22-November-2014
Great Hall
 Downpatrick 
Northern Ireland

This was the first night of Van Morrison’s two night stint at this intimate venue and reports coming back from those who had heard some of the sound check promised the unearthing of some rare musical gems. Happily these reports proved well founded and after the usual Celtic Swing opener Van launched into a really vibrant Blue Money which I don’t recall hearing live previously so it was a real treat. Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child followed and this was quite magnificent with backing vocalist Dana Masters making a significant contribution to it’s delivery. 

Next up was a beautiful arrangement of Melancolia which far exceeded the recorded version in my estimation. Without getting time to draw breath we were then brought into mystical territory with a wonderful Someone Like You during which Dana Masters’s superb soulful voice extracted a spontaneous round of applause from the audience. I felt she stole Van’s thunder somewhat on this one but I’m sure he doesn't mind. It was just getting better and better and a thunderous Wavelength followed with superb guitar playing from Dave Keary. The always welcome Enlightenment was followed by a brisk Choppin Wood before Van launched into an extended blues/rock and roll medley starting with Baby Please Don’t Go then onto Parchman Farm before Van and the band let loose on Don’t Start Crying Now/Boppin the Blues/Mean Woman Blues/Shake Rattle and Roll. Van and the band were in rip roaring form during this medley and it fairly brought the house down. A rather short Rough God was ended quickly by Van who seemed unhappy with something so De Niro, Pesci and Clint impressions did not feature at all. 

Magic Time featured some nice piano from Paul Moran who also excelled with a great organ solo on the following number, In the Midnight. Fairly routine versions of Moondance and St. James Infirmary were followed by a fairly rare rendition of Glad Tidings which featured a lot of hand clapping from the band with which the audience joined in. Keep it Simple was sung with great conviction by Van who spat the lyrics out as if he really meant them. The start of this song featured a cameo appearance by one of Van’s crew who upon hearing the opening line charged onto the stage holding Van’s ukulele only to be met by a look from Van which sent him scurrying back off even quicker still holding the ukulele. Great entertainment! The opening bars of Help Me indicated that the night was coming to a close but not before Van brought proceedings right down to a whisper before engaging in a monologue during which he had some sort of imaginary conversation asking whether the person he was talking to was referring to “you know who?” while also making references to blackmail. I don’t really know what this was about but it was certainly something different. Van then thanked the band and departed the stage before returning for a funked up version of Gloria which moved into I Feel Good and gave the band the latitude to really cut loose which they did.

The show clocked in at 1h45m and was a really good one. The inclusion of the rarely played numbers brought an added dimension to the show and served to emphasise the wealth of material in Van’s armoury much of which has been sadly neglected over the years but since the publication of it Lit Up Inside seems to have been revisited by Van which is good news for all his fans.
-Brendan Hynes

Setlist (Thanks David K./Pablo G.)
Celtic Swing
Blue Money
Motherless Child
Melancholia
Someone Like You
Wavelength
Enlightenment
Choppin' Wood
Baby Please Don't Go/Parchman Farm
Rough God Goes Riding
Magic Time
In The Midnight
Moondance
St James Infirmary
Glad Tidings
Keep it Simple
Help Me/Lonely Avenue
Gloria

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