THEME FROM HARRY'S GAME

In a way, this single marks some kind of a turning point in CLANNAD's career. In the early eighties the Irish family band was gradually shifting from acoustic and ethnic folk into a bigger league in a pop world. Of course they didn't throw away their folk spirit or unmistakable Irishness, although their sound certainly became more polished and 'produced'. The B-sider in this 7" single is 'Strayed Away', a mellow, acoustic song from the album Fuaim (1982) after which Enya left the group to start a succesful solo career. In this song her backing vocals can faintly be spotted. Nice little song, not very memorable.

Harry's Game was a British TV mini-series (1982) based on the 1975 novel by Gerald Seymour. Apart from brief scenes, it is set in and around Belfast in the Troubles. I haven't seen it (in Finland), but I think 'Theme from Harry's Game' was pretty much THE song that made Clannad a bigger name. It also appeared on their next album Magical Ring (1983). This is a deeply atmospheric piece of music featuring Moira Brennan's distinctive vocals backed by others and a soft synth-centred arrangement. No percussion, no guitars etc. But it sure works. The song won an Ivor Novello award, deservedly.

With something more rare and interesting on the flipside (instead of just an average song from the latest album), I'd give this single one star more.