With over ten different greatest-hits collections to choose from, Irish legends
Clannad seem poised to surpass their number of full-length releases. RCA's
Best of Clannad: In a Lifetime is a fairly standard overview that touches on fan favorites, collaborations, and songs from films, once again omitting any material from their first four -- largely traditional -- recordings. While this may help with the flow -- it does -- it would be nice to hear the group's shape-shifting styles chronicled more thoroughly.
Clannad are at their best when unleashing gargantuan choruses against
Moya Brennan's hushed leads, and the inclusion of the beautiful "Newgrange," a mystical ode to one of Britain's famous stone circles, and "Caislean Oir," the leadoff track from the band's excellent 1985 release,
Macalla, are prime examples. It's when the group abandons its lush new age tendencies and embraces generic adult contemporary pop -- "Something to Believe In" -- that the veil falls away, revealing a fast-food combo meal where there was once an elegant supper. ~ James Christopher Monger