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Van Morrison, OBE (born George Ivan Morrison) is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician. Known as "Van the Man" to his fans, Morrison started his professional career when, as a teenager in the late 1950s, he played a variety of instruments including guitar, harmonica, keyboards and saxophone for various Irish showbands covering the popular hits of the day. He rose to prominence in the mid-1960s as the lead singer of the Northern Irish R&B band Them, with whom he recorded the garage band classic "Gloria".

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Van Morrison Is More Than ‘Astral Weeks’—and He Damn Well Knows It

The Northern Irish rock ’n’ roll icon might be the pettiest musical genius of his generation. And he doesn’t care if you know it.

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Astral Weeks turns 50 this month. What a record. Lester Bangs, in perhaps the greatest piece of rock criticism ever written , poetically referred to the 1968 Van Morrison album as a “beacon, a light on the far shores of the murk.” Greil Marcus, less poetically, called it “ a profoundly intellectual album ,” and meant it as a compliment. Both would agree that Astral Weeks is one of the best 47-minute pieces of music ever created. A landmark in the fusion of rock and jazz. A masterpiece.

But you’ve probably heard people talk about how great Astral Weeks is more than the album itself. Van Morrison’s next record, 1970’s Moondance , is far more popular; if you were sexually active in the late 20th century, Van Morrison likely howled “I wanna rock your Gypsy soul!” at least once during an intimate moment. Given the album’s elevated position in the rock canon, it can be difficult to find your own place in Astral Weeks , to discern it with a personal filter rather than via the plaudits of celebrated rock critics. Can anyone in 2018 queue up “Madame George” for the first time and just hear a song, and not every thinkpiece ever written about it? Astral Weeks might very well be Van Morrison’s most essential LP, but it’s a problematic entry point.

Instead, let’s talk about No Guru, No Method, No Teacher.

No Guru, No Method, No Teacher came out in 1986, 18 years after Morrison’s magnum opus, and about two months shy of his 41st birthday. If you only know Van Morrison from Astral Weeks , the juxtaposition might be startling. On the cover of Astral Weeks , Van resembles a wood nymph in the midst of an intense religious experience; on the cover of No Guru , he looks like a no-nonsense English professor at an exclusive East Coast liberal arts college, or a no-nonsense TV detective portrayed by no-nonsense character actor Bill Camp. Let’s just say that by then he had ventured far beyond the slipstream, and well past the viaducts of your dream.

No Guru, No Method, No Teacher is a benchmark of Morrison’s 3.0 period, which commenced in 1977 with the aptly named A Period of Transition . (Van Morrison’s early garage-rock era with the band Them is 1.0, and the vaunted period between Astral Weeks and 1974’s Veedon Fleece is 2.0.) Over the next decade, he retreated from the mainstream and into a mystical haze of jazzy, gauzy, impossibly smooth-sounding, and spiritually minded adult-contemporary records so devoid of grit that they make Sting sound like Straight Outta Compton. When he deigned to give interviews, he loudly complained about the imposition of celebrity and insisted that he never had anything to do with rock ’n’ roll at all. Though, having said that , he also loathed how seemingly all of the era’s defining heartland rockers had ripped him off — Americans like Bob Seger, Tom Petty, and John Mellencamp covered his songs, while singer-songwriters from the English heartland, including Elvis Costello and Graham Parker, also owed him an obvious debt.

But the most egregious of these thieves, in Morrison’s mind, was Bruce Springsteen. “For years people have been saying to me — you know, nudge, nudge — have you heard this guy Springsteen?” Morrison griped to The New Age in 1985, right when Born in the U.S.A. was at its most ubiquitous. “And he’s definitely ripped me off … [and] I feel pissed off now that I know about it.”

What Van couldn’t (or wouldn’t) accept is that the messianic pub rock that he perfected in the early ’70s on albums like 1970’s His Band and the Street Choir and 1972’s Saint Dominic’s Preview was readily available to others because he himself had long since abandoned it. Hell, he had forsaken that music, right when the rest of the world caught up with it.

For as much credit as Bob Dylan and Neil Young get for their anticommercial contrarianism, nobody is more perverse than Van Morrison. Dylan and Young reacted to middle age by, respectively, going Christian and antagonizing David Geffen ; Morrison made a half-instrumental record that sounds like a cross between traditional Irish music and Roxy Music’s Avalon, and dedicated it to L. Ron Hubbard. It’s not a shock that consumers opted instead for “Dancing in the Dark.”

Lest it sound like I’m criticizing Van Morrison for any of this, allow me to state for the record that I absolutely adore this era of his career. That Celtic Roxy Music L. Ron Hubbard record, 1983’s Inarticulate Speech of the Heart , is strange and singular and kind of wonderful. What Morrison’s ’80s albums lack in even the faintest edge they make up for in beauty, craft, conviction, and the benefit of his utterly fascinating split personality, in which his unending quest for holy transcendence exists side-by-side with his equally intransigent pettiness over an infinite number of grievances, both real and imagined. In the ’80s and beyond, Van Morrison was no longer the angel of Astral Weeks , wailing toward the heavens in gorgeously pained ecstasy. He was the man who fell to Earth, fighting in vain to get back to paradise and yet stuck, with increasing frustration, earthbound.

The central track on No Guru, No Method, No Teacher is “In the Garden,” a searching ballad that connects with the themes of loss and nostalgia that inform Astral Weeks. It also harks back musically, with its breathtakingly beautiful piano playing courtesy of longtime sideman Jef Labes. (It evokes his contributions to Veedon Fleece , which rivals even Astral Weeks in the annals of Van Morrison expressing sweetly excruciating melancholy.)

Morrison has described “In the Garden” as a deliberate prompt for Transcendental Meditation, hypnotizing the listener in order to achieve “some sort of tranquility by the time you get to the end.” At the song’s climax, “In the Garden” is hushed, with Morrison singing in an impassioned stage whisper. He’s finally found the meaning of life, and he’s sharing the secret with you: “No guru, no method, no teacher,” he quietly hisses, quoting the philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti, as if his life depended upon it. “Just you and I and nature / and the Father in the garden.”

“In the Garden” is the fifth track on No Guru, No Method, No Teacher. The fourth track is not a similarly divine summit with the almighty. It’s a song called “A Town Called Paradise,” and it’s akin to Michael Corleone executing his enemies right before the christening of his sister’s baby. Morrison’s gripes are stated plainly, without the artifice of metaphor or poetry:

Copycats ripped off my words Copycats ripped off my songs Copycats ripped off my melody

Many Van Morrison devotees have tried and failed to wrap their heads around the confounding duality of an artist who can address the most profound mysteries of eternity in one breath, and exhibit the least admirable human traits (jealousy, narcissism, hubris, oversharing) in the next. To suggest that Morrison does this knowingly is probably giving him too much credit — he repeats this self-defeating pattern over and over as his career unfolds, without any apparent insight into his own flaws, a fatal symptom of insufficient self-awareness. His biographer Steve Turner summed up this affliction perfectly in 1993’s Van Morrison: Too Late to Stop Now : “Some people might say, ‘I’ve got a bad temper and I’m trying to overcome it,’ or, ‘I’ve got a bad temper but I don’t give a shit.’ But somebody like Van Morrison would say, ‘I’ve not got a bad temper’ — and probably shout it at you.”

I guess this should turn me off, but it doesn’t. In fact, it does the opposite. When I listen to Astral Weeks , I hear a young man who can still access the pain of adolescence, and yet has enough distance from that pain to romanticize it. This is the nostalgia of a person in his early 20s, who looks back on what is still in his immediate grasp and fantasizes about what it will one day be like to lose touch with it completely. It’s reminiscence as a form of vanity, akin to worrying a little too publicly about your 30th birthday signaling the onset of senility. I appreciate that person — we are all that person at some point — but I can no longer relate to him.

When I listen to No Guru, No Method, No Teacher , I hear an older man who has lost the ability to access his past or even comprehend the present. He has become estranged from himself, and he’s trying to reconnect with what has disappeared. But he can’t — at least not for any longer than the space of a song. Sometimes, like in “In the Garden,” he’ll briefly achieve nirvana, but nirvana is always fleeting, never eternal. Because songs are all that he has, he keeps making more of them, in the hopes of getting back to that contented headspace for a few more stolen moments.

As much as I love Astral Weeks , I find the (ultimately unsuccessful) struggle to recapture purity more compelling than purity itself.

Here’s another way that Van Morrison diverges from peers like Dylan, Young, Leonard Cohen, and Joni Mitchell: Our knowledge of his music is relatively shallow. He has released 39 studio albums in the past 51 years; his 40th, The Prophet Speaks , comes out next month. But only a small handful of those records have ever entered the popular consciousness.

Van Morrison’s music, by design, resists the crowd. The exceptions prove the rule: Moondance remains his requisite entry in the dad-rock canon, an approachably warm folk-R&B hybrid that helped to create the highly profitable “singer-songwriter” template with two other albums released in the winter of 1970, James Taylor’s Sweet Baby James and Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young’s Déjà Vu. (To contemporary listeners, Moondance will sound like Ray LaMontagne.) Otherwise, his most well-known song (and most streamed track on Spotify by a wide margin) is the 1967 oldies-radio staple “Brown Eyed Girl,” an uncharacteristically sunny slice of summertime pop that Morrison has disowned nearly as many times as he’s performed it live.

Astral Weeks is a quintessential critics’ record, the album upon which Van Morrison’s status as an Elite Talent is based. Though even critics started to abandon him around the time of 1973’s Hard Nose the Highway , an album highlighted by a spirited and heartfelt rendition of “Bein’ Green,” which, Turner wrote, Van heard while watching Sesame Street with his daughter, Shana. Van, surely, already saw himself as being spiritually green among his peers in the rock world — a freakish outsider with a soft, felt interior.

It’s a unique curse to make a perfect album so early in your career and then become a legacy artist for whom each new record is a fresh invitation for critics to remind you that you’ll never be as good as you were at the beginning, back before you even knew what you were doing. ( Lauryn Hill comes to mind as another obvious example, though I wonder whether Nas is the better comparison. What is Illmatic , after all, if not the hip-hop Astral Weeks , a youthful statement of purpose that now primarily exists as a signifier of prestige perched in the highest reaches of “best albums” lists?) In terms of how he is perceived by the self-appointed historians of rock history, Van Morrison has long been trapped inside the narrative of Astral Weeks. Which, for a guy already susceptible to self-pitying resentment, has provided only more incentive to further antagonize the people who put him there.

By the ’80s, Morrison had finally alienated his most ardent supporters in the music press, who continued to review (and frequently pan) his albums, whether out of habit, obligation, or some misguided desire to get through to Van, to motivate him to get back on track, to make another album like Astral Weeks . This push-pull between Morrison and his jilted admirers sometimes took on a comic dimension. ( Robert Christgau on 1987’s jazzbo elevator-music excursion Poetic Champions Compose : “I figure if it doesn’t make me want to vomit, it must have something going for it.”)

Over time, the albums that critics haven’t understood have been written out of Morrison’s story. In his 2010 book When That Rough God Goes Riding , Greil Marcus set about (I’m quoting the back cover) on “a quest to understand Van Morrison’s particular genius.” However, this quest did not extend to 16 albums released between 1980 and 1996. He dispenses with this music in an oddly perfunctory 10-page chapter in the middle of the book. ( Astral Weeks gets 19 pages, and “Madame George” by itself is expounded upon for 17 more.) “How do you write off more than 15 albums and more than 15 years of the work of a great artist?” Marcus asks rhetorically. It’s apparently not that hard, when those albums “have nothing to say and an infinite commitment to getting it across.”

I used to accept that take as common wisdom. But eventually I came to understand that the guy who made Astral Weeks kept on making Astral Weeks , only infused with the longing he felt as a grown man with infinitely more grudges, setbacks, psychic wounds, and festering regrets than anyone can possibly have when they’re 23.

Take this performance of “Comfortably Numb,” with Levon Helm and Rick Danko of the Band, from Roger Waters’s 1990 album, The Wall: Live in Berlin. (You might have also heard it in The Departed , or the episode of The Sopranos in which Christopher is killed.) This is a song that Waters and David Gilmour wrote about a drugged-out rock star’s moment of catharsis, and yet Morrison, remarkably, somehow links it back to “Cyprus Avenue.”

In 1968, Morrison could still viscerally relive his sexual awakening at age 14, “way up on, way up on, way up on, way up on, way up on, way up on, way up on” the titular street. Twenty-two years later, on a stage in Germany draped in dry ice and ravaged boomer-era rockers, Morrison was still on that lonely boulevard, hunting for a piece himself amid so many ghosts.

When I was a child I caught a fleeting glimpse Out of the corner of my eye I turned to look but it was gone I could not put my finger on it now The child is grown The dream is gone

When Van sang those lines, it was as if he had written them himself, all along. “The child is grown / the dream is gone” could function as a logline for much of his post– Astral Weeks work.

The following year, Morrison put out one of my favorite albums of his, Hymns to the Silence. It’s probably the last Van Morrison record I should recommend from this period, given that it clocks in at 21 songs and 95 minutes. Oh, and have I mentioned that the first track is called “Professional Jealousy” and it’s exactly as magnanimous as that title implies?

Nevertheless, Hymns to the Silence rebukes the blanket criticism that Marcus makes of this era — which is the same blanket criticism made of late-career work by most musical icons, the classic “spinning their wheels creatively” charge. Marcus quotes a Jonathan Lethem observation about how singing great rock and soul music requires “some underlying tension in the space between the singer and the song … the gulf may reside between vocal texture and the actual meaning of the words, or between the singer and the band, the musical genre, the style of production, what have you.” The implication is that Morrison lost that tension years ago.

Back in the CD days, Hymns to the Silence was divided across two discs, and it’s still helpful to approach the album that way. The first disc is composed largely of grievance songs. (Titles include “I’m Not Feeling It Anymore,” “Some Peace of Mind,” “Why Must I Always Explain?” and, hilariously, “Village Idiot.”) The second disc, meanwhile, is made up mostly of songs about love, God, and aspiring to those blessed concepts. In the spoken-word piece “On Hyndford Street,” he describes a scene that could have unfolded back on Astral Weeks .

On Hyndford Street Where you could feel the silence at half past eleven On long summer nights As the wireless played Radio Luxembourg And the voices whispered across Beechie River In the quietness as we sank into restful slumber in the silence And carried on dreaming, in God

In Van Morrison songs, silence denotes an elevated state. (“On Hyndford Street” concludes with Morrison repeating a phrase that recurs in other songs of his: “Can you feel the silence?”) Perhaps only a misanthrope would associate silence with godliness, unless the voices he yearns to escape come from inside his head — the ones that continually push him away from the divine, or the best parts of himself.

That’s what I hear when I play Hymns to the Silence — the tension between who Van Morrison wishes he could be, and who he actually is.

What if Van Morrison had tried to out–Bruce Springsteen Bruce Springsteen?

I think about this scenario sometimes: Morrison went into hiding in the mid-’70s, after the public and the press cruelly dismissed the sublime Veedon Fleece as a self-indulgent collection of impenetrable dirges. He laid low in Northern California and tried to get his drinking under control. Recording sessions in 1975 produced some worthwhile and lively numbers — like the self-explanatory “Naked in the Jungle” — but he chose not to put them out. Instead, according to Turner, he read obsessively about Jungian psychiatry and Celtic history, and studied under a so-called “tension expert” to help him release his own considerable inner strain.

Morrison didn’t make a significant public appearance during this time until November 1976, at the Band’s historic “Last Waltz” farewell concert at Winterland in San Francisco. After initially agreeing to send off his old Woodstock running mates, Morrison had a last-second bout of stage fright, and — according to his manager Harvey Goldsmith — had to be literally kicked out on stage.

Obviously, this is an iconic performance, as much for the power of Morrison’s voice as for the way he transcends his own frumpiness — the purple suit, the paunch, the receding hairline, the high kicks, the nonchalant walk-off at the end, it all works in spite of the usual mathematics of conventional rock-star glamour. I wish I could watch The Last Waltz without knowing anything about Van Morrison. How surprising would it be to hear, well, Van Morrison’s voice come out of that guy? It’s a setup that has been exploited time and again on America’s Got Talent — the overlooked schlub who sings like a champ — but rarely traced back to the single greatest example of this phenomenon, The Last Waltz.

When the movie finally arrived in theaters in the spring of 1978, it predated the fourth Springsteen album, Darkness on the Edge of Town , by a couple of months. On that LP, Bruce moved past the loose-limbed, horn-heavy arrangements of his early work to embrace a more full-on arena rock sound; that is to say, he sounded less like Van Morrison and more like himself. And, right on cue, Van the Man himself had returned and proved that he still had it in him to be a show-stopping soul man in The Last Waltz . The table was set for him to take back what the alleged thieves had taken from him.

For a while, Morrison finally seemed capable of giving the people what they wanted. That fall, he released Wavelength , his most accessible album since Moondance , a more or less straightforward collection of punchy pop-rock songs that became one of his best-selling albums at the time. Wavelength ’s reputation has suffered somewhat since then, but I really like it, especially the song “Natalia,” which is sort of a yacht-rock redux of “Brown Eyed Girl.” And then there’s “Venice U.S.A.,” a fever dream about a happy day at the beach in which Van sings “dum derra dum dum diddy diddy dah dah” approximately 6,000 times in the space of nearly seven minutes. It’s impossible to communicate on paper how eloquent “dum derra dum dum diddy diddy dah dah” is when Van Morrison sings it. Morrison, like Springsteen, is an exemplary lyricist who nonetheless seeks to go beyond words and into the pure emotional abstraction of guttural noise. (For Springsteen, the noises of choice are uhhhhh and waaaaah, whereas Van prefers la and dum and other, more musical utterances . ) In great writing, you must show rather than tell, and sometimes noises show better than words. Of all the lessons Bruce learned from Van, this is the most valuable.

While competing with Springsteen and Elvis Costello doesn’t appear to have been his conscious goal, Morrison had successfully reinserted himself into the mainstream rock conversation. His next album, 1979’s Into the Music , even won back the critics by evoking the albums of his past, starting with the title, which nodded to “Into the Mystic” from Moondance .

What if Van Morrison had continued making albums in this vein? What would his career look like now? Would his reputation beyond diehards be wider and deeper than just Astral Weeks ? Would he be slightly happier?

I’m glad Van took the path that he did, which led him in February 1980 to a haunted monastery in the French Alps. For 11 days, Morrison and his band experimented with an open-ended mélange of atmospheric jazz and rough-and-tumble R&B, as well as dashes of new age music. While he couldn’t have known it at the time, Morrison was dreaming up the next 38 years (and counting) of his career.

Of course, the album birthed at these sessions, Common One , tanked commercially. Critics hated it, too. Once again, he ditched the easy hooks and feel-good pub rock and leaned into semi-improvised hymns that drifted philosophically past the 10-minute mark. While time, once again, proved to be on Van Morrison’s side — he loved Common One , and now so do many of his fans — in the short term it looked like yet another incomprehensible folly.

The most extraordinary song from Common One is “Summertime in England,” a 15-minute epic that includes elements of everything Van Morrison has ever done, and perhaps ever will do. It starts out rapid and alive, like a wild James Brown live bootleg. Morrison scats about the poets Wordsworth and Coleridge “smokin’ up in Kendal”; in the next verse, William Blake and T.S. Eliot are smokin’ up, too.

Without warning, the music downshifts into a dreamy soundscape not unlike the stately music Van would come to favor on his subsequent ’80s albums, though the vibe here is more In a Silent Way than Avalon Sunset. Suddenly, a string orchestra dramatically barges in, like a Gamble & Huff production. Shortly after that, a church organ materializes, invoking the Holy Spirit. It’s impossible to tell what is composed and what just happened to occur in the moment, what is intentional and what is accidental. It’s an absolute mess and a thing of unvarnished exquisiteness.

All I know is that Van sounds free, like he’s finally found what he’s been looking for, and will push this song to the breaking point in order to revel in it for as long as he can, before he has to go back to being Van Morrison. “Can you feel the silence?” he asks and asks as the song drifts toward the fade-out. But I always care more about whether he can.

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Inside Van Morrison’s Legendary ‘It’s Too Late to Stop Now’ Tour

By David Browne

David Browne

Jef Labes, a keyboardist who’d first hooked up with Van Morrison on the classic Moondance album, was back working on a new record with Morrison in 1973 when his boss flashed on an idea. “He said, ‘Let’s put together a tour with strings and everything!'” Labes recalls of what was, at the time, a fairly untested concept. “Not that many people were traveling with a string section. Except maybe ELO.”

On preceding albums like Saint Dominic’s Preview and Tupelo Honey , Morrison was on a groundbreaking creative roll, blending elements of jazz, folk, Marin County country, R&B and rock & roll. Now came the moment to bring that no-boundaries blend to the stage, and Morrison’s comment to Labes, who excelled at string arrangements, was the first step. Soon enough, Morrison had assembled the Caledonia Soul Orchestra, a 10-piece band incorporating four string players and a horn section (and named after a legendary unreleased jam from 1970’s His Band and the Street Choir ). With that band, Morrison would be able to explore nearly every facet of his music onstage, and those exuberant, musically expansive shows, in the U.S. and Europe throughout 1973, would be a pinnacle for Morrison and his creative vision. “He wasn’t looking to repeat himself,” says Labes. “He wanted to create a new show every night.”

For Morrison, who always saw music as a cathartic experience, the experiment couldn’t have come at a better time. He and his first wife, Janet Rigsbee (also known as “Janet Planet”), had broken up, a bitter experience Morrison chronicled in a new song for the tour, “I Paid the Price.” “That was definitely a statement on his marriage,” says guitarist John Platania, who co-wrote the song with Morrison. For at least part of the tour, Morrison’s daughter Shana, then three, accompanied him, along with her nanny. His daughter’s presence seemed to calm Morrison, as when she’d dance along with the music. “It was a very exciting time with that group,” says Labes, “but it was also hard for him since his marriage was breaking up. It was a mixed bag.”

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Yet starting with their first shows, a trial run at L.A.’s Troubadour club, it was clear that the Caledonia Soul Orchestra were up for the challenge of supporting Morrison’s musical journey. Anchored by Labes, Platania, bassist David Hayes and drummer Dahaud Shaar, the rhythm section could lock in like the tightest blues band on covers of Sonny Boy Williamson’s “Take Your Hand Out of My Pocket” and “Help Me,” thrash out gritty versions of Morrison’s Them gems “Gloria” and “Here Comes the Night,” or revel in the joyous swing of “Come Running.” And those were just the starting points. With the string quartet sawing away, “The Way Young Lovers Do” and “Cyprus Avenue” would each stretch out to nearly 10 rapturous, into-the-mystic minutes, providing ample room for instrumental solos. “We could take the songs anywhere Van wanted to take them,” says Platania. “Every performance of each song was different.” (According to Labes, Morrison took a degree of inspiration from the band in other ways: “We had this cellist, Terry Adams, who was very attractive – a strawberry blonde with a bubbly personality,” he laughs.)

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Sometimes sporting then-fashionable platform shoes, Morrison was his usual lost-in-the-music self, rarely addressing the crowd and keeping his band on its toes with subtle, furtive gestures. “He had these signals behind his back,” says Platania. “He would flash his hand and spread his fingers out. We knew instantly we had to bring it down and then we’d build it up again.” Morrison was also stretching out himself, toying with his phrasing or elongating syllables like a jazz singer; his vocal on “Moondance” rarely repeated the recorded version. By the time the set inevitably ended with a rousing “Caravan,” Morrison was also doing uncharacteristic kicks in the air, especially at the Rainbow Theatre in London. At those shows, his first British concerts in years, he was greeted like returning royalty.

Yet by the end of the tour, Morrison was feeling drained, emotionally and physically. “I remember I was in Belgium, sitting in my hotel room looking out the window, and I was thinking, ‘This isn’t worth it, man,'” he told RS in 1978. “These record-company people were always ear-bending with their line: ‘He never works,’ and I blew that one out the window. I wasn’t going to let show business control my life. So I decided to take a break, get my shit together for me, and think about what I was doing being in this music business – it was becoming oppressive.” He also complained of back aches from the physically exertive performances.

With that, Morrison folded the Caledonia Soul Orchestra. “We were sad to see it end,” says Platania. “But in those days, he would say stuff like, ‘The show doesn’t have to go on.'” Thankfully, at least three shows on that tour were recorded, and the resulting double live album, 1974’s It’s Too Late to Stop Now , one of the most gripping concert recordings of that era, immortalized that band and moment in Morrison’s career. (Around 2009, Morrison reconvened those players for a reunion but ultimately changed his mind about that show, opting to recreate Astral Weeks onstage with musicians from that era.) “You’re not on every night,” Morrison told writer Cameron Crowe during the tour. “You can’t be on every night. But I can honestly say that with this group of people, it’s mostly on.” 

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Van Morrison Announces New U.S. Tour Dates

Van Morrison has announced a series of U.S. tour dates that will commence on Sept. 25 in Greenwood Village, Colo., travel down the California coast and then finish with three shows at Las Vegas' the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in February next year.

The tour will follow the release of Morrison's most recent album, 2020's  Latest Record Project: Volume 1 , a collection of songs written largely in lockdown.

“I’m getting away from the perceived same songs, same albums all the time,” Morrison said in a statement at the time of the album's release in May. “This guy’s done 500 songs, maybe more, so hello? Why do you keep promoting the same 10? I’m trying to get out of the box.”

As coronavirus restrictions lift in some places, they're enacted even further in others. In the U.K, more than 5,000 shows have been canceled as the result of a four-week lockdown extension, a factor that may have contributed to Morrison's move to schedule U.S. shows.

Morrison has been critical of socially distanced concerts and has referred to "pseudo science" when discussing lockdown limitations of the past year. He and Eric Clapton recently teamed up for a new song, " The Rebels ," a reworked version of a track from Latest Record Project .

Tickets for the upcoming tour will be available at Morrison's website . You can see the list of dates below.

Van Morrison U.S. Tour 2021-22 Sept. 25 - Greenwood Village, CO @ Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre Sept. 28 – Napa, CA @ Oxbow RiverStage Sept. 30 – Berkeley, CA @ The Greek Theatre at UC Berkeley Oct. 2 – Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl Oct. 3 – Santa Barbara, CA @ Santa Barbara Bowl Oct. 5 – San Diego, CA @ Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre Feb. 12 – Hollywood, FL @ Hard Rock Feb. 14 – Clearwater, FL @ Ruth Eckard Hall Feb. 15 – Clearwater, FL @ Ruth Eckard Hall Feb. 18 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Coliseum at Caesar’s Palace Feb. 19 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Coliseum at Caesar’s Palace Feb. 20 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Coliseum at Caesar’s Palace

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Van Morrison, OBE, (born August 31st 1945), aka. George Ivan Morrison, is an Irish singer songwriter who plays a wide variety of genres including rock, blues, jazz, and gospel, and his known for his transcendental live performances.

Van Morrison, or known affectionately to his fans as Van The Man, has been performing professionally since his childhood, and rose to fame as a young teenager who was revered for his multi-instrumental skills. Starting out his solo carer as the front man of the Irish R&B band Them, they recorded the classic track Gloria, before Morrison broke away from the group to pursue his solo career.

The single Brown Eyed Girl was Morrison’s first hit single, and immediately he found himself surrounded by fans. Since then, he has achieved an astounding amount of recognition and awards, including several Grammy Awards, and the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music.

Over the years, Van Morrison hasn’t slowed in his performances, and up until the mid 00s, he was performing regularly, often twice or three times every week. In 2012, he released his 34th studio album "Born to Sing: No Plan B" with Blue Note records and received much critical acclaim. As well as his musical creations, Morrison is an incredible lyricist, and a selection of his work from over the last 50 years was published into a book entitled "Lit Up Inside". Still performing at prestigious and personal events, Van Morrison is an incredibly talented musician who has had colossal success over his career.

Live reviews

At the grand age of 69, Van Morrison shows no sign of slowing his touring schedule and when you see the acclaimed singer onstage you begin to understand why. Van is a born performer and he clearly has a passion for his music, his performance and his audience so it is difficult to imagine him doing anything else.

An inductee to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as well as a six time Grammy winner, Morrison is an incredibly esteemed artist and the opportunity to see him live should not be surpassed. Obviously his voice is showing some wear due to his age but he is still able to hit those sultry notes found on the likes of 'Cry Cry Baby' and 'Blue Money'.

He has a fantastic rapport with his classical band who add a rich tone to these classic tracks. His ability to play saxophone is also applaudable as it sounds so brilliant in this intimate venue and punctuates his setlist wonderfully. A beautiful rendition of 'Ballerina' brings an enjoyable evening to a close and one hopes Van will be performing for many more years to come.

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I saw this Irish gingered soulman in the Summer of 2010 at the Gorge in George, Washington. And I can say it was the best way to see him. The views there are wonderful and tied in real nicely to the Astral Weeks tracks. It amazes me how well his voice has stood the test of time. Not a showman by any means but a top notch vocal performer. He went all over his catalog. To me, the show was very personal and at times felt like he was just performing in a public park. Word on the interweb stated that he loathes pictures, smartphones, and has at times cut shows short cuz of it. Everyone was respectable and paid the respect he requested. And also heard that if he plays "Brown Eyed Girl" it means it's a good show as he's not fond of playing it often. So when he played it, the crowd cheered danced and I had a nice smile on my face. What an amazing show it was.

Have to say the guy is a pro and showed dead on time. I was filled full of expectation. Even after travelling 300+ miles to see him.

Excellent 6 piece accompanied backing. Very little to no time between numbers and it somewhat makes a personal touch. Van did not address the crowd once, had a feeling he just wanted to get it over with.

If I had any complaint not one single number was introduced. So anyone who is not a fan of Van the Man would be no wiser to what they were listening to. Which caught me out as a fan as some numbers usually played in a slower tempo were played as swing or even rockabilly, which for one song (a love song) was a tad off putting. Only recognised by the lyrics.

Would I rush to go back to see him? Sadly probably not. I'll stick to the CD collection. And that from a guy who owned a live music venue says something.

Wow! To see Van Morrison was on my bucket list. I was so excited to get to see him. There are very few artists I would shell out hard earned dollars to go see. For me this was a splurge. I was ready to see the man live and now house lights dimmed signaling the show is about to begin.

Van was incredible. He didn't even hardly take a breath before going right into the next song. He sang some old favorites and some new songs for almost 2 hours straight! What a performance.

I was however disappointed that he he didn't do an encore. Or tell a story or two. The show's execution seemed rather mechanical. I didn't feel he connected with the audience. Especially since during his last song he walked off the stage still singing. I thought for sure he would come out for en encore or take a bow with band mates. Instead lights fade to black. Bucket list checked.

Van is one of the greatest recording artists from the classic rock days of the 60's and 70's. In his early days, he did concerts that were heartfelt, immersive and romantic. However, in more recent years the charm seems to have worn off. He comes on no later than five minutes after the scheduled start time, rarely says a word to the audience, plays what he wants to play not necessarily what the audience has come to hear and is finished his set in less than ninety minutes. Performing seems like a chore to him.

He should rethink his approach to live performances or go back to the studio and stay there for the rest of his career. Sorry Van, but you've lost your touch.

Fantabulous evening for a Moondance! JazzOpen Stuttgart was incredible! Set in the old castle square performing in an open garden with castle cobblestone was quite an ambiance! He is a romantic genius spanning through the generations, uniting the youth and the mature. A colorful diverse crowd in attendance. I am an 30 year old American gal living in Germany, I met a cute Australian boy and then two older gentlemen who bought me a beer. All swaying to his deep melodic voice. He still has all the energy as his younger days. Playing a 17 song set! What an ol' stud that Van is! A living legend that I felt privileged to see perform live in a magical setting :)

This was a great show. A real crowd-pleaser. Given that he's been releasing an album a week for the last couple years (so it seems) and I'm not a completist, I was concerned how much I would recognise. In fact, this was not a problem at all. He played a substantial number of the "hits" and the rest of it was equally enjoyable due to the quality of the musicianship on display. He was generous in letting the band take their moments in the spotlight and all in all this was a great event, made even better by having the chance to see him (for the first time in my case) in the relatively intimate surroundings of the Brighton Dome. Top night out.

Well, Van is always great. The venue is horrible our tickets were about $140, which is quite a lot money. Our seats were way at the top in the second to the last row, partially obstructed by stage structures. The sound up there was not good, there was no screen to actually see the person who is singing. I know that screens can be annoying, but being almost 1/2 mile away, we needed it. We stayed for almost the entire concert, but it was extremely windy up in the bleachers. As we walked down, the sound got so much better. Parking there is a whole different challenge!

In conclusion, we would NEVER go to that venue again.

Unbelievable!!!! Wow, wow, wow!! From the first song to the last.

So glad we managed to get tickets.

Sir Van is without a shadow of a doubt a living legend.

Felt honoured to be presence of such a performer.

Words on this review just wouldn't do the man justice. If you haven't seen him perform, you need to.

I have listened to his music over the years, and loved his style and voice, but wouldn't class myself as an avid fan. Seeing him live last night absolutely blew me away, one of the best shows/sets I have ever witnessed. One of the "all time greats"!!!!

Having never seen Van Morrison before and been a fan for years I enjoyed the show and the opportunity to see him. I was a little disappointed some of his hits; Brown Eyed Girl, Moondance, Jackie Wilson Said just to name a few weren't sung as originally recorded but with a jazz component. Fans want to be able to sing along with the hits and relive the time in their lives when the song was a hit. Very talented group of musicians! And no "Into the Mystic"!

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Van Morrison doesn't say hello but still delivers a crowd-pleaser at Beale Street Music Fest

The ever-contradictory Van Morrison — visionary and reactionary; recluse and rock-and-roller — apparently has performed in concert in the Bluff City only twice, both times at the Memphis in May Beale Street Music Festival.

The first time, in 1996, was not judged a success by most of the concertgoers interviewed by The Commercial Appeal at the time. Instead of performing popular songs in familiar arrangements, Morrison experimented, admonishing his band members to "chill out" and stretch out with jazzy digressions. A mocking cry of "Play a song!" was heard from the crowd. "I thought he was terrible," one festivalgoer said. "He laughed during 'Moondance.'" 

Friday night, Morrison returned to Memphis and the so-called "Beale Street" music festival, this year relocated from Downtown to the Fairgrounds in Liberty Park near Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium, while redesign continues at the festival's traditional Mississippi River-side home of Tom Lee Park. (This also was the first Beale Street Music Festival since 2019, due to two years of COVID-cautious cancellations.)

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Lauded for the blend of Irish mysticism and blues appreciation that made him a shoo-in for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Morrison in recent years has emerged as something of a crank, recording anti-lockdown songs and espousing what Pitchfork called "cherished paranoid theories." Recent songs by Morrison include "They Own the Media" and "Why Are You on Facebook?"; the cover of his upcoming album, "What's It Gonna Take?," depicts a pair of giant puppeteer's hands manipulating the strings attached to the fleeing forms of a man and woman whose images were borrowed from the poster for that 1956 paranoid classic of literal replacement theory, "Invasion of the Body Snatchers." 

A perverse part of me wished that Morrison would indulge himself Friday night with performances of "Fodder for the Masses" and the strikingly titled "Sometimes It's Just Blah Blah Blah," among other new songs that might affirm the "crank" label. But, in fact, what Morrison and his veteran nine-member band delivered was 90 minutes of largely classic and expertly if un-urgently rendered Van Morrison material, spiced with the occasional sax, guitar, organ and even vibraphone solo. I don't know if any folks who attended the 1996 show were there (other than myself), but if they were, they probably said, "Better late than never."

Introduced as "Sir Van Morrison" (a reminder that Van has joined Sir Paul McCartney, Sir Rod Stewart, Sir Mick Jagger, Sir Elton John and even Sir Ray Davies in the ranks of knighted rock-and-rollers), the 76-year-old troubadour opened with an oddity, "Latest Record Project," a song from 2021 that asks, repeatedly and not unreasonably (considering the man has recorded 43 solo studio albums since 1967): "Have you got my latest record project? ... It's not something from long ago/ It's not something that you might know." It's a witty song that wouldn't be out of place on a Randy Newman or Sparks disc.

But after that reminder that he still produces new work, Morrison was the bandleader of a show that was a crowd-pleaser — and that pulled material from throughout his career and the careers of his influences. Wearing a blue suit and his signature dark glasses and fedora, and sometimes performing on saxophone and harmonica, Morrison led the band through 20 songs — more, if you subdivide the medleys.

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Morrison sang "Precious Time," from 1999. He sang "And It Stoned Me," his William Blake-meets-Ma Rainey masterpiece from 1970. He did "Wild Night," from 1971. He dug deep into that alternative Great American Songbook that consists of blues and soul classics rather than pop standards: He covered "Help Me" by Sonny Boy Williamson (the one who died in Helena), and Don Gibson's "I Can't Stop Loving You," immortalized by Ray Charles; and he did a blues medley that blended "Baby Please Don't Go" with "Parchman Farm" and "Got My Mojo Working."

He performed a song from 1995, titled "Raincheck": "I won’t fade away... I don’t fade away / Unless I want to..." Seemed appropriate.

The show could have ended with "Brown Eyed Girl," his only Top 10 U.S. hit, from 1967, with its audience singalong chorus ("Sha-la-la, la-la, la-la, la-la, la-la tee-da"); but actually it ended with the immortal "Gloria," a 1964 garage-rock spelling test of a song originally recorded by Morrison's pre-solo stardom rock band, Them. In other words, Morrison bookended the concert with original compositions that represented his newest and his oldest work. 

As in 1996, not everyone was pleased. "He didn't give us any personality," one young concertgoer told his apparent date, after the show. "He didn't say hi. He didn't say hello." 

True enough. But me, I'll take "Gloria" over "hello." 

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• February 26, 2024 Setlist

Van Morrison Setlist at Bimbo's 365 Club, San Francisco, CA, USA

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• You Are My Sunshine ( Jimmie Davis  cover) Play Video
• I Want a Roof Over My Head ( Steve Gibson & The Red Caps  cover) Play Video
• Problems ( The Everly Brothers  cover) Play Video
• Bonaparte's Retreat ( [traditional]  cover) Play Video
• Shakin' All Over ( Johnny Kidd and the Pirates  cover) Play Video
• The Shape I'm In ( Kenny Lee Martin  cover) Play Video
• When Will I Be Loved ( The Everly Brothers  cover) Play Video
• Sea of Heartbreak ( Don Gibson  cover) Play Video
• Lonesome Train (on a Lonesome Track) ( Johnny Burnette & The Rock ’n’ Roll Trio  cover) Play Video
• Bye Bye Johnny ( Chuck Berry  cover) Play Video
• Laughin' and Clownin' ( Sam Cooke  cover) Play Video
• No Other Baby ( The Vipers  cover) Play Video
• Cold, Cold Heart ( Hank Williams  cover) Play Video
• Enlightenment Play Video
• Precious Time Play Video
• Green Rocky Road ( [traditional]  cover) Play Video
• Flip Flop and Fly ( Big Joe Turner  cover) ( Band Intros ) Play Video
• Bright Side of the Road Play Video
• Help Me ( Sonny Boy Williamson  cover) Play Video
• Gloria ( Them  song) Play Video

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7 activities (last edit by blue_moon_boy , 28 Feb 2024, 02:50 Etc/UTC )

Songs on Albums

• Bonaparte's Retreat by [traditional]
• Bye Bye Johnny by Chuck Berry
• Cold, Cold Heart by Hank Williams
• Flip Flop and Fly by Big Joe Turner
• Gloria by Them
• Green Rocky Road by [traditional]
• Help Me by Sonny Boy Williamson
• I Want a Roof Over My Head by Steve Gibson & The Red Caps
• Laughin' and Clownin' by Sam Cooke
• Lonesome Train (on a Lonesome Track) by Johnny Burnette & The Rock ’n’ Roll Trio
• No Other Baby by The Vipers
• Problems by The Everly Brothers
• Sea of Heartbreak by Don Gibson
• Shakin' All Over by Johnny Kidd and the Pirates
• The Shape I'm In by Kenny Lee Martin
• When Will I Be Loved by The Everly Brothers
• You Are My Sunshine by Jimmie Davis
• Precious Time
• Enlightenment
• Bright Side of the Road

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• Feb 15 2024 Ulster Hall Belfast, Northern Ireland Add time Add time
• Feb 25 2024 Bimbo's 365 Club San Francisco, CA, USA Start time: 7:55 PM 7:55 PM
• Feb 26 2024 Bimbo's 365 Club This Setlist San Francisco, CA, USA Start time: 7:55 PM 7:55 PM
• Feb 28 2024 Fox Theater Oakland, CA, USA Add time Add time
• Feb 29 2024 Fox Theater Oakland, CA, USA Start time: 7:55 PM 7:55 PM

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Review: Was Van Morrison’s San Diego concert a celebration of classics, a classic bait-and-switch, or both?

The 78-year-old music legend sang well during a performance that played down his own songs in favor of chestnuts by Lead Belly, Hank Williams, Washboard Sam and other pioneering American artists who inspired him early on

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Van Morrison performed classic song after classic song Monday night in San Diego at his sold-out concert at The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park. The fact that most were written by other artists — all dead for decades or, in some cases, even a few centuries — made the evening simultaneously rewarding and frustrating, and both engaging and disengaging.

Rewarding because the famously grumpy Morrison was not phoning it in, as he did during much of his decidedly uneven 2019 gig at Chula Vista’s North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre.

Van Morrison, on a marvelous night for a moondance, ebbs and flows at second San Diego concert in 46 years

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer sounded alternately inspired and disengaged during his concert at San Diego’s North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre

Oct. 9, 2019

The famed Irish troubadour was clearly engaged at The Shell and happy to pay tribute to the bygone artists whose music profoundly influenced him as a kid, from Lead Belly and Washboard Sam to Woody Guthrie and The Vipers Skiffle Group. Accordingly, all but a handful of Monday’s 18 selections were from Morrison’s 2023 double-album, “Playing on Skiffle,” which exclusively features vintage songs by those and other artists from the past.

Skiffle, which originated in Kentucky and Tennessee in the early 1900s, blended folk, blues, gospel, jazz, country and jug band music. Its revival in the United Kingdom in the 1950s was a major inspiration for future members of The Beatles, Rolling Stones and many other then-aspiring young musicians. Their ranks included Morrison, who in 2000 teamed with skiffle favorites Lonnie Donegan and Chris Barber to record the heartfelt album, “The Skiffle Sessions — Live in London.”

But enjoyable as it often was, Monday’s concert was also frustrating and disengaging for anyone who hoped to hear more than a few familiar songs written by Morrison. That’s not an unreasonable expectation considering prices were as high as $6,000 for a front-row catered table for four.

Then again, this 1993 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee’s refusal to kowtow to audiences has been a matter of record since not long after the release of his debut solo album, 1967’s “Blowin’ Your Mind.”

On Monday, Morrison uttered “Yeah, thank you” in between his second and third numbers — the traditional fiddle tune “Sail Away Ladies” and Jim Reeves’ 1955 country chestnut, “Yonder Comes a Sucker,” which was given an endearing Latin rhythmic lilt. He later introduced the members of his two-woman, six-man band not once, but twice. By his usual taciturn standards, that almost qualifies as being long-winded.

No one would expect Morrison to introduce individual songs at his concerts, let alone explain how they inspired him. But just a few preliminary sentences about Monday’s repertoire would have been illuminating, especially when more than a dozen of the songs come from a double-album that has received scant attention since its February release.

Morrison’s characteristic insistence on letting the music speak for itself prevented a good portion of his listeners from fully appreciating the nature of his performance. It was a brave move, artistically. But how much more effective might his performance have been if he had provided his audience with at least some sense of why these particular songs and artists mean so much to him.

Hearing back-to-back readings of “I Wish I Was an Apple on a Tree,” Don Gibson’s “Oh Lonesome Me,” The Vipers’ “No Other Baby” and the folk standard “Gypsy Davy” was enjoyable. So were the next five selections, Washboard Sam’s “Come On In,” the gospel favorite “This Little Light of Mine,” Hank Williams’ chilling country lament “Cold, Cold Heart,” the weathered African-American children’s game song “Green Rocky Road” and Lead Belly’s oft-covered “Cotton Fields.”

But the lack of any stated context was disappointing. So was the preponderance of mid-tempo arrangements and the overly polite instrumental solos by Morrison’s band members. Their playing was uniformly pleasant but too often seemed to tiptoe, as if they were afraid to act as more assertive musical foils to Morrison, who sang well throughout and played alto sax with more enthusiasm than precision.

Bay Area guitarist John Platania, who first collaborated with Morrison in 1969 and off and on in subsequent decades, is back in the fold again. His tart slide guitar solos on “This Little Light of Mine” and “Cotton Fields” were as incisive as his slide-free solos on “Streamline Train” and “Oh Lonesome Me” were hit-and-miss affairs marred by more than a few clams.

The band’s ensemble generally work struck an appealing balance between tight and loose, but created little dynamic tension. Their playing, like the vintage selections Morrison favored, was consistently pleasant but cushioned the music much more than elevating it.

It’s no surprise, then, the most enthusiastic response came toward the end of the 98-minute concert. Three of the final four selections were staples from Morrison’s own songbook, starting with 1970’s suitably titled “Into the Mystic.” He then recast 1989’s “Have I Told You Lately That I Love You?” as a finger-snapping swing romp that had a fresh new tinge.

Both were welcomed by an audience palpably grateful to finally hear music by Morrison himself. The inclusion of those two songs also made them more receptive to his next selection, an extended version of the 1963 Willie Dixon and Sonny Boy Williamson II blues jam, “Help Me,” which Morrison recorded back in 1974.

Set to the organ vamp from Booker T. & The MG’s classic 1962 instrumental “Green Onions,” “Help Me’s” lyrics — which paint the ideal woman as a subservient appendage to a man — were an unlikely vehicle for spirited call-and-response vocal exchanges with the audience.

The concert concluded with “Gloria,” the 1964 garage-rock anthem Morrison, now 78, wrote and recorded with Them, his first group of note. It was given a rousing, 13-minute reading, although — tellingly — his band only cut loose and kicked into high gear after Morrison left the stage half way into the song. He did not return.

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“These songs are meant to be sung and heard and I am really happy that Leo is carrying the torch.”     Van  Morrison

The van morrison alumni band, a repertoire company unlike any other, features the musicians who played thousands of concerts and recorded hundreds of songs with the legendary van morrison, over a period when van morrison was making some of his most  loved albums including 1995’s million selling  “days like this”  and 1997’s  “the healing game” ..

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BOSTON'S PREMIER ONLINE ARTS MAGAZINE

Concert Review: Van Morrison — Engaged Rather than Grumpy

By Paul Robicheau

A relatively short-but-sweet night that struck just enough highs and no real lows — as long as one accepts that Van Morrison gives more heed to covers than his own hits.

Van Morrison at the Leader Bank Pavilion. Photo: Paul Robicheau

Anyone headed into a Van Morrison concert has long faced the question: will he be engaged and on point or will he be grumpy and mail it in? To add an extra level of uncertainty these days, consider the revered Irish R&B singer’s repudiation of pandemic restrictions and other grievances on his two latest albums.

Morrison immediately drew from that recent material at Boston’s sold-out Leader Bank Pavilion on Saturday. He took the stage in fighting trim at age 77, sporting a crisp white suit, dark fedora, and usual sunglasses as he opened with “Dangerous,” which alluded to his back-and-forth spat with a Northern Ireland health minister who used that term for the singer’s questioning of evidence. “Somebody said I was dangerous,” Morrison sang. “I must be getting close to the truth.”

At the same time, the stoic singer’s vocal delivery was nonconfrontational, the lyrics gliding by as he spread attention to soloists within his nine-piece band, a trend continued as they rolled out “Thank God for the Blues” to set the night’s stylistic tone. Most critically, Van appeared in both good voice and mood — and even mumbled “Thank you” a couple of times.

Soon he was on to the positive reflection of “Days Like This” (once adopted as an anthem for his country’s peace process), adding his own ribbony alto-sax break, then led a perky swing through Moondance nugget “These Dreams of You” and turned to scat in a jaunty “Precious Time” over a swirl of organ and baritone sax.

Even when he stopped and restarted the band after a miscue with opening-act guest James Hunter’s tradeoff on harmonica and vocals in “Tell Me,” Morrison appeared to laugh it off. He and Hunter really clicked on the oldie “Money (That’s What I Want),” done as a bluesy bop. On a roll at that moment, Morrison and his band hit the blues harder with a twangy “Baby, Please Don’t Go” (which he first recorded with his ’60s band Them), singing into his harmonica mic at one point. And that song segued into “Got My Mojo Working,” the singer tilting his head back in a spirited call-and-response as his band picked up steam.

The edge and energy were emanating from Morrison at center stage through the rest of the players, carried through “I’ve Been Working,” marked by its staccato refrains of “woman” and “alright” and crackling with horn, guitar, and organ solos. Then Morrison loosened up for a lighter attitude in his phrasing to the standard “You’re Driving Me Crazy,” which he dedicated to jazz organist Joey DeFrancesco, his onetime recording partner who died in August at age 51.

Morrison finally tapped the spiritual, searching side of his own ’80s repertoire for a back-to-back “Dweller on the Threshold” (undercut by its rippling riff of horns) and “In the Garden,” apparently an on-the-fly call given the paperwork delivered to his music stand. It made a welcome inclusion, though its “No guru, no method, no teacher” musing didn’t approach the song’s transcendence in decades past.

That segment still served more grist than perfunctory, crowd-pleasing renditions of late-set romper “Wild Night” and “Brown Eyed Girl,” which began the encore with house lights up and Hunter returning for the call-and-response of “Gloria,” where Morrison waved his mic to the crowd for replies of “Alright!” and “So good!” Then he walked off mid-song to let his band work another 10 minutes of hearty soloing, including a trumpet shot of “Tequila” and a vibraphone tease of unsung favorite “Moondance,” padding the show to 95 minutes.

Alas, by that point, Morrison was surely off in the moonlight and not coming back, on a relatively short-but-sweet night that struck just enough highs and no real lows — as long as one accepts that he gives more heed to covers than his own hits.

Paul Robicheau served more than 20 years as contributing editor for music at the Improper Bostonian in addition to writing and photography for the Boston Globe , Rolling Stone , and many other publications. He was also the founding arts editor of Boston Metro .

61 Comments

The concert in Tanglewood was the same. At first it was jamming blues and covers, then it still was and still was some more. Then he just wandered off stage, the band played another 5 hours of GLORIA rumbled moondance on xylophone then stopped. House lights and go home. No bow, no nothing.

Not the experience we hoped for. The place was electric waiting to be dancing and singing then nothing. The crowd realizing it was not going to live up to expectations and started leaving and decided it was social chat time and everyone went on their phone and talked. Very disappointed

Yeah, also seemed like the Boston crowd didn’t know whether to sit, stand or give up at times.

I have been a long time fan of Van Morrison and was completely disappointed with the show in Philadelphia All he did was yell into the microphone no true Van singing If you’re looking to enjoy the Van of old it’s not here We left after an hour and half of complete disappointment Sorry

Very disappointing Van show but should have expected same as saw him also do a les than inspired performance at Hollywood Bowl years ago. Fans pay high prices and honest ones end up always voicing disappointment especially the rude act of walking off a few minutes into Gloria at the end! Aside from his crazy rants about pandemic he also has expressed great disdain about performing any shows outside Ireland, Scotland or the UK so no suprise as it shows on stage. Time to give it up Van and let us all remember the “Good Ol Days”!

Sir Van is great at every concert. So many people want the old standards- get over it, understand this is how he does his gigs. and listen to the last 4 CDs – all great songs, Van is not there to engage with you he’s there to sing. “Down To Joy” — robbed of an Oscar. Enjoy his music and don’t expect Mr Showbiz to woo you. Love Van anytime, anywhere. Saw him 3 times – LV and Saratoga. His arrangements are superior and the horns were a R&B plus.

Exactly the same thing in Philly. 28 minutes of Gloria and he walked out 10 Minutes in. Pretty boring.

At tanglewood also. My wife has always said she wanted to see Van Morrison live so for Mother’s Day I got her the tickets. It wasn’t a bad show he sounded good and We did like the jazz and blues that he was playing but at a certain point I looked at my phone saw the time and the realization settled in that he was not going to play at least some of the hits that we were all waiting for as a crowd. It kind of felt like he thought if he played Briwn Eyed Girl everybody would be happy and he could go home. Again he sounded great and the band was wonderful but never really delivered. 4-5 more classics and totally different experience.

Same here! Saw him tonight in Queens , NY Very disappointed…he only played 3 songs that the audience knew… everyone chatted… he walked off before the end of his last song..never to come back on stage! Now Tom Jones who opened for him was amazing!!.. Ive been to many concerts and this one was definitely not a crowd pleasurer…

Was also at the show, agree completely. The acoustics were turned way down for Van compared to Tom. I couldn’t hear him or band and the hits weren’t played. Left early very frustrated. Sad for such a talented legend.

Also would have been nice if Van allowed the cameras to put his band up on the big screen behind him.

Couldn’t agree more, was there last night and Morrison was a complete disappointment. Jones was amazing!

Wow, not my experience at all. Loved the show. Two guys pushing 80 and knowing their limitations probably influences set list, although Van is known for not relying heavily on his hits when touring. He leaves that to the every other tour out there. He sounded great and his band was tight, so what he choose to perform was not that important. He’s a unique voice and Everyone there last night should really appreciate what these legends were able to deliver, a Great concert!

No complaints, other than the cost of drinks!

I agree Adam. Tom Jones was fantastic. His voice was no different than 50 years ago! He totally connected, everyone loved him. Van was disappointing. Basically we paid hundreds of dollars to see a great cover band. But none of his best songs. NONE. At least I knew ahead of time after checking every set list for the past few months. The best moment was when he did Good night Irene with Tom Jones. Magic. But the rest?….Thievery

I WAS there too, and felt like you. No known songs were attempted, just blues that I did not ever hear him do before. No engagement with the audience not a word, no thank yous. I felt unsatisfied, and glad I didnt pay for these tix.

He is a mother fucka. I saw him saturday night in Forest Hills. Played some rockabilly and jazzy stuff. Only one of his classic hits Brown Eyed Girl. And NO OTHER HITS! Total ripoff at $275 per seat And yes, he walked off in the middle of Gloria and never came back. Had no connection with the audience whatsoever. No stories. No hello. No Goodbye. nothing! WTF!!

275.00 caveat emptor

275.00 you got off cheap! We paid $1200 each for 5th row seats at Caesar’s Palace and got the same show with none of his old songs! What a disappointment and rip off! Not only that but the show was for February but was postponed till October due to Covid. Thank god for all the other good shows in Vegas that we went to see, both times.

What was strange is that he released a very provocative album containing some exceptional music but played next to nothing from it. I think there were people ready to cheer and revel in the counter culture aspect of the “What’s it going to take” album but he chickened out.

At Philly show tonight (Sept 8) and Van the Man mailed it in. Played nothing noteworthy and disappointed tremendously. Embarrassing performance!!!

I couldn’t agree more. I wish I had checked the playlist websites before I bought the tickets and not in the car on our 2 1/2-hour drive down to the Mann. The venue was awesome and the crowd spectacular. I felt Van was so disengaged from the crowd like he was playing for himself only. I mean really, there was a beautiful full moon over the city at sunset, you’re telling me he couldn’t have segued that into playing Moondance. I took my daughter for her birthday with family and her friends as Van is her favorite. The one and only high point was that I was able to dance with my brown eyed girl to Van singing brown eyed girl (and hate to admit it but that song and 2 others were the only songs I knew out of the 20 they played) Very disappointed. My advice to anyone wanting to see a good Van Morrison show would be to find a good cover band.

True, he might have been more selective and doubled down on including more of that newer music rather than so many blues covers…

His concert in Philly tonight was exactly the same. He walked off in the middle of Hloria and never came back, He didn’t play Moondance, Into the Mystic, Somebody Like You or Tupelo Honey. I have waited so long to see him in concert, and he phoned it in. So disappointed…,

Unfortunately for his old fans, he’s never going to play all the favorites… he’d rather avoid them for the most part.

The sad thing is I saw Van Morrison at Forest Hills in 2016 and the 2018 and they were the two best concerts I’ve ever seen. Last week’s Forest Hills concert was dreadful because Van never grabbed the drunk crowd which talked loudly all night as if they were in a loud bar. The acoustics, sound system, and his band were decidedly inferior from the 2016 and 2018 concerts. I blame the crowd for talking but Van never made them shut up by playing a few more of his beloved songs. In 2018 for example he opened at 8 pm sharp with two songs from Astral Weeks and the crowd was in the palm of his hand. Then he played all the jazz standards like Symphony Sid which I loved because I could actually hear them without the crowd noise and better sound quality. Van has as many great songs as Dylan, Beatles, or Stones. Although I blame the crowd for rudeness I blame Van for not grabbing them early with a few of his classics instead opening with his new angry pandemic songs. I don’t love him less because of his political views but let’s not make the last night of summer about pandemic politics.

His concert in Philly missed the mark as he is not playing to the audience or the venue. Heavily reliant on covers, obscurities and jazz-infused songs rather than the more recognized part of his catalogue. Only bright light was the involvement of his opening act, Curtis Stigers who brought energy and fun to the stage. Plus, playing for barely 90 minutes with a large part consumed by solos is hardly what was expected.

Curtis is very good indeed. Did you not get James Hunter as well? Wonder what Van would do without his contributions during his set — or did Curtis join him?

Curtis joined him for roughly half of the numbers.

James Hunter opened (solo) for VM at Wolf Trap on Wednesday. He then joined in for the later part of the main set. That was the day before Philly. I’ve read some of the negative reviews of the Philly concert and wondering if Van needs a day off instead of playing back to back dates these days. He seemed pretty energetic. I didn’t expect to hear a bunch of old VM songs, and there were few, they closed with Brown Eyed Girl and Gloria. As a teenager I always had 8-tracks of Moondance and Street Choir jammed into my car’s tape deck. I didn’t expect to hear much of that music – and there wasn’t. That was fine with me, I have most of his 80’s and 90’s music too. He never gives an oldies show. I got what I expected. Good but not great.

I saw the Philly show and agree with Cheryl. My husband and I treated ourselves to very expensive seats, so we could experience up close some nostalgia from 3 decades ago. He was not going to give us that satisfaction. How selfish of him. It was all about him and his new songs. There went $750 down the drain. We left feeling cheated!

Was so looking forward to this show! All 8 of my family were so excited to see you. I understand wanting to introduce us to new music. I have no problem with that. What I don’t understand is how you can disappoint all your fans by not playing most of the songs that your fans came to hear. Why wouldn’t you blend in some new songs in between some of your popular ones? Walking off the stage to leave the band playing Gloria for what felt like an eternity and never coming out for an encore was just bizarre. You never even gave acknowledgment to your band members. What a disappointment!

I thought the Philly show was wonderful. They did not play my favorites, but loved “Carrying the Torch” and “Dweller on the Threshold” and “Gloria.” His voice was great, the band was excellent, the sound was good. His catalog is so huge you know you’re not going to get all his big hits. Beautiful night under a full moon, great to be back at the Mann. My 5th time seeing him; not the best one ever, but plenty good enough. Play on.

Was one of your 4 other times seeing Van, the time he played at the Spectrum, maybe 20 years ago, and he walked off the stage after 35 minutes to go play another gig in Atlantic City? Such a feeling off being ripped off I’ve never experienced before or since.

Though last nights concert was better, its still far from satisfying. I would have liked an introduction of his fabulous band mates for starters. And maybe a goodbye and thank you from Van. Full version of Moon Dance, considering the moon was full…

It was a beautiful night though for sure.

I enjoyed last night’s performance as well! He did a few of my favs so I’m happy! I thought his voice sounded great, strong and clear, I thought he looked dapper, very stylish. I thoroughly enjoyed last night’s show.

His last great record was The Healing Game and his tour in late 90s as replicated on One Night in SanFrancisco with a great dynamic band behind him was peak of his powers. Outside of revisting Astral weeks around 15 years ago his live performances and records have become frankly boring and dull- set list largely unchanged – predictably finishing with gloria and swing jazz versions of the odd old hits dumbed down. He seems determined not to revisit back catalogues. I have seen him maybe 20 times- including this year and the magic is gone.

Most of the people have posted what I would have said, do not waste your money and see Van Morrison. Stay at home and play his hits and some of his new music instead. The band that backed him was excellent, he was not worth the time. The only positive experience last night in Philadelphia was the beautiful weather and wonderful venue. After wanting to see him perform for so many years, what a letdown.

Great show except for his final exodus without return to a very appreciative crowd – that was a mystery as if he may have been sick or tired or those lines of powder took too long to blow!!

I guess the majority of you are not really fans of Mr. Morrison. Your reviews are not surprising. You don’t see him often enough. He has a message to relay to all and you missed it because you were waiting for his hits from 40 years ago. Do yourselves a favor and don’t go to any more shows unless you stay updated on his current brilliant music. You make it miserable for all of his true fans.

You seem to be the only one with something good to say about his performance. He was awful and rude to his fans Saturday night but you keep buying his albums and going to his concerts because he’s got to make money somehow. Hope you’re able to subsidize his retirement single-handedly because he won’t get another dime from me or the people he screamed his songs at on Saturday night. Never again!!

I was ecstatic after the Van Morrison at the Mann show – SOULFUL and so generous with his fantastic band including Curtis Stigers. If you want to hear his greatest hits, dust off your CD. Artists like Van Morrison are not going to take requests – they spend their lives chasing the muse, and the last thing they want to do is attempt to satisfy other peoples’ expectations of what they should play. They are trying to escape their own expectations of what they should play! What we saw at the Mann was a mature artist with his vocal and instrumental skills in solid form deeply immersed in the rhythm and blues, soul and jazz heritage that gave birth to his unique genius. I had a very similar experience seeing Buddy Guy earlier this year – chops are still the tops, and there is also a deep sense of commitment and gratitude to the art form he has dedicated his life to. Also embedded within Van’s performance was the subtle, intensely personal connection to Spirituality – both Eastern and Western – that no other rock and roll artist has delved into as deeply as Van. As Van would say, stay in the Nigh – live in the moment and you can have a life of creation and discovery leading to ecstatic revelation. John the Revelator – amazing! Quoting Bob Dylan here, “Yesterday is just a memory, tomorrow is never what it’s supposed to be so darling, don’t fall apart on me tonight.” Can’t wait to see him again.

I saw Van in a small club in Belfast at the start of the year (The Limelight) and he was very chatty and asked for requests! He played an afternoon show and and an evening show and both were totally different vibes. I put both gigs on YouTube (sound only), you can listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPvDDrEifQA&t=4369s

The NYC Queens Forest Hills concert was a huge disappointment. I’ve never been to a concert that was remotely close to this level of disengagement from the performer. There was not a hello, good night, introduction of the band members, or encore. He sang 3 songs that we recognized and never once engaged with the audience. Everybody was walking out during Gloria at the end. What an overpriced disappointment!

Seen him in his hometown of Belfast and he didn’t disappoint, vocally he still has it not like other artists around his age, granted not much chat from him but you get what you know a brilliant musician, lets just enjoy a grumpy genius live while we can.

BOOOORRIING … saw the Forest Hills show last night. Tom Jones was great, Van Morrison put the crowd to sleep. Concert seemed like a jazz session at the Blue Note,leaving about 95% of the crowd sitting still waiting to hear some of the classics that never came. But I guess Van is a genius who is going to play what he wants and is not worried about providing a great time to the Suckers who actually pay to see him.

Please your an ass! Not trying to be nostalgic, but cmon ? People wanted to hear a few old songs. Not the whole show. Guaranty next time around ,people won’t show and pay high prices to hear other peoples music.

Are you calling Me an ass or VM,Because you seem to agreeing with my point.Another gripe I forgot(which someone else mentioned) was every other performer at FH is seen on a giant screen except VM,guess he dosnt care if the largely older crowd gets to see him either

Ive always loved VMs music but never saw him live because Ive heard what a dick he could be.A friend who worked Jones Beach security says he instructed them to have a clear path for him to walk off the stage and straight into a waiting car,which he did while music was still playing.My friend was telling people holding up lighters and calling for an encore that Van was probably on the Grand Central by now.

What is the name of Van Morrison’s backup singer? Hartford Healthcare (Bridgeport) and Forest Hills Stadium show?

Forest Hills- Tom Jones was fantastic! Engaging, powerful voice, mixed up old and new songs and gave everyone a good time. 82 yrs old and singing like he does- wow! Van Morrison as most people have already stated was a disappointment. Very much about what he wants to do and could care less for the audience and why they paid quite a bit of money to see someone they loved through the years. He kept the screen behind him the same for his entire set- his name only. This stadium has seats that are quite far back- would have been nice if he let the camera give a more intimate view of the stage to his fans. Nothing welcoming or appreciative said by him to the audience. The entire set (for the most part) sounded exactly the same -hard to distinguish one song from another. Morrison & Jones teamed up for three songs and Jones blew him out of the park. If you are not interested in performing- don’t perform. If you are performing take a cue from your friend Tom put yourself into it and respect/appreciate your fans. What’s the point – why do something that seems to make you miserable at 78 yrs. old.

Sorry to hear that many were disappointed at Forest Hills last night. My 5 guests and I (ages 32- 72) loved it all. While I was sorry not to see video coverage for Van’s act, I thought that the stage backdrop was awesome and would have been blocked by a screen. As for the song set , I knew all of them and thought it was a great display of Van’s talent, Finishing with Road to Joy, the movie Belfast’s opening number (and Oscar nominated song), Brown Eyed Girl and Gloria was icing on the cake. Van always leaves during the last song and showcases the band. Seeing him the next opportunity, a certainty.

Agree with reviews of Tom Jones. Still a great voice and an inspired choice for the opener.

I was at last night’s show at Forest Hills. Having never seen Van Morrison live, I was moved beyond words. I went to see a brilliant and talented musician and I was beyond pleased. His enthusiasm and talent presented in every song. I loved hearing the songs to which I knew all the words but the newer, perhaps less popular, songs were so well done. The band was incredible, especially the two women. Tom Jones was also incredibly entertaining and their two duets were moving and beautiful.

I have all his records bar none and a serious fan from Veedon Fleece in ’70s right up to his tours with Georgie Fame, P Wee Ellis, Candy Dulfer, Ronnie Johnson, Teena Lyle, Kate St John. John Lee Hooker, Junior wells, Jimmy Witherspoon etc….current line up and set list resembles a hotel lobby tight jazz set by comparison going through the motions. Lyrically he really doesn’t care any more and doesn’t seem to enjoy it. Gone is the soul and his voice has become one dimensional. You will never see him streach it out anymore and the swing type versions are lazy efforts. Always finishing on “Gloria” and walking out before the half was the point. Too many chips on his shoulder to care

I dream he would recognize his back catalogue one more time but its not going to happen. Setlist that never was (forget brown eyed girl): Snow in San Anselmo Tupelo Honey Streets of Arklow You don’t pull no punches Troubadours Listen to the Lion Purple Heather In the days before rock n roll A sense of wonder Daring night Linden Arden stole the Highlights Tir Na Nog Queen of the Slipstream Daring Night Santa Fe/Beautiful Obsession

Hey John, I totally get it. Yes, I also have John Lee Hooker, Junior Wells, Sonny Terry and Brownie McGee and a ton of other blues albums, and most of VM’s. It is great that he played with and/or pays homage to those guys. I enjoyed the few blues covers at his Wolf Trap concert. But the ladies sitting near me came to hear Gloria, Moondance, and Brown Eyed Girl, etc. I don’t need to hear those again, or much of the other early 70’s stuff either. Of course, I’m no youngster, and I’ve already played the hell out of them. (OK, would like to hear him do Street Choir, but now he is down on America in his latest work,) Would have been just as happy to hear my 80’s/90’s favorites like Get On With the Show, Precious Time, or New Biography, where he already took a poke at the internet 20 years ago. In many ways he is a victim of his own commercial longevity and breadth. I like some of his new music like Dangerous and Stage Name, where he pokes fun at Tom Jones and Georgie Fame, guys he has played with. He did both at Wolf Trap. A VM live concert will never resemble an oldies special on PBS. I understand the disappointment that many casual fans have after a concert. But if you go to see him, go with a sense of curiosity, instead of expectation. Will you get the Crusty OF or a slightly engaged legendary songwriter/musician with a decent band? That is the real question that gets answered at his live shows.

@Tanglewood – kicked off strong with “Dangerous”…downhill from there. Too many mid tempo interpretations of blues and jazz tunes…I’ll see an authentic blues artist if I want to hear real blues music. Disappointing. Left before the encore wrapped.

The banal jazz phase that Van started around 2010 onwards including jazz versions of his own songs led to really poor and dull concerts. He appears to be incapable of re discovering enthusiasm at this stage.

Trust me SJ…his concerts in Ireland have been equally as poor and crowd generally gets bored and starts talking through it. He has not played a concert in Dublin for several years now as he tends to fall out with everyone. On stage he doesn’t seem into the music anymore and song choices are his dullest. Going through the motions regardless of location.

Indeed instead of finishing on predictable Gloria which i am sure he is bored would be great see him think outside box and sign off with something quirky like Bein Green (from much underrated Hardnose the Highway)- a childrens song which is so meaningful and deep in todays world. Now that would be a cool sign off…

I saw Van Morrison in the mid 1990’s in the Seattle . He didn’t so as sing as he did passing out. My husband and I were devastated because we spent a lot of money on good seats didn’t get anywhere near what we thought the experience would be.

Buyer Beware with Van Morrison!

Van Morrison was fabulous tonight in Phoenix. His voice was beautiful. He and the other musicians were beyond sublime. Every song was amazing. He played a great set list with many of his biggest hits. It was wonderful. I traveled 1,200 miles to attend and am so thankful I did. I feel grateful and inspired by tonight’s performance.

Most would disagree with his performance in Phoenix’ Pat. Finishing on predictable brown eyed girl and gloria which he is obviously bored of…stuck in a jazz swing mediocre set list

Saw him years ago at PPAC I. I thought I was the only one who felt this way but after reading the reviews I was right. I just heard he’s coming back in May. I was initially excited because I have listened to his music for years but I quickly remembered how unfriendly he was and how short his concert was. No hello goodbye. Song choices. It was awful. Save your money

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Tupelo Honey Band

A Van Morrison Celebration

• Jun 06 Newtown, PA Newtown Theater -->
• Jun 15 Mount Pocono, PA Mount Airy Casino Resort -->
• Jun 21 Nashville, TN Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum - PRIVATE EVENT -->
• Jul 21 New Hope, PA Havana -->
• Jul 25 Avalon, NJ Surfside Park --> Free
• Sep 21 Toms River, NJ Jay and Linda Grunin Center for the Arts -->
• Oct 25 New Hope, PA Havana -->

Tupelo Honey is a celebration of the music of the man with many names. They call him “Van The Man”, they call him “The Master”…He was one of earliest inductees into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and has written some of the most iconic songs in popular music… He is Van Morrison.

“Moondance”, “Into The Mystic”, “Brown Eyed Girl”, “Have I Told You Lately”, “Crazy Love”, “Someone Like You”, “Crazy Love” …the list goes on and on and on and Tupelo Honey celebrates this impressive catalog of songs with some of the finest musicians.

Tupelo Honey is a celebration. Sing along, dance, and enjoy the great music. We’re here to make sure you have a wonderful time!

Comprised of some of the finest musicians on the East Coast, each band member is dynamic on their own, but as a band they are electric.

When you watch the musicians in Tupelo Honey, you’re seeing the real thing. No special effects, no backing tracks, no tricks. Just great music, written by a legendary songwriter. And most importantly… a GREAT TIME!

The man upfront is Jim DeRosa. A veteran of over 3000 live performances as a Singer, Master of Ceremonies, Host and much more. He’s pure energy on stage. Singing, joking, and interacting with the other band members. His powerful, 4 octave range is hard to miss.

Cyriese Lambert

With the voice of an angel, Cyriese is the perfect counter balance to Jim’s booming vocals. Her range, tone and presence are extraordinary. Cyriese has been a working musician for several years and has performed with some of the best names in the music. Whether she’s upfront, doing a duet or on backing vocals, her talent can’t be missed.

Ralph Vargas

The motor behind it all, Ralph’s drumming keeps everyone together. His experience & style assures he can provide the time necessary and the flair he’s know for. His electric playing is exciting to watch and impossible not to feel.

“Boots” Anderson

“Boots” Anderson has been one of the most sought after guitarists in the New York Metro Area for years. With a background in everything from Jazz to Pop to Classical, “Boots” can do it all.

Robin Corley

Robin brings a lyrical style to Tupelo Honey that fits perfectly with the styles of Van Morrison. Listening to his solos in songs like “Moondance,” “Into The Mystic,” “Sweet Thing,” “Crazy Love,” and so much more.

Robbie Wingler

Robbie has been mastering the bass most of his life. His skill and intuitive stylings add a solid bottom to both the funkiest of blues and most subtle ballads. He is experienced in everything from Jazz to R&B and Rock.

Testimonials

We thoroughly enjoyed the show, what a pleasant surprise. We definitely recommend them to everyone!

We absolutely loved them! We danced and sang all night long to every song. The night we saw the show was actually their 2nd time performing the Van Morrison celebration. Was blown away when we found that out. We thought they have been performing together for years! ❤️ Can't wait to see them again!

Totally enjoyed the band. He sounds so much like Van Morrison.

Absolutely awesome Friday night at the Landis Theater in Vineland NJ.

My husband and I saw your performance last night in Newton. We travelled all the way from Louisville, Kentucky and you did not disappoint. Vantastic! ❤️ You asked for song suggestions so here are a few of our favorites to consider. The Healing Game, Sweet Thing, In the Garden, In the Days Before Rock and Roll, Philosophers Stone, Rain Check, Stranded, Queen of the Slipstream, Enlightenment… I could go on and on 😊...

Fantastic concert in Havre de Grace last night. Thank you!

LOVED the show last night. Such a talented group of musicians! Wow!

We saw you guys last weekend at the Newton Performing Arts Center... what an awesome show!!! The tickets were my bday gift from my boyfriend and I couldn't have asked for anything better. We love Van Morrison believe that he could sing the ABC song and make it magical and you guys just did his music proud... we loved it!! Thank you all for helping to celebrate my 58th in such a memorable way. We look forward to seeing you again soon.

I’m a serious Vanatic since Passaic 1979 and I saw you tonight at Etta Park in East Windsor tonight. I’ve seen The Man every tour ever since. Now that I’ve established my bona fides I wanted to let you know that you are fantastic! I enjoyed the show so much and I am so glad to have seen your performance for the first time but not the last. I’ve posted your setlist and a couple of videos of tonight’s show in a Van Fan group and I am already receiving responses raving about you. I can’t wait to hear from my European friends tomorrow. Thank you for an incredible evening!!!

You guys did a great job last night and made our night special by recognizing our wedding song. We never had a chance to dance alone to that as our wedding party all joined us immediately, it was nice to share that with my wife alone, except for the 300 people watching us. Thanks again, we will see you guys again.

Easily one of the best live shows you'll see this year. An absolute BLAST!!

Tupelo Honey Band – Domino

Tupelo Honey Band – Promo Video

Tupelo Honey Band – Brown Eyed Girl

Tupelo Honey Band – Gloria

Tupelo Honey Band – Live at the Newberry Opera House

Tupelo Honey Band – Have I Told You Lately

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The Definitive Van Morrison Experience

Van The Band is the definitive experience of the iconic musical legend Van Morrison, capturing the sound and creativity of Van Morrison by bringing a similar atmosphere of showmanship and musical mastery to their shows while engaging the audience in a way that is all their own.​

EXPERIENCE  VAN THE BAND

April 20th 2024

The Towne Crier Café, Beacon, NY

Tickets:  https://tinyurl.com/VTBTowne

Van The Band is the definitive experience of the iconic music legend Van Morrison. His music weaves between the genres of R&B, Blues, Jazz, Soul and Celtic Folk. “Van Morrison has produced perhaps the most spiritually transcendent body of work in the rock & roll canon.”  ( Bluenote.com ) 

The members of Van The Band come from a wide range of backgrounds. Lead singer Padraig Allen grew up not far from Van Morrison’s home in Ireland. He has been in the show business for over 30 years and has toured all over Europe, USA, Canada and the Caribbean. Some band members have advanced degrees in music, and most members have also toured internationally. Immensely talented, with a shared love of performing Van The Band thrill, entertain and engage their audiences wherever they go.

Van The Band captures the sound and creativity of Van Morrison, bringing a similar atmosphere of showmanship and musical mastery to their shows, while engaging the audience in a way that is all their own. From the 1967 solo breakout hit “Brown Eyed Girl” to songs from his most recent albums, Van The Band pays tribute to the Van Morrison songbook playing the hits every Van The Man fan knows and loves. 

FULL SIZZLE REEL

Jackie Wilson Said (I’m in Heaven When You Smile) Moondance Bright Side of the Road Brown Eyed Girl Crazy Love Someone Like You Wild Night Gloria Real Real Gone Into the Mystic Domino

Here Comes the Night And It Stoned Me Days Like This Have I Told You Lately* Cleaning Windows Baby, Please Don’t Go Did Ye Get Healed? Tupelo Honey Queen of the Slipstream Rave On, John Donne And many more

Jean Clancy

VenuWorks Call: 917 402 3616 Email: [email protected]

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Sammy Hagar Reflects on Red Rocker Roots and How Fontana Hometown Shaped His Art

By Steven Gaydos

Steven Gaydos

Executive VP of Content

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They say, “If you remember the ’60s, you weren’t there,” but newly minted Hollywood Walk of Fame honoree Sammy Hagar not only remembers the ’60s, but the ’50s as well. As someone who grew up in that same era in Hagar’s hood, the former hometown of America’s biggest steel mill west of the Mississippi and birthplace of the Hells Angels — Fontana — I can attest to the veracity of Hagar’s crystal-clear total recall. 

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Most important of all, Hagar — whose career not only includes stints in great bands like Montrose and Van Halen and a successful restaurant chain and tequila brand — has roots planted in the soil that once featured bounteous citrus groves, almond and peach orchards and sprawling grape vineyards. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer has ample, sharply recollected fond memories of his Fontana (aka Fontucky) youth and his musical coming of age there. 

“I loved growing up in Fontana,” says the seemingly eternally ebullient Hagar. “If you think about it, it’s got an incredible location: an hour to the mountains, to Joshua Tree, to the beach, to Hollywood. My friends and I used to pool our gas money and head out to all those places. I loved the mountains in the summer and the desert in the winter. I started out as a greaser but then I got hip and became a hodad. I got white shoes and white jeans and started to spend my time at the beach.” 

With two older sisters, the pre-teen Hagar joined the 1950s rock and roll revolution. 

A few years later, Hagar was rocking on stages around the Inland Empire, long before he made the trek up the coast in 1969 to San Francisco and wound up with a major label deal as a member of hard-rock outfit Montrose in the 1970s.

It all started, as we so many nascent ’60s rockers, in 1964, when the Elvis allure faded and the British Invasion kicked into high gear.

“The Beatles led the British Invasion happened, but what really got me was when the Rolling Stones hit. They looked like tough guys from Fontana. I had an older friend, Ed Matson, who played guitar well and helped me learn all those Stone songs,” Hagar says.

“I remember, he asked me, ‘How do you remember all those lyrics?’ I can still do it. I remember all my lyrics and always have. So, I could sing all those Stones hits. [Editor’s note: Including “Route 66!”] Somebody said, ‘Let’s start a band and pretty soon we had our set of seven or eight songs, which included a couple of surf songs for the locals. But I was also a soul music guy. I was into James Brown and Hendrix. And I actually saw Otis Redding at the Monterey Pop Festival. I went there, not to see the rock groups, except maybe Eric Burdon, but I wanted to see Otis!”

Down the road, in Hawthorne, California, Brian Wilson’s Beach Boys were the American answer to the Beatles. The surf may have been an hour away, but surf music was lapping up on our Inland Empire shores.

“I used to go to the National Guard Armory in Riverside to hear Dick Dale. Around that time, I got in a band called the Fabulous Castiles and we used to play ‘Surfer Stomp’ at Brunton Hall in Fontana. We didn’t even have a drummer and we all played through one amp. The Justice Brothers came later and that’s when I wanted to get serious. We tried to make a living by playing in bars.”

As we compare notes on our teen years in the Inland Empire, my own recall kicks in and I realize that before I saw Hagar with his band the Justice Brothers at the Night Club in San Bernardino, I caught his act at a Battle of the Bands in the mid-1960s at a Fontana Shopping Center, when he was fronting a soulful combo colorfully called the Mobile Home Blues Band. “Our dream,” Hagar recalls, “was to live in a motor home and drive up and down the coast playing our music.” 

The motor home adventures didn’t happen, but the Mobile Home Blues Band scored an early Hagar victory: “We actually won one of those battles of the bands and the first prize was a Vox white teardrop guitar white teardrop guitar. It’s exactly the same one that Little Steven (Van Zandt) has today!”

Digging deeper, Hagar delineates the fine points of 1960s rock iconography. 

“‘Meet the Beatles’ changed the world, but it was the Stones for me. They changed the way I looked. Every time I joined a band, I wanted to be Keith AND Mick. Then, in my heart, I wanted to be Jimi Hendrix. Then I wanted to be Jeff Beck, but not the later-era Beck. That guy was too good. I can’t play like that. I wanted to be the Jeff Beck Group Jeff Beck. AND Rod Stewart. The two guys from that album ‘Truth.’ And I rode that bus until I heard Bob Dylan’s ‘Like a Rolling Stone’ and I realized how important lyrics are. And then I started writing my own music.” 

Hagar, one of hard rock’s preeminent showmen, makes a surprising admission about his softer side. 

“Around the time of Dylan, I also got turned onto Donovan and to be honest, I was more of a Donovan guy than a Dylan guy. Donovan had the same feelings as I had about lost love and had a romantic streak I identified with. I actually cut a version of his song ‘Young Girl Blues’ on my first solo album. I’ve met him and I still love his music. He’s a great poet.” 

Once Hagar split from Southern California and took his act up the coast to the Bay Area, he blended well into the Haight-Ashbury peace and love scene. 

“The Grateful Dead were playing in the park for free and I wanted to be part of that. I became a hippie. I could sleep on people’s floors. No problem! I had my guitar and I wanted to play and sing, so I fit right in, except I was never a heavy drug guy.”

Soon, Hagar put away the love beads as success and fame first beckoned when he was invited to join guitar virtuoso Ronnie Montrose’s band Montrose on Warner Bros Records. The ‘60s were over and new musical influences were wafting through the streets of San Francisco.

“I saw David Bowie, Alice Cooper and Marc Bolan and all the glitter rock guys, and I loved all of them and I thought, ‘This is the future,’” says Hagar, ruefully adding, “But I was getting too glittery. I called myself Sammy Wild for a while. Ronnie was stripped down and that was the right way to go.”

As his time in Montrose drew to a close in the late 1970s and Hagar was segueing into a solo career, he found a new music hero who combined the raw soul of Hagar’s rhythm and blues heroes, the sharp edginess of Dylan and the deep, thoughtful romanticism of Donovan: Irish soul legend Van Morrison. 

“Then it was Van Morrison,” says Hagar. That’s who I wanted to be. Bowie came and went, but Van remains. One of my best songs, which I just wrote recently, ‘Father Time,’ really has my Van Morrison influence all over it.” 

As the decades of rock progressed, bands that dared pomposity in their arrangements (think Yes, Emerson, Lake and Palmer, King Crimson) or snappy costumes (such as pre-Hagar Van Halen) were in the crosshairs of the nascent, gnarly movement out of England called “Punk.” Which a decade later had morphed into “Grunge.”

Hagar explains an important aspect of his personality that has played a key role in his continual growth and evolution as an artist: “I’m a white light, positive energy guy. I’m not bitter, I’m not angry. “

“When I saw the Sex Pistols at the Winterland [in 1978] cutting themselves, spitting on each other, they scared me. I couldn’t be farther away in outlook. But I immediately thought ‘This must be the future.’ What I think went wrong was that they were discovered too early. They needed to develop more. But what mattered was the ‘You’re all full of shit’ rawness. That was what they were selling, and it was simple and real.”  

By the time the Seattle grunge got the rock music world all shook up in the late 1980s, Hagar was the lead singer of Van Halen, one of the world’s biggest bands, but he was open to the sounds and felt a kinship with the young West Coast artists who, like him, were trying to express themselves through the wonderfully powerful medium of rock and roll.

“Kurt Cobain had a profound influence on me. As soon as I heard and saw grunge, it was like ‘I’m a Fontana guy. LET’S GO.’” 

“Cobain said in interviews that his first concert was Sammy Hagar at the Tacoma Dome. But when grunge really hit, a lot of the young guys coming up were throwing rocks and we were one of the biggest bands in the world. But it was easy for me to go back to my roots, playing barefoot and in shorts, not all dressed up like when we went the wayward way! I saw Alice in Chains and said, ‘Let’s take them on tour with us.’” 

More than the music perhaps, the tragedy of Cobain had a profound impact on Hagar, whose self-described “white light” outlook never blinds him to the realities of life learned early, where the young Hagar faced personal darkness in sunny Fontana. 

In his autobiography, “Red,” Hagar vividly details his hardscrabble early days when his family’s very existence was threatened by the raging alcoholism of his ex-boxer father. I suspect that the pungent blossoms of my memories of the long-gone Fontana orchards may not be as romantically remembered by Hagar.  

Hagar’s mother had to drive the kids into the protective cover of the orange groves to hide from the violent man whose life ended drunk and hand-cuffed in the back of a Fontana police car. 

It’s OK, I’ll do what I want/I can drive/I can shoot a gun in the streets/ Score me some heroin./I can jump/ Be the sacrifice/ Bear the cross just like Jesus Christ/And I don’t wanna hear/What love can do. 

Those words were written in a troubled time in Hagar’s life, when the speeding Van Halen megaband train derailed. 

Like every other turn in Hagar’s long and winding California road, this one led to some incredible successes, many of which seem to only be growing in a multitude of musical adventures and business initiatives. One of the most exciting, to this former IE kid at least, is Stage Red, Sammy’s new theater in Fontana.  

So the story doesn’t end in the orange groves or in a mobile home or lonely out on the dark desert highway those other Californians like to sing about.

Sammy Hagar and the Hagar Family lived, and prospered, with Prodigal Son Sammy in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and somewhere way up in the high rankings of those Forbes celebrity lists. One report has Hagar personally pocketing $125 million for selling his share of the Cabo Wabo brand — long before, we should add, the record will show, a man named Clooney scored big with a rival libation.

Revisiting Fontana with Hagar is a blast, but revisiting Hagar’s body of work yields a rich and newfound appreciation for the depth of feeling and ambitious, restless energy of a California artist who even had a hit record about not accepting any speed limit other than his own. 

From his affecting take on ‘Young Girl Blues’ on the first solo LP, up to his recent plucky, pensive and perfectly beautiful ‘Father Time,’ Hagar has always had more than one gear.

In his late 70s, is Mr. “I Can’t Drive 55” slowing down?  

Out here on Route 66, it doesn’t look that way.  

Sammy’s “Best of All Worlds” tour, which features Hagar along with rock superstars Joe Satriani, Michael Anthony and Jason Bonham, slams into the Kia Forum in Inglewood this summer. If you’re keeping track, that’s nearly 60 years and exactly 67 miles from the Fontana Square Shopping Center Battle of the Bands where “All” started. 

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Thu August 8, 2024

JIM MORRISON CELEBRATION CONCERT FT. WILD CHILD

Doors: 7:30 pm   show: 8:00 pm.

In the aftermath of Jim Morrison’s death in 1971, the surviving members of the Doors tried all sorts of ways to carry on. They initially attempted to soldier forward as a trio with keyboardist Ray Manzarek and guitarist Robby Krieger sharing lead vocals, but they gave that up after just two underwhelming albums. In 2002, Krieger and Manzarek rebooted the band (minus drummer John Densmore and plus singer Ian Astbury) as the Doors of the 21st Century. That project petered out, too, due to a nasty legal battle with Densmore over the use of the Doors name, and Astbury’s commitments to his main band, the Cult.

Fuel’s Brett Scallions and Steelheart’s Miljenko Matijevic both had brief runs fronting the band after Astbury left, but Krieger and Manzarek didn’t settle on a winning formula until 2010, when they brought in Dave Brock, lead singer of the long-running Doors tribute band Wild Child. “We’ve always been kind of afraid to ask him to play with us, because people say, ‘Oh, you’re using a tribute singer. Now you’re your own tribute band,'” Krieger told Billboard in 2011.

“But then Journey got a karaoke singer [Arnel Pineda] and everyone loved it,” he continued. “We said, ‘If they can do that, we can use David.’…. When people come to see Ray and I, they want to see us do the Doors music as it should be done, so why not use a guy who really is an expert? He knows the songs better than we do, really.”

Brock grew up in San Francisco and loved groups like Steppenwolf, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Jefferson Airplane, and Led Zeppelin as a kid. His first concert was Sammy Hagar, and he followed it up with 1978’s Day on the Green featuring AC/DC, Van Halen, Foreigner, and Aerosmith. But a career in music wasn’t much of a thought when he finished high school and enrolled at Long Beach State.

“One of my mother’s last wishes was that I follow business administration,” Brock tells Rolling Stone on the phone from his home in Huntington Beach, California. “She passed away when I was just out of high school. I majored in marketing. I gotta say, it probably did me some good in the career that I’m in.”

During his time at school, he heard a commercial on the radio that Gazzarri’s on the Sunset Strip was going to stage a rock opera dedicated to the life of Jim Morrison.

He’d recently read the Doors biography No One Gets Out of Here Alive , and decided to check out the show. “I drove down there,” he says. “Turned out to be a live audition.

Honestly, it was a surprise. But I got the lead role. I only knew one Doors song, ‘L.A. Woman.’ It was kind of my theme song at the time.”

As the years went by, his knowledge of the Doors went way, way beyond “L.A. Woman.” It was a journey that ultimately led Krieger and Manzarek to tap him as their final Jim Morrison replacement.

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