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New Van Morrison Album

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Another one.

Live at Orangefield (2014)

Perhaps past his vintage era but a decent selection of songs (see comments)

2

Comments

  1. 1. CELTIC EXCAVATION / INTO THE MYSTIC
    2. CLEANING WINDOWS
    3. ORANGEFIELD
    4. MOONDANCE
    5. PRECIOUS TIME
    6. THAT’S LIFE
    7. TOO MANY MYTHS
    8. GOT TO GO BACK
    9. REAL REAL GONE / YOU SEND ME
    10. ROUGH GOD GOES RIDING
    11. ENLIGHTENMENT
    12. SOMETIMES WE CRY
    13. NORTHERN MUSE ( SOLID GROUND )
    14. ON HYNDFORD STREET
    15. BALLERINA
    16. IN THE GARDEN

  6. I’m seeing the old boy on Monday at the RAH. I had a fun day in Marlow this week for our 24th wedding anniversary, (we got married at The Compleat Angler Hotel,) having lunch at The Hand & Flowers and drinks at The Coach. Van played Tom Kerridge’s Pub in the Park festival a couple of weeks ago, which we couldn’t get to. However, I asked several staff at the H&F, who we know well, what they thought.

    There were plenty of eye-rolls, plenty of ‘he just had has back to the audience and played his guitar,’ plenty of ‘he didn’t say a word to the crowd,’ and also ‘he walked off.’

    Then I spoke to Matt at The Coach who was seeing him for the first time but had his brother with him who is a Van-veteran. Matt said;

    “Oh my God, he was fantastic. Great setlist, the voice was in fine form and the band was terrific.”

    “I heard he walked off stage.”

    “Ha, he walks off stage at every gig. Dead on 80-odd minutes he walked off and the guitarist did the whole ‘Van Morrison, ladies & gentlemen, Van the Man,’ as the band finished playing Gloria.”

    I’ve seen the old git many times and this describes 95% of every Van-gig I’ve been at.

    The difference in perception of the gig? The first group were all early-20’s, non-gig goers. Matt is late-30’s, seen plenty of gigs and is a lover of James Brown live videos.

    Plenty of covers in the setlist but some crackers too.

    https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/van-morrison/2024/higginson-park-marlow-england-73a8721d.html

    • Excellent. I read a comment about the recent Neil Young and Crazy Horse show I saw, somebody also said “He barely said a word to the crowd” as if that is how you judge the quality of a gig. I judge it on the songs.

      * If you listen to early acoustic Neil shows he says way too much to the audience, probably because he was very very stoned.

    • I remember a gig in 1991 or thereabouts in – I think – Oxford when he just wouldn’t get off the stage! Kept coming back for more encores. Lonnie Donegan was support and I think Van was energised by his presence. He may even have smiled at one point.

  7. @niallb that is a great setlist.
    I have only seen him 3 times but each time he was excellent. He doesnty need to say anything – his music does it for him.
    Paul Weller doesn’t say anything either and he is not exactly Mr Happy yet is somehow regarded as the Messiah. Odd isnt it
    Van’s version of Green rocky road is absolutely magnificent.

  8. Weller seems overrated to me. His look / image / ‘modfather’ schtick seems to give him a giant by-ball. He totally ticks the ‘rock star’ box required of TV people and profile writers. Much of his music just isn’t very good – lumpen, drab, self-important.

    Much as I dislike Van’s personality and the ‘genius’ nonsense, Steve makes an insightful point about Weller vis a vis Van…

    • I lost patience with our Paul roundabout the shambles of the self-aggrandising album “22 Demos” or whatever it was called. Then later on he even chummed up with one of the monobrow morons and that really did it for me. Such a shame after the very early solo albums were fab – they made me think of Traffic revisited in some cases, THAT good, I felt at the time. Then the slow decline, and eventually the abyssal plummet into lumpen, drab etc.

        • Agreed, I thought he was a bit of a herbert in the Jam, the odd Style Council track was ok but the poseur side of it was silly. I did like Wildwood and a couple after that but then I lost interest again. I bought one a few years ago after rave reviews here which is ok but has a few really terrible tracks. And that’s where I’ve stopped.

          • I’ve always thought he was a bit of a twat. Right from The Jam, through his poncey Style Council period – and what a name for a band that was – and the “respected Island pink label rock artist” phase to whatever it is now. Not a total twat, just enough of one to make me pleasantly indifferent.

      • There was a slow decline after Stanley Road – some very good songs, but not always complete albums.
        As Is Now and Sonik Kicks stand out from the bunch, but each subsequent album seemed to veer of following whatever muse was museing him at the time.
        However, Fat Pop and (new album) 66 are among his best work, so the lumpen-ness may have gone (or at least be taking a well earned break)

  9. Think I’ll pass on this

    Given the wealth of stuff that has appeared on his own Philosopher’s Stone and the similarly. titled boots that followed in its wake, Van’s slapdash treatment of his back catalogue is just pathetic.

    Best of the eight or so times I’ve seen him was at the Dominion on Lohdon’s Tottenham Court Road in March 82.

    Worst was the two shows on the Winter 79 Wavelength tour.

    Most interesting was his guest appearance at the Birmingham Odeon concert during which Eric C started spouting about Enoch being right

    • 25 or so for me, 82 in the Dominion (not necessarily the same night) right up there for me too. Probably I lean towards this one in New York MSG theatre in 2009 (way longer than 90 minutes)

      Set 1
      Northern Muse (Solid Ground)
      Glad Tidings
      T.B. Sheets
      Who Drove the Red Sports Car
      A Fool for You [Snippet]
      And It Stoned Me
      So Quiet in Here
      St. James Infirmary Blues
      Caravan
      Comfortably Numb
      Gloria / Mystic Eyes
      Summertime in England / A Town Called Paradise

      Set 2 (Astral Weeks)
      Astral Weeks
      Beside You
      Sweet Thing
      Cyprus Avenue
      The Way Young Lovers Do
      Madame George
      Ballerina
      Slim Slow Slider

      Encore
      Listen to the Lion

  10. Not Dylan, not Neil Young, not Paul even, not anyone really, but a part of me – maybe a slightly sadistic part of me – always contemplates in a chazzer: “… shall I get this Van Morrison CD?”

    My fascination, although it’s not ‘that much’ of a fascination admittedly, is with the angry man’s oeuvre in the 21st Century, in which, and this live release wouldn’t actually count as one, he’s had 19 studio albums… technically, I guess, most of them being doubles. Yikes.

    I should have got them – or preferably not got them, when I decided not to get them anyway – when I lived near Loughton. I swear that a stroll down Loughton High Street about ten years ago, could have secured anyone with an interest, or in my case not an interest, every single Van album on CD, almost always an expanded version, for the price of a packet of crisps.
    Did his manager with too many freebies live nearby?

    Still tempted for the… erm… craic.

    Strewth, that’s it, I’m doing it… 21st Century Van album on CD, £1… no, make that 50p… I’m in… I’ll get back to you. Down here it’ll take time, anyone living near Loughton could do it within a week!

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