by Robert Wilkinson
August 31st was Van Morrison’s birthday! He is one of the truly great musical talents on Earth. If Van The Man had written only "Gloria" or "Brown Eyed Girl," his place in music history would be secure forever. When you add "Astral Weeks," "Madame George," "Moondance," "Into the Mystic," "Caravan," "Wild Night," "Tupelo Honey," and dozens of other amazing compositions, this guy is for the ages. Today we bring you Tonight in the Afternoon and most “Glad Tidings!”
Van Morrison (31 August 1945) was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland and raised on American blues legends like Jelly Roll Morton, Lead Belly, Muddy Waters, and Ray Charles. It's not hyperbole to say this unique singer, songwriter, poet and Master of Celtic soul became one of the best of the best. Reclusive, temperamental, eccentric, the Belfast Cowboy is a true genius of our times.
"We were born before the wind
Also younger than the sun
Ere the bonnie boat was won as we sailed into the mystic
Hark, now hear the sailors cry
Smell the sea and feel the sky
Let your soul and spirit fly into the mystic..."
He ranges across all kinds of musical styles from scat to rock to Keltic to blues. His music is deep, moving, infectious, and I doubt he's ever done a performance on autopilot. His performances are transcendent, and filled with images to take you away!
We begin this tribute with the original studio version of one of my all time faves! It's the closing number of his great Moondance album, a song to make you happy! Lyrics at the end of the article.
From NYC’s Beacon Theater, a great live performance of this great tune! “Glad Tidings”
Now we move into the live video performances, and begin with a real score! Live in 1965 in Paris, on Music Hall de France, here’s Van and Them doing a great live performance of his smash hits “Mystic Eyes" and “Gloria.”
Here's Van fronting for his band Them in the 60s doing a music video on French tv of "Gloria"
From 1965 on Ready Steady Go, here's Van and Them doing "Baby Please Don't Go."
From their 1965 performance at the NME, here's Them doing "Here Comes the Night"
Here's Van lip synching his first hit for Dick Clark, "Brown Eyed Girl." From 2016 at the BBC Radio Theater, a very jazzy, very classy live performance of "Brown Eyed Girl."
From the concert tour film titled It’s Too Late to Stop Now, shot in July 1973 at the Rainbow Theatre in London, Van and the Caledonian Soul Orchestra weaves his magic with "Caravan" followed with the masterpiece “Moondance.” From here we move into “Help Me,” the classic “Brown Eyed Girl” and close this 5 song short set with “Cypress Avenue.”
From 1973 at the Troubadour, a full hour and 10 audio-only concert! For your enjoyment, Van Morrison Live in Concert
From the very amazing Moondance album, here are four of its gems!
Here I'll add that the album is astonishing, since it has these as well as "Glad Tidings," “Crazy Love,” “Brand New Day,” and other greats! That album is one for the ages.
Live in San Francisco in 1974, he did an amazing show! This year the long video clip is gone, but here are a few videos from that show in order.
We begin with ”Heathrow Shuffle” followed by ”Ain’t Nothing You Can Do.” The next pair are ”Warm Love” and ”Snow in San Anselmo”, and we’ll end this first set with ”Into the Mystic”
We begin the next part of the show with ”I Believe to My Soul” and ”Foggy Mountaintop” followed by ”Street Choir” and the awesome ”Listen to the Lion”
The final three of this legendary show begins with ”I’ve Been Working,” which we’ll follow with the great blues classic ”I Just Want to Make Love to You,” and close with Van’s first MONSTER hit, the iconic ”Gloria.”
Here’s an hour and 23 audio of that concert! Van Morrison Live at The Orphanage in SF - 1974
From 1974 at Winterland, videos of 13 great tunes! Van Morrison Live at Winterland – 1974
From 1974 live on German tv, here's Van cranking out "Wild Night"
From The Last Waltz, Van backed by the Band giving us “Caravan”
From 1977, live on The Midnight Special, here are Van, Carlos Santana, Etta James and Dr. John doing "Moondance"
A great 7 minute version of "Tupelo Honey"
Live in 1977 on the Midnight Special television show, Van with Elvin Bishop and some other great musicians performing “Domino”
Live in Ireland in 1979, Van performing "St. Dominic's Preview"
Here's Van in a duet with Ray Charles doing "Crazy Love"
Live at the Capitol in Passaic in 1979, 15 big ones! Van Morrison Live at the Passaic - 1979
Also from 1979, this time in Belfast, videos from that show! Van Morrison Live in Belfast - 1979
I found most of his fantastic 1 hour 40 minute show at Montreux! Van Morrison Live at Montreaux 1980 From that show, "Ballerina"
From 1982, a great live performance in Essen on Rockpalast of "Into the Mystic" and “Moondance.”
From 1989, Van Morrison and Bob Dylan in Athens performing ”Crazy Love”
Van on Letterman with Georgie Fame in 1989.
From 1991, 15 minutes of Van Morrison and Bob Dylan On A Hill in Athens performing ”One Irish Rover”
Here’s the studio version of Van and BB King giving us the sweet "If You Love Me"
Van and Georgie Fame’s appearance on The Late Show in 1995 doing this number has disappeared, so instead, here the official music video of "Days like this"
Live at Rockpalast in 1999, "The Healing Game"
From 2008, live at the Hollywood Bowl, Van performing an 8+ minute early great! "Madam George"
From Belfast in 2012, "Enlightenment"
This is a treat of Van and the band “Live on Cyprus Avenue” playing for his hometown. Here’s a great hour and 28 musical treat of Van the Man back in Belfast on his 70th birthday in 2015! Van Morrison Live Up On Cyprus Avenue 2015
Last year I had a video clip with the whole show, but this year it’s gone. But I did find these!
”Ballerina” and “In the Garden”
To close this birthday celebration, I found several full concerts! The first is a full one hour show from 2008, courtesy of the BBC! This one swings from the beginning number! Here's Van Morrison in London - 2008
Our second concert is 1 hour and 34 minutes of great music! Van Morrison and John Lee Hooker live at the Beacon Theater - 1989
Two years ago I had a great 52 minute show called Ireland’s Brightest, featuring Van, Emmylou Harris, Sinead O’Connor, and Mark Knopfler, but it’s nowhere to be found.
So our third concert in this sequence is a full audio-only hour set from the Fillmore in 1970! This was my favorite era, and this is a very classy show from the first notes. For your enjoyment, Van Morrison Live at the Fillmore 1970
For the finale, here’s a 1 hour 20 minute show in 1982! Van Morrison in Germany 1982
We now bring it all back home with the encore, an alternate “live in the studio” version of a song that tells us to “meet them halfway with love, peace and persuasion, and expect them to rise for the occasion,” “Glad Tidings”
For our second encore, an hour and 37 video of Van Morrison Live in Montreux - 2016
For our third and final encore, an hour and 35 of Van in Austin! Van Morrison on Austin City Limits Festival - 2006
Here’s Van’s official website: vanmorrison.com.
For a post script, there’s a famous rapper Jamal who came from the streets of South Central who has a show where we get to see his reaction to songs from the 60s and 70s he's hearing for the first time which are recommended by viewers. It's a great look at how someone with a rap and hip hop background with a great attitude has a spontaneous experience to the classics of our times. I found two shows where he reacts to Van's music and voice for the first time. Check out his reactions to “Into the Mystic” and “Tupelo Honey" Van's voice blows his mind! As one of his shirts reads, “Just Be A Good Human Being. Be humble, be kind, spread joy, peace and love.”
And now for the metaphysical part of the show! Here's a link to the 2009 birthday celebration where I posted his lyrics to "Dweller On The Threshold," along with metaphysical commentary about that most important component enabling us to go from fear of the unknown into "The Angel of the Presence." It's clear that Van the Man has studied some of the source material from HP Blavatsky and Alice Bailey.
So today I'll finish this birthday tribute by offering you the lyrics to 3 of his songs, which are deep enough poetry to have their own place in modern Western literature. Anyway, Van, thank you for being alive and "blowin' your mind." You have made millions of lives more joyous and mystical through your love of bein' yourself.
"All the girls walk by, dressed up for each other....." And now, three of my favorites from his earlier years.
ASTRAL WEEKS
If I ventured in the slipstream Between the viaducts of your dreamWhere immobile steel rims crack And the ditch in the back roads stop
Could you find me? Would you kiss-a my eyes?
To lay me down In silence easy
To be born again To be born again
From the far side of the ocean If I put the wheels in motion
And I stand with my arms behind me And I'm pushin' on the door
Could you find me? Would you kiss-a my eyes?
To lay me down In silence easy
To be born again To be born again
There you go Standing with the look of avarice
Talkin to huddie ledbetter Showin pictures on the wall
Whisperin' in the hall And pointin' a finger at me
There you go, there you go Standing in the sun darlin
With your arms behind you And your eyes before
There you go Taking good care of your boy
Seeing that hes got clean clothes Putting on his little red shoes
I see you know hes got clean clothes A-puttin' on his little red shoes
A-pointin' a finger at me And here I am
Standing in your sad arrest Trying to do my very best
Looking straight at you coming through, darlin
Yeah, yeah, yeah If I ventured in the slipstream
Between the viaducts of your dreams Where immobile steel rims crack
And the ditch in the back roads stop Could you find me
Would you kiss-a my eyes Lay me down In silence easy
To be born again To be born again
To be born again In another world
In another world In another time
Got a home on high
Ain't nothing but a stranger in this world
I'm nothing but a stranger in this world
I got a home on high
In another land So far away So far away
Way up in the heaven Way up in the heaven
Way up in the heaven Way up in the heaven
In another time In another place
In another time In another place
Way up in the heaven Way up in the heaven
We are goin' up to heaven We are goin to heaven
In another time In another place
In another time In another place
In another face
Here’s all 47 minutes of the original studio album! Astral Weeks
WILD NIGHT
As you brush your shoes And stand before the mirrorAnd you comb your hair And grab your coat and hat
And you walk, wet streets Tryin to remember
All the wild breezes In your memory ever.
And everything looks so complete When you're walkin' out on the street
And the wind catches your feet And sends you flyin', cryin'
Ooh-wee! The wild night is calling.
And all the girls walk by Dressed up for each other
And the boys do the boogie-woogie On the corner of the street
And the people passin' by Just stare in wild wonder
And the inside juke-box Roars out just like thunder.
And everything looks so complete When youre walkin out on the street
And the wind catches your feet And sends you flyin', cryin'
Ooh-wee! The wild night is calling.
GLAD TIDINGS
And they’ll lay you down low and easyAnd it looks like your kids will stay Christmas.
And the miles that you traveled the distance
So believe no lies, dry your eyes and realize
That surprise
La, la, la, la la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la... And the businessmen will shake hands and talk in numbers
And the princess will wake up from her slumber
Then all the knights will step forth with their arm bands
And every stranger you meet in the street will make demands
So believe no lies, then dry your eyes and realize
That surprise
La, la, la... And we’ll send you glad tidings from New York
Open up your eyes so you may see
Ask you not to read between the lines
Hope that you will come right in on time And they’ll talk to you while you’re in trances
And you’ll visualize not taking any chances
But meet them halfway with love, peace and persuasion
And expect them to rise for the occasion
Don’t it gratify when you see it materialize
Right in front of your eyes
That surprise And we’ll send you glad tidings from New York
Open up your eyes so you may see
Ask you not to read between the lines
Hope that you will come right in on time And they’ll lay you down low and easy
(Lyrics by Van Morrison)
Article Copyright © 2024 Robert Wilkinson
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