Van Morrison Album by Album

also the original record came with a groovy poster (ahhh the good ole days) unfortunately ive never run into one

 

I think Street Choir is mostly great. A four-star album. Tupelo Honey has some weaker material, but it doesn't really matter as the performances are great.

 

I'm a little late to the party here, so please forgive me for discussing the previous albums ...

Astral Weeks - Well, if there was ever an album it took me a while to appreciate it was this one. (Ok, Pet Sounds is up there too). I really discovered Van around 1980 when the Common One album came out. Sure, previously I'd heard Brown Eyed Girl, Gloria, Domino, Blue Money, etc but it wasn't until Common One, when I heard it playing while shopping in a record store, that I knew there was something more to this guy than those other songs. Something a lot deeper...

So I eventually bought Astral Weeks, many years after it first came out, and finally heard it. And I did not like it. Of course I was still in my teens then, so maybe wasn't ready for it. I set it aside. For a long, LONG while. Finally I dug it out one day and actually listened to it. Really listened, rather than just heard it. And I loved it. It wasn't me TRYING to love it. I just naturally LOVED it. I still would never recommend it as an introductory to Van's music to anyone, but somewhere down the road ... yeah, it's something everyone should hear at least once. If you find that you enjoy it ow, great. If it takes you a while, great. If you find that it's just not connecting with you, no problem. There's still a lot of other great music to discover out there.

Moondance - Certainly this is much more accessible to listen to than Astral Weeks. It's chock full of great tunes, great performances. This album is maybe the best starting point for introducing a new fan to Van, certainly early Van anyway. One of those rare albums that, to my ears anyway, are solid from start to finish.

His Band and Street Choir - A pleasant album, but I feel it's a step down from the previous album. Upon further listening it's better than I remembered, although still a notch or two from his earlier work.

Tupelo Honey - Another small step down in consistency from his earlier work. Another album that's nice enough to listen to, but doesn't grab my attention as his earlier albums do. I do feel that some of the tunes, especially Moonshine Whiskey, sound much better in their live incarnation than they do here.

 

After a few more listens it seems I had slightly misjudged TH. I would add Old Woodstock to Wild Night and Tupelo Honey on my Van playlist. I prefer Street Choir overall.

 

I like it but in the end I think if van had condensed Street Choir/Tupelo into one album it would rank with his best....and thy would all mesh pretty well

 

I really like this album. I may have a bias as I used to sing Tupelo Honey to my wife all the time, while I was still in Australia, so I have quite an attachment to that song.

 

I bought a nice second hand copy from a tatty old vinyl store I used to go to where the vinyl was kept an appalling condition. Thankfully their copy of this was very nice and had the poster - £10, good price I thought. One of my favourite Van albums, probably second place to St.Dominic. Title track and Old Old Woodstock I both adore. Title track my favourite Van song. Superb.

 

Fell behind here but I love all of these albums. My brain isn't working well enough today to go into detail but briefly...

Moondance - obviously is one of the greats, don't need to say much about this one. I can remember clear as day where I was when I first heard it and who I was with. First girlfriend, it's October '83 and we're sitting on her bedroom floor chain-smoking Marlboros. Every time I hear 'And it Stoned Me' I'm right back there.

Street Choir - My number one favorite Van album. Not as great as Moondance really...but still my favorite. Side One is flawless. Don't need say to anything about songs like 'Call Me Up in Dreamland' and 'Crazy Face'. I mean what can you even say?

Side Two isn't quite flawless but it's got some amazing stuff. Blue Money is great and then Virgo Clowns...Virgo Clowns can (and has) made me cry. So perfect, so beautiful. Same goes for Gypsy Queen really. It loses a little steam after that but after nine great songs in a row you can't complain.

Tupelo Honey - I think this one is underrated. Haven't really listened to it in a while but looking at the tracklist now I don't see anything I don't love. ' You're My Woman' is spectacular. Also really love 'Starting a New Life" and 'Old, Old Woodstock'. And of course Wild Night and the title track. It's a great record.

btw, it blew my mind when I found out that Ronnie Montrose plays all the guitars on TH. When I first heard the album as teenager I had no idea who Ronnie Montrose was, so reading the credits it wouldn't have even registered. So years later when I noticed, I was like...Ronnie Montrose? That Ronnie Montrose Yep. That's him.

 

cool Ritchie Havens cover

 

Tupelo Honey

He really likes getting into his Walt Kowalski shade whenever this 'un has its name uttered--probably because it's really a love letter to Janet Planet, and that's far far into the past at this point. That being said, it's a great album--possibly even more accessible than either Moondance or HB&TS, but lacking (just slightly) in that mystical quality that really dominates affairs like Astral Weeks or Veedon Fleece; he is actually "happy" and in bliss--there was a photo posted earlier in this thread of Van with his band from the HB&TS sessions in which he is actually grinning like a Cheshire Cat--how often does Van The Man smile?! That was The Real McCoy--and it poured over into the music made on this album. That shot defines Van at this time circa late 70 into 72--transitioning over from N.Y. to the West Coast. A real shame Van insists upon keeping this 'un buried in a dark lair.

The Stalwarts:

- "Eponymous"
- "You're My Woman"
- "Moonshine Whiskey"
- "Old Old Woodstock"/"Wild Night"--at any given hour on any given day, these two always shoot it out for that last slot.

The Stalwarts tend to overshadow some of the smaller pieces ("Starting A New Life," "When That Evening Sun Goes Down") because Van really gets to cut loose with the imagery while being backed by a superbly arranged studio ensemble--and the smaller pieces tend to be fast, almost interlude-type tunes, although any other singer/songwriter would sell off their first born to have Morrisonesque lyrics.

"Promenade! Down Funky Broadway!--'Till Da Cows Come Home..." Van certainly gets "as funky as [he] wanna be" in parts on this album. And it's awesome.

-siyt

 

One other observation about Honey: this is the first album since Weeks in which he strips it down in terms of arrangements--outside of a trumpet and flute and a slick little bit of pedal steel ("I Wanna Roo You (Scottish Derivative)"), Van lets the guitars loose. Compared to the previous two efforts, Van isn't shooting for quite as full-scale a sound--this album is very much a product of its time with that West Coast singer/songwriter vibe--but nonetheless, I find that Honey is pulled off the shelf as frequently as any other album from Van's 67-80 period. It might not seem as "heavy" to some as some of the more mystical albums he's released, but he would make a glorious return to that Mystic Side for the next album--Mystic Van is all over Saint Dominic's Preview, especially those three titanic anchors ("Listen To The Lion," "Almost Independence Day," and the "Eponymous" track). To Honey's credit, it's unique as Van had not done anything like up to that point (or really since): it's not quite a country album, and it's not quite a confessional, and it's not quite a Mystical Run through Caledonia--but it's unquestionably Van, and in rare form: he really is as sweet as the name he boasts.

-siyt

P.S.--"Tupelo Honey" was used to great effect years ago in an old ABC series titled thirtysomething. Luv You, Mel Harris!

 

speaking of St Dominics Preview, should we do it next?

SAINT DOMINICS PREVIEW
All songs written by Van Morrison.

Side one
No. Title Length
1. "Jackie Wilson Said (I'm in Heaven When You Smile)" 2:57
2. "Gypsy" 4:36
3. "I Will Be There" 3:01
4. "Listen to the Lion" 11:07
Side two
No. Title Length
1. "Saint Dominic's Preview" 6:23
2. "Redwood Tree" 3:03
3. "Almost Independence Day" 10:05

i think its a fantastic album, a definite change in feel from His Band/Tupelo which felt more downhome / rural ....this is more focused (athough the best song (imo) Listen to the Lion was supposed to be on Tupelo. Theres not a bad song on it and its a 5 star album up there with Astral/Moondance/Veedon/Into the Music for me, anyone else?

 

I don't have this album but there are at least three classic songs on here that I love. The title song, Jackie Wilson said and Listen to the lion

 

some of vans best singing even if most of it is grunts and groans and screams, who else could do this?

 

'
the cover shot was from this chapel in san anselmo that's still around

 

Absolutely love Saint Dominic’s preview, got the cd and vinyl , for me it’s an essential van album , those epic side closers are two of his best songs ever, and then the title track and Jackie Wilson Said are also classics ,, love that record

 

those are the three best ones for me too but they are all excellent, redwood tree/gypsy/i will be there are tight mostly horn based r&b/rock, really catchy, almost independence day is fantastic too.

 

Pope--

These are beautiful! The shot chosen for the cover--Van looking like a ragged West Coast Gypsy with the torn denims--defines that early 70s millieu.

- siyt

 

One of the great Van Morrison albums. And fairly unique given that it's just seven tracks, and two of them are over ten-minutes, both of which are more or less mood pieces. That's pretty bold, but they're great - they don't just prop things up, they make the album. I was surprised that "Listen to the Lion" (possibly my favorite) dates from the Tupelo Honey sessions - instrumentally you can see how that's possible, but otherwise it's so different from that album, it wouldn't have fit. It really goes to show you that a good cohesive album isn't necessarily what you have from one contained set of sessions.

And of course the short ones are mighty fine - once again, he leads-off with another great single, and once again, he makes it seem so effortless. (Was it WB policy to lead off with singles? I know Columbia had that for a while.)

"Redwood Tree" is catchy, a very enjoyable cut. Honestly, if you've never been to San Francisco and you're visiting for the first time, listen to this album, it makes you appreciate it even more because you really experience the inspiration for a few songs. Walk through Muir Woods and you know what it means when it "smells like rain." Look across the bay at night, and even if it isn't July 4th, you still get the vibe of "Almost Independence Day" from all the lit houses dotting the hills on the other side.

Is the title track his first great cranky song about the business? It's pretty hit or miss when he sings about the music business (or life as a rock star), but this one's definitely a hit.

 

Telepathy is at play on this--because you view this album the same way I do. Excellent analysis on one of Van's major albums.

You are correct: on paper, this album shouldn't work--it's only seven tracks, and heavily dominated by three massive, epic tracks. Furthermore, it almost seems like a 50/50 patchwork combining the best elements of both Mystic Van and Gypsy (West Coast R&B) Van. All that said, it manages to work. It's seven tracks, but it's a full three quarters of an hour of music. More importantly, when you consider the four "minor" numbers that round out the rest of the album, they "fit" exactly where they should on the album, and taken together, they manage to hold their own against the Mystic stuff like "LttL" or "AID." In particular, Van needed that slick R&B poppy material to contrast from the emotional gravity of the mystic anchors--and it all works nicely.

I would love to hear the "Listen To The Lion" studio run from the TH sessions. Like The Stones, Van can take a leftover/fragment/old unused number and make it work later on down the line. Very very few artists can boast of this capability.

It very well could be Van's first rip on the "behind the scenes players," but I like when Van does it--because he deconstructs them so elegantly. I love that line: "Da record company has paid out for dee Wi-Yine!" Let the Saul Zaentzs and the Allen Kleins of the world eat that bill.

One comment on "Almost Independence Day:" this is an example of experimentation done right. I don't care what anyone says: that Moog synthesizer sends SHIVERS up the spine! Very nice call on Van's part to include it on the tune.

 

SDP is a strong album. Everything after Astral Weeks thus far is indispensable to any music collection, IMO.

 

SSP is for me an album where the parts are stronger than the whole. Great songs, doesn't feel like an album.

 

According to Peter Wrench's book "St Dominic's Flashback": There are 2 takes of 'Listen to the Lion', so maybe someday we'll hear the other one. It was from 'Tupelo Honey' sessons, which makes sense if you consider the musicans.

There is only one take of 'Jackie Wilson Said'. So, wow. literally once in a lifetime. Van and the band really pulled together in a moment of spontaneous inspiration. Some other outtakes too, none of which were represented on Philosophers Stone Vol 1. For me, the only miss is 'Gypsy', which I wish had been replaced by the B side 'You Got The Power".

Astral Weeks through Tupelo Honey material is well represented on the incredible Pacific High boot, just about Van's best live performance imo, and one of the best live documents ever. He really tears into the songs, and the sustained intensity is unbelievable.

 

Another Van album that has never fully worked for me. Undeniably brilliant opener, SDP is a partial success, LTTL works pretty well but not all the time as does AID. The remainder have never made an impact.

I’m off to have a weekend with SDP to see just how wrong I am.

 

that's a great one, I bought the cd sometimes in the 90's when I was trying to find all the unreleased van Morrison I could, great just like a woman as well

I know what you mean, I think it holds together because the songs are so strong, I think two 10+ min songs on one album kind of dwarf the others in scope and they don't really mesh