Van still the man as he reinvents finest work
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Saturday Nov 15 2008
Van Morrison has received rave reviews for his live performance of his legendary Astral Weeks album in the 18,000-capacity Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.
Writers with both the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times enthused about his performance of the seminal 1968 album -- regarded by many as his finest work.
And Van revealed how he decided to perform and record the album because two of the musicians involved in the original recording are now dead. Another musician on the original album, bass player Richard Davis, had to pull out of the new recording. His place was taken onstage by longtime band member David Hayes. While he played the entire album, Morrison, nicknamed the Belfast Cowboy by fans, didn't stage them in the same order as on the album.
In a rare interview given before the concert, Van said: "I'm not 'revisiting' it as such. This is a totally different project. I'd always wanted to do these songs fully orchestrated and live but never got around to it. Then I thought that seeing as we had lost drummer Connie Kay and arranger Larry Fallon, I felt I should probably do it now."
Van will release the album as soon as he can on his own Listen To The Lion label. The sing-er, whose partner is Michelle Rocca, divides his time between Dublin and England.
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