Van Morrison - Astral Weeks
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Free Music Notes for Astral Weeks
Free Music Review: This album blows me away
Hit: 5 Stars
This album is absolutely phenomenal. This is one of the most personal, beautiful artistic statements I can think of. It is like a diary, but better, because the music adds color and depth that no words can describe. It is rare when the music compliments the singer so well... it is as if the musicians are from the same vein, the same heart. This cd is perfect, beginning to end; musically and lyrically. Van Morrison will show you his lowest low and ever so sweetly, he will take you away to a place that is timeless, a place so wonderful it will make you want to weep... because you know that at some point it will have to end. And what a sad ending it is to this miraculous cd. But you can always press repeat. :) Free Music Review: Why records are made
Hit: 5 Stars
It's easy to see join the club of Van Morrison enthusiasts when we're talking Astral Weeks. Simply put, it is a record that reminds me why we make records: to make us feel something. From scratch. Few cds in the collection have the ability to conjure me from a couch, but Astral Weeks' thrilling roughness, merciless grooviness and downright seriousness can actually make me dance without wondering how I look... which makes this record a dangerous one as well.Free Music Review: A bona fide classic that deserves deluxe treatment.
Hit: 5 Stars
It doesn't get better than this.
It's primarily Van and his acoustic guitar, a tight jazz rhythm section (but has Van far more in the forefront than he would be in later recordings where he blends in more), with vibes and flutes rounding it out.
Every song is great. They speak for themselves and it's really hard to believe that the man who came up with garage rock classic "Gloria" and the singalong "Brown Eyed Girl" would come up with something like this.
Each song is clear, poetic, and like a painting, you come back to and look at to appreciate it as well as study it.
I think some people should check out the "Bang" era recordings to see how a couple of the songs started out, and when he played the coffeehouses in Boston, the songs were reworked into what would wind up here.
The only recommendation I could make are putting out the demos (none of which made it to "Philosopher's Stone", try to dig up the few TV appearances he did at the time (WPIX and in Boston), as well as Peter Wolf of J. Geils Band releasing his tape of the types of shows he was doing at the time, which is as important as Velvet Underground's "Live at Max's" or "1969" because the way these songs are done have never been the same since.
Free Music Review: One of the best albums in Pop history
Hit: 5 Stars
Astral Weeks is generally considered one of the best albums in pop music history. For all that renown, Astral Weeks is anything but an archetypal rock & roll album: in fact, it isn't a rock & roll album at all. Employing a mixture of folk, blues, jazz, and classical music, Van Morrison spins out a series of extended ruminations on his Belfast upbringing, including the remarkable character "Madame George" and the climactic epiphany experienced on "Cyprus Avenue." Accompanying himself on acoustic guitar, Morrison sings in his elastic, bluesy voice, accompanied by a jazz rhythm section (Jay Berliner, guitar, Richard Davis, bass, Connie Kay, drums), plus reeds (John Payne) and vibes (Warren Smith Jr.), with a string quartet overdubbed. An emotional outpouring cast in delicate musical structures, Astral Weeks has a unique musical power. Unlike any record before or since, it nevertheless encompasses the passion and tenderness that have always mixed in the best postwar popular music, easily justifying the critics' raves.Free Music Review: Best work
Hit: 5 Stars
This album is mystical and beautiful, a true work of art. I thought tracks like Wild Night and Tupelo Honey were great, and they are, but Astral Weeks is so simple and relaxing, its a pleasure just to kick back and listen. The title track, Madame George, and Slim Slow Slider are my favorites. Astral Weeks totally changed my mind about Van Morrison, he's awesome.