Distant Shore

Karan Casey | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 11, 2003)
• Original Release Date: 2003
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Shanachie
• ASIN: B000087DSY
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #182,968 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Compelling, unforgettable!, March 16, 2003

By 

Gwen A Orel (Millburn, New Jersey United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Distant Shore (Audio CD)

Celtic Music Society of Montgomery says:

Karan Casey's second solo album since moving on from the group Solas is a haunting, insinuating addition to your Celtic library.

It's deceptively quiet, even the Billy Bragg title song, which is a heartfelt ballad of homesickness in the person of an immigrant-- "washed up on a distant shore, can't go home anymore"-- with a lilting, soothing melody. Her inflections are subtle but powerful, so that when she adds on a trill or a grace note it changes the whole meaning of a phrase.

For this album, Karan included guest artists from scottish gaelic tradition (Karen Matheson from Capercaillie, for one) and Tim O'Brien from American bluegrass. It all blends into an album that has an overall mood of wistfulness.

What is deceptive is that many of the songs are in fact peppy and upbeat. "The Ballad of Tim Evans," for example, seems at first another ballad of a criminal, but the chorus "go down, you murderer" sneaks under your skin and stays there. The point-of-view is anti-death penalty but it's quiet enough to let you make up your mind, and the use of an electric piano in the background gives the tune an odd, jazzy, modern feeling.

Karan's voice is instantly recognizable and unforgettable, while powerful it has a girlish quality like Nanci Griffith's that lend all the songs, even the happy ones, a sense that we are just a step away from heartbreak.

There are some wonderful new songs on this album-- "The Curra Road" is a lovely pastoral bit of nostalgia from Ger Wolfe, and one of my personal favorites is Karan's own composition "The Quiet of the Night," an odd love song whose chorus says "I love you in my heart, because you let me be."

But in this busy world, that is as strong praise as any I've ever heard, and combined with the pensive, minor-key melody, it creates a beautiful mood of peace and determination.

"The Four-loom weaver" is one of the fastest songs on the album-- it may be about a man on the brink of starvation, but the melody is quick-- conveying anger and despair at once-- and it's just a great tune.

No, this is not the same kind of "pub music" you may have heard with some of Solas, but it has a gorgeous purity that makes it a must for any follower of Celtic music.

...

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lush and Haunting- what a voice!, August 12, 2003

By 

Fearless Heart (Great Black swamp) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Distant Shore (Audio CD)

I know that it's probably the most abused and overworked term in music reviews, but this is a beautiful CD.

Karan is one of those Irish women that God has blessed with a voice that can stop a concert hall crowd dead in their tracks.To use an old cliche, Karan Casey has a voice like an angel- except that this angel is really hip and has a powerful and compelling social conscience! Although the overall feel is deeply traditional, the whole album has a completely modern esthetic.

Her band is great. And Dirk Powell adds understated but effective banjo on several tracks. Tim O'Brien contributes outstanding vocals and mandolin.

Both of them are featured on Karan's version of Tim's song "Another Day ". It's simply the most profound and compelling song that I've heard in many years.

A great project- thoughtful and moving.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exquisite and haunting, September 16, 2004

By 

Bruce A. F. Polsky (MN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Distant Shore (Audio CD)

Some years ago, upon the recommendation of another, I picked up the Karan Casey album, Songlines. I enjoyed the album immensely, thought her voice beautiful, lyrical. I've long been a fan of British and Irish folk music and Casey's voice is particularly distinctive. Not to sound trite, her music has an innocent, angelic quality.

On a recent trip to a store specializing in Irish music, I looked up "Karan Casey" in their extensive stacks and came upon this CD. I've now been listening to the album for a couple of weeks and I think it even better, more mature, more emotionally evocative than her earlier work.

Among the most haunting tracks is "Song of Lies," which I play again and again, savoring the poetry of its lyrics, the simplicity and beauty of her interpretation.

If you were to buy one and only one CD this year, you'd not go wrong making this one your choice!