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Van Morrison: Records
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Van Morrison is an artist who deserves the acclaim received by morons with 1/100 the talent but who are willing to record formulaic garbage that sells. He will just have to settle for musical immortality.
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Van Morrison knows music history and is music history. The cover photo on Down the Road is of a well-stocked memorabilia record store, like ones seen on Rue Royale in New Orleans. Van Morrison mentions the Crescent City, rich as it is in music history, in the opening title track. Later, in "Hey Mr. DJ," he recalls the other source of great music in people's lives: radio and the way it can personalize a moment making it intimate.
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Morrison's first really crafted, economical pop record, and arguably the best thing he ever did. The swinging, romantic title track is a radio favorite; its jazz-pop fusion was innovative at the time, and it still sounds fresh and engaging. But that's not the only famous tune - there's ... the mid-tempo "Caravan," which has a grittier horn part and a stronger beat to go with its famous "la, la, la la, la la la" chorus. And those are just the highest of many high points: the mellow balladry of "Crazy Love," the gently dramatic, "Dock Of The Bay"-like "Into The Mystic," the optimistic swing of "These Dreams Of You," the Aretha Franklin-like testimonial "Brand New Day," and finally the finger-snapping "Glad Tidings." Throughout, he rides the same sort of formulas that eventually caged him in: braying saxophone hooks, some gospelly female backup vocals, and consistently laid-back, jazzy instrumentation. But he also breaks the mold with the extraordinarily joyful "Everyone," with a solid chorus, some interesting flute parts, and an energetic harpsichord.
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In 2000, Morrison released a collaboration with Linda Gail Lewis (Jerry Lee Lewis's sister), You Win Again. Another side project, this time focusing on R&B and country-and-western standards, Lewis proved to be an excellent duet partner, and the project set the stage for Morrison's next album, Choppin' Wood. By the end of 2000 when the album was essentially finished, Lewis and Morrison had a falling out.[94] As a result, Morrison went back and re-recorded and/or remixed most of the tracks, removing Lewis's contributions in the process. A few songs were removed from the final running order and new ones were added in. The result was released in 2002 as Down the Road. Clinton Heylin contends that the original version, Choppin' Wood, would have been a true return to form. It is doubtful if that notion will ever be put to the test because the original recordings have yet to circulate, privately or publicly.
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