13-November-2016
Edinburgh Playhouse
 Edinburgh, Scotland

Brendan Hynes checks in with this review
From the outset of Van's latest show on this mini UK tour it was obvious that he had decided to shake things up a bit as he opened with Sack Of Woe followed by Back On Top which featured nice guitar and piano solos from Dave Keary and Paul Moran respectively. Three songs from the new album followed in Too Late, Keep Me Singing, which featured Van on harmonica and was really nice, and finally The Pen Is Mightier Than The Sword which Van certainly sang with great gusto. Beautiful Vision got another welcome airing with nice steel guitar from Dave Keary and lovely vocals from Dana Masters who got a deserved ovation. The fast version of Have I told You Lately which followed also featured Dana prominently before a relatively rare rendition of The Mystery which was quite wonderful. What followed was even better as Van wandered over to the piano(always a promising sign) for a beautiful Haunts of Ancient Peace (complete with some Common One references) which featured excellent steel guitar and trumpet solos from Dave Keary and Paul Moran respectively. Van remained at the piano for a reinvigorated Open The Door (To Your Heart) before he delivered a fine I Believe To My Soul featuring a great trumpet solo from Paul Moran. Tore Down A la Rimbaud was spectacular once more and was followed by a really good Carrying A Torch. Van strapped on the guitar for Why Must I Always Explain and performed some really nifty guitar sounds at the end of what was another highlight. It was then back into blues territory for a resounding Lonely Avenue with Dave Keary's great guitar solo being acknowledged by Van with a few "yeah" utterances. Moondance, Crazy Love and Cleaning Windows were all well delivered and received before another sublime version of Someone Like You which once again featured Dana on vocals to great effect. Brown Eyed Girl which followed was a small price to pay for the quality of show being enjoyed tonight. The opening notes of Celtic Excavation which followed prompted me to ensure my seatbelt was fastened in the sure knowledge that Van was about to transport us on a wonderful journey Into The Mystic which he duly did before exiting the stage still singing as the audience loudly shouted their approval. Van returned one more time for Gloria which has now become a vehicle for the band to showcase their impressive individual talents with extended solos once Van has departed. Dave Keary was first up with an even longer solo than heretofore followed by Paul Moran on trumpet, synth and organ, Paul Moore excelling once more with intricate bass, Mez Clough indulging the rockers in the audience with a long drum solo before finally Dana mesmerised us once more with her vocal/chanting contribution to bring the show to a close.

This was an outstanding performance by Van and his band which was rapturously enjoyed by the audience and was aided in no small measure by Van digging more deeply into his extensive and wonderful song catalogue than his been the case in most of his more recent shows.
-Brendan Hynes

Set List
Sack Of Woe
Back On Top
Too Late
Keep Me Singing
The Pen Is Mightier Than The Sword
Beautiful Vision
Have I Told You Lately
The Mystery
Haunts Of Ancient Peace
Open The Door (To Your Heart)
I Believe To My Soul
Tore Down A La Rimbaud
Carrying A Torch
Why Must I Always Explain
Lonely Avenue
Moondance
Crazy Love
Cleaning Windows
Someone Like You
Brown Eyed Girl
Celtic Excavation/Into The Mystic
Gloria

Big Hand For The Band!
Dave Keary (Guitar)
Paul Moore (Bass)
Paul Moran (Keyboards)
Mez Clough (Drums)
Dana Masters (Vocals)


Set Time 1h 45m

22-July-2014
Festival Theatre
 Edinburgh, Scotland

The Herald

SARTORIALLY, Van Morrison seems to be modelling himself on Al Capone these days. Squeezed into a black suit, his face obscured by shades and a fedora, the marquee name at this year's Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival looked like a man wanted by the FBI.

Musically, however, there was no identity crisis. Although nowadays its idiosyncrasies can grate as well as astound, Morrison's voice remains an hugely powerful and versatile instrument, and after hitting his stride with a glorious Queen of the Slipstream there was simply no stopping him.

Aided by a superb six-piece band augmented with Morrison's daughter Shana on backing vocals, even relative obscurities such as the bad-mood blues of Too Many Myths sounded fierce and fresh.

In fact, the notoriously taciturn 68-year-old seemed perilously close to enjoying himself, bantering about Billy Connolly and offering a bizarre impression of Clint Eastwood during a rousing Rough God Goes Riding. As he became lost in the music he jerked his right arm up and down, like a man ringing an invisible bell.

Moondance was long, liquid and mostly instrumental, Morrison setting up some lovely interplay between his sax and Paul Moran's muted trumpet.

He jazzed up Brown Eyed Girl and tore through the old Them hit Baby Please Don't Go with such ferocity the decades simply melted away.

No matter what it said on the stage backdrop, eventually all genre distinctions dissolved.

To finish his two-hour set Morrison conjured up extended versions of In the Garden, Ballerina and Into the Mystic which were simply breath-taking, the final triumph of an artist still finding new ways to transport and be transported.
-Graeme Thomson

Setlist Thanks Mike S.
Celtic Swing
Close Enough for Jazz
Back on Top
So Quiet in Here
Queen of the Slipstream
Keep it Simple
Choppin Wood 
Who Can I Turn To
Philosophers Stone
Too Many Myths
Talk is Cheap
Rough God Goes Riding
Moondance
Brown Eyed Girl
Baby Please Don't Go/Parchment Farm
In the Garden
Ballerina
Into the Mystic

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: Shana Morrison (Vocals)