Album of the Day

Born Eithne Ní Bhraonáin in northwest Ireland, Enya grew up with musical siblings and was briefly a member of her family's group Clannad, leaving to go solo just before the folk-rockers scored their first big U.K. hit. But Enya was not to be outdone; on this day in 1988, the singer's “Orinoco Flow” began a three-week run at No.1 on the U.K. singles chart. That enchanting song, which encourages listeners to “sail away” to exotic locales, was the centerpiece of Enya's breakthrough album, WATERMARK, which sold millions of copies around the world. The collection has several additional standout tracks (including the title number and “Storms In Africa”) and employs rich soundscapes and multi-tracking to fuse traditional Celtic and New Age sounds. WATERMARK has a vision and confidence that transcends all such labels, and the Grammy-nominated album remains one of Enya's finest.