# Best female singer/songwriter ? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 10, 2000, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870 "2000-08-10T18:49:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Lux\_Fiat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/bc79bd/32.png) [@Lux\_Fiat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lux_Fiat)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2000, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/21 "2000-08-11T05:34:57Z")
Sarah McLachlan Ani DiFranco Tori Amos Kristen Hersh I’ve managed to see Sarah and Ani live, and _wow_. I’m also currently really digging Sinead Lohan. ---
**Author:** ![Amthystre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Amthystre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amthystre)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2000, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/22 "2000-08-11T10:03:52Z")
Natalie Merchant Aimee Mann Ella Fitzgerald Tracy Chapman Ani Difranco Both the Indigo Girls – great harmony ---
**Author:** ![Commander\_Fortune](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Commander\_Fortune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Commander_Fortune)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2000, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/23 "2000-08-11T10:05:03Z")
Annie Lennox ---
**Author:** ![hawthorne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@hawthorne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hawthorne)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2000, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/24 "2000-08-11T14:24:57Z")
P(olly) J Harvey. Great singer and songwriter, fabulous guitarist. picmr ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2000, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/25 "2000-08-11T14:39:59Z")
The troubled and troubling, amused and amusing: Jill Sobule ---
**Author:** ![TheNerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/858c86/32.png) [@TheNerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheNerd)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2000, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/26 "2000-08-12T00:34:39Z")
Ani DiFranco Beth Orton Sarah MacLachlan Erika Amato Poe ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2000, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/27 "2000-08-12T00:56:48Z")
Sarah McLaughlan Shawn Colvin Trisha Yearwood ---
**Author:** ![zenith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e19b73/32.png) [@zenith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zenith)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2000, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/28 "2000-08-12T04:10:40Z")
I can’t believe no one has mentioned Melissa Etheridge. ---
**Author:** ![Montfort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Montfort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Montfort)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2000, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/29 "2000-08-12T05:01:15Z")
I can’t believe no one’s mentioned **Dar Williams** … My favourite, though, is **Lori Carson**. Also: **Leah Andreone Kate Bush Milla Jovovich** (yes, the actress) **Jennifer Kimball** (formerly of The Story) **Lisa Loeb Sinéad Lohan Tara MacLean Sinéad O’Connor Beth Orton Holly Palmer Poe Toyah Wilcox Suzanne Vega** I’d also love to hear what **Anneke van Giersbergen** (of The Gathering) and **Shirley Manson** (of Garbage) can do without the boys in their bands. Ditto my friend **Jen Noble** (of [Grey Eye Glances](http://www.greyeyeglances.com) – plug plug). As you can tell, I have a large collection of female singer-songwriter’s CDs. ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2000, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/30 "2000-08-18T00:41:57Z")
I nominate Harriet Wheeler of The Sundays. Though she didn’t write all of their songs, she wrote enough of them to qualify for me. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalMuse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecccb3/32.png) [@DigitalMuse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalMuse)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2000, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/31 "2000-08-18T01:35:52Z")
Tina Root of Switchblade Symphony-beautiful operettic voice that she can manipulate to make eodnerful sounding songs, and her songs are like poetry… Tori Amos ---
**Author:** ![Rincewind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e274bd/32.png) [@Rincewind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rincewind)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2000, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/32 "2000-08-18T02:27:15Z")
Dolores O’Riordan of the Cranberries. She’s got that great Irish accent haunting singing voice. ---
**Author:** ![Sweet\_Lotus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@Sweet\_Lotus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sweet_Lotus)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2000, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/33 "2000-08-18T02:33:07Z")
[sorta hijack]Madonna does write her own songs. If anyone read her liner notes, they would know that. She has songwriting credit on over 80% of her songs. She doesn’t actually _score_ anything, but she brings ideas for melodies (and sometimes entire tunes) to her cowriters, and writes ALL of her lyrics. [/sorta hijack] I nominate Tori Amos. I’ve seen her live twice and it was incredible. [hijack]About the orgasm on the piano thing - she never knew she did that, until about 1995, when she saw some concert footage of herself onstage. She was utterly shocked, went into therapy and now has herself under control. Mostly.[/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Samonek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@Samonek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Samonek)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2000, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/34 "2000-08-18T16:04:23Z")
Kim Deal of Pixies/Breeders/Amps etc. Nothin’ but no B.S. good old fashioned down and dirty American guitar/bass/drums rock and roll. Kim rocks like nobody’s business. She may not write the purtiest or the smartest songs, but damn it, who said rock and roll was supposed to be smart or purty? I just used “rock” as a verb for the first time in probably twelve years. ---
**Author:** ![Maeglin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8baadc/32.png) [@Maeglin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maeglin)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2000, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/35 "2000-08-18T16:10:59Z")
I can’t believe no one has mentioned **Grace Slick!** MR ---
**Author:** ![struuter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b9e5f3/32.png) [@struuter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/struuter)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2000, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/36 "2000-08-18T16:27:02Z")
I don’t have anybody new to add, but… Kate Bush Sheryl Crow Chrissy Hynde Harriet Wheeler Joni Mitchell and Carole King ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Mxyzptlk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/edb3f5/32.png) [@Mr\_Mxyzptlk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Mxyzptlk)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/37 "2000-08-19T02:12:21Z")
One lady I think should be added to the list is Carly Simon. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/38 "2000-08-19T03:31:07Z")
There have been a lot of talented ladies mentioned, here. However, you should all go out and do forty days penance regarding singers. A few years ago, a reviewer noted that on her latest album Judy Collins had clearly lost 10% or 15% of her range–leaving her only 10 times as good as any competition. The following ladies (alphabetically by first name) are truly wonderful: Carole King Chrissie Hynde Grace Slick Pat Benatar but how in the world could you folks forget sweet Judy blue-eyes? ---
**Author:** ![Clark\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c77e96/32.png) [@Clark\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clark_K)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/39 "2000-08-19T18:36:24Z")
In the country-folk-pop vein, you’ve got to love Mary Chapin Carpenter and Matraca Berg. Oh, and Kelly Willis. And Shelby Lynne has done something amazing: evolve from a kick-ass, big-voiced western swing singer to a sultry, nuanced country-soul singer. Wow. ---
**Author:** ![mega\_the\_roo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3da27b/32.png) [@mega\_the\_roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mega_the_roo)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2000, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-female-singer-songwriter/28870/40 "2000-08-19T19:37:11Z")
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