Watch for Reefs and Shoals: Niamh Parsons and "The Water is Wide"

Today's random tune is by Niamh Parsons, who performs The Water is Wide from her 2006 album Blackbirds and Thrushes. A singer of contemporary and traditional Irish music, Parsons started her solo career in Belfast in 1990. She had previously been a member of the band Killera in the 1980s with her husband. She was asked to sing for President Bill Clinton and Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern in Washington DC, and has made several television appearances in Ireland. The Water is Wide can also be found on the 2005 compilation album Celtic Wonder. The Water is Wide is of Scottish origin and is related to a Child ballad that chronicles the unhappy marriage of James Douglas, second marquess of Douglas. Some of its lyrics date back to the 1600s and it is a popular song that has been covered by many performers.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Drowning in Love: e2k and "The Water is Wide"

The random tune for today is The Water is Wide by e2k. e2k grew out of the original English band Edward the Second. Edward the Second formed in 1980 as a world fusion, reggae and English folk band. The band made a conscious effort to steer away from a folk-punk fusion and instead gravitated toward Jamaican reggae based on similar harmonics and a shared folk tradition. In the early 90s they shortened their name to Edward II. In 1999 Edward II dissolved, but in 2000 some former members reformed as e2k, and brought in a Ghanaian instrumentalist and the lead singer and guitarist from the Albion Band. In addition, some other former members of Edward II have reformed themselves. The Water is Wide can be found on e2k's 2001 album Shift, and on the 2001 BBC compilation The Folk Awards.