Faith of Our Fathers (album) explained

Faith of Our Fathers
Type:compilation
Cover:Faith of Our Fathers (album cover 1996).jpg
Language:English, Latin, Irish
Released:21 October 1996[1]
Recorded:1996
Genre:Christian
Producer:John Kearns, Bill Somerville-Large
Label:Lunar (Ireland)

Faith of Our Fathers (subtitled Classic Religious Anthems of Ireland) is a compilation album of traditional Catholic/Christian English, Irish, and Latin hymns recorded by Irish artists in 1996.

The album topped the Irish Albums Chart for two months,[2] broke release records,[3] and was certified fifteen times-platinum.[4] The nineteenth-century hymn "Faith of Our Fathers" is the title track.

Origins

The album was the idea of a broker, John Kearns, working for Hibernian Insurance.[5] Funding included contributions from his coworkers.[6] Several labels turned Kearns down before Lunar records agreed to produce the album.[1]

Artists

The album was produced by Bill Somerville-Large and overseen by musical director John Tate.[5] Tenor Frank Patterson, soprano Regina Nathan, the Monks of Glenstal Abbey, youth choir RTÉ Cór na nÓg, and the RTÉ Philharmonic Choir made contributions to the album.[5] [7] It was recorded over five sessions in venues that included the Aula Maxima at Maynooth College in County Kildare and Glenstal Abbey in County Limerick.[5]

Track listing

Legacy

With sales of over 150,000 copies,[1] the album was the biggest-selling release in Ireland in 1996,[8] and it became Ireland's biggest-selling album of all-time by 1998.[9] Sales in Ireland stand at 200,000 copies as of November 1997.[10] It launched the recording career of Monks of Glenstal Abbey.[8] Peter Lennon compared its popularity to that of Riverdance.[2] The success of the record led the album's promoters to arrange concert performances in the Dublin's Point Depot and New York City's Carnegie Hall.[6] [11] [12]

A Faith of Our Fathers II album was released in 1997,[13] which inspired the name of Dustin the Turkey's Christmas album Faith of Our Feathers.[14]

Notes and References

  1. News: 31 May 2019 . Shawn . Religious CD tops Irish chart. 4 Jan 1997 . 4 . . Pogatchnik .
  2. News: 27 November 1996 . Peter . Lennon . Play it Again, Father . . The Guardian.
  3. News: . A blast from a past of celebrity and grandeur . subscription . 9 November 1996 . Andy . Pollak.
  4. Web site: John Kearns - Extraordinary Venture, the Faith of Our Fathers Story (Book & DVD) . CDWorld.ie. 30 May 2019.
  5. Lunar Records Hymn Collection a Surprising Irish Hit . 9 November 1996 . 44,49 . Nielsen Business Media, Inc . . . Ken . Stewart.
  6. Book: Kearns, John . Extraordinary Venture: The Faith Of Our Fathers Story . Foreign Media Music . 2006 . 9789087340025 .
  7. News: `Miracle Singer' Frank's Thanks from Yanks . . 19 December 1996 . Taylor . Richie . 29 May 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190529153916/https://www.questia.com/article/1G1-61271100/miracle-singer-frank-s-thanks-from-yanks-ireland-s . dead .
  8. News: . . Music news & notes: Chanting Monks . 67 . Newspapers.com.
  9. News: . Patterson's Irish tenor soars at Auditorium . Michael . Faucher . . 23 November 1998 . 31 May 2019.
  10. Global Music Pulse – Ireland. Billboard. 51. 29 November 1997. Ken. Stewart . 8 December 2022.
  11. News: . subscription . 25 January 1997 . John . Allen . Faith Of Our Fathers.
  12. News: The Biz; It's Ireland's Hottest Showbusiness . White . Declan . . 19 January 1997 . subscription . 29 May 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190529153917/https://www.questia.com/read/1G1-61142967/the-biz-it-s-ireland-s-hottest-showbusiness-column . dead .
  13. Web site: Faith of Our Fathers II: Classic Religious Anthems of Ireland . Zink Media LLC . discogs.com . 26 June 2019 .
  14. News: Country Music Scene . Mary J . Murphy . . 28 November 1997 . 10 . Dustin's own album is currently available in the shops and is cleverly titled "Faith of Our Feathers" [..] but its contents are a world apart from the actual "Faith of Our Fathers II".

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