B

. Home, which featured traditional Irish music taken from their late mother's songbook,^[14] was released the following year, serving as a commemoration to their 15-year career.^[15]

Home

Studio album by The Corrs

Released

September 26, 2005 (Europe)
September 28, 2005 (JP)
February 7, 2006 (U.S.)

Recorded

2005

Genre

Celtic

Length

45:47 (with bonus track - 49:59)

The Corrs chronology

Borrowed Heaven
(2004)

Home
(2005)

Dreams: The Ultimate Corrs Collection
(2006)

Singles from Home

"Heart Like a Wheel/Old Town"
Released: 25 October 2006 (2006-10-25)

Home is The Corrs' fifth and last studio album. An Irish-themed album, it includes covers of old Irish songs and traditionals, but also covers of non-Irish songs such as "Heart Like A Wheel". It includes two tracks in Irish, "Buachaill Ón Éirne" and "Bríd Óg Ní Mháille"; and three instrumentals, "Old Hag (You Killed Me)", "Haste To The Wedding", and "Return From Fingal". Home was compiled from a songbook of the late Jean Corr (their mother). The album was released exactly 10 years after the release of their first album Forgiven, Not Forgotten.

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Critical Reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	^[1]
Virgin.net	^[2]
PopMatters	^[3]

Although The Corrs returned to their Irish roots, the success of this album and its singles has been poor.

"Old Town" performed poorly in the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 43. The decision to cover and release the song was questioned, with Gareth Maher of CLUAS.com calling it "a disastrous one".^[4] Mark Weisinger from PopMatters stated that "anyone who has been waiting since the original, unremixed version of Talk On Corners for the Corrs to abandon their pursuit of the American pop charts to deliver another record along the lines of Forgiven, Not Forgotten will finally find their waiting repaid handsomely." The studio recording of "Haste to the Wedding" on Home is sometimes compared unfavorably to the live version on the In Blue Special Edition.^{[citation
needed]}

Despite album and singles sales below expectations, the album did manage to sell over one million copies worldwide.^{[citation
needed]} This is their 5th consecutive #1 studio album in Irish.

Track listing[edit]

All songs written by The Corrs, except where noted.

"My Lagan Love" (Irish traditional)
"Spancill Hill" (includes the instrumental "Rakes of Kildare" from 3:37)
"Peggy Gordon"
"Black Is the Colour"
"Heart Like a Wheel" (Anna McGarrigle)
"Buachaill Ón Éirne" ("Boy From Erne" - in Irish)
"Old Hag"
"Moorlough Shore"
"Old Town" (Philip Lynott, Jimmy Bain)
"Dimming of the Day" (Richard Thompson)
"Bríd Óg Ní Mháille" ("Bridget O'Malley" - in Irish)
"Haste to the Wedding"
- bonus track available on Japanese, limited German, and Spanish release
"Return From Fingal"

Charts and certifications[edit]

Charts[edit]

Chart	Peak position
Australian Albums Chart^[5]	44
Austrian Albums Chart^[5]	13
Belgium Flemish Albums Chart^[6]	14
Belgium Wallonie Albums Chart^[6]	6
French Albums Chart^[5]	5
German Albums Chart^[5]	12
Hungarian Albums Chart	21
Irish Albums Chart^[5]	1
Netherlands Albums Chart^[5]	15
New Zealand Albums Chart^[5]	37
Portuguese Albums Chart^[5]	26
Spanish Albums Chart^[7]	8
Swedish Albums Chart^[5]	44
Swiss Albums Charts^[5]	7
UK Albums Chart^[8]	14

Certifications[edit]

Region	Certification	Sales/shipments
France (SNEP)^[9]	Platinum	200,000^*
Ireland (IRMA)^[10]	2× Platinum	30,000^x
United Kingdom (BPI)^[11]	Silver	60,000^{^}
^*sales figures based on certification alone ^{^}shipments figures based on certification alone ^xunspecified figures

The title of the Corrs' fifth full-length studio album, Home, alludes to the fact that the family quartet is returning to its Celtic roots after spending several years pursuing crossover pop success. Not that the group has abandoned the perks of its international fame -- this time around, they've gotten superstar producer Mitchell Froom to helm the recording -- nor has the group ever been a strictly traditional Celtic group; even on their debut album they worked with producer David Foster, best known for his adult contemporary hits for Celine Dion and Whitney Houston, which isn't exactly traditional. In fact, Froom helps guide the Corrs to make their most traditional Celtic album ever, while retaining the pleasingly polished production of their crossover pop albums. Home also has a shade of the artiness that has marked Froom's past productions -- he doesn't simply let the music breathe, he has it paint soundscapes -- without getting overwhelmed with trickery. He lets the Corrs takes center stage and they've never sounded better than they do here, due both to the recording and the excellent song selection. The quartet relies heavily on a songbook of their late mother, but among these traditional songs they weave in such contemporary classics as Anna McGarrigle's "Heart Like a Wheel" and Richard Thompson's "Dimming of the Day," while adding Phil Lynott's "Old Town" for a welcome, lighthearted change of pace. It all adds up to a rich, resonant album that's the Corrs' best to date.

When Wolfe wrote this line, providing the title for his final semi-autobiographical novel, he was living as an expatriate of his hometown in the American South, sentenced to exile, reviled in his community much like kindred spirit William Faulkner. His crime, like Faulkner’s, was using thinly veiled reconfigurations of people and events in his town in order to expose the ugly underbelly of Southern prejudice and hatred. He was predictably ostracized, but not before delivering what is considered by many to be one of the greatest novels of the 20th century. No one would consider Wolfe’s observations to be a tribute, but rather a harsh critical reaction, and his subsequent shunning was almost certainly inevitable. Such “warts and all” honesty never plays to Peoria, especially if you’re from Peoria, because no one wants to be reminded of their shortcomings, either as individuals or as a society. People seek comfort.

The Corrs are a band that provides such comfort in their songs. Never ones to play too close to the fires of uncomfortable truth, they paint in broad strokes of idealization. While some would condemn this as unchallenging or patronizing, it, too, has its place. No one says that you have to be a misanthropic to be honest (for anyone who would argue, take the Beastie Boys’ celebration of New York’s culture and society in most of its great albums as evidence to the contrary). The Corrs’ truths are often similarly sentimental, but where the Beastie Boys choose to pay respect to the rougher edges of their birthplace and its prostitutes, crack dealers and crooked cops, the Corrs’ remembrances are more muted, rendered in watercolor sweeps of sentimentality. Never has this been truer than on the album Home.

From the opening piano figure of first track, “My Lagan Love”, one immediately senses that this is their love letter to their native Ireland. A breezy Celtic-influenced melody winds its way through an Irish folk rhythm, supplemented by a majestic sweeping orchestra that, placed against the lilting strains of a tin whistle, seems to conjure almost mythic images of rolling green hills and lush marshes. The second track “Spancil Hill” confirms, as its circular refrain gives way at the end to a hypnotic jig. By the third track, the mournful, haunting “Peggy Gordon”, if you close your eyes, you can nearly smell the foam crashing against the rocks beneath a grassy, panoramic cliff.

Anyone wishing for the Corrs to deliver one of their bouncy Mutt Lange-produced pop gems has, by this point, almost certainly left the building. But those who remain will find treasure after treasure, as the wistful “Black Is the Colour” leads into a beautiful and subtle reading of chestnut “Heart Like a Wheel” that makes Linda Ronstadt’s version sound nearly burlesque in its overwrought emotion. This is not to say that the album has no moments of boundless bliss. The Phil Lynott-penned “Old Town” may well be the single catchiest song they’ve recorded since “Breathless”. But with its Todd Rundgren beat and Piccadilly Square orchestral flourishes, it’s almost certainly too defiantly retro to have much of an impact on a pop chart dominated by divas and hip-hop chant-a-longs.

But perhaps the album’s greatest moments come when the Corrs break into one of their by now near-legendary instrumentals. These are the moments that fans often come to see in their live shows, and the two here (“Old Hag” and “Haste to the Wedding”) donҒt disappoint. If you don’t at least tap your feet or shake your head side-to-side in a “Riverdance” motion, you may need to see a doctor to assure you still have a pulse. Nearly as mesmerizing, however is the acapella intro to the Gaelic-sung “Brid Og Ni Mhaille”, proving that the band is as diverse as it is talented.

If there is a criticism of this album, it is only that it seems to go by too quickly. The over 45-minute playing time is certainly respectable (a few of the recent, much shorter Weezer albums have regrettably seemed a lot longer), but one is left wanting more. Still, such quibbling aside, anyone who has been waiting since the original, unremixed version of Talk On Corners for the Corrs to abandon their pursuit of the American pop charts to deliver another record along the lines of Forgiven, Not Forgotten will finally find their waiting repaid handsomely. Maybe you cant go home again, but if you never really leave, as the Corrs obviously havenҒt, and if you can make home sound this welcoming, perhaps you can find a way to bring the rest of the world home to you.

Review Snapshot:
A tribute album of Celtic folk tunes dedicated to Jean Corr, the late mother of Ireland's most famous musical siblings. Approach with caution!

The Cluas Verdict: 5.5 out of 10.

Full Review:
The Corrs are not cool. They are not people who would top your list of desired drinking companions. They make music that you try hard to dislike. Yet, there is something about them that is strangely charming. Maybe it is Andrea's vocals or their song arrangements. Or maybe it's just their guilty pop tunes with a folksy twist, which you seem to know all the words to, that leave you in an admissible mood towards the foursome. Okay, okay, we won't reveal your secret fondness for them just yet. But as their latest effort 'Home' spins in your CD player or on your MP3 player, you won't be reaching for the skip button as often as you might've thought you would be. It is the type of album that catches you off guard and unexpectedly captures your attention.

In recent years few Irish musicians have succeeded abroad. You can actually count them on one hand. There's U2, Damien Rice, Sinead O'Connor, Enya and The Corrs. Hailing from Dundalk, the four siblings (sisters Andrea, Sharon, Caroline and brother Jim) have sold millions of records, toured worldwide and helped to represent Irish music over the last fifteen years. No matter what your opinion may be on the band, their success speaks for itself. At the core of that success are renovations of pop tunes from the likes of Fleetwood Mac and a keen sense of identity. The Corrs have always made music that is distinctively Irish, thus constantly welding together elements of their folk influenced upbringing with a modern pop angle.

'Home' is a concept album of sorts, with the running theme being classic Irish ballads tweaked with the signature of The Corrs. Despite their efforts though, it never escapes the feeling of it being a tribute album. With the help of producer Mitchell Froom (his daughter makes up one third of power-pop group The Like), the band rooted out the old songbook that their mother Jean once sang from. They picked twelve songs that they believe perfectly evokes the spirit of their beloved mother. To add a different slant to things, they added drums, accordions and saxophone to well-known songs like 'Spaneill Hill', 'Peggy Gordon' and 'Dimming Of The Day'. The BBC Concert Orchestra were then brought in to raise the ambience on ten out of the twelve songs, but it is the four band members who are noticeable throughout. Andrea's vocals are arresting without ever being compelling, the backing harmonies from her sisters add some depth and Jim's guitar work hums at the right times. It all sails smoothly along but no one song will strike you as breathtakingly perfect.

Where 'Home' suffers most is the song selection. The bold decision to take on the Phil Lynott classic 'Old Town' proves to be a disastrous one with it sounding more like a Pop Idol entry than a fitting nod to the former Thin Lizzy singer. Not focusing enough on the band's own strengths is where The Corrs let this album slip away from them. Andrea will always find it tough to match Cara Dillon on their rendition of 'Black Is The Colour' but the other band members almost shy away from getting more involved. The sense of identity that they have always taken so much pride in, suffers from the lack of imagination in these songs. In contrast to all of this, 'Home' is quite an enjoyable listen in parts but could have offered much more than it does.

Contents

Critical Reception[edit]

Track listing[edit]

Charts and certifications[edit]

Charts[edit]

Certifications[edit]