Listen to 5 of the Late Sinéad O'Connor's Most Memorable Songs
The Irish musician received eight Grammy nominations and won for best alternative musical performance in 1991
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Sinéad O'Connor in August 2014No one compares to Sinéad O'Connor.
Following the death of the Irish singer-songwriter aged 56 on Wednesday, fans are listening back through the songs that made her a star.
Throughout O'Connor's career, she received eight Grammy nominations and won for best alternative musical performance in 1991. Her legacy was complicated by her commitment to various social issues and her public mental health struggles.
"It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Sinéad," her family confirmed in a statement. "Her family and friends are devastated and have requested privacy at this very difficult time."
A rep for O'Connor did not immediately reply to PEOPLE's request for comment.
With the release of 10 albums, most recently 2014's I'm Not Bossy, I'm the Boss, O'Connor had quite the discography.
Look back at some of the most memorable songs of her career:
Related: Sinéad O'Connor Dead at 56
"Nothing Compares 2 U"
For diehard O'Connor fans and casual listeners alike, "Nothing Compares 2 U" remains at the heart of the singer's extensive body of work. The song, originally written and composed by Prince originally for his side project the Family, was featured on O'Connor's 1990 album I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got. The "My Special Child" singer turned the track into a stirring power ballad that became a No. 1 hit and aptly depicted the devastation of losing a lover.
"Drink Before the War"
On "Drink Before the War," the turmoil in O'Connor's voice is palpable. The 1987 protest song is a slow-burner, and touts O'Connor's frustrations through her anguished lilt: "Well, you tell us that we're wrong / And you tell us not to sing our song / Nothing we can say will make you see/ You got a heart of stone you can never feel."
"All Apologies"
While it was Nirvana that first released "All Apologies" in 1993, O'Connor put her own spin on the Kurt Cobain-penned track a year later and shared it on her fourth studio album Universal Mother. O'Connor's lullaby-like rendition features her airy vocals over acoustic guitar riffs.
"Mandinka"
Three years before O'Connor rose to fame, she released "Mandinka," the raw second single from her 1987 debut album The Lion and the Cobra.
The exhilarating rock number features O'Connor's towering screams and defiant vocals in what emerges as a carefree love song. “I don’t know no shame/ I feel no pain/ I can’t see the flame," she exclaims in the track's chorus.
"No Man's Woman"
In 2000, O'Connor released her fifth studio album Faith and Courage, which also coincided with the singer publicly coming out as a lesbian. In the same interview where she addressed her sexuality, she commented on the lyrics of "No Man's Woman," the grunge-pop lead single from that record, which seemed to contextualize the place she was in her life.
"It talks about a soul, a female soul who does not want to be a girlfriend or a wife, but wants to be single, really, but who is very much in love with the spirit of men and wants to conduct a relationship with the spirit of men. The song also honors the woman's soul, [which] feels that her teachers will be men, her guides will be men, and her rescuers have been men. Not romantically, though, but spiritually," she said.
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