The Book of Secrets

The Book of Secrets
The Book of Secrets
Studio album by Loreena McKennitt
Released	September 30, 1997
Genre	Folk, world, new-age
Length	53:00
Label	Quinlan Road, Warner Bros.
Producer	Loreena McKennitt
Loreena McKennitt chronology

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	^[1]
sputnikmusic	^[2]

The Book of Secrets is the sixth studio album by Loreena McKennitt, released in 1997. It reached #17 on the Billboard 200.^[3] The lead single of the album, "The Mummers' Dance," remixed by DNA, was released during the winter of 1997–98, and peaked at #18 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #17 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart.^[4] The album is certified double-platinum in the United States.^[5] It has now sold more than four million copies worldwide.^[6]

Track listing

All music written by Loreena McKennitt. All lyrics written by Loreena McKennitt except as noted.^[7]

"Prologue" – 4:22
"The Mummers' Dance" – 6:07
"Skellig" – 6:07
"Marco Polo" – 5:15
"The Highwayman" (lyric by Alfred Noyes, abridged by Loreena McKennitt) – 10:19
"La Serenissima" – 5:09
"Night Ride Across the Caucasus" – 8:30
"Dante's Prayer" – 7:11

Song information

The DNA remix of "The Mummers' Dance" was made into a music video.
"Skellig" relates the dying words of a monk from a monastery that existed during the 6th–12th centuries on the island Skellig Michael (Great Skellig), 11.6 km west of Ireland.
"The Highwayman" is an adaptation of the poem of the same name by Alfred Noyes.
"Night Ride Across the Caucasus" appeared in the 1998 film Soldier.
The music from "Night Ride Across the Caucasus" was used in the song Kokli by Ulytau.
"Dante's Prayer" refers to Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy.^{[citation needed]}

Personnel

This information is directly from the sleeve notes.

Loreena McKennitt – vocals (tracks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, and 8), piano (track 8), keyboards, harp (track 6), kanun (track 1), accordion (tracks 4, 5)
Anne Bourne – cello (track 6)
Aidan Brennan – acoustic guitar (track 3), mandola (tracks 4, 7)
Martin Brown – acoustic guitar (track 5), mandolin (track 5), mandola (track 5)
Stuart Bruce – assembled drone (track 1), vocal drone (4)
Paul Clarvis – snare drum (track 5)
Nigel Eaton – hurdy-gurdy (track 2, 4)
Steáfán Hannigan – bodhrán (track 5)
Nick Hayley – sarangi (track 7), rebec (track 7), lira da braccio (track 7)
Brian Hughes – oud (tracks 2, 4, 7), electric guitar (tracks 1, 5), acoustic guitar (tracks 4, 5, 7), irish bouzouki (tracks 4, 5, 7), guitar synthesizer (track 4), classical guitar (track 6), vocal drone (track 4)
Robin Jeffrey – Victorian guitar (track 6)
Martin Jenkins – mandocello (tracks 3, 4, 5, 7)
Manu Katché – drums (tracks 1, 2, 4, 7)
Caroline Lavelle – cello (tracks 2, 5, 8)
Rick Lazar – percussion (tracks 1, 2, 4, 5, 7)
Joanna Levine – viola da gamba (tracks 3, 6)
Hugh Marsh – violin (tracks 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
Osama – violin (track 4)
Steve Pigott – additional keyboards (tracks 3,8)
Donald Quan – tabla (tracks 2,4,7), timba (track 1), esraj (track 1), viola (tracks 2,4,5,6,8), additional keyboards (tracks 3,4), vocal drone (track 4)
Hossam Ramzy – percussion (tracks 2,4,5,7)
David Rhodes – electric guitar (track 2)
Danny Thompson – acoustic bass (tracks 2,3,4,5,7,8)
Bob White – tin whistle (track 3), shawm (track 4)
String Quartet:
- Jonathan Rees – 1st violin (tracks 3,7)
- Iain King – 2nd violin (tracks 3,7)
- Andy Brown – viola (tracks 3,7)
- Chris van Kampen – cello (tracks 3,7)
Caroline Dale – string arrangements for tracks 3,6,7
Additional string arrangements – Brian Gascoigne and Doug Riley

Production

As listed in CD booklet:
- Produced by Loreena McKennitt; assisted by Brian Hughes & Donald Quan
- Recorded & Mixed by Kevin Killen (recorded track 1; mixed tracks 1, 2, 5 & 7) & Stuart Bruce (recorded tracks 2–8; mixed tracks 3, 4, 6 & 8)
- Recording & mix assisted by Jacquie Turner, Justin Griffith, Marco Migliara
- Mastered by Bob Ludwig
- All songs published by Quinlan Road Music, except in Europe, South America & Southeast Asia (Quinlan Road Music/BMG Music Publishing International)

Chart performance

Chart (1997–98)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)^[8]	33
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)^[9]	34
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)^[10]	25
Canadian Albums (Billboard)^[11]	3
Danish Albums (Tracklisten)^[12]	14
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)^[13]	29
French Albums (SNEP)^[14]	16
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)^[15]	7
Italian Albums (FIMI)^[16]	17
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)^[17]	9
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)^[18]	30
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)^[19]	16
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)^[20]	30
US Billboard 200^[21]	17
US World Albums (Billboard)^[22]	1

Year-end charts

Chart (1997)	Position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)^[23]	91
French Albums (IFOP)^[24]	88
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)^[25]	92
Italian Albums (FIMI)^[16]	74
Chart (1998)	Position
Canadian Albums (RPM)^[26]	40
US Billboard 200^[27]	67

Certifications

‹See Tfd›‹See Tfd›


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Argentina (CAPIF)^[28]	Gold	30,000^{^}
Australia (ARIA)^[29]	Gold	35,000^{^}
Canada (Music Canada)^[31]	3× Platinum	400,000^[30]
France (SNEP)^[33]	Gold	110,000^[32]
Germany (BVMI)^[34]	Gold	250,000^{^}
Greece (IFPI Greece)^[35]	Gold	30,000^{^}
Italy	—	100,000^[32]
Spain (PROMUSICAE)^[36]	Gold	70,000^[32]
United States (RIAA)^[38]	2× Platinum	1,867,000^[37]
Summaries
Worldwide	—	4,000,000^[6]
^{^} Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

^ Allmusic review
^ g, manos (May 21, 2014). "Review: CD Loreena McKennitt - The Book of Secrets Album". sputnikmusic. Retrieved 2014-05-22.
^ "The Book of Secrets - Loreena McKennitt". Billboard.com. Billboard. Retrieved 17 November 2012.
^ "The Mummers' Dance - Loreena McKennitt". Billboard.com. Billboard. Retrieved 17 November 2012.
^ "Recording Industry Association of America". RIAA. Retrieved 2012-01-09.
^ ^a ^b "UNIVERSAL - Universal - Biography Site". www.universalmusic.es. Archived from the original on 2017-10-05.
^ CD liner notes
^ "Australiancharts.com – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
^ "Ultratop.be – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
^ "Ultratop.be – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
^ "Loreena McKennitt Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
^ "danishcharts.dk - Loreena McKennitt - The Book of Secrets". danishcharts.dk. Retrieved 2010-10-26.
^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
^ "Lescharts.com – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Hit Parade Italia – ALBUM 1997". www.hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved 2019-12-18.
^ "Charts.nz – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
^ "Promusicae". Retrieved 17 November 2012.
^ "Swisscharts.com – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
^ "Loreena McKennitt Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
^ "Loreena McKennitt Chart History (World Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
^ "Rapports Annuels 1997". Ultratop (in French). Retrieved December 19, 2020.
^ "Les Albums (CD) de 1997". Infodisc (in French). Archived from the original on October 26, 2007. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
^ "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved September 8, 2016.
^ "RPM's Top 100 CDs of '98". RPM. December 14, 1998. Archived from the original on February 2, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2010.
^ "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1998". Billboard. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
^ "Discos de oro y platino" (in Spanish). Cámara Argentina de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1998 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
^ "McKennitt to speak at Prairie Music Conference" (PDF). RPM. 18 October 1999. p. 3. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
^ "Canadian album certifications – Loreena McKennitt – The Book Of Secrets". Music Canada.
^ ^a ^b ^c "International Spotlight" (PDF). Music & Media. 23 May 1998. p. 14. Retrieved 10 June 2020 – via World Radio History.
^ "French album certifications – Loreena McKennitt – The book of secrets" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Loreena McKennitt; 'The Book Of Secrets')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
^ "Ελληνικό Chart – Top 50 Ξένων Aλμπουμ" (in Greek). IFPI Greece. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
^ Salaverrie, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (PDF) (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE. p. 943. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
^ "World's greatest". Billboard. 16 June 2007. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
^ "American album certifications – Loreena Mc Kennitt – Book of Secrets". Recording Industry Association of America.

[1] Allmusic review

[2] , manos (May 21, 2014). "Review: CD Loreena McKennitt - The Book of Secrets Album". sputnikmusic. Retrieved 2014-05-22.

[bosbillboard-3] "The Book of Secrets - Loreena McKennitt". Billboard.com. Billboard. Retrieved 17 November 2012.

[4] "The Mummers' Dance - Loreena McKennitt". Billboard.com. Billboard. Retrieved 17 November 2012.

[5] "Recording Industry Association of America". RIAA. Retrieved 2012-01-09.

[wwsales-6] "UNIVERSAL - Universal - Biography Site". www.universalmusic.es. Archived from the original on 2017-10-05.

[7] CD liner notes

[ac_Australia_Loreena_McKennitt-8] "Australiancharts.com – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.

[ac_Flanders_Loreena_McKennitt-9] "Ultratop.be – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.

[ac_Wallonia_Loreena_McKennitt-10] "Ultratop.be – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.

[ac_BillboardCanada_Loreena_McKennitt-11] "Loreena McKennitt Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved January 25, 2021.

[12] "danishcharts.dk - Loreena McKennitt - The Book of Secrets". danishcharts.dk. Retrieved 2010-10-26.

[ac_Netherlands_Loreena_McKennitt-13] "Dutchcharts.nl – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.

[ac_France_Loreena_McKennitt-14] "Lescharts.com – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.

[ac_Germany4_Loreena_McKennitt-15] "Offiziellecharts.de – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved January 25, 2021.

[Italy-16] "Hit Parade Italia – ALBUM 1997". www.hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved 2019-12-18.

[ac_New_Zealand_Loreena_McKennitt-17] "Charts.nz – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.

[ac_Norway_Loreena_McKennitt-18] "Norwegiancharts.com – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.

[19] "Promusicae". Retrieved 17 November 2012.

[ac_Switzerland_Loreena_McKennitt-20] "Swisscharts.com – Loreena McKennitt – The Book of Secrets". Hung Medien. Retrieved October 26, 2010.

[ac_Billboard200_Loreena_McKennitt-21] "Loreena McKennitt Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved January 25, 2021.

[ac_BillboardWorld_Loreena_McKennitt-22] "Loreena McKennitt Chart History (World Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved January 25, 2021.

[23] "Rapports Annuels 1997". Ultratop (in French). Retrieved December 19, 2020.

[24] "Les Albums (CD) de 1997". Infodisc (in French). Archived from the original on October 26, 2007. Retrieved January 25, 2021.

[25] "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved September 8, 2016.

[26] "RPM's Top 100 CDs of '98". RPM. December 14, 1998. Archived from the original on February 2, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2010.

[27] "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1998". Billboard. Retrieved December 19, 2020.

[capif-28] "Discos de oro y platino" (in Spanish). Cámara Argentina de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 3 December 2019.

[AustraliaLoreena_MckennittThe_Book_Of_SecretsalbumCertRef-29] "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1998 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 3 December 2019.

[30] "McKennitt to speak at Prairie Music Conference" (PDF). RPM. 18 October 1999. p. 3. Retrieved 5 May 2023.

[CanadaLoreena_McKennittThe_Book_Of_SecretsalbumCertRef-31] "Canadian album certifications – Loreena McKennitt – The Book Of Secrets". Music Canada.

[musicandmedia-32] "International Spotlight" (PDF). Music & Media. 23 May 1998. p. 14. Retrieved 10 June 2020 – via World Radio History.

[FranceLoreena_McKennittThe_book_of_secretsalbumCertRef-33] "French album certifications – Loreena McKennitt – The book of secrets" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.

[GermanyLoreena_McKennittThe_Book_Of_SecretsalbumCertRef-34] "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Loreena McKennitt; 'The Book Of Secrets')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 3 December 2019.

[GreeceLoreena_McKennittThe_Book_Of_SecretsalbumCertRef-35] "Ελληνικό Chart – Top 50 Ξένων Aλμπουμ" (in Greek). IFPI Greece. Retrieved 3 December 2019.

[36] Salaverrie, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (PDF) (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE. p. 943. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.

[37] "World's greatest". Billboard. 16 June 2007. Retrieved 3 December 2019.

[United_StatesLoreena_Mc_KennittBook_of_SecretsalbumCertRef-38] "American album certifications – Loreena Mc Kennitt – Book of Secrets". Recording Industry Association of America.

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v t e Loreena McKennitt
Studio albums	Elemental (1985) To Drive the Cold Winter Away (1987) Parallel Dreams (1989) The Visit (1991) The Mask and Mirror (1994) The Book of Secrets (1997) An Ancient Muse (2006) A Midwinter Night's Dream (2008) The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2010) Lost Souls (2018)
Live albums	Live in San Francisco at the Palace of Fine Arts (1995) Live in Paris and Toronto (1999) Nights from the Alhambra (2007) A Mediterranean Odyssey (2009) The Road Back Home (2024)
EPs	A Winter Garden: Five Songs for the Season (1995)
Videos	No Journey's End (1995) Nights from the Alhambra (2007)
Singles	"Greensleeves" "The Bonny Swans" "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen" "The Mummers' Dance"
Related topics	Quinlan Road McKennitt v Ash