GREEN GROW THE RUSHES OH

CELTIC WOMAN

SONGWRITERS: RONNIE BARKER & RONNIE HAZLEHURST

COUNTRY: IRELAND

ALBUM: CELTIC WOMAN BELIEVE

LABEL: MANHATTAN RECORDS

GENRE: CELTIC MUSIC

YEAR: 2011

 

          Believe is the seventh studio album released by the group Celtic Woman.

       The album was released in two versions: the first a compilation of earlier songs packaged with a new song, "Princess Toyotomi", released on 25 May 2011 in Japan to promote the release of the titular film in which said track served as the theme song, the other a studio album released internationally on 24 January 2012, featuring new music. Vocalists Chloë Agnew, Lisa Kelly, Lisa Lambe, and fiddler Máiréad Nesbitt appear on both versions, while the Japanese version features former members Órla Fallon, Lynn Hilary, Méav Ní Mhaolchatha, Alex Sharpe, and Hayley Westenra.

There's not but care on every hand

In every hour that passes oh

What signifies the life of man

If it were not for the lassies oh

 

Green grow the rushes oh

Green grow the rushes oh

The sweetest hours that e'er I spent

Are spent among the lassies oh

 

The worldly race may riches chase

And riches still may fly them oh

And though at last they catch them fast

Their hearts can ne'er enjoy them oh

 

Green grow the rushes oh

Green grow the rushes oh

The sweetest hours that e'er I spent

Are spent among the lassies oh

 

The sweetest hours that e'er I spent

Are spent among the lassies oh

 

Green grow the rushes oh

Green grow the rushes oh

The sweetest hours that e'er I spent

Are spent among the lassies oh

 

Old nature swears the lovley dears

Her noblest work she classes oh

Her apprentice hand she tried on man

Then she made the lassies oh

 

Green grow the rushes oh

Green grow the rushes oh

The sweetest hours that e'er I spent

Are spent among the lassies oh

 

Green grow the rushes oh

Green grow the rushes oh

The sweetest hours that e'er I spent

Are spent among the lassies oh

Are spent among the lassies oh.

DARK SKY ISLAND

ENYA

SONGWRITERS: EITHNE NI BHRAONAIN; NICKY RYAN & ROMA RYAN

COUNTRY: IRELAND

ALBUM: DARK SKY ISLAND

LABEL: WARNER RECORDS

GENRE: CELTIC MUSIC

YEAR: 2015

 

          Enya Patricia Brennan(Irish: Eithne Pádraigín Ní Bhraonáin/ˈɛnjə/; born 17 May 1961) is an Irish singer, songwriter and musician, known for pioneering modern Celtic and New-age music. Regarded as the "Queen of New Age", Enya is the best-selling Irish solo artist in history, and second-best-selling overall behind U2. Born into a musical family and raised in the Irish-speaking area of Gweedore, County Donegal, Enya began her music career when she joined her family's Celtic folk band Clannad in 1980 on keyboards and backing vocals. She left the group in 1982 with their manager and producer Nicky Ryan to pursue a solo career, with Ryan's wife Roma Ryan as her lyricist. Enya developed her sound over the following four years with multitracked vocals and keyboards with elements of new age, Celtic, classical, church, world, pop, and Irish folk. Thus far, she has sung in ten languages, most notably English, Irish Gaelic(Gaeilge), Latin, and Welsh.

          Enya's first projects as a solo artist included soundtrack work for The Frog Prince(1984) and the 1987 BBC documentary series The Celts, which was released as her debut album, Enya(1987). She signed with Warner Music UK, which granted her artistic freedom and minimal interference from the label. The commercial and critical success of Watermark(1988) propelled her to worldwide fame, helped by the UK number one and international hit single "Orinoco Flow". This was followed by the multi-million-selling albums Shepherd Moons(1991), The Memory of Trees(1995), and A Day Without Rain(2000). Sales of the latter and its lead single, "Only Time", surged in the United States following its use in the media coverage of the September 11 attacks. Following Amarantine(2005) and And Winter Came...(2008), Enya took a four-year career hiatus before she resumed in 2012 and released her eighth studio album, Dark Sky Island(2015).

         Dark Sky Island is the eighth studio album by Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released on 20 November 2015 by Warner Bros. Records. After the release of her previous album, And Winter Came...(2008), Enya was unsure of her next career move so she decided to take a break from music, which lasted three years. In the spring of 2012 she started to write and record new material for a new album with her longtime collaborators, producer and arranger Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. Enya gained inspiration for the title track and the album from the 2011 designation of Sark in the Channel Islands as a dark-sky preserve and a collection of Roma Ryan's poems on islands.

        Dark Sky Island received positive reviews from critics and was a commercial success upon release. It peaked at Nº 4 in the UK Albums Chart, Enya's highest position on the chart since Paint the Sky with Stars (1997), and Nº 8 on the Billboard 200 in the United States. Elsewhere, it reached the top five in nine countries. A deluxe edition features three additional tracks. Enya promoted the album with a worldwide media tour that included performances of some songs from the album. Dark Sky Island was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best New Age Album.

Listen to the waves speak up

The blue voice of the sea

And they whisper as they touch the shore

Come back to me

Come back to me

 

Boat by boat upon the waves

All come to find the light

In the darkness of the sky above

Come back to me

Come back to me

 

Capella, Auriga

Eta Carinae, Sagitta

Aquila, Alpha Centauri

 

Twilight comes to close the day

And let the night break free

And from deep blue skies the heavens rise

Come back to me

Come back to me

Come back to me

Come back to me

 

Capella, Auriga

Eta Carinae, Sagitta

Aquila, Alpha Centaurii

 

Moonlight brings the ocean's storms

Like waves upon the sea

And the midnight shore calls out once more

Come back to me

Come back to me

Come back to me

Come back to me

 

Come back to me

Come back to me.

CARIBBEAN BLUE

ENYA

SONGWRITERS: ENYA & ROMA RYAN

COUNTRY: IRELAND

ALBUM: THEMES FROM CALMI CUORI APPASSIONATI

LABEL: WEA

GENRE: CELTIC

YEAR: 1991

 

             Enya Patricia Brennan (Irish: Eithne Pádraigín Ní Bhraonáin/ˈɛnjə/; born 17 May 1961) is an Irish singer, songwriter, record producer and musician. Born into a musical family and raised in the Irish-speaking area of Gweedore in County Donegal, Enya began her music career when she joined her family's Celtic folk band Clannad in 1980 on keyboards and backing vocals. She left in 1982 with their manager and producer Nicky Ryan to pursue a solo career, with Ryan's wife Roma Ryan as her lyricist. Enya developed her sound over the following four years with multitracked vocals and keyboards with elements of new age, Celtic, classical, church, and folk music. She has sung in ten languages.

             Enya's first projects as a solo artist included soundtrack work for The Frog Prince(1984) and the 1987 BBC documentary series The Celts, which was released as her debut album, Enya(1987). She signed with Warner Music UK, which granted her artistic freedom and minimal interference from the label. The commercial and critical success of Watermark(1988) propelled her to worldwide fame, helped by the international top-10 hit single "Orinoco Flow". This was followed by the multi-million-selling albums Shepherd Moons(1991), The Memory of Trees(1995) and A Day Without Rain(2000). Sales of the latter and its lead single, "Only Time", surged in the United States following its use in the media coverage of the September 11 attacks. Following Amarantine(2005) and And Winter Came...(2008), Enya took an extended break from music; she returned in 2012 and released Dark Sky Island(2015).

           She is Ireland's best-selling solo artist and second-best-selling artist behind U2, with a discography that has sold 26.5 million certified albums in the United States and an estimated 75 million records worldwide, making her one of the best-selling music artists of all time. A Day Without Rain (2000) remains the best-selling new-age album, with an estimated 16 million copies sold worldwide. Enya has won awards including seven World Music Awards, four Grammy Awards for Best New Age Album, and an Ivor Novello Award. She was nominated for na Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award for "May It Be", written for The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring(2001).

           "Caribbean Blue" is a song by Irish musician Enya, originally released as the second track on her 1991 album, Shepherd Moons. It follows a waltz time signature, and mentions the Anemoi (Ancient Greek wind gods): Boreas, Afer Ventus(Africus), Eurus, and Zephyrus.

          When released, "Caribbean Blue" reached number 8 on the Irish Singles Chart and number 13 on the UK Singles Chart. In the United States, it reached number 79 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart; on the latter listing, it was the 12th-most-successful song of 1992. The music video for the song features visual imagery based on the paintings of Maxfield Parrish, and was an early appearance for British actress and singer Martine McCutcheon.

Eurus

Afer ventus

 

So the world goes round and round

With all you ever knew

They say the sky high above

Is Caribbean blue

 

If every man says all he can

If every man is true

Do I believe the sky above

Is Caribbean blue

 

Boreas

Zephryus

 

If all you told was turned to gold

If all you dreamed was new

Imagine sky high above

In Caribbean blue

 

Eurus

Afer ventus

Boreas

Zephryus

Africus.

JALEOUS OF THE ANGEL

DONNA TAGGART

SONGWRITERS: JIMMY FORTUNE; BARRETT NOUBAR YERETSIAN; JENNIFER CHRISTIANA BOSTIC; ZACH RUNDQUIST & ZACHARY N. RUNQUIST

COUNTRY: NOTHERN IRELAND

ALBUM: CELTIC LADY VOL. II

LABEL: CELTIC LADY PRODUCTIONS

GENRE: CELTIC MUSIC

YEAR: 2013

 

           Donna Taggart is a Celtic singer and musician. Born in Omagh in County Tyrone in Northern Ireland she first came to prominence in 2011 when her acclaimed debut album Celtic Lady Vol. 1 was picked up by highly respected BBC Radio Ulster presenter Gerry Anderson. Donna shot to fame in 2016 with over 27 million Facebook views of her video rendition of "Jealous of the Angels" which was written by Jenn Bostic in 2010. Jenn Bostic won five awards at the 2012 Independent Country Music Association, and the song reached number one on the UK iTunes Music charts.

             Donna Taggart's version of the song, 'Jealous of the Angels', is now a global online hit.

             Her album also performed well in the US and her work was noticed by famed songwriter Phil Coulter.

It was while Donna was on maternity leave that she put her recording online, but no one could have predicted what happened next.

         "I had recorded the song some time before. Mummy duties took over for a while and I wanted to give my music a push. So I gave it a very gentle nudge on social media and, you know, here we are."

          So far, the song has had 66 million views on Facebook and more than two million on Youtube.

I didn't know today would be our last

Or that I'd have to say goodbye to you so fast

I'm so numb, I can't feel anymore

Prayin' you'd just walk back through that door

 

And tell me that I was only dreamin'

You're not really gone as long as I believe

 

There will be another angel

Around the throne tonight

Your love lives on inside of me

And I will hold on tight

 

It's not my place to question

Only God knows why

I'm just jealous of the angels

Around the throne tonight

 

You always made my troubles feel so small

And you were always there to catch me when I'd fall

In a world where heroes come and go

Well God just took the only one I know

 

So I'll hold you as close as I can

Longing for the day, when I see your face again

But until then

 

God must need another angel

Around the throne tonight

Your love lives on inside of me

And I will hold on tight

 

It's not my place to question

Only God knows why

I'm just jealous of the angels

Around the throne tonight

 

Singin' hallelujah

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

 

I'm just jealous of the angels

Around the throne tonight

THE LONG ROAD

MARK KNOPFLER

SONGWRITER: MARK KNOPFLER

HOW: INSTRUMENTAL

COUNTRY: U. S.

ALBUM: CAL

LABEL: VERTIGO RECORDS

GENRE: CELTIC MUSIC

YEAR: 1984

Cal is a soundtrack album by British singer-songwriter and guitarist Mark Knopfler, released on 24 August 1984 by Vertigo Records. The album contains music composed for the 1984 film Cal, produced by David Puttnam and directed by Pat O'Connor. Puttnam also produced the film Local Hero(1983)

In a contemporary review in The New York Times, Janet Maslin called the album "an exceptionally lovely and haunting score."

In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Steven McDonald gave the album four out of five stars and called it a "quiet, reflective set of cues that eschew false dramatics in favor of supporting the story." 

And I wished for so long, cannot stay...

All the precious moments, cannot stay...

It's not like wings have fallen, cannot stay...

But I feel something's missing, cannot say...

Holding hands are daughters and sons

And their faiths just falling down, down, down, down...

I have wished for so long

How I wish for you today

We all walk the long road. Cannot stay...

There's no need to say goodbye...

All the friends and family

All the memories going round, round, round, round

I have wished for so long

How I wish for you today

And the wind keeps roaring

And the sky keeps turning gray

And the sun is set

The sun will rise another day…

We all walk the long road. Cannot stay…

There’s no need to say goodbye…

All the friends and family

All the memories going round, round, round, round

I have wished for so long

How I wish for you today

How I”ve wished for so long

How I wish for you today

We all walk the long road (3x).

NÍL SÉ'N LÁ

CELTIC WOMAN

SONGWRITERS: BARRY MCCREA; CAITRÍONA NÍ DHUBHGHAILL & JÖRGEN ELOFSSON

COUNTRY: GAEL

ALBUM: CELTIC WOMAN: SONGS FROM THE HEART

LABEL: MANHATTAN

GENRE: CELTIC

YEAR: 2010

Celtic Woman: Songs from the Heart is the fifth studio album by the group Celtic Woman released on 26 January 2010.

Performers in Songs from the Heart are vocalists Chloë Agnew, Lynn Hilary, Lisa Kelly, Alex Sharpe and fiddler Máiréad Nesbitt. The German deluxe edition, released in January 2011, also features newer member Lisa Lambe in the CD.

The tracks on the album are taken from the Songs from the Heart concert, which was filmed in HD at the Powerscourt Estate near Enniskerry in County Wicklow, in 2009. The film of this concert was released originally as a TV special for American broadcaster PBS and later released on DVD to coincide with the release of the album. One of the tracks in the album and DVD, "When You Believe," sung by Chloë Agnew, was also released as a single on iTunes at the same time.

The music videos for each of the tracks authorised for showing in the DVD were released on 27 November 2009 on iTunes for purchase.

Chuaigh mé isteach i dteach aréir

is d'iarr mé cairde ar mhnaoi an leanna

Is é dúirt sí liom "Ní bhfaighidh tú deor

Buail an bóthar is gabh abhaile

I came by a house last night

And told the woman I am staying

I said to her

"The moon is bright and my fiddles tuned for playing"

Tell me that the night is long

Tell me that the moon is glowing

Fill my glass, I'll sing a song

And will start the music flowing

Never mind the rising light

There's no sign of day or dawning

In my heart it's still the night

And we'll stay here till the morning

Níl sé ina lá, níl a ghrá

níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go maidin

níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go fóill

solas ard atá sa ghealaigh

It's not day nor yet awhile

I can see the starlight shining

Níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go fóill

solas ard atá sa ghealaigh

Fill the glasses one more time

And never heed the empty bottle

Turn the water into wine

And turn the party up full throttle

Don't go out into the cold

Where the wind and rain are blowing

For the fire is flamming gold

And in here the music's flowing

Níl sé ina lá, níl a ghrá

níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go maidin

níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go fóill

solas ard atá sa ghealaigh

Tell me that the night is long

Tell me that the moon is gleaming

Fill my glass, I'll sing a song

And we'll keep the music streaming

Until all the songs are sung

Níl sé ina lá, níl a ghrá

níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go maidin

níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go fóill

solas ard atá sa ghealaigh

Níl sé ina lá, níl a ghrá

níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go maidin

níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go fóill

solas ard atá sa ghealaigh

Níl sé ina lá, níl a ghrá

níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go maidin

níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go fóill

solas ard atá sa ghealaigh

Níl sé ina lá, níl a ghrá

níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go maidin

níl sé ina lá is ní bheidh go fóill

solas ard atá sa ghealaigh.

DARK ISLAND

MIKE OLDFIELD

SONGWRITER: MICHAEL GORDON OLDFIELD

COUNTRY: U. K.

ALBUM: VOYAGER

LABEL: WEA

GENRE: CELTIC

YEAR: 1996

Voyager is the 17th music album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1996 by Warner. It is a Celtic-themed album with new compositions intertwined with traditional pieces.

The music on this album is the most overtly Celtic music Mike Oldfield has produced. The album had originally been recorded acoustically using only hand-played instruments. Apparently the daughter of an executive of Warner Music expressed her feelings that the album may have been a little boring; thus Oldfield added Synthesizers and more instruments to the album.

Michael Gordon Oldfield (born 15 May 1953) is an English musician and composer. His work blends progressive rock with world, folk, classical, electronic, ambient, and new-age music. His biggest commercial success is the 1973 album Tubular Bells – which launched Virgin Records and became a hit in America after its opening was used as the theme for the film The Exorcist. He recorded the 1983 hit single "Moonlight Shadow and a rendition of the Christmas piece "In Dulci Jubilo".

Oldfield has released more than 20 albums with the most recent being a sequel to his 1975 album Ommadawn titled Return to Ommadawn. It was released on 20 January 2017.

Away to the westward

I'm longing to be,

Where the beauties of heaven

Unfold by the sea;

Where the sweet purple heather blooms

Fragrant and free

On a hilltop high above

The Dark Island

So gentle the sea breeze,

That ripples the bay,

Where the stream joins the ocean,

And young children play;

On the strand of pure silver,

I'll welcome each day,

And I'll roam for every more,

The Dark Island

True gem of the Herbrides,

Bathed in the light,

Of the mid-summer dawning,

That follows the night;

How I yearn for the cries,

Of the seagulls in flight,

As they circle above

The Dark Island.