27-April-2015
St. David's Hall
 Cardiff, Wales

As it was just over a year since Van Morrison last played this venue it was perhaps not too surprising to see that it was not by any means filled to capacity. Opening in familiar vein with Celtic Swing Van then moved smoothly through Higher Than the World and Close Enough For Jazz before delivering a rare version of Cry For Home featuring very nice organ from Paul Moore. Full Force Gale got a rare and most welcome airing too and moved at a brisk pace. Carrying A Torch was beautiful with Dana Masters very ably stepping in to Clare Teal’s role from the Duets album. Van then introduced his special guest who turned out once again to be PJ Proby prompting some to wonder if he is ‘the new Chris Farlowe’. Obviously they performed Whatever Happened To PJ Proby which was followed by PJ Proby Calling Van Morrison which hasn’t grown on me since I last heard it.Bring It On Home To Me ended that particular segment of the show quite solidly before Van did the usual Baby Please Don’t Go/Parchman Farm/Don’t Start Crying Now medley which really brought the audience to life. I Believe To My Soul was really strong and saw Dana feature prominently again.

Moondance and Who Can I turn To? moved us firmly into jazz territory before a terrific version of Magic Time which saw Van display a rarely heard ferocity when playing saxophone at it’s ending. Back On Top was the jazzy version and was followed by a really good In The Midnight which went down a treat and left Van very pleased. Whenever God Shines His Light was really nice and featured lovely guitar and bass solos from Dave Keary and Paul Moore respectively. Sometimes We Cry featured Dana again on shared vocals before PJ Proby returned once more for Bobby Bland’s Turn On Your Lovelight which featured much good humoured banter between Van and PJ about turning on and off etc.A further duet ensued with the lively Let It Roll before PJ finally departed the stage.

Days Like This was an above average version featuring really nice acoustic guitar from Dave Keary and was immediately followed by Ballerina which again featured Dave prominently, on Spanish guitar this time, much to Van’s delight with a few ‘Yeah’s thrown in.Van departed the stage during this song only to return for Celtic Excavation/Into The Mystic which was brilliant as usual and saw Van departing into the wings only to continue singing “Don’t Worry Baby We’re Gonna Get There One Day” over and over as the audience sat spellbound. When Van finally departed the band played on magnificently for several more minutes with particularly brilliant guitar and bass solos delivered.

The show lasted 1h 50m and was a good solid one with perhaps the most surprising thing being the renewed energy with which Van approached some of the songs more regularly featured in his concerts.

-Brendan Hynes

Setlist
Celtic Swing
Higher Than The World
Close Enough For Jazz
Cry For Home
Full Force Gale
Carrying A Torch
Whatever Happened To PJ Proby? (w/PJ Proby)
PJ Proby Calling Van Morrison (w/PJ Proby)
Bring It On Home To Me (w/PJ Proby)
Baby Please Don’t Go/Parchman Farm/Don’t Start Crying Now
I Believe To My Soul
Moondance
Who Can I Turn To?
Magic Time
Back On Top
In The Midnight
Whenever God Shines His Light
Sometimes We Cry
Turn On Your Lovelight (w/PJ Proby)
Let It Roll (w/PJ Proby)
Days Like This
Ballerina
Celtic Excavation/IntoThe Mystic

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

South Wales Argus (Source)
You can never be sure quite what to expect from a Van Morrison performance. His quest for perfection occasionally results in a reluctance to acknowledge the audience . This was not the case in Cardiff.

Opening with a freeform version of Moondance, the ‘70s classic set the standard for all that was to come.

Morrison’s band orchestrates his work with complete understanding and a nod or flick of the hand from the master can change direction of any song.

An hour into his set he introduced an old friend to the stage - 60s legend, PJ Proby. In a great twist they rendered their own version of Whatever Happened to PJ Proby/ With a back catalogue spanning 50 years, the concert was clear confirmation of his genius. He doesn’t perform, he owns every song, and with overtones of soul, jazz, gospel and rock, he is impossible to categorise.

Morrison shares an affinity with his band, they complement each other by instinct, and any evening in their company ends with a setlist crumpled on the floor, overtaken by their passion. Last night was no exception, and as he finally left, after a full two hours, with the haunting, Into the Mystic, we still felt bereft and wanting more.

One to remember.
-Steven Healy