Eithne Pádraigín Ní Bhraonáin, known mononymously as Enya, is an Irish composer and singer-songwriter. The music of Enya is widely recognised for featuring multi-layers of her vocals, varied instrumentation, lengthened reverb, and subtle Celtic elements. Her career as a solo artist, now over four decades long, is notably an atypical path to success in the music industry. As the second-best-selling Irish music act overall, after rock band U2, Enya is the best-selling Irish solo artist; believed to have sold over 80 million albums worldwide.
The 27th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 26, 1985, at Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles, and were broadcast live in the United States by CBS. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1984.
Watermark is the second studio album by Irish singer, songwriter and musician Enya, released on 19 September 1988 by WEA. After the release of her previous album Enya (1987), she secured a recording contract with Warner after a chance meeting with chairman Rob Dickins, who had become a fan of her music. Her contract allowed her considerable artistic and creative freedom, with minimal interference from the label and no deadlines to have albums finished. Enya recorded Watermark in ten months with her longtime collaborators, manager, producer and arranger Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. It was initially recorded in Ireland in demo form before production relocated to London to re-record, mix, and master it digitally. Watermark features music in different styles, displaying Enya's sound of multi-tracked vocals with keyboards, percussion instruments, and elements of Celtic, ambient, and new-age music, though Enya believes her music does not belong in the latter genre.
Shepherd Moons is the third studio album by Irish singer, songwriter and musician Enya, released on 4 November 1991 by WEA. After the unexpected critical and commercial success of her previous album Watermark (1988), Enya embarked on a worldwide promotional tour to support it. At its conclusion, she wrote and rehearsed new material for her next album with her long time recording partners, manager, arranger and producer Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. The album was recorded in Ireland and London and continued to display Enya's sound of multi-tracked vocals with keyboards and elements of Celtic and new-age music.
The Memory of Trees is the fourth studio album by Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released on 20 November 1995 by WEA. After travelling worldwide to promote her previous album Shepherd Moons (1991), and contributing to film soundtracks, Enya took a short break before she started writing and recording a new album in 1993 with her longtime recording partners, arranger and producer Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. The album is Enya's first to be recorded entirely in Ireland, and covers themes that include Irish and Druid mythology, the idea of one's home, journeys, religion, dreams, and love. Enya continues to display her sound of multi-tracked vocals with keyboards and elements of Celtic and new age music, though Enya does not consider her music to be in the latter genre. She sings in English, Irish, Latin, and Spanish.
Enya is the eponymous debut studio album by Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released in March 1987 by BBC Records in the UK and by Atlantic Records in the US. It was renamed as The Celts for the 1992 international re-release of the album by WEA Records in Europe and by Reprise Records in the US. The album features a selection of music that she recorded for the soundtrack to The Celts, a BBC documentary series about the origins, growth, and influence of Celtic culture.
"May It Be" is a song by the Irish recording artist Enya. She and Roma Ryan composed it for Peter Jackson's 2001 film The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. The song entered the German Singles Chart at number one in 2002, and Enya performed it at the 74th Academy Awards. "May It Be" was acclaimed by music critics and received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Original Song, the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song, and the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media.
Roma Shane Ryan is an Irish writer, poet, and lyricist, who lives in Killiney, Ireland, with her husband Nicky Ryan. She is the primary lyricist for the singer Enya, who has stated that the importance of the Ryans' contributions are such that without them, Enya would not exist.
For the Boys: Music from the Motion Picture is the soundtrack to the feature film of the same name starring Bette Midler and James Caan, released on the Atlantic Records label in 1991.
Nicholas Dominick Ryan is an Irish music producer, recording engineer, and manager. He is best known as the longtime business and recording partner for the singer, songwriter and musician Enya alongside his wife, poet and lyricist Roma Ryan. Born and raised in Dublin, Ryan gained initial recognition in the 1970s and 1980s for his work with several artists including Gary Moore, Planxty, Christy Moore and Clannad.
Bill Wray is an American musician, composer and producer. His performing career spanned the mid-1970s through the early 1980s. Since then he has written and produced a variety of artists from glam metal to cajun. He is the brother of fellow musician/composer Jim Wray.
A Box of Dreams is a limited edition 3-disc box set by Irish singer-songwriter Enya, released on 1 December 1997 by WEA Records. The set was a companion release to her first compilation album Paint the Sky with Stars – The Best of Enya, released the previous month. A Box of Dreams contains 46 tracks from her 1987 debut album Enya to Paint the Sky with Stars across three discs, each thematically arranged: "Oceans" contains Enya's upbeat tracks, "Clouds" is a collection of her piano instrumentals, and "Stars" contains slow ballads and more atmospheric tracks. Four B-sides are included: "Oriel Window", "Morning Glory", "Willows on the Water" and "Eclipse". The calligraphy and design were done by Brody Neuenschwander.
Sounds of the Season: The Enya Collection is the third extended play from the Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released on 10 October 2006 exclusively in the United States in Target stores by Rhino Custom Products and NBC Universal. The EP is a collection of six Christmas songs, four of which were included in the Special Christmas Edition of Enya's sixth studio album, Amarantine. It was renamed Christmas Secrets EP for its four-track Canadian release by Warner Bros. and Warner Music Canada on 28 November 2006. And on 6 December 2019, it was reissued as an album exclusively on music streaming platforms, including the tracks from the original EP and some from the album And Winter Came....
Only Time: The Collection is a box set from Irish singer, songwriter and musician Enya, released on 5 November 2002 in the United States and on 2 December 2002 in Europe. The set contains 51 tracks across four discs that spans her 1987 debut album Enya through her 2002 single "May It Be". A 48-page booklet with liner notes and lyrics by her longtime lyricist Roma Ryan is included. The video of "Oíche Chiúin " is also included on the fourth disc, the performance comes from the BBC programme Christmas Day in the Morning aired on 25 December 1996 and was recorded at Christ Church Cathedral in Dublin. In addition to this computer playable video, there is also a screensaver in the cover art motif and a slideshow of pictures from the booklet. This release was a limited worldwide release of 200,000, with US sales of over 60,000 copies. The selection of songs was made by Enya, Nicky and Roma.
Grave New World is the fourth studio album by English band Strawbs, their fifth overall. It was the first album to be released after the departure of Rick Wakeman, who was replaced by Blue Weaver, late of Amen Corner.
And Winter Came... is the seventh studio album by Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released on 7 November 2008 by Warner Bros. Records internationally and by Reprise Records in the United States on 11 November 2008. After recording new Christmas songs for her fourth EP Sounds of the Season: The Enya Collection (2006), Enya started work on a Christmas album of traditional carols and original tracks, but the idea was changed to a collection of songs with a Christmas or winter theme as it better suited the style of the new material. It was recorded with her longtime collaborators, arranger and producer Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan.
Endless Love: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack album to the film of the same name. The album was released worldwide by Mercury Records and PolyGram in 1981.
Maybe This Christmas Too? is a holiday compilation album released in October 2003 through Nettwerk Records featuring contemporary musicians performing both classic and original Christmas songs. The compilation served as a sequel to Maybe This Christmas (2002) and preceded Maybe This Christmas Tree (2004). A portion of the proceeds from the album went to Toys for Tots, a charity supported by the United States Marine Corps. Critical reception of the compilation, which failed to chart in any nation, was mixed.
The Frog Prince is a 1985 romantic comedy film written and directed by Brian Gilbert. The film was a British and French co-production and was released in the US under the title French Lesson. The story revolves around a young British girl who travels to Paris to go to college and is determined to find the man of her dreams. It stars Jane Snowden as Jenny.
Dark Sky Island is the eighth studio album by Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released on 20 November 2015 by Warner Bros. Records. After the release of her previous album, And Winter Came... (2008), Enya was unsure of her next career move so she decided to take a break from music, which lasted three years. In the spring of 2012 she started to write and record new material for a new album with her longtime collaborators, producer and arranger Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. Enya gained inspiration for the title track and the album from the 2011 designation of Sark in the Channel Islands as a dark-sky preserve and a collection of Roma Ryan's poems on islands.
