A Woman's Heart: A Decade On

A Woman's Heart: A Decade On

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Since it was released a decade ago, A Woman's Heart, a survey of Irish female singers and instrumentalists, has become one of the best-selling Celtic music albums ever, and volume 2 sold almost as well. The present incarnation reunites the original participants but also includes Irish-American voices. Dolly Parton's "In The Sweet By And By" and Alison Krauss's "Down To The River To Pray" recall an old-time Appalachian tent revival. Accordionist Sharon Shannon and The Wild Bullocks resemble a hip ceili big-band on "The White Strand Sling." The Corrs obsess over an attractive deceiver on "I Know My Love," while Sinead O'Connor is tenderness incarnate on "This Is To Mother You." But Dolores Keane's rendition of "Where Have All The Flowers Gone" is beyond poignant. Her silky alto, flanked by a mournful cello, two male singers, and a distant children's choir, imbues a classic anti-war ballad with renewed urgency and pathos. --Christina Roden

Tracks:

This is to Mother You - Sinead O'Connor
I Know My Love - The Corrs and The Chieftains
Poison Tree - Marcia Howard and Mary Black
24 Hours - Frances Black
To Ramona - Sinead Lohan
Fields of Gold - Eva Cassidy
Spanish Lady - Maighread and Triona Ni Dhomhnaill
Lark In The Clear Air - Cara Dillon
Bless the Road - Mary Black
Sorry To Say - Juliet Turner
The White Strand Sling - Sharon Shannon
Carrick-a-rede - Cathie Ryan
Where Have All The Flowers Gone - Dolores Keane and Tommy Sands
Please Heart, You're Killing Me - Eleanor McEvoy
Sweet By and By - Dolly Parton and Altan
Wild and Free - Mary Coughlan and Cafi Orchestra
Mystic Lipstick - Maura O'Connell
Down To The River To Pray - Alison Kraus

Amazon.com

Since it was released a decade ago, A Woman's Heart, a survey of Irish female singers and instrumentalists, has become one of the best-selling Celtic music albums ever, and volume 2 sold almost as well. The present incarnation reunites the original participants but also includes Irish-American voices. Dolly Parton's "In The Sweet By And By" and Alison Krauss's "Down To The River To Pray" recall an old-time Appalachian tent revival. Accordionist Sharon Shannon and The Wild Bullocks resemble a hip ceili big-band on "The White Strand Sling." The Corrs obsess over an attractive deceiver on "I Know My Love," while Sinead O'Connor is tenderness incarnate on "This Is To Mother You." But Dolores Keane's rendition of "Where Have All The Flowers Gone" is beyond poignant. Her silky alto, flanked by a mournful cello, two male singers, and a distant children's choir, imbues a classic anti-war ballad with renewed urgency and pathos. --Christina Roden

Customer Reviews:

An amazing CD!.......2005-06-27

I was on a tour of Southern Ireland last year, and the tour guide played this as we drove from Dublin to Cork. The first chance I got, I went into a music store and purchased a copy for myself.

The beautiful ballad by Sinead O'Conner is worth the price of admission alone. It is a song to play when you need comforting, and a reminder that everything will indeed get better. The tour guide shared with me that he purchased it for that song alone.

Everytime I play it my mind goes back to that tour and watching the beautiful green hills and small villages of Ireland go by.

Buy this one...you won't regret it.

Moving.......2005-02-05

A friend gave me this last week. It's hard to stop playing it. "This Is To Mother You," "Fields of Gold," and "Down To The River To Pray" are especially moving. I highly recommend this CD.

A Beautifully Satisfying Listening Experience.......2004-09-22

A Woman's Heart 1 and 2 introduced me to a number of wonderful Celtic artists, most notably Dolores Keane. (Like "Mary29" I was also prompted to go out and buy as many of her CD's as I could find.) Though I thoroughly enjoyed all of the songs on "A Decade On" I was completely blown away by "Mystic Lipstick" (written by Christy Moore and sung here by Maura O'Connell), quite possibly the most hauntingly beautiful song I've ever heard. I have to believe the woman in this song is actually Ireland ... "She keeps fools for counsel, she keeps the wig and gown. The cloth and the bloody warfare, the stars and stripes and crown. And still we pray for a better day now, God willing it's for the best. But I've just seen the harp on the penny with a dollar on (...)." The imagery and heartbreak of the lyrics are conveyed perfectly by Maura O'Connell's beautiful interpretation and voice. Worth every penny for this song alone, this is one CD that I'm going to be playing over and over. (And I'll soon be having some Maura O'Connell CD's to keep my Dolores Keane CD's company :-)

An Extraordinary Collection.......2004-05-07

I learnt of this album by listening to RadioCelt.com, and put it on my Christmas wish list on the the buoyant strength of "This is to Mother You" by Sinead O'Connor and the astonishing conviction of "Down to the River to Pray", by Alison Krauss.

I was pleased when my wife gave it to me... until I listened to it. THEN I was completely blown away. The moods range from tender to playful, yet each and every song bears an insight into the sorrows and joys not only of being a woman, but of being a member of the human race. It's an intriguing mix of original work, traditional songs, and covers of other artists' work. Well worth buying!

Graceful.......2004-04-05

I first heard this CD on National Public Radio, possibly on Fresh Air. The pieces they played were beautiful, and on that basis alone, I ordered Vol. 1 and 2 of A Woman's Heart. You will find a wide range of Celtic music, some romantic, some almost to a dance beat. This is trully music from a woman's heart, not trying to out-rock the men. Enjoy it while it is still available. it's so tender, it may go out of style.

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