''Season of the Sparks'' is the fifth studio album released by

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

singer-songwriter

Adrian Crowley Adrian Crowley is a singer, composer, songwriter, lyricist from Galway, based in Dublin and was born in Sliema, Malta. Crowley has released eight albums to date, with his debut ''A Strange Kind'' arriving in 1999. He followed this with ''When ...

. On March 3, 2010, it was announced as the winner of the

Choice Music Prize The Choice Music Prize (), known for sponsorship reasons as the RTÉ Choice Music Prize is an annual music prize awarded to the best album from a band or solo musician who is born in the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland or holds an Irish pa ...

for Irish Album of the Year 2009 at

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Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

. It was released on April 24, 2009.

Reception

Hot Press ''Hot Press'' is a fortnightly music and politics magazine based in Dublin, Ireland, founded in June 1977. The magazine has been edited since its inception by Niall Stokes. History ''Hot Press'' was founded in June 1977 by Niall Stokes, who co ...

'' gave ''Season of the Sparks'' five stars, calling it a "batch of beautiful

Al Stewart Alastair Ian Stewart (born 5 September 1945) is a Scottish born singer-songwriter and folk-rock musician who rose to prominence as part of the British folk revival in the 1960s and 1970s. He developed a unique style of combining folk-rock so ...

Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...

esque pastoral reflections".

RTÉ (RTÉ) (; Irish language, Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the Public broadcaster, national broadcaster of Republic of Ireland, Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on RTÉ Television, telev ...

reviewer Harry Guerin gave the record four out of five stars and called it "an album for all seasons". Lauren Murphy, who reviewed the album for ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'', also gave it four out of five stars, stating that this is Crowley's "most consistently beautiful album yet" and that the artist "utilises his lyrical talent to conjure up the most gorgeous imagery this side of the Shannon". ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

'' reviewer Dan Cairns also gave it four out of five stars, calling it "a great album" and saying it was " like a

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painting set to music". ''

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'' called it "that rare and precious thing, a perfect expression of joy", noting that the first track "Summer Haze Parade" was "Crowley's most overtly uplifting moment to date". '' Clash'' praised Crowley's "ability to craft a beautiful lullaby to the simplicity of the countryside". ''Season of the Sparks'' was the last album to be reviewed by ''

Les Inrockuptibles ''Les Inrockuptibles'' () is a French cultural magazine. Started as a monthly magazine in 1986, it became weekly in 1995. Now it is a monthly again, since 2021. In the beginning, rock music was the magazine's primary focus, though every issue in ...

'' journalist

Richard Robert Richard Robert (25 March 1861 1 February 1924 in Kaltenleutgeben)
Retrieved 28 August 2013 ...

before he retired after 35 years of work. Robert sent a letter to Crowley in Dublin expressing his joy about the album.

Track listing

''Season of the Sparks'' features ten tracks, including the title track "Season of the Sparks".

Awards

''Season of the Sparks'' won the

for Irish Album of the Year 2009 at Vicar Street on March 3, 2010. It was chosen by a panel of twelve people from the Irish music industry as most deserving winner from a shortlist of ten albums. Crowley received a prize of €10,000 cheque. He described himself as "totally flabbergasted", adding "I didn't really think it was the sort of record that was going to win awards". Crowley promised to use the money to fund his music. He was one of eight nominees who performed at the awards ceremony, including the

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

-winning,

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

-nominated

The Swell Season The Swell Season is a folk rock duo formed by Irish musician Glen Hansard and Czech singer and pianist Markéta Irglová. "The Swell Season" name is derived from Hansard's favourite novel by Josef Škvorecký from 1975 bearing the same title. ...

and Crowley's close friend Valerie Francis. , - , 2010 , , ''Season of the Sparks'' , , Choice Music Prize - Irish Album of the Year 2009 , , , -

References

{{Authority control 2009 albums Adrian Crowley albums Choice Music Prize-winning albums