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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Truly A "Best Of" Album, December 7, 2002
Having listened to Irish music for several years now I had bought but not bothered to listen to this particular Scottish band until recently. What a waste of several years! Like so many other reviewers have said I listen to this CD non-stop. I love each and every song and plan on getting more Capercaillie albums.The cog that really makes Capercaillie work, I believe, is Karen Matheson's vocals. She sings equally well in Gaelic or English although I've read she prefers Gaelic. Her voice is stong and true yet she can put so much emotion into the words that you will be moved whether you understand what she is singing or not. Of course the other band mambers are as important but I was especially pleased to discover an Irishman among the bunch (Manus Lunny) who's influence in some of the songs is unmistakable. It always helps, too, if an artist like Davy Spillane (Moving Hearts and solo artist) play uilleann pipes on a song or two. Another Irishman (and brother to Manus), Donal Lunny, helped Capercaillie produce an entire album from which songs like the beautiful but haunting "Breisleach (Live)" and the commentary "Waiting for the Wheel to Turn" came from. "The Whinney Hills Jigs", "Kepplehall/25KTS" and "Dr MacPhail's Reel" are all instrumentals. The songs with English titles (except for "The Tree" and "In Exile") are sung in English and the rest are sung in Gaelic. While I don't know a lick of Gaelic, I still thoroughly enjoy the music and songs. If I ever become motivated to actually learn Gaelic (or at least Irish) I'll probably love this album even more -- if that's possible. My very favorite songs are "Outlaws" and "Four Stone Walls" not only because of the upbeat music but also for the smart social remarks (and, of course, I can understand the words, LOL). And last, but not least, "Breisleach" for Karen's moving vocals. Enjoy!
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