Little Sisters Are Following in Lilith’s Footsteps

Lilith has left the building. But her three rewarding and influential years advancing the careers of scores of female pop and rock musicians opened a door of opportunity that four of her younger sisters are about to walk through.

In fact, a new tour dubbed the Girls Room, which features a rotating lineup of singer-songwriters Tara MacLean, Shannon McNally, Amy Correia and Kendall Payne, was born at a Lilith Fair show last summer outside Boston.

That’s when Perry Watts-Russell, senior vice president of artists and repertoire at Capitol Records, realized that not everyone was as ready as Lilith founder Sarah McLachlan to say farewell.

“I overheard two women chatting, and when one asked her companion, ‘What are we gonna do next year? We’re really gonna miss Lilith,’ it suddenly dawned on me that Sarah had created something that satisfied a real need among concert-goers, especially women,” Watts-Russell said. “I could sense how there was now going to be a bit of a void.”

Watts-Russell flashed on an idea for filling that void--albeit on a far smaller scale than Lilith Fair’s arena and stadium shows--that simultaneously provided a solution to a dilemma of his own.

“We had a lot of new, young solo females [at Capitol Records] that were not only going to be competing against others but against themselves,” Watts-Russell said. “I believe there is public interest in discovering new artists, so I thought, ‘OK, they all love to play live. . . . Let’s put them on the road together and turn a perceived negative into a positive.”

The monthlong Girls Room tour, which began Monday in Seattle and arrives Friday at the Coach House in San Juan Capistrano and heads Saturday to Canes Bar & Grill in San Diego, features three of the four women on any given night, each doing a 30-minute set. MacLean, Payne and Correia will be playing these two dates.

Watts-Russell will choose--from submissions to the tour’s Web site (https://www.thegirlsroom.com)--a local unsigned solo acoustic act to open each show. (L.A. singer-songwriter Wendie Coulter got the nod for San Juan Capistrano).

Extending the Lilith spirit of mutual support, the four women will select their favorite opener from previous dates to open the tour’s final stop, Aug. 8 at the Roxy in West Hollywood. Capitol will give the winner a chance to record a demo tape as well.

Probably the tour’s best-known participant is MacLean. Hailing from Prince Edward Island, the 27-year-old has spent much of the last three years on the road, including each Lilith tour plus opening slots with Paula Cole, Barenaked Ladies and Ron Sexsmith.

She sings her esoteric, spiritually tinged lyrics in a haunting yet warm voice and has garnered radio airplay with her pop-oriented single, “If I Fall,” a tune she wrote for the TV-series “Felicity” that’s also found on her Capitol debut album, “Passenger,” which came out in February.

Payne, 20, is an edgier, rock-oriented performer often compared to Alanis Morissette and Fiona Apple. Last year, Capitol released Payne’s “Jordan’s Sister,” a stirring collection whose topics range from coping with unplanned pregnancy (“Not the Time”) and gender-based exploitation (“Supermodels”) to a father’s afterlife filled with sorrow (“Fatherless at 14”). Payne also has played some Lilith dates.

Massachusetts-native Correia, 31, and Long Islander McNally, 27, both have debut albums due later this year. In time for this tour, Capitol has released EPs for each, Correia’s “Transportation Songs” and McNally’s “Bolder Than Paradise.”

MacLean said she’s looking forward to the camaraderie she believes will develop as the tour progresses.

“We’re all traveling together in a bus, and we’ll have this opportunity to really get to know each other, share some of our experiences. . . . We can even borrow clothes from one another. I think the support and encouragement we can give to each other will be invaluable.”

For Correia, who has played only at clubs in L.A. and New York, the Girls Room represents a welcome alternative to what’s hot in pop.

“We’re proof that not everyone is dancing around . . . and singing about nothing, where it becomes all about image without substance,” Correia said. “We’re working hard to create something a little bit deeper than that.”

Also different from the norm is the price tag for this package. With sponsorship by Stayfree feminine hygiene products, the Girls Room tour is free, although a $5 donation is being requested at some tour stops to benefit local charities.

But can a tour--even a free one--succeed without at least one star attraction?

“I believe all four women are capable of selling a million records, but will they do it any time soon? Probably not, because they don’t fit into what’s going in the marketplace,” Watts-Russell said. “But then again, look at what Lilith accomplished. Or what Macy Gray’s doing. No one figured she would break that huge, so hope springs eternal.”

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The Girls Room, featuring Tara MacLean, Kendall Payne and Amy Correia, plays Friday at the Coach House, 33157 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano. 8 p.m. Free. Tickets available through the club or the tour Web site (https://www.thegirlsroom.com). (949) 496-8930. Also Saturday at Canes Bar & Grill, 3105 Oceanfront Walk, San Diego. 6 p.m. (619) 488-1780. Also Aug. 8 at the Roxy, 9009 W. Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood. 8 p.m. (310) 278-9457.