Sarah McLachlan entertains a near sold-out crowd at the John Labatt Centre last night as part of her tour to support her latest album, Afterglow. (Photo: Sue Reeve, LFP)

LONDON -- Sarah McLachlan looked like a rock princess at the edge of an enchanted forest last night at the John Labatt Centre.

The Canadian singer-songwriter's vocals also sounded enchanting over nearly two hours before a crowd of 8,300 fans.

By mid-encore, McLachlan was still ready to rock. She had finished the main set with back-to-back blasts of two of her greatest -- Sweet Surrender and Possession.

That combination brought the well-behaved enthusiasm of the crowd to a fresh peak with a long standing ovation.

McLachlan sounded just as happy as the fans. "My God, it's been a long time . . . you look great, you haven't aged at all," McLachlan said in the early going at her first London show in years.

"I'm so thrilled there are so many people here," she said -- a tribute to the downtown London arena, which was built after McLachlan's previous London dates at places such as Alumni Hall.

McLachlan is touring to support her latest album, Afterglow, and opened with one of its tracks, World on Fire. The star and her seven-piece band really started to rev up on the next song, Building a Mystery, from 1997's Surfacing. McLachlan's emphatic guitar twirl produced the first big in-song cheer and she kept driving with Adia, another Surfacing hit.

McLachlan said the show would be dominated by songs from her last two records, but promised something for everybody. She arrived on stage with her acoustic guitar, wearing a glam, dark gown with an attractive top marked with a peacock motif.

The peacock wouldn't have looked out of place wandering the stage set. The trappings had a few faux tree trunks, instant moss and clinging vines plus lots of Sarah on big video screens to make sure her fans at the back of the arena -- and in the last seats on the floor -- had their chance to worship.

At times, the screens behind the star had a fairytale frame, as if the princess were singing in a magic mirror.

It wasn't all moss and mirrors. By the 40-minute mark, McLachlan and one of her guitarists had relocated to a corner of the stage for a Beatles moment.

McLachlan introduced Blackbird as one of her "favourite Beatles songs" and then sang it enchantingly. Later, she was over at the piano at the other side of the stage for a great version of one of her own classics, Angel.

Her spot at the piano seemed to bring out the most soulful and playful in her stage talk. At one point, she talked about crying along with her daughter, India, who is already a little road warrior -- and loving it -- at the age of three. She dedicated one love song to her husband (and her band's percussionist), Ashwin Sood, for staying calm during times when the other two-thirds of the family did not.

"I'd love to be concise but it's just not me," she confessed as an introduction to another love song became totally and charmingly tangled in McLachlan speak. The fans cheered anyway, happy to share a few details about her view of the "creative process."

McLachlan had put in an early appearance, singing with the Swedish rock band the Perishers, her Nettwerk labelmates, on Pills during their set. Her entrance shut up the yakkers who, until then, had been giving the Swedish band's singer Ola Kluft the traditional opening act chatter.

Not every opening act gets such support from the headliner. McLachlan also had a plug for her Nettwerk pals from Sweden near the end.

Also on the bill were the scores of percussionists of Toronto's thundering Samba Squad. Their plug came in the form of a sweet little Sarah samba near encore time.