Searchlight [Import]

Runrig | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 26, 1996)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: EMI Europe Generic
• ASIN: B0000073HU
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #140,646 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. News From Heaven

2. Every River

3. City Of Lights

4. Eirinn

5. Tir A' Mhurain

6. World Appeal

7. Tear Down These Walls

8. Only The Brave

9. Siol Ghoraidh

10. That Final Mile

11. Smalltown

12. Precious Years

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Undicovered Sound of Scotland, April 23, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Searchlight (Audio CD)

In my home country of Scotland, this group out sells Madonna and Dire Straits and yet are still unknown to the world at large. This album brings you a group that plays live to 50,000 people on the banks of Loch Lomond and many of the tracks on this album are main stays of the groups current live performances. The tracks start with the up beat news from Heaven following onto the lyrical every river and onwards and upwards the music takes you on a musical tour of the real Gaelic music. The writing force in the group are Rory and his younger brother Calum, whose up bringing on the Isle of Skye where English was the second language is evident in all tracks. Eirinn a track about the sad history of Ireland is not a political song in support of the IRA more a sociol comment on the destruction of a beautiful country by the few.

This album was critised by some Gaelic journalists due to the lack of Gaelic songs, however Runrig have realised that the big world out there does not speak or understand gaelic, they do understand good professionally presented music and lyrics.

Siol Ghoraidh (the geneology of goraidh)is my track of choice, if you ever get a chance to see the video Live at Stirling Castle you will see and hear the anger, dispair and ancient history within the lyrics of the song.

In summary the best album to come out of Scotland in many years. Forgot the false Gaelic or Celtic music of some of the current groups coming out of the Britain, Runrig live and breath the experience and their music is not staged to be fashionable.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant album! :-), August 11, 2000

By 

Laura Sparling (Ignacio, Colorado, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Searchlight (Audio CD)

Not recognized in the States for their inspiring lyrics and uplifting music, Runrig is one of the best Scottish bands around. In just seconds they can take you from the height of love and wonder to the deep depths of the soul. Even the most skeptical person will find themselves humming the lyrics of City of Lights or tapping their foot to the drumbeat of Tear Down These Walls. An absolutely wonderful album. My second favourite of theirs next to The Gaelic Collection.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars their most commercial; not their best, March 5, 2000

By 

Audun Myskja - See all my reviews

This review is from: Searchlight (Audio CD)

It`s strange that Amazon.com carry this album, which is a half-baked attempt at reaching a wider audience, compared to their two masterpieces; "The Big Wheel" (1991) and "Amazing things" (1994), where their gaelic folk mouth-music roots fuse with rock power borne of the pulse of two percussionists.

But the most amazing about the reviews appearing so far is that they`re replete with Big Country comparisons, but fail to mention the true driving force of Runrig: The songs of the Mac Donald brothers, and particularly the lyrics of Calum MacDonald, which to my heart and mind are the most consistently inspired, even illuminated in popular music, barring Dylan and Cohen. Songs of mature love, instead of "my baby left me", songs of the love of the land and the winds of spirit weaving through our lives. The mixture of English and gaelic lyrics produce an uplifting blend. Why cannot Amazon carry these two albums, which have been their bestsellers in Scotland?