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Yes,
another new biography of sorts on Van Morrison. Unlike the authors Van sings
about in this song you are listening to though, this is a musically rooted bio. I
have never met Van Morrison. I know nothing about him except what I have read
on his album covers over the last forty odd years and what I have gleaned from listening to his music.
I make
it a point not to write about or dwell on the goings on of any artists private life. Only what I consider the "public
record". The music.
To
the extent of the music, I do know Van Morrison fairly well, and I do remember when, way back then, how young girls would
do, playing Domino on the radio, making love in the green grass, behind the stadium,
dancing ‘Neath the halo of a summer sky such marvelous nights for a moon dance and loving a brown eyed girl named Gloria who was as sweet, as, Tupelo Honey.
So,
Van, if as the song says you are having trouble remembering those days, give me a call and we’ll get together and sit,
smoke a pipe and do a wee bit of reminiscing! In the meantime, thank you Mr.
Morrison, for an outstanding body of work that has provided a stirring soundtrack to many aspects of my life.
for
all my loyal readers, let’s carry on shall we?
| Van Morrison |
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| Onstage with The Band at The Last Waltz |
Born
in Ulster, in Northern Ireland on August the 31st, 1945, George Ivan Morrison got a guitar from his dad around
the age of eleven , and with the help of a guitar chord book called The Family Carter Style
edited by Eddie Lomax, George, one day to be known as Van the Man, began teaching himself to play guitar. And then the harp. And then the saxophone, keyboards and ukulele. This multi talented musician was soon hard at work in his own “garage band” Known as the Monarchs, they recorded their first record in 1962 called "Boozoo Hully
Gully"/"Twingy Baby", under the name Georgie and The Monarchs.
By the time the young Monarchs returned from their
“European tour” to Belfast in 1963, they seem to have had enough of each other and split up. Van was far from
ready to forego his dreams of a life in music though it seems and was soon hooking up with Geordie Sproule and forming The Manhattan Show Band. Later in ’63
Van Morrison tagged along with Manhattans guitarist Herbie Armstrong who was on his way to audition for a spot with The Golden
Eagles.
Morrison was hired as a blues singer. It's been
my experience that A musician in a band is driven to attain a sense of satisfaction with what he does and seems to this author
perhaps Morrison was not finding that satisfaction. Responding to another ad
for musicians for a new club’s house band, Morrison was soon jamming with Ronnie Millings, Billy Harrison, and Alan
Henderson Eric Wrixon, and in a band they dubbed “Them”. A name gleaned
from a 1950’s horror film. Them became the house band for the new R and
B club, The Maritime.
According to Van Morrison in an interview years later,
“Them lived and died on that stage”. Much like the Beatles I think,
in Hamburg, long hours and much improvisation led to a new and unique sound. One
song born during this era became a standard garage band song covered around the world by many groups of young Musicians, including
the basement band in Columbus Ohio known as the Hillgate Road Blues Band. The
song? G-L-O-R-I-A Gloria!
The Van Morrison Discography
The Van Morrison discography is a long one. More than forty albums with many compilations, or “best of” albums along the way. I’ll start with a short list of my favorite albums, then give you a link for the complete discography.
And just because one of Van’s albums is not in this short list does NOT mean I didn’t like it. With the exception of a two record set called The Complete Bang Sessions, which I’ll talk about later
on, I recommend everything Van Morrison has ever recorded!
1968 Astral Weeks
1970 MoonDance
1970 His Band and the Street Choir
1971 Tupelo Honey
1972 Saint Dominic’s Preview
1973 Hard Nose the Highway
1978 Wavelength
1999 Back On Top
The first album Van released as a solo artist was not supposed
to be an album at all. Leaving Ireland for New York in 1967, Van Morrison signed
a record deal with a friend who had started a new record label in New York called Bang.
I guess since Bert Berns, founder of Bang was a friend and song writing partner of Van’s from the Them days,
Morrison did not read the contract carefully.
One thing, among many, that artists like Van Morrison sacrificed
in the early days was artistic control. Morrison had little to say about the
studio musicians he would record with during those days at Bang. The first sessions
resulted in the recording of eight songs Van thought were going to be issued as singles.
Imagine his, Van’s, surprise when he got a call one day from someone he knew congratulating him on his first
solo album. Yes, Berns had released the songs as an album, titled “Blowin’
Your Mind”. And without Van’s knowledge or approval.
All of the songs were written by Van Morrison. And one of them became as much a signature song for Van as Gloria.
The song was “Brown Eyed Girl”. To his credit, both of these
songs, remain to this day classic rock standards, with “Brown Eyed Girl” being one of the most played songs on
classic rock radio and the fourth all time most requested songs of radio DJ’s around the world.
Bert Berns died in 1967 and relations with Bang and Berns
widow left Morrison out of work and worried about his musical career.
| Astral Weeks |
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| The real solo debut album cover |
The First Real Solo Album
While
in fact the first solo album released under Van Morrison’s name was the “un-authorized” “Blowin’
Your Mind”, I personally consider Astral Weeks to be the real debut solo album.
Van
Morrison had begun working on the songs that would one day make up this album back in Ireland in 1966 and continued working
on them over the next couple years, including that period of time during the gig Them held at the Whiskey A Go Go, where that
other Morrison, Jim, vocalist and front man for the Doors who were the warm up band for Them, became inspired by the stage
antics and poetic improvisational skills of Van Morrison.
After Bert Berns died, and deteriorating relations
with Berns widow brought about the end of Van Morrison’s days with Bang, Van found himself out of work and, because
of the many clauses in that unread contract, unable to perform in New York, Van booked north to Boston where he took up residence
and was soon gigging around bean town and continuing to polish material for Astral Weeks.
Given the enormity of his talent, it was not long
before an A and R man from Warner Brothers “discovered” Van Morrison. So
impressed with Morrison were the folks at WB that they, Warner Brothers, began negotiations with Berns widow to buy
out Van’s contract with Bang. One Claus Eileen Berns would not give in
on was the requirement for Van Morrison to record 36 new original songs for the Bang label.
Morrison’s naivety when it came to recording contracts wasn’t the only one
that revealed itself. Bert had neglected to mention anything about “hit
material” or “quality” or “commercially viable”. so
Morrison went into the studio and in one session recorded 31 of the 36 required songs.
Berns widow later said she would not use any of the
songs as they were all rubbish, songs about ringworms and stuff like that. Somehow,
those 36 songs eventually got released on a two disc set called the Complete Bang Sessions.
If moneys tight, make it the last if ever, Van Morrison CD you buy. If
you are rolling in it and are a serious devotee, go ahead and click on the link below to buy it.
There really is a song on the CD called Ringworms. Click on the play button below to hear it. If you are using a screen reader
and can't get focus on the Play button, there is a download link right after that.
click here to download Ringworm by Van Morrison
But I digress...
What
I am really wanting to write about is Astral Weeks. What an incredible album. Over two years in the writing and
compositional phase, Van finally went in to the Century Sound studios in New York on September 25th, October the
first, and October 15th, 1968 to record his real debut album.
Van had been gigging around Boston with bassist Tom
Kielbania, and flautist John Payne, no relation to Billy Payne of Little Feat, when Warner Brothers A and R men Lewis Merenstein
and Bob Schwaid signed Morrison to record for Warner Brothers. some folks contend
WB was after Morrison because of “Brown Eyed Girl”, not the acoustic set Morrison, Payne and Kielbania . had been doing
in which the acoustic trio continued polishing the arrangements for the songs on Astral Weeks.
Whatever their motivation, the cats at WB made a choice that worked well for all of us music lovers!
The album Astral Weeks met with typical commercial
blas� when it was released. The album did not contain any top ten hit material
and was 33 years in reaching the gold sales level. On the other hand, the album
is critically acclaimed by serious audiophiles, jazz, blues, acoustic and folk audiences around the world.
The albums songs are an intense eclectic collection
of all those genres and more really. I love this quote from a Rolling Stones
reviewer, and it makes me wonder if Steve Martin and the writers and produces of the movie “The Jerk” might have
read it just before writing that opening line from the movie. You know, the one
that Steve Martins character uttered at the beginning of the movie; “I was born a poor black child…” The quote from the reviewer went something like; “Astral Weeks is about
the power of the human voice — ecstatic agony, agonizing ecstasy. Here is an Irish tenor reborn as a White Negro —
a Caucasian Soul Man — pleading and beseeching over a bed of dreamy folk-jazz instrumentation: acoustic bass, brushed
drums, vibes and acoustic guitar, the odd string quartet — and of course flute." Barney Hoskyns
The album was recorded as a “live” album
with Van on acoustic guitar, upright bassist Richard Davis and guitarist Jay Berliner, Warren Smith Jr on percussions, Connie Kay on drums, a mystery flautist for the September 25th session and John Payne
on flute for the remaining sessions.. The mystery flautist for the first session really is a mystery, with no documentation
existing to identify the musician. Strings, horns and occasional drum bits were
added later. Tom Kielbania did not
participate in the recording of Astral Weeks. Van and the producers wanted a
modern jazz sound. While Van was recognized as a strong R and B singer, he had
no real background in jazz. Which is why upright bassist Richard Davis was brought in. He became the unofficial band
leader and arranger. Berliner’s work with jazz legend Charles Mingus and
Connie Kay’s work with the Modern Jazz Quartet also proved invaluable. original
bassist Tom Kielbania was not completely left out. He did show Davis the bass
lines he had developed while gigging with Van.
| Van Morrison |
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| 2007 Used by permission |
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