THE CELTIC CONNECTION • OCTOBER 1992
Page 7
MUSIC
Showcasing Clannad's Many Talents
J reland's favourite home-I grown traditional/mod-Jem fusion group, Clan-nad, has a new release entitled Anam, which is Gaelic for "soul."
Anam contains ten new tracks and two re-releases. Reappearing is "In a Lifetime," from Clannad's 1986 release Macalla, a duet with Clannad vocalist Maire Brennan and U2's Bono. Also, "Harry's Game," originally written for a three-part television series on Northern Ireland.
Of the ten new tracks, all of which were produced by Ciaran Brennan, two are sung in Gaelic. Clannad had its genesis in the early Seventies when Ciaran and Maire, along with the uncles Padraig and Noel Duggan, used to join their father, Leo Brennan (formerly a showband member), on the small stage of his tavern for a song.
In 1970, they went on to win the prestigious Letterkenny Folk Festival and soon afterwards recorded the first of six traditional albums. In 1980, their sister, Enya, joined to sing and play keyboards for the albums Crann Ull and Fuaim, before leaving for a successful solo career. Later Legend and Magical Ring would define the distinctive Clannad sound.
Anam showcases Clannad's many talents, from the majestic synthesizer sound of "Ri Na Cruinne," the satisfying instrumental "Wilderness and Dobhar" to the unforgettable "Love and Affection," and "You're the One," complete with dobro-tinged guitar. For fans of Clannad, Anam is a return to the more traditional influences in their music, a good retrospective of their previous work.
CLANNAD -- MAIRE BRENNAN, PADRAIG DUGGAN, NOEL DUGGAN, CIARAN BRENNAN
Returning to the more traditional influences in their music.
Why Martyr's Statue Was 'Banished'
A statue of a Scottish religious martyr has been banished from public view at a Canadian university after complaints that it was offensive to women.
The controversial statue is of 18-year-old Margaret Wilson, who was drowned after being tied to a stake a low tide on the Solway Firth for refusing to renounce her faith. The one-tonne marble statue showed her bare-breasted and bound with ropes to a wooden stake. For 54 years it stood in the Foyer of Knox College at the University of Toronto.
But then a visiting U.S. professor took exception to it and complained in a letter to the university. An informal poll found many students at the theology college, male and female, also found the statue offensive, so it was moved to the boardroom.
A female member of the staff commented, "It seemed pathetically typical that a male bastion would nave a semi-nude woman in bondage in their foyer."
— Paul Cowan
IRELAND 1847 SOMALIA 1992
If ever there was a nation who can understand the devastation of a famine it is the Irish. Black 47 as it was called nearly wiped out half the population of Ireland and had far reaching effects on it's future generations. Today as you read this there are thousands of children dying of starvation in a far away country called SOMALIA. The Red Cross has launched a major relief campaign in Somalia. A donation to the Red Cross can help thousands of Somalians face another day. You can help by mailing a cheque to "The Red Cross-Somalia" and 100% of your donation will be sent directly to Somalia. A Tax receipt will be issued. Mail to :
The Canadian Red Cross Society
National Office Somalian Relief 1800 Alta Vista Drive, Ottawa, Ontario, K1G 4J5