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Clannad..An Clann As Dobhar..
The very name
meaning "the family" , the music of this band evokes ancient memories of
an Ireland gone hence into the mists..A land that time forgot, yet will
never allow us to forget..The Emerald Isle..A place where druids once
dwelt, and magick was the bloodstream of the Universe..Allow me to expand
your minds musically with an energy so ancient, yet so alive, that it
causes the heart to beat past the breaking point, and makes your breath
come faster, and the blood flow like a raging torrent within
you..
Now that I have your attention, let us begin...
This
month, I wish to introduce you to an ancient language - Irish gaelic, one
of 3 kinds of gaelic used throughout the UK at one point..Scottish and
Irish gaelic are still widely used today..Manx gaelic has completely died
out with the last native speaker of that ancient language dying back in
1974..There was another form as well known as breton, but this too is
gone..In this review, I will be introducing you to Irish gaelic..note the
effect it has on you when you listen to the songs being sung..Let us begin
with the first song on the agenda - "Na Laethe Bhí¢®.
When I played
this song, and I play it often, as I own the album, it caused me to feel
that this song was written perhaps about the medieval period, when men
truly were men and were out protecting their country and their women and
children and old folk, from those who would have ravaged our shores..It
evokes images of the killer queen Boadicea and her daughters who were
raped and killed by marauding saxons, hell bent on taking what didn't
belong to them..But this song also tells of the great love of one's
country..I would like to share with you some of the lyrics and also
provide a translation of them so you will also be able to feel the
same..When you listen to this song, IF you listen to it, which I more than
highly recommend experiencing for yourselves, close your eyes and just
take it in.. Let it fill you up..Music has energy too, and as such, this
will stimulate that energy around you..Feel it as it slowly crawls up your
spine like icy fingers and washes over you with waves of brightness and
beauty..
"Do chomhrá ³Â’ do chairdeas (Your protection and
your friendship) Ba mhian liom I gcona튨Were always desired) ‘s
oró §²á o chro튨and my heart's great love) Sc顬ta is
amhrã©® (Stories and songs) Go haosta le slé©¢hte (Old as the
mountains) Cruaidh ‘s cró§¡ le haois (Strong and brave with
age)
Slá® le na laethe a bhí ³eal go haerach (Goodbye
to the days that were, turning so lightheartedly) Slá® le na
laethe a bh튨Goodbye to the days that were) Slᮠleis an
oí£¨e (Goodbye to the night) A casadh orainn doÂ’n ch顤
uair (Turning on the first hour) Slá® le na laethe
bhí¢®. (Goodbye to the days that were...)
What times those must
have been..I can almost see it clearly before me..One thing that can be
said for the music of Clannad, it's not just spiritual and uplifting, its
a visual aid..Their music is a gift from those who came before..Almost you
can envision the sky at sunset, with a breeze blowing..Maybe even a hint
of ice on the wind which tells of the impending winter that will soon
come..The visuals that this song evokes are amazing..One almost hears the
men clad in armour, riding out on war steeds while the ravens of
Cathubodva circle the field..One can envision the bard sitting in the
center of a huge table, with his harp, resplendent and bedecked with
ribbons to make it fair, while he hypnotises the company with the
cascading notes that fall like droplets from his harp, caressing the
strings and weaving old magicks..It was said of Oí³n, when he played
his harp, that the Giants danced in a circle, and when they were done, he
trurned them into the Ringstones standing out on Salisbury Plain..When he
played, it was said that the trees dropped their leaves in
mourning..Well..As I said..Times long since gone and hence into the mists
of time..
Moving along as we are bound to do, I have chosen a song
that is mostly in english, but has some degree of the gaelic in it..It is
called "Síµl a rò®¢ (come my love)..Listening to this song, I
got a very clear picture of a young woman who is in love with a man who
seems not to be able to stay put in one place for any length of time..
"I wish I was on yonder hill 'Tis there I'd sit and cry my
fill Until every tear would turn a mill Is go
dté ´ò ¯
mhò©²®í® slᮊ
Curfᦧt;
Siò©¬¬ siò©¬® siò©¬ a
rò©®Š(Come, come, come, O love) Siò©¬ go sochair agus
siò©¬ go ciò©®Š(Quickly come to me, softly move) Siò©¬ go
doras agus 顬aigh liom (Come to the door, and away we'll flee) Is
go dté ´ò ¯ mhò©²®í® slᮊ(And safe for aye may my
darling be.)"
To me, she seems distraught because he has chosen to
leave again..She spends time alone, crying her eyes out for him..This
seems not new to me.. It is and ever has been such with women and men
throughout the centuries..In the chorus, it is plain that she would wish
him to come and collect her and steal off with her..
" I'll sell my
rock, I'll sell my reel I'll sell my only spinning wheel To buy my
love a sword of steel Is go dté ´ò ¯
mhò©²®í® slá® "
"I'll dye my petticoats, I'll dye them
red And round the world I'll beg my bread Until my parents shall
wish me dead Is go dté ´ò ¯
mhò©²®í® slᮢ
"I wish, I wish, I wish in vain I wish I had
my heart again And vainly think I'd not complain Is go
dté ´ò ¯ mhò©²®í® slᮢ
"But now my love has
gone to France to try his fortune to advance If he e'er comes back
it's but a chance Is go dté ´ò ¯
mhò©²®í® slᮢ..
The chorus is in between each of these
verses, but you can see how they tell the story - She would sell up all
that she owned just to get him a sword, no doubt used for defense
mechanisms in the day..I don't know the meaning of dyeing her clothing
red, I was not able to find that out..But she makes it clear that she'd go
around the world if only to be with him, and even beggar status would be
fine..It might well be that this is indicative of becoming like the
gypsies..This part about being gypsy-like is guesswork on my part..In the
next verse, it becomes much clearer..It is difficult to love such a
one..and in the end, he left anyway, and she knows there is a good chance
she'll never see him again..Have a broken heart yet ladies?
(sigh)
The next song I have chosen for you, is fully in english,
and it's called "A bridge (that carries us over)".. Now, I know without a
doubt there are SOME Clannad fans out here, so you know that this song is
one that really raises the gooseflesh..At least, it does so on me..But
this song really showed me the true meaning the other day when I had a
chance to sit here and really dive deeper into the words, and the music..
Truly great music will paint a visual picture that defies words, but
explains why the song was written, and the message it was trying to
convey..Some will get it, some won't..
"Time came around, and I was
in need You came by my side, for my troubles to ease You collected
my heart, healing the past You'll never lay down, I can count on
you.."
This says to me, that one person may be depended upon to be
there for you, despite all the players in the world, and we all know there
are very many of those.. And the chorus..
"We all speak well of a
bridge that carries us over ...over safe The art of compromise has
surely been our greatest strength ...our greatest
strength.."
This says to me that no matter what, we can get over
the pain which has been dealt to us..we just have to learn that though we
cannot change certain things, we can let them go..we can cross that bridge
and compromise with ourselves never to forget, but to let the pain go..Why
go through life carrying the heavy burden someone else laid upon us if it
is not needful for us to do so? But are we WILLING to let go of those
burdens, or forever be weighted down by them? we CAN choose to drop them
and be free from them..
"When someone pretends, to circle your
friends And find its betrayal before it all ends A bittersweet
chain, that'll always remain So don't let illusions get the better of
you"..
And this verse says to me, don't be fooled by false or
plastic people, don't allow yourself to be fooled by the games others
would play with your mind and your heart..We CAN be free..We have to learn
how to see this when it happens, and to know for ourselves that we can
choose NOT to be put through it, and we can choose not to carry the
burdens other people place on us..For some of us, this lesson is very
hard, and it's even harder to drop the burden and walk free..We have had
the message pounded home that this is what we deserve, so we become
resigned to thinking we deserve this, and so we carry the burden..We allow
depression and apathy to rule over us, instead of joy and happiness..Love
becomes only a distant dream, but never a real possibility..
Ok, I
think we need something a little more uplifting now.. So I have chosen
"Caide sin do'n te' sin" ( What is that to anyone else) for the next
song.. This song basically tells a tale of someone who does things by
their own measures and what makes them happy, and if it doesn't please
anyone else, oh well..They are living for themselves and no one else, and
therefore must make themselves happy..So I will give examples of what I
mean now..
"Chuaigh me chun aonaigh is dhiol me mo bho (I went
to the fair and sold my cow) Ar chuig phunta airgid is ar ghini bhui
oir (For five pounds of silver and a yellow guinea of gold) Ma olaim
an t-airgead is ma bhronnaim an t-or (If I drink the silver and if I
give away the gold)
O caide sin do'n te sin nach mbaineann sin
do (O what is that to anyone else.) Ma olaim an t-airgead is ma
bhronnaim an t-or (If I drink the silver and if I give away the
gold) O caide sin do'n te sin nach mbaineann sin do" (O what is that
to anyone else.)
"Ma theim na choille chraobhaigh cruinniu smeara
no cno (If I go to the leafy woods gathering berries or chestnuts) A
bhaint ullai de gheaga no a bhuachailleacht bo (Plucking apples from
branches or herding cows) Ma shinim seal uaire faoi chrann a deanamh
so (If I stretch out for a while beneath a tree relaxing)
O
caide sin do'n te sin nach mbaineann sin do (O what is that to anyone
else) Ma shinim seal uaire faoi chrann a dheanamn so (If I stretch
out for a while beneath a tree relaxing) O caide sin do'n te sin nach
mbaineann sin do" (O what is that to anyone else)..
I think it
becomes apparent what is being said here, and it goes with what I said in
the previous song, that we can be free and live and enjoy the pleasures of
life rather than being bogged down by the burdens of it.. Here, Maire
paints a picture of all the beauty of life, being lived simply..This song
is awash with light and color, rather than being made starkly black and
white..
Now I have one final song to share with you all..And this
one, though it is in gaelic, speaks for the now..This song is a fervent
prayer, one might say, to God, or the king of the world - "Ri na
cruinne"..And while I will of course provide the translation, I don't feel
too much will need to be said about the message this song has so blatantly
within it..
"Ri na cruinne (King of the world) Ta na daoine
ag milleadh (folk are destroying) An chine daonna (the human
race) Nil muid curamach go leor ([because] we don't care
enough)
Ri na cruinne (King of the world) Ta'n dulra
scriosadh (nature is being destroyed) O bhliain go bliain (from
year to year) Nil muid faichilleach go leor ([because] we're not
aware enough)
Muscail ar misneadh (let's rouse our
courage) Frid an domhain mhor".. (through the wide world)..
I
think this song is giving a concious message about the damage we do yearly
to Gaia..We break down and pollute the very breast of the Mother who gives
to us so that we have continued survival..But eventually, as it says in
this song, that will no longer be possible..Over religions, we are killing
one another..Because of big corporations, we are depleting the
rainforests, which also provide for the air we breathe..When we can
plainly see the seasons as having changed drastically in the last 1000
years, and that we have caused this, how can we NOT be aware of the damage
we are doing, and have done? And I believe this prayer is saying "make a
conscious effort"..
That's all for this month :o) One hopes that
you all have enjoyed the music of Clannad ( An Clann As Dobhar ), and that
you do and will continue to enjoy these reviews, as I explore the
diversity of music in many ways..One hopes that you have found the
information contained within this review to be insightful, and
interesting, and that it has touched places in the heart, that few things
can get to..Of course I wish you all to experience the magick of Clannad
for yourselves, that have never heard their music before, or very little
of it to make an informed opinion of them, so please click the link which
follows and I hope you enjoy the clips :o) Please note, you will need
realplayer or windows media in order to run the clips..Both of those can
be downloaded for free..
There are many websites out there on
Clannad, but this is one of the better ones I found, and it's where I
found not only translations to the gaelic, but song lyrics and some
additional information..Thanks to the folks who run this great site, and
also for allowing us to make use of their images of Clannad here..We are
grateful..
Unofficial Clannad
site
Also, hats off and hails to Amazon.com without whom we
would not be able to feature some excellent song clips of Clannad and
other bands featured in the reviews here :o) Here are 3 different Clannad
albums to check out of the many they currently have out there, and each
features song clips to indulge yourself in..
Anam
Banba
Lore
Until
next time..Blessings to all..
Silver~
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