Celtic Woman releases a brand-new album titled Emerald: Musical Gems that spotlights newly reimagined performances of fan favorites from the group’s treasure chest of Celtic songs.

A celebration of the Emerald Isles’ rich musical heritage, Emerald: Musical Gems includes the uplifting “Mo Ghile Mear” and “Dulaman”, the enchanting “She Moves Thru the Fair” and “Caledonia” and the ever-haunting “Danny Boy” and “The Voice”. Also featured are new interpretations of Celtic Woman’s inspiring performances of the beloved “Amazing Grace” and “You Raise Me Up”.

Since its inception in 2004, Celtic Woman has emerged as both a spectacular commercial success and a genuine cultural phenomenon. The group's uplifting mix of timeless tradition and contemporary craft has transcended national and cultural borders to touch the hearts of a loyal international fan base, who've embraced Celtic Woman's hugely successful public television specials and made their eight CDs and seven DVDs into multi-platinum best-sellers. As a live act, they continue to sell out concert halls around the world, having performed for nearly three million fans.

Review:
Not exactly a greatest-hits compilation and not quite a complete set of new material, 2014's Emerald: Musical Gems finds the internationally renowned Celtic pop quartet, which in this incarnation includes the talents of Chloë Agnew, Susan McFadden, Máiréad Nesbitt, and Lisa Lambe, the latter of whom joined the group in 2012 for the Believe LP, offering up re-imagined (as in re-recorded) renditions of traditional fan favorites like “She Moved Through the Fair,” “Danny Boy,” “Dúlaman,” “Mo Ghile Mear,” “Níl Sé'n Lá,” and “The Parting Glass.” Like all Celtic Woman offerings, Emerald is ultimately a classy affair that strikes a nice balance between the past and the present, hitting familiar beats and cadences with the precision of a well-oiled political machine whose sole purpose is to please its base, and it's kind of nice to hear the group focus almost solely on material that evokes the misty, post-Riverdance patina that the album's moniker suggests. That said, the sounds of the Emerald Isle may dominate the majority of the collection, but that doesn't stop the group from tossing in a trio of new interpretations of concert staples with “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” “Amazing Grace,” and the Secret Garden-penned, Josh Groban-popularized power ballad “You Raise Me Up,” the latter of which arrives (mercifully) at the album's end.
All Music Guide – James Christopher Monger