Biografia
Clannad have given a unique voice to modern Irish music. They have combined a deep love of traditional strains with a bold approach to writing and recording. Their legacy is a hugely impressive collection of albums, touching on folk, rock, ambient, jazz and world music. Many of these records have featured lyrics in their native Gaelic tongue, while others have been performed in English. Either way, those vocals have plugged directly into the popular imagination.
'Theme From Harry's Game' was released in the winter of 1982. Radio programmers and audiences were captivated by the dense harmonies and the Gaelic words. It leapt into the Top five in the UK charts. The 'Magical Ring' album followed in 1983, and by now brothers Pol and Ciaran were writing evocative and powerful music. This was furthered on 'Legend' a soundtrack commissioned for the television series, 'Robin Of Sherwood' in 1984. During this period, the band received numerous awards including an Ivor Novello and a BAFTA for their ground-breaking work on this album.
'PastPresent', released in 1989 brought the music of Clannad to an even bigger audience. Summarising their first four RCA albums it became a much-loved fixture in the UK chart eventually going Top 5. The BBC had obviously noted the huge success of the soundtrack to Robin and commissioned a project that would become the outstanding album 'Atlantic Realm'. This was followed in the same year by Clannad's first soundtrack work on an animation, 'Angel And The Soldier Boy'.
Maire, Padriag and Noel were writing more now, supplementing Ciaran's work. The latter was also honing his skills as a producer. Their 'Anam' album made the top 20 in 1990. 'Theme From Harry's Game' featured on the 1992 film Patriot Games, featuring Harrison Ford, raising the band's profile again in America. The band's music was increasingly in demand for soundtrack work, appearing on Last Of The Mohicans, (1992) and Message In A Bottle (1999).
They released the albums 'Lore' (1996) and the Grammy Award winning 'Landmarks' (1998), again proving that no other act had such a distinctive imprint, such a variety of style and tone.