Singer/songwriter Ani DiFranco [ tickets ] has fleshed out her schedule next month into a full-blown tour as she continues to back her first best-of set, September's "Canon."

The politically active singer--several of her recent shows have featured on-stage presentations by Democratic presidential candidate and Ohio congressman Dennis Kucinich--kicks off a 13-city January/February outing Jan. 17 in Huntington, NY, followed by an appearance the next night (1/18) along with folk legend Pete Seeger at a benefit against nuclear power in Nyack, NY.

DiFranco, assisted by her usual live backup crew--Todd Sickafoose on upright bass and Allison Miller on drums--will bring along folk singer Anais Mitchell as opening support for most of the early 2008 dates, details for which are included below. Mitchell recorded her most recent album, this year's "The Brightness," for DiFranco's Righteous Babe Records label.

Released in September, DiFranco's new album, "Canon," is her first-ever career retrospective. She hand-selected 36 songs for the two-disc set, which covers material from her 1990 debut to her 19th album, last year's "Reprieve." "Canon" also includes five re-recorded versions of old DiFranco favorites, including "Both Hands," which is streaming at her MySpace page.

DiFranco, who also recently saw her first book of poetry, "Verses," hit store shelves in the US, spent much of this year getting back into the swing of a full-time music career following the birth of her first daughter, Petah Lucia, last January. The child's father is Mike Napolitano, who co-produced DiFranco's 2006 album "Reprieve."