23-August-2014
Orangefield High School
 Belfast, Northern Ireland

Brendan sent in his thought on the gig
This was the second night of Van Morrison’s three night stint at his old school and the only one of the three officially open to members of the general public who were not former pupils or teachers.With Van’s mother, Violet in attendance and sitting proudly up front to see her son bring it all back home this promised to be a night to remember and it certainly was that and more.

Opening as usual with the instrumental Celtic Swing, Van then drew one of the first of many rousing cheers from the audience as he referenced Orangefield during Got To Go Back. The aforementioned Orangefield song of the same name quickly followed and provided the first of many highlights on this night of nights. The song was particularly notable for the great brass arrangement and some particularly ferocious strumming of the electric guitar from Van mid way through which added to the sheer power of the delivery. Choppin Wood was delivered at a blistering pace before Van brought things to a slower tempo with the beautiful Someone Like You which featured guest backing vocalist Dana Masters singing a couple of verses with a voice as smooth as velvet. The up tempo Cleaning Windows was somewhat disjointed at first but the band pulled it back together so that it eventually sounded as one would hope and expect.A really nice Enlightenment followed with Van on harmonica before a nice surprise followed in Wonderful Remark during which the brass section really excelled. A very strong Retreat and View was followed by Moondance which was notable for a particularly nifty piece of bass playing by Paul Moore.Van then made his way to the piano and delivered a sublime Northern Muse(Solid Ground) which drew a rapturous audience reaction. Van had brought us into the sacred mystical territory that many of us love so much and he followed with a mesmeric Celtic Excavation/Into the Mystic. Van brought the band’s volume way way down as he repeated the phrases “turn around”and “hand on my shoulder”over and over to a hushed audience before bringing the song to it’s conclusion. Magic Time continued the mystical mood before a change of tempo saw Whenever God Shines His Light, Sometimes We Cry and Rough God Goes Riding (the Clint Eastwood impression must have bitten the dust tonight and did not feature) delivered in quick succession.All three songs featured Dana Masters trading vocals in fine style with Van. As the concert headed towards it’s climax Van delivered a strong That’s Life during which he started to giggle and somewhat distracted asking “where was I”which drew a response of “rolled up in a big ball”from some of the more helpful attendees. The song had a rather unorthodox conclusion with Van looking somewhat bemused by the band’s interpretation of how the ending should sound. Van then brought us on a communal journey way way back as he sang/read/chanted his way through On Hyndford Street before exiting the stage chanting and leaving the audience breathless. One sensed that this may the end but Van had other ideas and came back to finish us off with a final coup de grace which was manifested in a magnificent 13 minute In The Garden.When Van had thanked the band and left the stage we were treated to a series of virtuoso solos from the band members who were armed with the raw material of one of the most beautiful melodies ever written by Van or indeed any artist as the audience clapped along wildly. It was a fitting climax to a wonderful concert.

It was clear to the lucky 300 or so present that the young Ivan Morrison certainly learned a thing or two at Orangefield High School!
-Brendan Hynes

Setlist (Thanks Wim)
Celtic Swing
Got To Go Back
Orangefield
Choppin Wood
Someone Like You
Cleaning Windows
Enlightenment
Wonderful Remark
Retreat and View
Moondance
Northern Muse (Solid Ground)
Into The Mystic
Magic Time
Whenever God Shines His Light
Sometimes We Cry
Rough God Goes Riding
That's Life
On Hyndford Street
In The Garden

Big Hand for The Band!
Chris White (Saxophone)
Alistair White (Trombone)
Dave Keary (Guitar)
Paul Moore (Bass)
Paul Moran (Keyboards)
Bobby Ruggiero (Drums)
Special Guest: Dana Masters(Vocals)