugula-80@reddit
Haven't seen the doc as yet, but I did see one of their shows at The Gorge at George in WA State. Went with my girlfriend at the time and several of her girlfriends. It was a fantastic show. It was their '97 lineup: Sarah McLachlan, Jewel, Suzanne Vega, Paula Cole, Tracy Chapman, and Shawn Colvin.
dogmatixx@reddit
That show is featured prominently in the doc.
jonny_mal@reddit
I didn’t even know there was one, definitely would check it out. Also, if you want a really good nostalgia dump, there are “broadcast additions” of mystery science Theatre on YouTube. They have all the ads and all the in-between bumpers.
well-it-was-rubbish@reddit
Is 'Mitchell' on there?
jonny_mal@reddit
YES, more than one version
Mylastnerve6@reddit
It is my long regret that I couldn’t figure out how to get the day off to see the concert.
MaximumJones@reddit
I think there are some rose colored glasses going on there. People were extremely performative in the 90s, no different than they are now.
Record companies/execs were choosing artists and their success solely based on revenue, no different than any other time in modern music history.
uglyugly1@reddit
And this was right around the time that Clear Channel bought all the radio stations in my area. They all went to about a 20 song playlist on repeat....over, and over, and over.
Top_Jaguar_5924@reddit (OP)
This is very true. Radio has never recovered. They touch on Woodstock 99 in the Lilith doc. The violence, aggression, and general vibe. In some ways we are still in that mess too in my opinion.
uglyugly1@reddit
I imagine that the person who I replied to originally was getting hammered, but they had a really good point. Looking back, there were a lot of great artists, but also a lot of really contrived, commercialized artists and bands during that time as well. Just like all trends, a few led, and the rest followed (with corporate backing). Sarah McLachlan was at the absolute apex of her commercial success then.
I'm a huge 80s rock/AOR fan, and just last year I did a deep dive on it, read some books and watched a few documentaries on the music scene. I learned really quickly that the whole scene was a few really successful bands, with everyone else imitating them. It's just the way the mainstream music industry worked.
JRBowen9@reddit
Ex-girlfriend worked the Biore booth and toured with Lilith Fair back then. She got me into a show, or else I would never have seen Sheryl Crow or the Dixie Chicks live. I was absolutely stunned by Sheryl Crow's performance.
JudgeJuryEx78@reddit
I never went, I would have really enjoyed it, and yet I remember not wanting to admit that to my punkrock friends 🤣
Top_Jaguar_5924@reddit (OP)
Looking back, Tracy Chapman and Sinead especially were so punk
Gloomy-Athlete701@reddit
Documentary is great and Lilith Fair was great.
I went to Lilith Fair when it came through our city in the 90s. One of my best concert experiences in my twenties.
I’m also a huge Sarah McLachlan fan, and when her Fumbling Towards Ecstasy Anniversary tour came through during the summer of 2024 my daughter was stoked to go with me. It seemed so cyclical—me finding a love for McLachlan in my 20s and now my daughter doing the same in her 20s. I’d also had lost my mother a month prior, so it was very healing both for experiencing the music and sharing it with my daughter.
PheesGee@reddit
I sneaked in a fifth of tequila in my pants when I went to Lilith Fair. Then taught the people next to me how to roll a proper joint. Those were the days!
RedLily08@reddit
I have two. "Hi I'm.......Tommy" and "I hate kids"
Exciting_Pass_6344@reddit
My wife asked me this weekend if I prefer how things are now with technology and always being able to be connected or were the 90s better. I said 90s without question. I miss those times too.
cajunjoel@reddit
I went to all three Lilith Fairs and it was fucking amazing. You missed out. :)
Aernak@reddit
I think you hit the nail on the head with “nothing performative”. Why did we ever think it was a good idea to post our entire lives on social media? I quit Facebook about a year ago and it was the best thing I’ve done in years.
MhojoRisin@reddit
I liked the documentary a lot. But I remember, at the time, people giving it an immense amount of crap. Lots of lesbian jokes and the like. (Not really related but this makes me think of Jay Leno and his incessant shitting on Monica Lewinsky.)
I don’t think anyone would think twice about an all-women tour these days. Even if it was specifically advertised and promoted as an all-lesbian show.
I had fun in the 90s. But the world has improved in some ways.
PauliNot@reddit
That was the point of Lilith Fair--to show that multiple women can tour on one bill and be successful. They blazed the trail!
Havacookiewhydontcha@reddit
I saw it and really enjoyed it. I love the folksy music from that time. It really hurt my heart though to see how truly free and hopeful our generation was then, how the garbage we have to endure now just wasn’t in your face 24/7. We didn’t have the burden of knowing how shitty a lot of people actually are back then.
conscientiousrevolt@reddit
Well you sold me on this doc. Hope I get the same vibe.
Yes I miss it too, greatly. Maybe we can go back some day.
Alternative-Meaning4@reddit
Watching the Chili Peppers documentary made me feel exactly this same way…..I miss those times in a way that makes me (Gen x) feel like we teleported into a soulless hellscape from 2020 to the present. Like none of what made us cohesive back then is even relevant or recognized anymore. Sucks.
zuuzuu@reddit
It was an incredible documentary. It's available on CBC Docs YouTube channel here:
https://youtu.be/R0DrZGl39as?si=T2DC7ERcu5NzYlxp
StreetFriendship1200@reddit
Oooh no. What is the exact name of the documentary?
zuuzuu@reddit
Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery
It's available on CBC Gem and on CBC Docs YouTube channel.
https://youtu.be/R0DrZGl39as?si=T2DC7ERcu5NzYlxp
Raul_Duke_1755@reddit
I was a 20 something male and went to the first one. Great music, first of all. Secondly it was like 1,000:1 female to male. I recall having a really good time.
A_Tom_McWedgie@reddit
I went to one with my wife in Toronto.
They had put these curtains up in the men’s washrooms so that it was half men’s, half women’s, but I think that lasted about 10 minutes before it was completely taken over.
You just had to get over it and use the urinals while women lined up right behind you for the stalls. But at least I didn’t have to line up for them!
kramwest1@reddit
I just had this happen at the Brandi Carlile show at the Target Center in Minneapolis. It was easily 10 to 1, women to men. The women were very disappointed walking into the men’s room that it only had 2 stalls. They lined up nonetheless because the lines for the women’s room were ridiculous.
The Lilith Fairs I went to were almost entirely Port-a-potties—Great equalizers, until it comes to the TP issue.
Raul_Duke_1755@reddit
I used the men's stand up urinal next to a woman. It was certainly something new to me... then or since. Lol
kramwest1@reddit
My wife and I took our friend and his brother one year. Our friend wasn’t particularly handsome, but he was charming as hell and a nice guy.
No joke, on the blanket next to us were four women who were strippers at Deja Vu. Our friend found this out from them in no time. They were super nice, genuinely—not the stripper in the club nice. They gave our friend passes and told him to bring his brother. His brother was quite shy and 17 at the time. They laughed and insisted he visit when he turned 18.
Very memorable.
swordrat720@reddit
My wife and I went in 97, she wanted to see it so my “birthday present” was tickets. Yeah, everyone we met was nice. Not nice, because I have to be, genuinely happy, friendly, nice. I miss that.
ManyBonus865@reddit
It was so good. Now I want to watch it again. I went to Lilith Fair with my best girlfriends and our Moms. We were 16 at the time, maybe it was 1997, and it was such a magical experience. I will never forget dancing and singing to Indigo Girls “Least Complicated” in a field with our moms having the time of our lives. Such a special memory.
punchlinerHR@reddit
Same!!
bknyguy15@reddit
It’s fantastic! Made me miss that music terribly .
sidewaysmotion613@reddit
I had the same reaction, plus waterworks at the end. I'm so glad I was able to get to one of the shows the first year.
HolidayAd2161@reddit
Same. Absolute waterworks.
Substantial_Cold2385@reddit
The doc is saved to my watchlist. I've just been waiting for when I'm in the mood.
Left-Thinker-5512@reddit
Those were the days B.S.M. (Before Social Media).
evidentlynaught@reddit
Yep. Concerts before cellphones.
kramwest1@reddit
I’m so glad my wife and I went all 3 years, 5 times total. We went to the 3 Minnesota shows, then went to the Long Island show once and the Rose Bowl once.
Such a great time. Such great music. Plus, it was affordable as I remember.
We both teared up quite a bit at the doc.
We also saw Sarah McLachlan last fall. Her voice is as good as ever, and she is as feisty as ever. Love her.
Neat_Point1061@reddit
I miss the 90s too. There was a buzz of something back then... felt alive... but then, that could have been just my youth. Now, I just feel like Stan in the South Park episode where everything is literal poop and farts....
TreasonalDepression@reddit
I went to the 1999 Lilith Fair with my then girlfriend (now wife). I got to meet Meshell Ndegeocello, which was awesome. Beth Orton was my favorite performance. We had a great time.
Murky_Possibility_68@reddit
I went to this for several years, Including nose bleeds with my mom in Hershey, PA.
What channel is this on?
kramwest1@reddit
Hulu
Top_Jaguar_5924@reddit (OP)
Hulu
Murky_Possibility_68@reddit
Thank you!
JackWylder@reddit
I ran sound at one of the side stages so ended up with a performer badge and all the backstage access it granted. Lot of good memories- where is this documentary, please?
LuceLeakey@reddit
It's on Hulu.
JackWylder@reddit
Thanks!
hellhathnofury3@reddit
It’s on Hulu. Great doc.
CTDubs0001@reddit
Did every genX guy have a girl who took him to Lilith fair like me? Not shitting on it. It was great.
MhojoRisin@reddit
I wish! My girlfriend was a Pentecostal and took me to church, not concerts.
Rredhead926@reddit
The first time I went, it was a group of girls and my one male roommate. It was kind of hilarious.
I also remember that all of the men's bathrooms were designated as unisex.
Raul_Duke_1755@reddit
I went with a couple of my male friends. It was great.
FL_4LF@reddit
If only we could go back to relive the 90s. I never paid much attention to the Lilith fair, but I admire some of the musicians who performed. I never really gravitated to grunge, but there was some great music that came out in that time. If only to travel back, and show my kids how we were back then.
crone_Andre3000@reddit
Things were better in a lot of ways, worse in others. We had our innocence still - even though they like to peg Gen X as the ultimate cynics, I think we took the American Dream stuff pretty seriously and wanted to do good things.
Rredhead926@reddit
I went to Lilith Fair twice, at Shoreline Amphitheater. It was awesome, both times. I didn't much care for Sarah McClachlan (sp?), but I loved Alanis Morissette (whose name I also cannot spell).
Spatula26@reddit
Not to disparage your tastes, but it amuses me how opposite mine are. Love Sarah McLachlan and once went to a BNL/Alanis show and was super stoked that BNL played first so we could just leave afterwards.
(No, I’m not Canadian.)
Rredhead926@reddit
My husband loves BNL. I like them OK. 😊
The_Bandit77@reddit
Me too man. I know just what you mean.
truthynaut@reddit
Yeah I feel you, I was a burner when Lilith was going on and did not pay it much attention.
Watched it a couple nights ago and it brought me right back.
Definitely worth a watch.
PlatformConsistent45@reddit
I was at the very first one. It was a great time. Peak 90 woman of music for sure.
eperker@reddit
It was great. Surprisingly moving. I cried a few times.
Thereisnospoon64@reddit
Loved this documentary and watched it via Disney+
Made me really regret missing this concert and put so much into perspective for me.
My husband got to attend a couple times and said it was one of the best concerts he’d ever been to.
So many incredible artists in the lineup. And I absolutely adore Sarah. I did get to see her perform Fumbling Towards Ecstasy recently and it was stellar. Her voice is still crystal clear.
HerNameIsVesper@reddit
As a Canadian and a lover of Sarah McLachlan, I loved the film. Like you, it reminded me of happier, simpler days. Although I spent much of the 80s deep in the alternative/goth scene, I appreciate all the artists who participated. The older I get, the more I admire singer-songwriters in all their earnestness and passion.
fearofcrowds@reddit
I always found it cool that Sarah Mclachlan, through Nettwerk and her work with Delerium and bands like that has a connection to the Canadian industrial scene like Skinny Puppy and Front Line Assembly. She even namechecked Skinny Puppy on her recent interview with Amy Poehler.
mrsredfast@reddit
We went to three years of them. Really enjoy it. Still have t-shirts somewhere.
ApplicationLost126@reddit
I was lucky enough to go twice! Both were amazing shows but the earlier one was a bit better. I did watch the documentary and thought it was good. I hadn’t thought of it as a “safe” concert compared to others but in retrospect it did seem a bit safer than the others big concerts I went to at that time.
LuceLeakey@reddit
I wasn't lucky enough to go, because I didn't have enough money to travel to where the concerts were happening. But I have all the CDs and absolutely love them. I'm Canadian and absolutely adore Sarah.
The documentary was great!
PaulClarkLoadletter@reddit
My wife and I watched it. We were disappointed that we missed out on it.
whoatemarykate@reddit
I went to the one in Toronto. It was a really awesome concert, especially with Sarah being Canadian.
one_bean_hahahaha@reddit
I wish I could have gone.
ToddBradley@reddit
We enjoyed the documentary
jitterbugperfume99@reddit
It was a good watch. I never went to Lilith Fair (had a baby and no extra cash) but would have liked to have experienced it.
whatiftheyrewrong@reddit
I saw a trailer and teared up. The nostalgia was overwhelming. I haven’t been able to watch it yet.
Yells2007@reddit
Love concerts but I was always a smaller venue, one evening kind of fan. Never really paid much attention to Lilith Fair when it ran, to be honest. Watched the documentary a few months ago and saw how many amazing artists were part of it. I had no idea.
jbrown9972@reddit
I liked some of the acts but I was a typical male Rock fan in the '90s, this doc taughtl me some new stuff about that scene. I thought it was really well done