New UK Dates For Van

Country-blues legend Van Morrison has added yet more dates to his busy 2006 tour schedule

Van Morrison Blackpool Opera House 06 Oct 2006
Van Morrison York Barbican Centre 07 Oct 2006
Van Morrison Liverpool Philharmonic Hall 20 Oct 2006
Van Morrison Liverpool Philharmonic Hall 21 Oct 2006
Van Morrison Edinburgh Usher Hall 01 Dec 2006
Van Morrison Gateshead Sage Arena 02 Dec 2006
Van Morrison Malvern Forum Theatre 08 Dec 2006
Van Morrison Bristol Colston Hall 09 Dec 2006
Van Morrison Glasgow Clyde Auditorium 15 Dec 2006

Van On Mose Allison TV Special For BBC 4

Mose Allison: Ever Since I Stole the Blues BBC 2 Friday 29th September at 11.35pm

Mose Allison, white Jazz and Blues legend from the Mississippi Delta, inspired key figures in Rock'n'Roll. As Pete Townsend says in the film:
‘Without Mose I wouldn’t have written My Generation’. The film also features Van Morrison, Elvis Costello, Bonnie Raitt, Frank Black, Loudon Wainwright, Ben Sidran, Keb Mo’ and Georgie Fame.

The film also contains exclusive performances of Mose classics by Van Morrison and Loudon Wainwright along with The Who’s barnstorming take on Mose’s Young Man Blues.

"If you're interested in jazz, blues or rock - especially British rock -
then you really need to hear Mose Allison", claims director Paul Bernays.
His film is an affectionate portrait of the jazz-blues legend, taking in
performances and interviews with Mose and such high-profile admirers as Van
Morrison and Elvis Costello.

Concert Review of Ronnie Scott's 24-Sept-06

Lori & Mike Seltzer With Van Before the Ronnie Scott's Gig. It's Also The Seltzer's 30th Wedding Anniversary. Congrats!


Country blues and Celtic soul By Jack Massarik, Evening Standard 25.09.06
Jazz? Well, perhaps not specifically as we know it,
but there's a gritty emotional validity and solid
pulse about Van Morrison's music that always goes
down well at this jazz bastion. And unlike most
chart stars, he also plays acceptable harmonica,
guitar and alto sax.

Two dynamic shows by the Ulster-born
singer-songwriter, whose maverick blend of
countryblues was recently redefined as "Celtic
soul", kept the customers highly satisfied last
night.

Smart in his dark suit and snappy Panama straw hat,
his features no longer obscured by beard and dark
glasses, the former alcoholic and stage-fright
victim sang powerfully and worked hard. Between
numbers he hardly said a word and never cracked a
single smile (in Belfast you can get beaten up for
less) but he did chuckle at his own lyrics
occasionally and looked very nearly laid-back.

Flanked by six men in black and Sarah Jory on
pedal-steel guitar, Morrison revelled in their
warm, Texas-country sound. Fiddler Tom Fitzgibbon,
Hammond-organist Geraint Watkins and Jory were the
pick of the soloists and St James Infirmary also
featured rhythm-guitarist Crawford Bell on trumpet.

Opening with a 1999 hit, Back on Top, the compact
Morrison led them through Mixed Up in Fame,
Stranded on the Edge of World, Choppin' Wood, Tear
Your Playhouse Down, Gotta Stop Drinkin' that Wine,
Precious Time is Slippin' Away and other bluesy
vehicles for his clipped, punchy delivery.

Though not the most inventive of singers, the
62-year-old Van still sounds like a man and knows
how to swing his band. With maturity has also come
the confidence of enjoying a reputation that
passing fashions cannot diminish. By the time he
had got around to Brown-eyed Girl, noisy fans,
including visiting thesps Vince Vaughn and Kevin
Spacey, had been thoroughly converted. And they
didn't even hear Moondance.

Review from Jazzwise
Twenty years ago, ravaged and worn, not long before the end of his life, Chet Baker performed at the old-look Ronnie Scott’s, a little frayed at the edges but still a haunting performer.
With him on that night was Van Morrison and together they performed Stephen Sondheim’s ‘Send In The Clowns’. Chet is no longer with us but Van, in rude health at 61, and looking noticeably slimmer, was back at Ronnie’s last night with a few tricks up his sleeve. Whether the tricks were aces or not took a while to reveal. Opening, with ‘Back On Top’, cautiously and none too happy with the microphone. “If this is the best you can do with the vocals,” he told the sound man ominously, “then we’re going to have problems.” You could hear the whispers of “Here we go” from the crowd, who had stumped up £50 a ticket for the first house. But the microphone problem quickly ceased to be an issue for Van and ‘Talk Is Cheap’ that followed was better, but none too startling. By the third tune Van was settled and the momentum started to gather, with the funked up ‘Fame’, not one of the best tracks on his Blue Note album What’s Wrong With This Picture, but wonderfully cussed here with Morrison’s longstanding beef with the media given another airing as Van sang resignedly, “The press have gone and made another mess of it.”
While Van was in good voice, the band was perfunctory at best. Ned Edwards is a likeable fixture, but no great shakes as either a guitarist or vocalist and it was only Geraint Watkins, on organ, keys and piano who really cut a dash. The violinist Tony Fitzgibbon rose to the occasion but it was the inclusion of a steel guitar player Sarah Jory that really put the stamp on the band. Van has been touring his country album Pay The Devil this year so the inclusion of the steel was not a surprise although the band only played two tunes from the album, the very strongly delivered ‘Playhouse’ and affecting ‘There Stands The Glass’. Interestingly, where the set proved strongest was not in the hits (a tired old stab at ‘Moondance’ and a dull version of ‘Jackie Wilson Said’) but in the blues covers and an affectionate treatment of Mose Allison’s ‘Don’t Worry About A Thing’, actually recorded in Ronnie’s for the album How Long Has This Been Going On? Ronnie’s artistic director Leo Green, who worked with Van for eight years, told me afterwards, “Van’s a blues man, through and through” and on this showing he was at his best when he was at his most primitive and raw as on the dramatic ‘St James’ Infirmary’ and the crowd pleasing ‘Gloria’ that got the well heeled crowd roaring “G-L-O-R-I-A” back at him. It wasn’t quite vintage Van. There was too much ropey saxophone playing made up for by his sassy harmonica lines and the band also failed to add that extra authentic spark he needs. Yet the show acted as a reminder of the abundance of Van’s jazz and blues-rooted vocal gifts. A unique figure, coming to a jazz club he may have done “two bad things: one country, two western”, as he told the audience wryly, but only he can get away with such a mix of music with his miraculous voice and a back catalogue of songs he delivers with rare conviction.
Review: Stephen Graham

Van To Perform On PBS-TV: "Austin City Limits"

Austin City Limits Musical legend Van Morrison wraps his incomparable voice around the soul, blues, folk, jazz and country styles that have been the mainstay of his music for four decades. Featuring songs from his latest album Pay the Devil and timeless Morrison classics, he delivers a spellbinding one hour performance in his first appearance on Austin City Limits.

First broadcast wil be on Nov 18 2006 in some markets and Nov 24th in others - check your local listings for date and time.

Setlist:
1. Choppin' Wood
2. Fame
3. There Stands the Glass
4. Playhouse
5. Stranded
6. Pay the Devil
7. I'm not Feeling it Anymore
8. Cleaning Windows
9. St. James Infirmary
10. That's What Makes the Irish Heart Beat
11. Stop Drinking that Wine Sonny Boy
12. I Can't Stop Loving You
13. Wild Night
14. Cry Cry Baby/Be Bop a Lula
15. Custard Pie
16. Brown Eyed Girl
17. Gloria

Van Entertains At Ryder Cup Gala In Dublin

Van Morrison Entertains Star-Studded Gala Dinner Belfast-born musician surprises VIP guests on an evening of glitz and glamour at City-West

A VIP guest list of 1,400 attended The Ryder Cup Gala Dinner at Dublin’s City-West Hotel, where they were treated to a surprise performance from rock legend Van Morrison.

Among the assembled diners on Wednesday evening were the European and United States team members and their wives or partners, Arnold Palmer, eight-time Major champion and designer of the Ryder Cup course, Dr Michael Smurfit, owner of The K Club, former England cricketer Ian Botham and leading Irish politicians and business entrepreneurs.

First to arrive at City-West were the US Team, all of whom chose to wear a classic black dinner jacket and matching bow tie.

European Captain Ian Woosnam, accompanied by wife Glen, who was dressed by Paul Costello in a sparkling black number, arrived next and led his players past the crowds that had gathered outside in the wind and rain, all eager to be part of the Ryder Cup experience.

The European players wore white tuxedos and red bow ties for the occasion, while almost all their partners were dressed in black.

The Irish political side was represented by John O’Donoghue, Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism, and Mary Coughlan, Minister for Agriculture and Food.

Both will have been delighted with the Irish-inspired menu that included aromatic rack of Wexford lamb with a wild mushroom cream, exclusively prepared by chef Dermot O’Shea.

Ain't That Loving You Baby

From Montreux 1995.

Austin Concert Review 15-Sep-06

Van Morrison (Friday)
By John T. Davis
It is one small measure of Van Morrison’s longevity that the last time I saw him was 27-odd years ago at the inevitably-referred-to “late-lamented” Armadillo World Headquarters. Back then, he stayed over and played a night for free, so enamored he was of the ‘Dillo’s shrimp enchiladas. Someone on hand recalled him swinging from the door lintel of the dressing room, lost in simple bliss. Since then he has put out a score of albums reflecting every prismatic nuance of blues, soul, Celtic gospel, rock and (most lately) country.

Now, three decades later, Van the Man was back in town, as natty as a Martin Scorcese gangster in a suit coat, tinted glasses and a pale fedora. (The illusion was not confined to the stage. A cadre of motorcycle cops and dark limos came sweeping through backstage. I thought for a crazy moment that Charles Attal and Charlie Jones had gone into the funeral business. But of course, it was Morrison and his entourage.)
“Was he always this laid-back?” asked a young fan, who was hoping to hear “Caravan.” Well - yes and no. What might have sounded “laid-back” registered to these ears as smoldering intensity; the precise focus of a master of the game who doesn’t need to squander his focus and energy to achieve a transcendent effect.

Beginning with a tongue-in-groove rendition of “Back On Top,” Morrison wound in and out of his current predilection, country music, as reflected in his latest album, “Pay the Devil.” The Jerry Lee Lewis-weeper “Big Blue Diamonds” shared stage time with a countrypolitan-perfect take on “I Can’t Stop Loving You.” But it is part of Morrison’s gift to segue from country to Muscle Shoals-style soul (“It’s All in the Game”) to swampy blues (he pulled out the sax for “St. James Infirmary”) to the Muhammad Ali rock ‘n’ roll combination of “Brown Eyed Girl,” “Wild Night” and “Gloria.”
There is, however, one moment that lingers. Far back in the crowd, a quarter-mile from the stage, a little kid stared in wonderment as all the grown-ups around him rose to their feet and began swaying and singing in unison. He probably didn’t know there was a guy onstage with the improbable name of Van Morrison singing a song called “Brown Eyed Girl.” It hardly mattered. The song still has the power to engender the same sense of wonder and delight in children today as it did in their parents. And, if everything works out just right, that youngster may tell his kids about sitting in a field on a late summer night listening to Van Morrison sing.

Phoenix Concert Review 13-Sept-06

Van Morrison makes first Valley visit in 28 years
Michael Senft
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 14, 2006 02:33 AM
Van Morrison Concert - Sept. 13, 2006

It was a marvelous night for a Moondance on Wednesday when Van Morrison made his first Valley appearance in 28 years at Cricket Pavilion. And the legendary Irish singer made up for the wait with a passionate, if short, set to his adoring Valley fans.

Taking the stage at 7:30 without an opening act, many expected Morrison to play an extended set, however he only sang for about 90 minutes.

But what a 90 minutes they were.
After his backup band played the rollicking Boogie Woogie Country Girl with guitarist Ned Edwards handling the vocals, Morrison emerged in a sharp suit and fedora, taking the mike for Back on Top. He proceeded to wail, scat and growl his way through 20 stellar tunes ranging from his days with the garage band Them through his recent country CD, Pay the Devil.

The crowd was most receptive to the classics like Moondance and Cleaning Windows, but his ten-piece band seemed muted on those tunes. While they gave passionate performances, the music was overpowered by Morrison's soulful shouting.

It didn't slow the performance, however.

As the band kicked into the Them classic Here Comes the Night, the show catapulted to a new level of passion. A fiery reading of the R&B chestnut Baby Please Don't Go was another climax.

It also marked Morrison starting to have some sort of technical problem onstage. He was gesturing at his mike and monitors to the roadies during Precious Time, and growing visibly upset as the problems didn't get fixed.

But his anger only seemed to fuel his performance, driving his emotional singing to a new level on the classic Wild Night, which finally got the audience to its feet. And when he followed it with Brown-Eyed Girl they were dancing in the aisles.

A passionate Gloria closed out the evening and Morrison left without an encore.

But truly nothing could have topped the finale he'd already delivered.

Setlist:
Boogie Woogie Country Girl
Back on Top
Pay the Devil
Stop Drinking
There Stands the Glass
Cleaning Windows
Days Like This
Wonderful Remark
Stranded
Moondance
Jackie Wilson Said
Bright Side of the Road
Playhouse
Here Comes the Night
Help Me
Baby Please Don't Go
Precious Time
Don't Start Crying Now/Custard Pie
Wild Night
Brown-Eyed Girl
Gloria

Van Morrison plays no-frills show at Cricket
By Chris Hansen Orf, Get Out
September 14, 2006
Rock stars are known for many things, but punctuality and a strict onstage demeanor are not among them. For instance, when it says "7:30 p.m." on a concert ticket, that usually means the show will start at 8 p.m. or so, after the crowd has all wandered through the gates and finished standing in the long beer lines.
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Wednesday night, before rock legend Van Morrison took the stage to play his first Valley concert in 28 years, Cricket Pavilion staffers walked the parking lot announcing through booming megaphones that the show would "begin at 7:30 SHARP!"

Signs at the box office reminded concert-goers of the same thing, with strategically placed flyers, adding that there would be no opening act.

And they weren't kidding.

While the crowd was still filtering in to reserved seating and the lawn area was about half full, Morrison's 10 piece band (which included Asleep At The Wheel's famed pedal steel player Cindy Cashdollar) played "Boogie Woogie Country Girl," and then the legend himself, dressed in a black suit, white fedora and sunglasses, took the stage at just after 7:30 p.m., sending the late arrivals scrambling for their seats.

The Belfast, Northern Ireland-born Morrison kicked off his set with the title cut to his latest album, "Pay the Devil," which is largely a disc of classic country covers and a few self-penned tunes, and kept things rolling with the Webb Pierce honky tonk classic "There Stands the Glass."

If most of the fans were there to hear Morrison's 1967 Top 10 hit "Brown Eyed Girl," they had to wait a while, as the singer slowly added older tunes such as "Cleaning Windows" and "Days Like This" before donning a saxophone for the jazzy classic "Moondance," which had the crowd singing, clapping and snapping their fingers as Morrison showed some impressive sax chops during the solo section.

The artist, whose stage presense when not singing, consists of standing in one spot and pointing to band members when it's their turn to solo, revved things up with the Them (Morrison's mid-'60s band) classic "Here Comes the Night," then closed the tight 90-minute set with his hits “Wild Night,” “Brown Eyed Girl” and “Gloria.”

While Morrison barely spoke to the crowd, save for a "thank you" after a few selections, he did audibly tell his guitarist to "play rhythm" on a song the guy was playing lead on, and brought a stage hand over to chide, "There's too much echo in the mics."

"It sounds like he's shaking the dust out of the closet," said Patrick Whalen, 49, of Scottsdale. "He's rough on his band -- he should loosen up and let it flow from the soul. He's a great musician, though -- he's written some of the best music ever."

It was not a grandiose stage production, however, that brought fans out, it was Morrison's timeless R&B-laced rock 'n' roll.

Tony Duran, 59, of Phoenix said Van Morrison was much better on Wednesday than the previous time he saw him perform.

"The last time I saw him, 28 years ago at the Celebrity Theatre, a drunken guest threw a beer can on stage and he walked off and didn't come back," Duran says. "This time there was no jive, he just played. It was like watching a jazz band."

Berkeley Concert Review 12-Sept-06

Van's 'Back on Top' in Berkeley By Jim Harrington

The Belfast Cowboy rode into Berkeley and presented a very memorable night of music Tuesday.

It wasn't quite as good as the show Van Morrison put on at the Masonic Auditorium in San Francisco back in March. But it was far better than the majority of Morrison gigs that I've seen in 14 years of reviewing live music in the Bay Area.

The 61-year-old native of Northern Ireland, as has been well documented, has certainly turned in his share of mediocre performances over the course of his legendary career. Yet it's been impossible to write him off as live performer since he's sporadically shown the ability to lift his game to a very high level — which is exactly what happened at the Greek Theatre.

Tuesday night's show had one thing going for it from the get-go: the start time.

Earlier this year, his Masonic gig started promptly at 6:45 p.m. On a Friday night. In the parking hell of San Francisco's Nob Hill. That meant that anyone who didn't live in the City by the Bay had a really difficult time getting to the show on time.

In contrast, his Greek gig started at the more reasonably time of 7:30 p.m. That made things easier, but still not great. Without the cushion provided by an opening act, Van the Man took the stage promptly at 7:30 p.m. (maybe 7:28 p.m.) and many folks were still trying to find their seats as late as the fourth song.

Those latecomers didn't miss all that much. It took Morrison a few songs to warm up, and he really didn't start rolling until a third of the way into his 90-minute set.

Backed by a group of fine players, including steel-guitar guru Cindy Cashdollar, the rock icon first hit the crowd with an average take on the title track on 1999's "Back on Top."

At this point, we were forced to take his word — he didn't initially do anything to show us that he was, indeed, "Back on Top." He followed with another lukewarm offering, the title track to this year's "Pay the Devil."

Things began to click for Van the Man a few songs later as he jumped and jived his way through "Fame," one of the more memorable cuts from 2003's jazz-influenced "What's Wrong With This Picture?" CD. His winning ways continued on the sweet "Irish Heartbeat."

Morrison was really feeling it by the time he hit, ironically, "I'm Not Feeling It Anymore" from 1991's superb

"Hymns to the Silence" disc. The band, which seemed to feed off its leader instead of the other way around, was also flying at full throttle by midway through the concert.

The vocalist then called out a special guest — and, no, it wasn't Carlos Santana, the usual guest at seemingly all Bay Area concerts. He brought out his daughter Shana Morrison for a touching family duet on "Sometimes We Cry," the tender ballad found on 1997's "Healing Game."

Making an abrupt left turn, Morrison plunged headfirst into the rowdy rambler "Playhouse," one of a handful original compositions from the cover-song heavy "Pay the Devil." The tune featured some of Cashdollar's most impressive slide work of the night.

The highlight of the show came when Morrison grabbed the alto sax for the traditional "Saint James Infirmary," a tune he recorded on the "What's Wrong With This Picture?" album. That gorgeous number is a regular highlight of recent Morrison shows, and it certainly wowed fans at the Masonic back in March.

Vocally, Morrison played it fairly straightforward, keeping the scatting and tomfoolery to a minimum, as he sang warm versions of the classic hits "Moondance" and "Jackie Wilson Said (I'm in Heaven When You Smile)." In general, he did a better job with the hits on this night than he did at the Masonic. Conversely, the "Pay the Devil" tracks performed at the Greek didn't quite live up to the memories of March.

Morrison closed the show strongly, ending the main set with hyped-up versions of "Wild Night" and "Brown Eyed Girl" then returning for an encore of the immortal "Gloria."

It's hard to argue with those three selections, so I won't even try. Instead, I'll just hand it to Van the Man for living up to his nickname in Berkeley.

Write music critic Jim Harrington at jharrington@angnewspapers.com. For more concert coverage, visit http://www.insidebayarea.com/music.

Van To Get Pre-Oscars Honour

Oscar Wilde: Honouring Irish Writing in Film Van Morrison is to be honoured for his musical contribution to film at a star-studded bash ahead of next year’s Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles, it was revealed today.

The Belfast-born star is to be one of three Irish people recognised at the second annual Oscar Wilde: Honouring Irish Writing in Film party in February. The other two have yet to be named.

Morrison’s music has featured in nearly 50 films including the upcoming Martin Scorcese crime thriller The Departed.

His songs have also appeared in Breakfast On Pluto, What a Girl Wants, The Royal Tenenbaums, Brigid Jones’ Diary, One Fine Day, When a Man Love a Woman, Thelma and Louise and As Good As It Gets.

Film directors Neil Jordan and Jim Sheridan, along with music producer and DJ David Holmes, were honoured at last year’s inaugural celebration.

Big screen luminaries including Jodie Foster, Terrence Howard and Angelica Houston were among those who turned out for the party.

The US-Ireland Alliance, set up to foster links between both countries, co-hosts the event with the Irish Film Board before the annual Academy Awards ceremony.

Trina Vargo, founder and president of the alliance, said the event was also about bringing together leaders in Irish and Hollywood film at a fun, casual party.

She said it was a great precursor to the black tie and couture evenings during the Oscars.

Phoenix Proclaims "Van Morrison Day" in Honor of Performance

Phoenix Arizona East Valley City News
September 11 , 2006 by Kathleen Gorden

District 5 Councilman Claude Mattox will read Mayor Phil Gordon's official proclamation declaring Wednesday, Sept. 13, "Van Morrison Day" in Phoenix. The Councilman, who represents much of west Phoenix and sings in the Screamin' Javelinas band, will make the presentation before the legendary musician/singer's 7:30 p.m. Wednesday night concert at Cricket Pavilion, 2121 N. 83rd Ave.
"We are excited that Van Morrison is including Cricket Pavilion and Phoenix in his tour and look forward to hearing his new music, while enjoying some old favorites," said Mattox. "We're proud to recognize him for his great musical accomplishments."
Morrison has not played in the Valley in decades and the city wanted to take the opportunity to recognize him for his 40-year musical career. His new album "Pay The Devil" is a mix of new songs and originals, including some country classics like “Your Cheatin' Heart" and "Things Have Gone To Pieces."
For information or tickets, call Ticketmaster at 480-784-4444 or visit www.ticketmaster.com or www.livenation.com.