Van Morrison's Astral Weeks: Classic or Dud

i like it -- yeah plenty of "where are you going with this" moments, but i sorta enjoy its ramble. and yeah, it gets you going back to the music.

Seems like the breakup of Them -> release of Astral Weeks would be a good period to cover in one book; would also like a book that's just straight-up storytelling and no extraneous flabby critical analysis

(so basically I want 200 pages of that awesome article)

Seems like the breakup of Them -> release of Astral Weeks would be a good period to cover in one book; would also like a book that's just straight-up storytelling and no extraneous flabby critical analysis

― Brio2, Monday, March 30, 2015 5:54 PM (39 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I don't know if there was a break up of Them. Van left and several members continued for another 3 lps before morphing into a band called Truth

right - I just meant Van leaving Them. I've always been curious about the post-Van Them stuff.

i haven't heard all of those post van them records, but i remember some of it being surprisingly good.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVCvi4aNLc8

According to Wikipedia there was a Them, a "The Other Them", and the Belfast Gypsies (with THEM in huge letters on their album cover) all playing at the same time.

and there was more than one Them as early as '65!

confusing.
hadn't seen this before, pretty amazing
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKuM5oKk0es

Arizona Jones has posted 1970/71 shows, incl one with a 12-minute version of "Astral Weeks." Haven't had tyme to listen yet, but all the AJ posts I have checked are worth hearing. Here's the one with "Astral Weeks":
http://arizjones.blogspot.com/2015/04/van-morrison-fillmore-west-10-09-1970.html

The AJ posts I've heard are by other artists, no idea yet re his Van shows (some of which have songs I've never heard, unlike this set; gotta check 'em all)

Well actually looks like there's just one other Van show still up, but intriguing (and lengthy) set list:
http://arizjones.blogspot.com/2015/04/van-morrison-san-anselmo-ca-8-08-1971.html

@Dow. More than just one more. Here are a bunch. Enjoy!
http://arizjones.blogspot.com/2015/03/van-morrison-marin-ca-9-05-1971-fm.html
http://arizjones.blogspot.com/2014/12/van-morrison-london-3-21-1982-sbd.html
http://arizjones.blogspot.com/2014/11/van-morrison-montreux-11-07-1990-sbd.html
http://arizjones.blogspot.com/2014/10/van-morrison-glastonbury-festival-6-21.html
http://arizjones.blogspot.com/2014/07/van-morrison-montreux-7-10-1980.html

Wow, thanks so much!

When the reissue of Astral Weeks comes out one of the alternate takes will be an apparently legendary long version of Slim Slow Slider. This guy interviewed John Payne, the soprano sax player on the tune: http://throwingpenniesbridges.blogspot.com/2015/08/it-had-just-blown-them-away.html

OK, I'm so ready to hear this.

wowww

I woke up at 5am today, anyway I've been trying to set up all our household bills on to this online bill pay system so I went down in the basement where the computer is. Threw on the Rhino vinyl reissue from a couple years ago. I was having trouble getting my credit card account to connect to the site, and all of a sudden "Madam George" came on and I just started crying it was so pretty, right at the part where she says my love you forgot your gloves.

The bit that always does it for me is "laughing music dancing music all around the room"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H66PEecCo9g
unedited bonus track of 'slim slow slider' (for some reason shown as being from His Band and the Street Choir)... interesting to say the least...

listened to this for the first time in years the other night. my sister & brother-in-law visited last weekend, we had a fire going in the fireplace, had been smoking a little weed and drinking a little bit, this is like my sister's favorite album so she asked to put it on, the line that got all of us was "for instance me baby" from ballerina

xp editing out that last bit may have been the single best production choice made for that record, damn

Going to see if that new edition is in HMV tomorrow.

I see it gets reviewed in the new Uncut, couldn't check the Mojo since it was sealed in a bag around a book about the Dylan bootleg series. Both had just appeared in the local newsagent when i was in town yesterday.

Still wondering how extensive the physical cd releases on the Legacy material are after reading that Record Collector news last month.

xp yeah, that edit is a stroke of genius, like falling off a cliff or something. still kind of happy to hear that last bit w/ van breaking into a hymn, which would've ended the album on a decidedly different note...

I've now heard both cds and they sound pretty great. B&SC sounds less muddy than I've heard it elsewhere.
AW is fantastic, great to have it on a decent sounding cd at last.

AW remaster sounded crisp and overwhelming as I drove across the GG bridge this morning. In parts it almost becomes chaotic with all the instruments so clearly present.