Search - Sinead O'Connor :: Collaborations

Terrific collection of good songs , great vocalist

Dr Jeremy Buddle | Battery Point, Tasmania Australia | 02/09/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This turned out to be a very good purchase indeed. I just listened for the first time to my copy of this 17-track CD that features the vocal talents of Ireland's Sinead O'Connor, and immediately liked the styles and the songs . Sinead is an excellent singer whose voice is highly expressive and emotive and can be loud or soft depending on the mood of the piece.



The magic tracks here for me are Guide Me God (with Ghostland) , Blood Of Eden (with Peter Gabriel)- her voice here is simply beautiful, Tears From The Moon (with Conjure One)- I also like this song a lot, Empire ( with techno act Bomb The Bass and wordsmith Benjamin Zephaniah)- this track is lyrically superb and rails against the injustices of the former British Empire , and Heroine ( with The Edge)- a song I have never heard until now but which was a very early collaboration dating from 1986 . I also liked It's All Good ( with Dublin folk singer Damien Dempsey) and Release ( with Afro Celt Sound System ) - in which some exotic sounds and instrumentation blend in well with a slow techno rhythm.



None of these songs was a really big radio hit, which makes it even more pleasurable to discover as it was all "new" stuff to me - each tune comes as a self-contained work and all have different production and span 17 years from 1986-2003.



I highly recommend this CD to those who enjoy the music of the great Sinead O'Connor ,and also to those who enjoy modern "worldbeat" collaborations"

Great CD

Jeff S. Smith | Denver | 04/19/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I was a little nervous buying this CD because I wasn't sure I'd like it (I've never bought a Sinead O'Connor CD before). But this is a terrific collection of interesting songs, good lyrics, and beautiful vocals. Highly recommended."

Sinead's Best Album : An Essential Cornerstone of Any Music

Cabir Davis | 02/07/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Who knew that Sinead O'Connor had so many winners under her belt? Well, I certainly had an inkling about it while discovering back in the day that she had a duet with Afro Celt Sound System called "Release" (the bands' finest single, by the way), but it was only when she released "She Who Dwells" (one of her most underrated albums, it's a 2-CD Set well worth checking out) did I realize she probably had more collaborations than I had previously realized.



An avid Sinead O'Connor listener since 1987, I was aware of some of her more obvious collaborations, such as the one with MC Lyte back in the 1980s, and her one off duet with Bono in the 1990s. An illegal compilation set (about 7 CDs) entitled "The Black Album" collects most of Sinead's rarities and collaborations, but for fans who are more intent on owning legally released material, this album is an absolute must-have, as it sifts through her entire catalog and picks the 17 very best collaborations from Sineads' 20+ year career.



First the best. The universally beloved Eurovision song contest winner "All Kinds of Everything" (originally by Dana), is revisited by Sinead as a duet version. This song is sweet and poignant, and works very well as an album closer. Similarly uplifting is "Blood of Eden", a duet with Peter Gabriel, which remains as powerful and passionate as it did when first released (years and years ago, one might add!).



Equally stellar are "Guide Me God" by Sinead and Ghostland (this has always been one of the best Sinead tracks, though most people had no clue it even existed), and "Harbor" - a relatively new Sinead track, with Moby. "Release", on which Sinead duets with Afro Celt Sound Systems' Iarla O'Lionaird (on a side note, I highly recommend Iarla's amazing "The Seven Steps to Mercy" album) is a definite standout. And of course, there is "I'm Not your Baby", a cult fan favorite which sees Sinead pairing up with Bono.



Perhaps the most striking thing is that this album contains songs from the 1980s, the 1990s and the 2000s, and Sinead sounds as appealing and refreshing on almost every track. There is no `weak' track or filler here. What you do have, are three decades worth of some stunning music, and the inclusion of that Massive Attack track alone should make this an essential purchase. Sadly, the album wasn't given wide promotion back in the UK and Ireland, and is still virtually unknown within the United States. Pity, because alongwith "Universal Mother", I would rate this the essential O'Connor album. It really is that solid and good.



If you like this CD, you must definitely check out Sinead's back catalog (one of the best back catalogs of any alternative music performer in recent memory). "Universal Mother" (containing the lovely "John" and "In this Heart") is obviously her best album, but you might also want to get "Gospel Oak" (an underrated EP that is must-own) and her 2000 release, "Faith and Courage".



In 2007 Sinead released "Theology" - which became the first Sinead O'Connor album that I absolutely despised. No matter though, because we have enough O'Connor material to last us a while. "Collaborations" is a great blind purchase because honestly, its hard to imagine anyone not loving at least four to five tracks on this. Get it with high expectations, and prepare to be dazzled.



Five Stars.

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