Harry's game: Clannad vs. Celtic Woman

[Peter Korsten]

For those who remember the early eighties, and who were living in Europe 
at the time, you may remember the ITV mini-series Harry's Game, or more 
probably the opening tune performed by Clannad. It's the only Irish 
language song to go into the British charts.

Now recently I've discovered Celtic Woman, which is a bunch of Irish 
women, classically trained vocalists probably, who perform wearing 
evening gowns and with an orchestra. Look them up on YouTube, you'll get 
gazillions of hits.

They sang Clannad's hit song, and I went to compare the two.

This is Clannad, live in 2007:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5orfCHMmM8

This is Celtic Woman:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLJYq9KLnZI

They're very different performances. Whereas the female vocalist of 
Clannad has made some effort to dress up, the rest is dressed in jeans 
and shirts. One of them plays a Roland synthesiser where you can 
actually hear the samples loop.

Celtic Woman, on the other hand, have the whole glitzy ambience, full 
orchestra, the works, and deliver a flawless performance.

Yet, I much prefer Clannad's version. It's much more intimate, and more 
real: the whole thing with dressing up seems out of place, and after 
you've seen some more of Celtic Woman's performances, you realise that 
they're all flawless. And then you start to wonder: what's the point?

Nevertheless, two great performances, each in their own right.

- Peter