I learned that one of my favorite musicians passed away a couple of days ago: Máire Brennan of Clannad. Not very big news in the States, I’m afraid, but it’s a big loss for anyone with an appreciation for traditional Irish/Celtic music.
Her name is often Anglicized as Moya—which I guess was to help the rest of the world pronounce it properly—and I got to meet her in 1998 when she was promoting her album Perfect Time. She had a brief performance and a CD signing at Borders Books & Music at the World Trade Center store, where I was working at the time.
What a dork I was/am.
I was way too shy at the time to have said much to her. But it was an honor to be involved. My then-girlfriend (now wife), Marisa, came with me to see Máire perform at Irving Plaza, which is an awesome place for any show. Small and intimate. (We also saw The Creatures there twice, and Jars of Clay once.)
Before the internet was so ubiquitous, the means by which one discovered a band or musician was a matter of chance or circumstance (and occurred exclusively in the meatspace). Usually as a recommendation.
I discovered Clannad in the early 90s. I don’t remember how, exactly, but it must have been shortly after I became a big U2 fan. (I wasn’t a fan of very many bands back then: Rush, Yes, the Beatles, and only a few others.) Because when I discovered “In A Lifetime,” which featured Bono, I was hooked. I bought the CD for Clannad’s ninth album Macalla (1985), and it’s still my favorite album, and only gradually did I buy a few more. There was no YouTube or Spotify back then to check out things you weren’t necessarily going to buy. You took a lot of chances when you bought a CD, especially if you were young and didn’t have much money to spend.
Clannad is essentially a folk rock band that started in the early 70s and they were still making albums as recently as 2013. They performed tons of traditional Irish songs, wrote skads of their own originals, and even produced a handful of soundtracks. Honestly, I can’t keep track of it all, but I never grow tired of them.
The name Clannad is a mashup of the phrase Clann as Dobhar (‘Family from Dore’ as in Gweedore, Ireland), and it’s literally a big family band made up of siblings and uncles. Máire was the primary vocalist, and her little sister Eithne even joined for a while—then later when on to become the famously aloof New Age superstar Enya. (Whose music I also dig through and through, but in a very different way.)
By the way, Máire herself wasn’t just an amazing singer and songwriter. She played a mean harp, too! And I’m a Tolkien superfan. Harpists are badass to me.
Now, I can’t speak for anyone outside the United States. Perhaps unfairly, I tend to think of my fellow Americans as musically beknighted when it comes to international music, and recent years have only made me more cynical. But on this side of the pond, if any given American has heard the voice of Máire Brennan, it was probably from Clannad’s best-known hit, “Theme from Harry’s Game.” Which reached #5 in the UK Singles Chart. Or possibly from the song “I Will Find You” that was on the Last of the Mohicans soundtrack.
But, again, for me, it was the absolutely haunting song “In a Lifetime” that drew me to Clannad forever.
Máire and Bono are just great together. The song holds up so well; two unique voices blending unexpectedly well. U2 was up and coming at the time: The Unforgettable Fire had come out, but they hadn’t yet started writing and recording for The Joshua Tree. This song is just of another time.
There’s not much more I can say except that I’m sad that Máire passed away. Quite a few years too soon, too. She was a meritorious musician (dubbed the ‘First Lady of Celtic Music’), and her voice was otherworldly, yet earthly when it needed to be. She and her band have been part of my personal life soundtrack since the 90s. I can never relate to the people who say things like, “Oh, I used to listen to them!” or “I used to like that band.”
Used to? For me it’s ongoing.
In any case, here are some recommendations for anyone unfamiliar with Clannad. Consider this part of a Máire fan’s starter kit.
- “In a Lifetime” — I mean, of course. From Macalla (1985). If you listen to nothing else, try this one out.
- “Together We” — What an earworm! This one often just pops into my head even if it’s been months since I listened to it. From the album Legend (1984), which is a collection of songs made for the Robin of Sherwood TV show.
- “Skellig” — From Sirius (1987). It’s beautiful, and the lyrics depict a creepy cool real location. “It’s a strange place / With a needle’s eye / Where shipwrecks lie / Where the king of the world / Rested for a while / And a place for the pilgrim / A sanctuary of time“
- “Alasdair MacColla“ — Not Clannad’s own, strictly speaking, but an original take. It’s a traditional song about an ancient folk hero/highlander/claymore-swinging warrior. Short and fun, though.
- “Rí na Cruinne” – From Anam (1990). Just sort of puts you (me) in the right mystical mindset that Clannad is good at invoking.
- “Journey’s End” – Also from Macalla. Is there a more chipper song about one’s journey coming to a close? It’s the only respectable counterpart I’ve ever heard to the philosophical assertion that life is about the journey, not the destination. But I don’t know, man. Máire makes the ending sound good.
Long have I traveled
In storm, in the sun, in the rain
And it’s homeward singing
Journey’s at an end, journey’s at an end
Máire has now gone beyond the Circles of the World. I’m glad she left some recordings of her voice and her mad string skills behind, though, for those with ears to hear.
For anyone interested, there’s a pretty cool mini-documentary I only just discovered about her on YouTube.
Foreshadowed and Foresung 