25-March-2015
Royal Albert Hall
 London, England

Brendan sent in this review
Given that this concert for the Teenage Cancer Trust coincided with the worldwide release of Van Morrison's new Duets album and that there were rumours of many special guests there was a great sense of anticipation in the air before the concert. As it transpired, the rumours proved well founded with no less than five special guests partaking at various stages during the night.

The opening Celtic Swing featured a much longer intro than usual from the band which was really nice and then Van appeared playing saxophone to bring the song to it's conclusion. Higher Than The World followed and while it did not feature any duet it was very impressive. Van then introduced Clare Teal who performed a beautiful duet with Van on Carrying A Torch. A surprise followed with a further duet between them on The Way Young Lovers Do. What really struck me during this number however was how much the absent brass section is missed at times, particularly on a song like this. The brass element has been synonymous with the'Van Morrison sound' throughout almost all of Van's career and it's absence results in Paul Moran having to double up on trumpet solos during particular songs leaving the piano/organ unplayed while he is doing so. Very strange!

Baby Please Don't Go/Parchman Farm/Don't Start Crying Now were powerful as always and went down a storm. Roger Daltrey then joined in on Talk Is Cheap to Van's obvious delight and while his voice was no match for Van's he contributed some fine harmonica playing.Following this, Van asked if anyone had heard of P.J.Proby(who must have been delighted with this introduction) before PJ and Van dueted nicely on Whatever Happened To PJ Proby. Pretty surreal really!.PJ then contributed a song he wrote in tribute to Van in his hotel room after seeing him in concert a few years ago. The kindest thing I can say about this song is that I don't quite see it re-launching PJ's career in any major way. Their final duet delivered a nice version of Sam Cooke's Bring It On Home To Me.

Precious Time provided a filler before Georgie Fame appeared for a good duet on Get On With The Show which has more than a passing resemblance to Stand By Me. Van then announced that as Georgie Fame was on stage they would play some jazz and my heart immediately sank. No Vanlose Stairway and instead we got fairly mundane versions of Symphony Sid and Centrepiece/Corinne Corinna. Georgie Fame's exit was followed by an uninspired Days Like This and I feared the worst but when Van announced Mick Hucknall I knew what was coming and they certainly delivered on a wonderful performance of Streets Of Arklow which saw both singers scale the vocal heights and Paul Moran contribute magnificently with an organ sound throughout that swirled all around the famous concert hall. This was musical magnificence and Van summed it up perfectly at the conclusion when he said "wasn't that really something?".

Moondance, Magic Time (featuring another great organ solo from Paul Moran) and Brown Eyed Girl brought a bit of a lull to proceedings but thankfully Van delivered yet again with a superb Celtic Excavation/Into The Mystic during which I heard gasps of astonishment at various stages from several members of the audience at the wonder of it all. When Van departed the stage he continued to sing on in the wings for what seemed like an age only stopping when drummer Bobby Ruggiero's booming voice cut in to shout VAN MORRISON. The band continued to play on until it became clear Van would return which he did for a beautiful In The Garden which featured really fine guitar from Dave Keary and piano from Paul Moran before Van left the stage and the band played on for several minutes to a standing ovation. That's just the way to provide a fitting end to a Van Morrison concert.

This concert was rather unusual in that it included several moments of absolute musical magnificence which were matched in almost equal measure by moments of comparative mediocrity. However it is the former, including those possibly never to be repeated duets with Mick Hucknall and Clare Teal, which will provide the lasting memories and were worth the admission price alone. Van's voice was really powerful throughout and the vast expanses of the Royal Albert Hall failed to inhibit it's impact.
-Brendan Hynes

Uncut 
What to expect from a Van Morrison concert, then? Morrison, of course, has a reputation as an unpredictable live performer. Anecdotal evidence gathered from around the Uncut office suggests he is just as capable of transcendent moments of sublime mystery as he is of turning in perfunctory, no frills sets. Will he favour the roaming spirit of his peerless Seventies albums, or the blues and R&B numbers from his youth that have become increasingly foregrounded in his live sets? Tonight, there are two additional elements that might inform the tone of tonight’s show. First, this is part of this year’s run of Teenage Cancer Trust shows; a cause that obliges the artist to ensure they’re at their best. Secondly, this show convenient falls close to the release date of his new album, Duets: Reworking The Catalogue, and there is in all likelihood an imperative to support that.

As it transpires, all these things become to some degree relevant. Critically, we get an avuncular Morrison. He is hardly an unstoppable raconteur – he says very little, in fact – but his demeanour suggests he is at the very least enjoying himself. Sauntering on stage a few minutes after his band have started playing the light, jazzy grooves of “Celtic Swing”, he joins in with an expansive saxophone solo. His five piece backing band are dressed soberly in blacks and greys; Morrison himself wears a black suit, hat and sunglasses. I’m reminded to some extent of Dylan’s current touring band: another group of well-drilled musicians who are sensitive and discretely responsive to both the material and the demands of a notoriously capricious frontman. Under Morrison’s current musical director Paul Moran, they hold the line admirably. Admittedly, it’s not that difficult in the early part of the show. No sooner have the band warmed up, than Morrison introduces his new album to the audience and brings on the first of tonight’s duet partners, Clare Teal, for “Carrying A Torch” and “The Way Young Lovers Do”. The vibes are a little Pizza Express Jazz Club; fortunately, Morrison moves on to a persuasive version of “Baby Please Don’t Go” before he is joined by Teenage Cancer Trust founder Roger Daltrey for “Talk Is Cheap”, which never quite lifts off. Perhaps they’re under-rehearsed, but instead of the fiery R&B thrill they’re presumably aiming for, the song feels sluggish where it should swing.

Personally, I find this section of the show a little difficult to get my head round. As he brings out PJ Proby for three songs, including one of Proby’s own and a cover of Sam Cooke’s “Bring It On Home To Me”, it begins to feel suspiciously like two old mates have a laugh. Morrison dwells too long here and what could passably be considered a generous act of sharing the stage with a favourite contemporary begins to feel like an indulgence. Things pick up, though, when Georgie Fame sits in for a handful of songs. This seems to change the shape of the music; the songs become looser, jazzier, fuller. The night’s brief collaboration with Fame culminates in a warm, gently swaying version of “Centrepiece”, which seems to segue into Dylan’s “Corrina Corrina”, lubricated by Morrison’s extraordinary baritone and Fame’s evocative Hammond playing. Fame is followed by Mick Hucknall, who gives a pleasingly restrained and sympathetic reading of “Streets Of Arklow”.

By this point, it’s increasingly hard to guess where Morrison is going with his set. Is this a promo job for the Duets album, an opportunity to dust down some old R&B and soul covers or a leisurely trip through his capacious back catalogue? Or is it all three? And if so, is the balance of material right? But then he pulls out a final clutch of songs that showcase not only his most famous work but also mark a foray into the wild beauty of those Celtic landscapes. “Moondance” appears as its lightest and most delicate, lifted by some nimble sax work from Morrison. “Magic Time” continues to illustrate Morrison at his freewheeling best before we get a galloping “Brown Eyed Girl”. For a finale, he plays magical, meandering versions of “Into The Mystic” and “In The Garden”, rich in wonderment, that transport and elevate.

It’s arguable to a point that Morrison is at a place now where he is entitled to play what he wants, when he wants. Indeed, some might find the digressions into old soul and R&B pleasing in their own right. But there’s enough in Morrison’s own formidable back catalogue that he doesn’t need to dwell too long in other people’s music. We are here for the mystic; and when it finally arrives, it is a most astonishing thing.
-Michael Bonner

Setlist
Celtic Swing
Higher Than The World
Carrying a Torch w/Clare Teal
Young Lovers Do w/Clare Teal
Baby Please Don't Go/Parchman Farm/Don't Start Crying Now 
Talk is Cheap w/Roger Daltrey
Whatever Happened to PJ Proby w/PJ Proby
P.J. Proby Calling Van Morrison w/PJ Proby
Bring It On Home To Me w/PJ Proby
Precious Time
Get On With The Show w/Georgie Fame
New Symphony Sid w/Georgie Fame
Centerpiece w/Georgie Fame
Days Like This
Streets of Arklow w/Mick Hucknall
Moondance
Magic Time
Brown Eyed Girl
Into the Mystic
In The Garden

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

16-March-2015
Europa Hotel
 Belfast, Northern Ireland

Here's Brendan's thoughts on night two in Belfast
The opening instrumental piece was quickly followed by a straight forward Close Enough For Jazz before the first real highlight was delivered in Higher Than The World. In The Midnight saw guitarist Dave Keary once again put through his paces on impossibly high vocals before Precious Time provided an early reality check. Playhouse moved along at breakneck speed before a really nice Centrepiece featuring a lovely extended instrumental opening was performed and the song later merged with Corrina Corrina. Back On Top was the rather jazzy version and was quickly followed by Baby Please Don’t Go/Parchman Farm/Don’t Start Crying Now which were more or less as played the previous night and again went down a treat. More and More may have been appreciated by country fans in the audience (if there were any) but I am not among them (precious time is ticking away being an apt description of what I was feeling at this point).I Can’t Stop Loving You was then strongly delivered by Van to get things back on course.

I’m Carrying A Torch got another welcome airing and was a real tour de force before Van strapped on the guitar and started to play the opening notes of And The Healing Has Begun. No sooner had he done so than the guitar came off again with Van clearly unhappy with what he was hearing. A stage crew member took it away and returned after a while with what appeared to be a different guitar before retreating slowly and nervously backwards off the stage all the time looking straight at Van for a reaction. Luckily all was well and Van continued on to perform an extended and quite wonderful version bringing us all down the back streets and doing that singing over his guitar playing that so many of us love so much and which is somewhat of a trademark for Van. The song was also notable for some lovely bass playing by Paul Moore.

Things I Used To Do featured Paul Moran prominently on organ and was followed by a rare but well received thumping version of Wild Night. Wild Honey got another rare airing and featured a wonderful organ solo from Paul Moran. However Dana Masters’ backing vocals were for some reason almost totally inaudible and this was a recurring problem on the night which detracted somewhat from the overall performance. After strong renditions of Whenever God Shines His Light and Early In The Morning Van brought the concert to it’s conclusion exactly as on the previous night with Help Me, Think Twice Before You Go and finally Gloria which was quite a funked up version once Van had departed and saw Dave Keary give us a few bars of Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll before finally Paul Moran indulged himself on his new favourite toy in the form of a synthesizer.

I felt this was the stronger of the two shows without ever reaching the heights(with a few notable exceptions) that one always hopes for when attending a Van Morrison concert.
-Brendan Hynes

Setlist (Thanks to John Z.)
Yo
Close Enough for Jazz
Higher Than the World
In the Midnight
Precious Time
Playhouse
Centerpiece/Corinna Corrina/Centerpiece
Back on Top
Baby Please Don't Go/Parchment Farm/Cry Cry Baby
More and More
I Can't Stop Loving You
Carrying a Torch
And the Healing Has Begun
Things I Used To Do
Wild Night
Wild Honey
Whenever God Shines His Light
Early in the Morning
Help Me
Think Twice Before You Go
Gloria

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

15-March-2015
Europa Hotel
 Belfast, Northern Ireland

Brendan sent in this review
The first night of Van Morrison’s two night stint got off to a fairly mundane start with the instrumental Caledonia Swing being followed by a rare performance of Hey Mr. DJ and then Moondance. Things picked up considerably with another fine rendition of I Believe To My Soul and then Magic Time which included a nice organ solo from Paul Moran. Sometimes We Cry featured another great organ solo and was a really strong rendition which got a great audience response. You Don’t Know Me featured great vocals from both Van and Dana Masters and a great trumpet solo from the versatile and somewhat overworked Paul Moran. Baby Please Don’t Go/Parchman Farm/Don’t Start Crying Now were powerfully delivered as usual to great acclaim. The welcome intro to In The Afternoon was met with several shouts of ‘Ancient Highway’ from some of the more excitable attendees and Van delivered a wonderful version while Paul Moore delivered some lovely bass towards the song’s conclusion. This song was probably the highlight of the night but we were soon brought down to earth with Precious Time which at least pleased those hoping for ‘the hits’.I’m Carrying A Torch featured a great exchange of vocals by Van and Dana and was a welcome addition to the set. Things I Used To Do fairly chugged along before Days Like This was produced apparently as a Mother’s Day tribute. Real Real Gone has got a new lease of life since one of Van’s musical heroes, Michael Buble dueted with him on it for the new album and it really went down well as did Whenever God Shines His Light which followed. A nice Enlightenment was followed by Van saying we would now have some rock and roll and he proceeded to play Jambalaya which was nothing special. In The Garden was a much shortened 3-4 minute version which proved pretty disappointing as a result. Brown Eyed Girl was just what one would expect and led towards the fast paced conclusion consisting of Help Me, Think Twice Before You Go and finally Gloria with no encore to follow.

This was a pretty average show in my view but one which nevertheless had some moments of real high quality. For anyone hoping for plenty of blues numbers and a high volume of the so called hit songs this was just the show to go to.
-Brendan Hynes

Setlist (Thanks John Z.)
Caledonia Swing
Hey Mr. DJ
Moondance/My Funny Valentine
I Believe To My Soul
Magic Time
Sometimes We Cry
You Don't Know Me
Baby Please Don't Go/Parchment Farm/Cry Cry Baby
In The Afternoon/Ancient Highway
Precious Time
Carrying a Torch
Things I Used To Do
Days like This
Real Real Gone
Whenever God Shines His Light
Enlightenment
Jambalaya
In the Garden
Brown Eyed Girl
Help Me
Think Twice Before You Go
Gloria

01-March-2015
Nell's Jazz and Blues Bar
 London, England

Brendan's take on night two at Nell's
After the predicable Celtic Swing opener to the second night of shows at this very intimate venue Van then delivered Close Enough For Jazz and a jazzy Back on Top in quick succession before performing a really strong version of You Don’t Know Me helped in no small part by brilliant vocals from Dana Masters which saw her get a well deserved ovation from the tightly packed audience. Paul Moran did a superb trumpet solo which enhanced this number even further. Think Twice Before You Go saw Van unleash the band at full throttle with a terrific version before we had the first of many surprises with the playing of Wild Honey with Van and Dana exchanging vocals beautifully throughout. Paul Moore delivered a really intricate bass solo towards the end much to Van’s obvious approval as he shouted “yeah” I can’t remember when, if ever, I heard Van sing this live but it was worth the wait. Without giving us any chance to recover Van launched straight into a powerful Foreign Window with some band members looking quite ecstatic with the magic of it all. Whenever God Shines His Light not only gave Dana a further chance to excel on shared vocals but also included nifty guitar from Dave Keary and bass from Paul Moore.

At this stage Van started inviting requests and a very popular gentleman in the front row suggested And The Healing Has Begun to which Van instantly said “ok” What followed was around 10 minutes of musical magnificence with Van totally in the zone. He played guitar throughout and was aided in no small measure by brilliant guitar playing by Dave Keary and a further fine bass solo from Paul Moore. That’s Life was powerfully delivered with Van asking the audience at the end if it was really possible for him to roll himself up in a big ball. Oh how we laughed! Symphony Sid returned us briefly to jazz territory with more great vocals from Dana while Keep it Simple was introduced by Van as a selection of George Formby’s hits.

When Van announced Philosopher’s Stone as a request a woman near the front could contain her excitement no longer and shouted up “you’re a good man Van” to which he replied “I know I am -I have a lot of bills to pay!” To my horror Van then asked “which version?” so fearing a repeat of the infamous fast rhythm and blues version from a year or so ago which desecrated this classic I found myself shouting “SLOW” and without further ado that is what was delivered in superb fashion to an audience which was now quite ecstatic. Centrepiece brought things down slightly before requests were again invited resulting in a welcome airing of Did Ye Get Healed which got a great response.

Van then shifted into blues territory with a tremendous How Can A Poor Boy merging with Pagan Heart and finally I Put A Spell On You. The lucky audience members were reeling at this stage as he performed a beautiful Celtic Excavation/Into the Mystic before exiting the stage to great acclaim. He quickly returned to deliver a stomping version of Help Me before finally departing and leaving the band to express themselves even further. Set time was 1h 40m.

This was a truly unique night with Van clearly in great form as he plucked classics on request from the audience and delivered them as only he can. Apart From the opening Celtic Swing instrumental no other song from the previous night was repeated as Van (in the spirit of the new album title) re-worked the catalogue. And what a catalogue it is! This concert was a masterclass from a musical genius and one that will live long in the memory of the lucky 300 or so in attendance!
-Brendan Hynes

Setlist (Thanks Mike S.)
Celtic Swing
Close Enough For Jazz
Back On Top
You Don't Know Me
Think Twice Before You Go
Wild Honey
Foreign Window
Whenever God Shines His Light 
Healing Has Begun
That's Life
Symphony Sid
Keep It Simple
Philosophers Stone
Centerpiece
Did Ye Get Healed
How Can a Poor Boy/Pagan Heart
Celtic Excavation/Into the Mystic
Help Me

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