July 3 [16:00 EDT] -- The female-driven Lilith Fair tour gets underway this weekend at the Gorge in George, Washington, but the seeds were planted long ago.

Paula Cole, who will turn up on the tour, recently told MTV News that the idea came to Lilith founder Sarah McLachlan when the tour were touring together.

Sarah McLachlan and I toured together, and believe it or not, this was in '95, we encountered opposition about having two females on the same bill," Cole told MTV News. "It seems so incredibly archaic, but we did. We encountered opposition. [1.2 MB QuickTime] And when we finally went out there, we realized, 'This is great. The audience loves it. People are supporting it. It works.' So she took that seed and really made it flower into a beautiful thing." [1 MB QuickTime]

That "beautiful thing" will boast main stage sets from Jewel, Tracy Chapman, Suzanne

Vega, and Cole and McLachlan. Others stopping by to play occasional dates along the way include Fiona Apple, Meredith Brooks, the Cardigans, Sheryl Crow, Joan Osborne, and Shawn Colvin.

[article id="1441624"]"I think it'll be a really, really good show,"[/article] Jewel told MTV News about the tour. [article id="1441624"]"I love all those girls so much, I can't wait to watch them." [1 MB QuickTime][/article]

After kicking off in Washington, Lilith pulls into the L.B. Day Ampitheatre in Salem, Oregon this Sunday, Mountainview, California this Tuesday, and eventually winds down August 20 in Shakopee, Minnesota.

You can keep updated as the tour rolls along by checking out the official Lilith fair website at lilithfair.com.