Reviewed by Andrew J. Morris

Watermark, by Enya, and in particular the track Orinoco Flow, did indeed represent a watermark accomplishment for this talented artist. Her second solo CD (she was formerly a member of Clannad), it was Watermark that brought her to widespread attention when it was released in 1988. Orinoco Flow made it big on the pop charts, and soon we were hearing her everywhere -- in movies, TV and advertising.

The best way to describe her music is as hauntingly beautiful -- though one might better try to describe a sunset to a person blind from birth than to describe Enya's music in words. It is modern, yet traditional. The "New Age" folks embrace her ethereal melodies as their own, yet the beat of traditional celtic rhythms underlie those tunes. She uses recording techniques pioneered by Joni Mitchell that allow her to harmonize with herself in a whole chorus of perfectly resonant voices. Her lyrics, some in Irish (Gaelic) or Latin as well as English, are poetic and integral to the music.

This was the first Enya CD I bought, and still my favourite -- particularly the cuts "Orinoco Flow" and "Storms in Africa."

1. Watermark
2. Cursum Perficio
3. On Your Shore
4. Storms in Africa
5. Exile
6. Miss Clare Remembers
7. Orinoco Flow (Sail Away)
8. Evening Falls ...
9. River
10. The Longships
11. Na Laetha Geal M'oige
12. Storms in Africa II