WaMu Theater, Van Morrison are good fit
By GENE STOUT
P-I POP MUSIC CRITIC
It was a marvelous night for a moondance, even if
the full moon wasn't visible.
Van Morrison and his 10- member band of singers and
instrumentalists enraptured concertgoers Saturday
night with a sold-out show that spanned the
Belfast-born singer's entire career. Among the
favorites in the 19-long set at the new WaMu
Theater were "Moondance," "Brown Eyed Girl" and
"St. James Infirmary Blues."
Concertgoers quickly rose and danced and sang along
to Morrison's classic songs and well-chosen cover
tunes. It was a terrific show, among the best he
has offered in the Seattle area in recent memory.
But why so short? Morrison's band took the stage
promptly at 7:30 p.m., catching concertgoers
off-guard and leaving them with little time to
enjoy the abundant food and beverage service at the
venue. The show concluded abruptly at about 9 p.m.
without an encore. With tickets priced from $165 to
$225, the show's brevity was a bit of a rub.
Nevertheless, many concertgoers left the building
with satisfied grins.
Morrison's show was part of a festive inaugural
weekend for the new concert venue, a joint venture
between AEG Live and Paul Allen's First & Goal Inc.
at Qwest Field Event Center.
The weekend included a Friday night concert by
Grammy-winning soul singer Seal and Allen's band
(minus the billionaire Seahawks owner), as well as
an appearance by nearly 30 Seattle Seahawks, who
stood shoulder to shoulder on the mammoth stage.
Each show drew about 5,000.
The theater featured a small marquee, red carpets
and, for Friday's opening, four spotlights. The
spacious lobby included four bars, an array of
artifacts from Allen's Experience Music Project and
atmospheric lighting.
The WaMu Theater can be assembled and disassembled
in less than a day, transforming the hangarlike
exhibition hall into a functional concert venue
using comfortable folding chairs, spacious risers,
a portable stage, heavy acoustical curtains and
state-of-the-art speakers.
For Morrison, WaMu's sound system worked
beautifully. During Morrison's tender rendition of
Ray Charles' "I Can't Stop Loving You," the
singer's three background vocalists sang a cappella
in tones so clear and warm that concertgoers
cheered.
Before Morrison took the stage, his band warmed up
with a rousing "Boogie Woogie Country Girl."
Morrison arrived in his dark suit, fedora and
sunglasses for "Back on Top," "Beautiful Vision"
and Webb Pierce's "There Stands the Glass," from
Morrison's current, country-influenced album, "Pay
the Devil."
Often playing harmonica and saxophone, Morrison
blended folk, blues, country and rockabilly with
scat singing and Celtic influences.
Morrison took up his sax for "Moondance" and was
greeted with handclaps. During "Precious Time," he
took turns scatting with background vocalists.
"Folks, this is what you call dynamics," he
quipped.
During "Real Real Gone," a song that makes
references to Sam Cooke, Morrison and his
background vocalists earned a standing ovation when
they crooned, "You-o-o, send me."
The show ended with spirited, hand-clapping
versions of classics "Brown Eyed Girl" and
"Gloria." Morrison's crew began packing up as soon
as everyone left the stage. Morrison has been
running a similarly tight ship in other cities.
Classic Morrison changes little, and that's good
By Patrick MacDonald
Seattle Times music critic
There's a timeless quality to Van Morrison that was reflected in his masterly performance Saturday night at the new WaMu Theater in Qwest Field Event Center.
Of all the great, still-active rock stars from the '60s, Morrison is the most unchanged. He doesn't look old, like the Stones, he doesn't sound different, like Dylan, and he hasn't gone slick and showy, like McCartney.
He's still got that monochromatic but somehow richly expressive singing voice, in the understated style of the Southern bluesmen he's always admired. He maintains a fascination with blues, folk and jazz idioms, just like he did growing up in Ireland. He still exudes the same quiet passion and dignity that have always been his trademarks.
The most dramatic proof of his timelessness, however, is the fact that almost all the songs from his long career — starting with the Irish group Them more than 40 years ago — are of a piece. The newer ones fit perfectly with the classics. Even the covers he does mesh naturally with his originals.
Fresh from opening for the Rolling Stones the night before in Vancouver, B.C., and backed by a talented 10-piece band that featured violin, pedal steel and organ, and three background singers, Morrison, wearing a black suit and matching fedora, performed a no-frills, no-nonsense kind of show that is all too rare these days.
The brisk, 90-minute set left some of the capacity crowd of 7,000 — many of whom paid the top ticket price of $225 (the cheapest were $95) — disappointed. But that was one more thing that hasn't changed, because Morrison never performs for very long and seldom does encores.
Not surprisingly, the crowd reacted most enthusiastically to the hits, including a jazzy, folky "Moondance," a smooth, cool "Crazy Love" and energetic recreations of "Brown Eyed Girl" and "Wild Night," which had fans up and dancing.
A funky "Real Real Gone" was a highlight, as were covers of the blues classic "St. James Infirmary," with Morrison on sax; Ray Charles' "I Can't Stop Loving You"; and Paul Young's bluesy "Tear Your Playhouse Down." The closer was Them's "Gloria," with Morrison on harmonica.
Setlist:
Back on Top
Fame
Stop Drinking
Beautiful Vision
Cleaning Windows
There Stands the Glass
I'm Not Feeling It
I Can't Stop Loving You
Moondance
St. James Infirmary
Precious Time
Crazy Love
Playhouse
One Irish Rover
Real Real Gone
Wild Night
Brown Eyed Girl
Gloria
Van Morrison in Nashville, Christmas Day at 3pm on BBC Radio Ulster 
