Anyone who has heard Van’s first two solo albums will know what a delight they were. Perhaps thats why Van Morrison decided to dust off Astral Weeks over two nights at the Hollywood Bowl last November: to remind us that, 40 years after being created, this sensational music still.
I've been back there like a hundred times.” It was a funny answer, delivered to impress. Saint Dominic’s Preview is an often overlooked album in a rich Van Morrison back-catalogue. He saw my backstage pass and said, “You got another one of those?” I politely said, No, and his response - hence the 85 percent certainty - was: “It's all right. He was dancing and smiling and singing along (which Is why that 15 percent doubt is there). In the sociopolitical context of the times, the album cried out about such ubiquitous '60s themes as cultural oppression and social upheaval. It features the songs from his 1968 classic album, Astral Weeks. On 1968's seminal Astral Weeks, a twentysomething Van Morrison can be found belting his gospelly, bluesy vocals in just as fine a form as he would be 20 years hence. Astral Weeks Live at the Hollywood Bowl: The Concert Film is the second official DVD by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. I say 85 percent because I stood next to this man who I'm pretty sure was Weinstein in front of the ivy wall during the show. Never mind that Van Morrison is one of the most indelible songwriters of the 20th century-take each album on its own terms. The song Van Morrison played that day, the one that so unhinged the producer, was called Astral Weeks, and it would become the title track on the album that would redefine Morrison’s career. The stars came out, for sure: spotted in the crowd was Angelica Huston looking totally MILFy, Will Ferrell, Orlando Bloom, Jenna Fischer, Julia Roberts, and, I'm 85 percent sure, Harvey Weinstein. I just didn't float the way that I did Friday night. It was still a treat, still lush, organic and filled with beauty. Lyman was a charismatic leader able to create and sustain a community through the. It was only by being able to measure one show alongside the other that I'm able to make that lame-o judgment. In Astral Weeks, Morrison abandoned the amplified sound of his earlier work in favor of acoustic instruments. Fans of this album would appreciate this conversation from r/jazz last month. Van Morrison came in with very little, and Davis did most of the arranging on the spot. On Saturday, they missed a few.īut BFD is what I say. Jazz bassist, Richard Davis, was the session leader for Astral Weeks. On Friday, he and his band didn't miss a goddamned note. But Morrison seemed less present, less enthusiastic, less targeted. Don't get me wrong: the audience was more excitable on Saturday, standing to dance for “Brown Eyed Girl,” shouting along the spelling of G – L – O – R – Ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-I – A” and pretty much acting like this were a Saturday night Van Morrison show at the Hollywood Bowl. The second night of Van Morrison's revisit of his classic 1968 album Astral Weeks was a bit looser, a bit less immediate and, well, not as great as the first night.