Only Time: The Collection [Box set, Enhanced]

Enya | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 12, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 4
• Format: Box set, Enhanced
• Note on Boxed Sets: During shipping, discs in boxed sets occasionally become dislodged without damage. Please examine and play these discs. If you are not completely satisfied, we'll refund or replace your purchase.
• Label: Rhino / Wea
• ASIN: B00006LJ72
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (59 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #12,361 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #26 in Music > Folk > British & Celtic Folk > Irish Folk
  • #32 in Music > World Music > Celtic > Fusion
  • #34 in Music > World Music > Celtic > New Age

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Watermark

2. Exile

3. Aldebaran

4. March Of The Celts

5. Boadicea

See all 12 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Orinoco Flow

2. Ebudae

3. River

4. The Longships

5. Na Laetha Geal M'ÓIge

See all 12 tracks on this disc

Disc: 3

1. After Ventus

2. No Holly For Miss Quinn

3. The Memory Of Trees

4. Anywhere Is

5. Athair Ar Neamh

See all 12 tracks on this disc

Disc: 4

1. Only Time (Original Album Version)

2. A Day Without Rain

3. Song Of The Sandman (Lullaby)

4. Willows On The Water

5. Wild Child (Album Version)

See all 15 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

A wonderful gift, this handsomely packaged four-CD box set (purple velvet cover, gold-foil lettering) also serves as an inviting midcareer retrospective of an uncommon vocalist-sonic architect. Only Time: The Collection is a mix-and-match assortment of tracks spanning Enya's first five U.S. releases (including her 1987 debut, The Celts) and embellished with a half-dozen B-sides not found on her previous U.S.-released albums. Chief among them are "May It Be" (from the Lord of the Rings soundtrack); "Isobella," a hushed, slowly evolving beauty formerly available only in Japan; and "Oiche Chiun (Silent Night)." The set's fourth disc is an enhanced CD that includes 1996 video footage of Enya performing "Oiche Chiun" during a BBC special. Also included is a 44-page, tall-format booklet filled with regal artist photos, song lyrics, and commentary on each track written by lyricist Roma Ryan. Some notations are throwaway items. Others are insightful, such as the unfinished lyrics (about lost love) for the instrumental title track to A Day Without Rain. The order is a jumble, usually mixing tracks from two recordings onto one disc. The stylistic difference between her dated 1987 debut and the sophistication of 1988's Watermark makes for some occasionally jarring listening on disc one. On the other hand, the opening sequence on disc three ("After Ventus," "No Holly for Miss Quinn," "The Memory of Trees") is mesmerizing. Overall, nicely done. --Terry Wood

Product Description

This Collection is the first career spanning collection of Enya's work, gracing 4CDs with 51 tracks. Featuring signature Enya favorites such as 'Orinoco Flow,' 'Only Time,' 'Caribbean Blue,' 'The Celts,' 'Book Of Days,' 'The Memory Of Trees' and much more. Also includes tracks not previously available on any domestic release such as 'Isobella,' 'Book Of Days' (Original Single Version) and 'May It Be' (Single Version). 48 page booklet features liner notes by lyricist Roma Ryan, a discography and archival photos. The 4th disc is enhanced with the previously unreleased performance of 'Silent Night'. The discs are housed in a purple-velvet covered digibook with 40 + page booklet. Reprise. 2002.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

59 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not Much New For the Die-Hard Fan, November 16, 2002

By 

Steve Vrana (Aurora, NE) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Only Time: The Collection (Audio CD)

I first fell in love with the music of Enya when one of her tracks ("Ebudae" from SHEPHERD MOONS) was played over the final scene of an episode of "Northern Exposure." It remains one of my favorite songs. It's included here along with four dozen other songs from her five studio albums dating back to 1987's THE CELTS.

So what's the problem? Let's face it, most fans already have the music collected in this box set. After all, Enya has released only five studio albums during the past fifteen years and fans (like me)eagerly bought each new release. So what is new here? Not much. There are only seven songs that --although all previously released--have never appeared on any of those five studio albums: "Oiche Chun (Silent Night)," "Eclipse," "Isobella," "Song of the Sandman," "Willows on the Water," "The First of Autumn" and "May It Be," the Oscar-nominated song from the film "Fellowship of the Ring." [Although it should be noted that "Eclipse" and "Willows on the Water" did appear on the 1998 3-CD collection A BOX OF DREAMS.] All seven of these songs were originally released as the A-side or the B-side of a single, but not included on any of her studio albums.

In addition the enhanced CD contains footage of "Oiche Chun," first aired on the BBC in 1996. Also included is a 48-page booklet with a complete discography, photos and liner notes by lyricist Roma Ryan. This box set is a real treat for both new and longtime fans. My only complaint is that the serious fan is being asked to pay a hefty price to add only a handful of otherwise hard-to-find songs to their collection. The dedicated fan would have been better served by a single disc update of 1997's PAINT THE SKY WITH STARS: THE BEST OF ENYA. [It's also worth noting that the two new songs--"Only If..." and "Paint the Sky With Stars"-- on THAT collection are NOT included here.] Those concerns aside, this is a thoroughly satisfying collection. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

97 of 106 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Recycled "BOX OF DREAMS"box set, November 14, 2002

By 

Distant Voyageur "Nicholas Computer" (Io) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Only Time: The Collection (Audio CD)

Although this Box set was released in 2002, this set is basically a recycled "Box of Dreams" with new cover artwork and added tracks. Almost ALL of the content on this set exists on the Box Of Dreams trilogy released in 1998!

This is becoming a disturbing trend by record labels trying to to cash in on music buyers: Releasing already existing collections with new packaging artwork and added tracks! From a musical standpoint, this is a great multi-disc collection of music but this set could've been so much better. If it were possible they should've taken one of the discs and made it a total B-Sides collection instead of just including a few B-Sides and leaving out the rest. At least the amazingly haunting Isobella is available on here. It's a haunting track not too much different from Hope Has A Place or La Sonadora but better than both and Isobella would've propelled A Day Without Rain to a five star. Where are Morning Glory, I May Not Awaken, or Asbhaile(correct me if I misspelled it)? Enya has over ten B-Sides and they all should've been included on this set or on a single or double disc set. If they had all been put on here, this box set could've been the ultimate box set ever.

A thumbs down to the record labels where cashing in on the fanbase seems to have become a habit.

60 of 71 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Only Time - money well wasted?, December 26, 2002

By 

eveoflove (North York, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Only Time: The Collection (Audio CD)

Made in GER in 2002, Serial# 0927-49211-2, Playing Time 176:13

Lyrics enclosed; disc 4 contains a multimedia section with a screen-saver, a photo gallery (actually a slide show of the pictures included in the booklet), and a video of "Silent Night". This box is limited to 20,000 copies (how many will actually sell?)

This 4-disc compilation literally floored me! Not because of the music (that's a topic for another day...), but because of what's been put together in this package; I won't comment on the songs themselves, because, after all, you already know Enya if you're considering buying this set.

The box (covered in purple velvet, oooh!) features a booklet that gives the lyrics to the songs, as well as some track-by-track comments (read "meanings") on each of them. No biography or truly interesting facts.

What's worse, the 4 discs arrive just short of 3 (gasp!) hours of music (when in fact, given some small effort, one could fit over 5 hours!)

I'm no mathematician (even if I'm going to sound like one!), but Enya has released 5 albums so far; here's what I would have done to please the fans (or, at least, myself!)

Put in ALL of "Enya" (39:28) plus the "bonus" track included in its re-release, "Celts" (a re-recording of "Portrait", at 3:13); so we're at about 43 minutes;

Put in ALL of the second album, "Watermark", which lasts 43:10;

Put in ALL of the 3rd album, "Shepherd Moons", which clocks in at 43:33, and add the english version of "Book Of Days" for another 2:57 (the original release of the album contained that song but sung in gaelic)

Put in ALL of her 4th album, "The Memory Of Trees", which would consume another 43:53, plus the 2 previously unreleased tracks ("Only If..." and "Paint The Sky With Stars") from her "best of" entitled "Paint the Sky With Stars") which would take up 7:34

Add to the mixture ALL of her latest album, "A Day Without Rain", and there goes another 37:35

With me so far? I've used up, with ALL of the 6 albums (including the "best of") and their various editions, a little under 222 minutes... I have room for 80 (yes, EIGHTY) more minutes! More than enough for ALL her b-sides (there's a little more than a dozen), the "May It Be" track from the soundtrack to "Lord Of The Rings - The Fellowship..." (which is included in this box set).

I would then have her WHOLE CATALOGUE! (who knows, maybe even squeeze in the soundtrack to "The Frog Prince", which lasts 35 minutes!)

Now THAT would have been money well spent...

After the record label has already released "Paint the Sky..." and the 3-disc "A Box Of Dreams" (IT lasts 159 minutes, so I could also talk about THAT), I'm now worried that a 5-disc compilation set might be released in 2005, as a 20-year retrospective of her career.

But because I love her work, I'll probably buy that too (and complain again?)