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Shepherd Moons 1991
Enya (17 May 1961- ) Irish singer
Shepherd Moons 1991 All Track |
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Technical Credits
Enya Arranger
Greg Jackman Engineer
Nick Ryan Arranger, Producer, Engineer
Nicky Ryan Arranger, Producer, Engineer
Rob Dickins Executive Producer
Gregg Jackman Engineer
Album Credits
Performance Credits
Enya Primary Artist, Percussion, Keyboards, Vocals
Andy Duncan Percussion
Roy Jewitt Clarinet
Liam O'Flynn Pipe
Nick Ryan Percussion
Nicky Ryan Percussion
Steve Sidwell Cornet
Liam O'Flionn uillean pipes |
Shepherd Moons
Enya 17 May 1961
Audio CD (November 19, 1991)
Original Release Date: November 19, 1991
Number of Discs: 1
Label: Reprise / Wea
Track list
01 Shepherd Moons
02 Caribbean Blue
03 How Can I Keep from Singing?
04 Ebudae
05 Angeles
06 No Holly for Miss Quinn
07 Book of Days
08 Evacuee
09 Lothlorien
10 Marble Halls
11 Afer Ventus
12 Smaointe... |
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Editorial Reviews
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Calling Shepherd Moons a near carbon copy of Watermark puts it quite mildly. Like Watermark, Shepherd Moons opens with the title track, a calm instrumental, has another brief instrumental titled after a Dora Saint book smack in the middle ("No Holly for Miss Quinn"), and concludes with a number incorporating a striking uilleann pipes solo, "Smaointe...." In general, Enya's own musical style and work remains the same, again assisted on production by Nicky Ryan and with lyrics by Roma Ryan. Shepherd Moons does have one key factor that's also carried over from Watermark -- it's quite good listening. Though the total continuity means that those who enjoy her work will again be pleased and those who dislike it won't change their minds, in terms of finding her own vision and sticking with it, Enya has increasingly polished and refined her work to a strong, elegant degree. "Caribbean Blue," the lead single, avoids repeating the successful formula of "Orinoco Flow" by means of its waltz time -- a subtle enough change, but one that colors and drives the overall composition and performance, the closest Enya might ever get to a dance number. Some songs call to mind traditional Irish music even more strongly than much of her earlier work, while two other tracks are haunting rearrangements of old, traditional numbers. With her trademark understated drama in full flow many other places, especially on the wonderful "Book of Days" (replaced on later pressings with an English language version done for the film Far and Away), Enya shows herself to still have it, to grand effect. Ned Raggett, All Music Guide |
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Biography
Enya
a.k.a. Eithne Patricia Ní Bhraonáin
With her blend of folk melodies, synthesized backdrops, and classical motifs, Enya created a distinctive style that more closely resembled new age than the folk and Celtic music that provided her initial influences. Enya is from Gweedore, County Donegal, Ireland, which she left in 1980 to join the Irish band Clannad, the group that already featured her older brothers and sisters. She stayed with Clannad for two years, then left, hooking up with producer Nicky Ryan and lyricist Roma Ryan, with whom she recorded film and television scores. The result was a successful album of TV music for the BBC. Enya then recorded Watermark (1988), which featured her distinctive, flowing music and multi-overdubbed trancelike singing; the album sold four million copies worldwide. Watermark established Enya as an international star and launched a successful career that lasted well into the '90s.
Enya (born Eithne N?Bhraon?n) was born into a musical family. Her father, Leo Brennan, was the leader of the Slieve Foy Band, a popular Irish show band; her mother was an amateur musician. Most important to Enya's career were her siblings, who formed Clannad in 1976 with several of their uncles. Enya joined the band as a keyboardist in 1979 and contributed to several of the group's popular television soundtracks. In 1982, she left Clannad, claiming that she was uninterested in following the pop direction the group had begun to pursue. Within a few years, she was commissioned, along with producer/arranger Nicky Ryan and lyricist Roma Ryan, to provide the score for a BBC-TV series called The Celts. The soundtrack was released in 1986 as her eponymous solo album.
Enya didn't receive much notice, but Enya and the Ryans' second effort, Watermark, became a surprise hit upon its release in 1988. "Orinoco Flow," the first single, became a number one hit in Britain, helping the album eventually sell eight million copies worldwide. Enya spent the years following the success of Watermark rather quietly; her most notable appearance was a cameo on Sin?d O'Connor's I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got. She finally released Shepherd Moons, her follow-up to Watermark, in 1991. Shepherd Moons was even more successful than its predecessor, eventually selling over ten million copies worldwide; it entered the U.S. charts at number 17 and remained in the Top 200 for almost four years.
Again, Enya was slow to follow up on the success of Shepherd Moons, spending nearly four years working on her fourth album. The record, entitled Memory of Trees, was released in December 1995. Memory of Trees entered the U.S. charts at number nine and sold over two million copies within its first year of release. In 1997 came the release of a greatest-hits collection, Paint the Sky with Stars: The Best of Enya, which featured two new songs. Enya's first album of new material in five years, Day Without Rain, was released in late 2000. In 2002, she contributed material to the first film in Peter Jackson's award-winning Lord of the Rings trilogy, scoring a hit with the single "May It Be." Amarantine, her first full-length recording since Day Without Rain, followed in November 2005. A holiday EP, Christmas Secrets, arrived in 2006. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine & William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide |
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Interview.
THE ENIGMATIC ENYA
An Exclusive Interview with the Alluring Star
Like the misty, ethereal music that she's made her global calling card, Grammy-winning singer and instrumentalist Enya keeps herself cloaked in an aura of mystery. The reclusive artist let nearly five years elapse between her last album, The Memory of Trees, and her latest, the splendorous A Day Without Rain. So it was an extra-special pleasure when the Celtic chanteuse granted Barnes & Noble.com this exclusive interview. Enya addresses the inner meanings and methodologies behind her latest runaway hit.
Barnes & Noble.com: Water has been a major theme in your music ("A Day Without Rain, "Orinoco Flow," "Watermark"). To what degree do you consciously integrate it into your work, and what is its significance to you?
Enya: Looking back on Watermark, the words are those of loss, of reflection, of exile -- not necessarily from one's country, but from those whom the heart loves. It has in its theme searching, longing, of reaching out for an answer. The ocean is a central image. It is the symbolism of a great journey, which is the way I would describe this album.
A Day Without Rain is probably the most positive of all the albums in the sense that even reminiscences are looked upon lovingly rather than with only sadness, that you are able to enjoy life, that you are able to meet the day and not be afraid, but know where you are in it. Hence, the reference to the ocean and water as being one of separation has now become one that is less painful. Now is the time to see the beauty of life -- in all its seasons.
B&N.com: Is there any song on the new album that has special personal meaning, such as "Fallen Embers," perhaps?
E: Actually, "Fallen Embers" is my favorite track on this album. After I had written this piece, [lyricist] Roma [Ryan] came to me to me with the lyrics, and I remember thinking as I read the words that this was exactly how I was feeling when I had written the melody. I find this track the most moving of all, and it was certainly the most emotional track for me to sing. I think a lot of people can relate personally to "Fallen Embers."
B&N.com: What is your songwriting process like? Do you have a melody or an arrangement ready to go before you enter the studio? What do your longtime producer Nicky Ryan and lyricist Roma Ryan bring to the shaping of the music?
E: I prefer to wait until I go into the studio before I begin composing. This environment gives me the chance to focus on the music without outside distractions. It means there is an uninterrupted flow, and I can give myself wholly to the music, and it's much better creatively for me. Many things inspire me when I am composing. It will usually tend to come from thoughts I have on special moments in my life, from memories, from my childhood, from my family and from people I know, from the landscapes of my native Gaothdobhair. When I have the basic melody, Nicky will come in and the two of us will work on arrangements. Roma prefers to wait until the arrangements have somewhat "settled" and taken shape. As with anything creative, change is inevitable. once Nicky and I have decided on the melody line and have a reasonable arrangement down, then Roma begins writing.
B&N.com: You sing all vocal parts and play all instruments yourself on A Day Without Rain, apart from the credit given to the Wired Strings. Do you ever consider using other musicians on your recordings?
E: I prefer to record everything myself. However, I have had occasion when I wanted to use musicians to capture the dynamics of a particular instrument, such as the Uilleann pipes. Nicky had wanted to add to the strings I had already recorded on one of the tracks, hence Wired Strings. They are four musicians who played the same strings that I did, but they are used more for textural purposes.
B&N.com: Who is Flora in "Flora's Secret"?
E: This song tells two stories -- one of lovers lying in the long grass on a peaceful, sunny day. The girl's name is Flora. It also tells of "Flora" -- the flowers they are surrounded by. The song was inspired by the various legends given to flowers. For example -- the one the moon loves" is Endymion. He was the beloved of Seline, the moon, who made Endymion sleep eternally so she could be with him each night. Endymion is the bluebell. And, of course, Flora is the goddess of flowers.
B&N.com: You generally record your own songs -- so the haunting version of Balfe's "Marble Halls" really stands out. Are there any other operatic pieces that you would like to record?
E: At the moment, no. I have no plans for recording any other.
B&N.com: Who are your greatest musical influences?
E: I don't have musical influences as such, but I tend to listen to the classical composers: Rachmaninov, Satie.
B&N.com: Do you consider yourself a spiritual or religious person, and if so, what would be your core belief?
E: I consider myself to be a spiritual person, not necessarily a religious one, although I have to say that one of the highlights of my career was when I performed at the Vatican for the Pope and had an audience with him. My core beliefs would revolve around the idea that we should live to the best of our abilities -- we should live and let live.
December 19, 2000
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 잘생긴 꾀꼬리 꽃미남 리차드강 어리버리 돈키호테. |