Reviews (page 9 of 9)
Sounds good, it's what you would expect from Van Morrison.
springtime oldie nostalgia with a cinematic orchestral backing
Not an artist that I like and every track sounded the same. ***
Not a fan of the voice
This one is so deep and really a great listen when you’re in the mood for it. Not a very uplifting album, but unique in its own way
Meh. Not as good as later albums.
Awful
Like this 👌
Ethereal and improvisational; this is the work that world forecast Morrison's depth and innovation as an artist as he headed into the 1970s. Fans looking for "Brown Eyed Girl" on repeat will be disappointed but this is a pinnacle of the blossoming singer-songwriter movement and it's the other side of the cultural coin.
Definitely not my cup of tea. Does not sound bad at all, but I don’t think I’d listen to this regularly (or ever 😅) Next!
Great
Sounded better to my older ears. Not a huge fan of his voice though. Will give it a few more listens.
Stone cold classic. 9/10
Tedious
Van Morrison siempre me ha sido un si pero no. Tiene cosas que me gustan como este disco y trabajos completamente infumables.
Mainly dull but some good bits in there
Not as good as moondance and I don’t care what Jav says. 3/5
No, just no
I've never sat down and listened to this in full before. I'm aware its bang up there on most all time great list, so am looking forward to this.... This doesn't sound like an album from 1968. Clean, crisp production held together by a soaring soulful voice. Each song take you to a different place but fit together perfectly. There is no standout song as such, but the whole thing (its a proper album) is magnificent as a whole piece of work. This is going to get played to death by me from now on. Comfortably the best album we've heard so far in JLAC. 5/5
"And as you leave, the room is filled with music Laughing, music, dancing, music all around the room And all the little boys come around, walking away from it all" (Madame George) "And here I am Standing in your sad arrest Trying to do my very best Lookin' straight at you Comin' through, darlin' Yeah, yeah, yeah" (Astral Weeks) Quizás no el mejor disco para ponerte a trabajar a las nueve de la mañana si necesitas un poco de marchita, pero sí para tener de fondo una tarde pocha al lado de la estufa.
A classic.
Not for me, don't get on with his voice and too folksy. The way young lovers do is a good song.
Not a fan.
If memory serves me correctly, this is one of those albums, like Starsailor by Tim Buckley, where a folk artist pays hommage to improvised jazz and the critics love it. In some songs Van's voice seems like a long, free-form saxophone solo. For me, his voice, in the absence of song structure or melody doesn't stand that well on its own. The instrumentation is great, especially the violin & bass. I liked The Way That Young Lovers Do, and wish it wasn't the shortest song on the album.
5
NyeeeaaaaAAAEEEEEeeeaaaaaah
Demasiado tranquilo, no me ha gustado mucho
Buena voz de un buen intérprete anglosajón. Canciones reposadas y tranquilas, aunque con un buen timbre de voz. Bastante parecidas las canciones entre sí.
!
15/01/2021 - Nota: 5
My fav Van Morrison album, it flits and dances around like a butterfly on a sunny spring day. Although he sings like he's got a mouthful of cotton balls, it works with the soulful music and it still holds up really well considering its over 50 years old. The only miss is Slim Slow Slider which sounds like an afterthought to the 7 brilliant songs that preceded it, so I give it a 4.5 and round it up to a 5 because its a sunny Spring day.
these don't seem like songs, more like drafts of songs. I can't see how this in an important album. Every song felt like a draft or through away.
Solid.
Mnja
Opening track is really fun but runs long. Overstays its welcome. Beside You is pretty much unlistenable. Not for me I guess.
Not my genre I supposse. Too "jazzy"
Knew a few singles off this but never listened to the full record. Had an enjoyable time
meh... looooon acoustic songs
lovely
Always beautiful to listen to this classic album by Van the Man
I always confuse Jim Morrison and Van Morrison and Morrissey. Van Morrison is the Brown Eyed Girl guy... and the guy who did this. Astral Weeks - Sort of light fluffy folksy stuff here. Inoffensive. If not for the length, I could hear this being played at a diner. Beside You - A bit more jazzy. A bit more dissonant. A bit better! Sweet Thing - I feel like all three of these tracks so far are kind of like the folksy acoustic songs that Zeppelin did, but that Zeppelin did them better. Cyprus Avenue - Okay this album is just the music that all the boomers lost their virginity to, isn't it? The Way Young Lovers Do - I feel like Quentin Tarantino likes this one. Jazzy and brassy. So far this is the best song to me. Madame George - Okay this is the best song on the album. Indelibly sad. Possibly about a transvestite. This was worth the price of admission. Ballerina - Fine. Slim Slow Slider - The only track that's not really over produced. Sad, slow. Great! I don't think I liked this one very much. Sorry, Ivan.
Need to be in a mood
Short album that's definitely unique. Some experimental jazz in the background doesn't help me like the album despite me liking Van Morrison in general. Sweet thing is a good song but most of the album is a miss for me.
Folk suave. Bastante coñazo.
Amazing classic, can be a bit slow at points
Two songs in and I missed my old playlist. It's the kind of songs you will enjoy if you grew up with it, but as a middle-aged man with set taste this is mostly just a "guy sings about his complicated life" crap that I've grew out of years ago.
not much to say other than Van Morrison is king
I like this much better than his more recent anti-lockdown stuff. Rolling Stone listed this as one of the top 20 albums of all time, and while that may be too generous, it's still a flawless album in my opinion. Classic.
Had some bangers on it, really enjoyed it as background music tho
This album is clearly top notch late 60's/ early 70's singer-songwriter stuff. It's got a great sound, but I kind of have to agree with Van Morrison himself about dismissing the transcendental and exalted position of this album. On the one hand, I can ABSOLUTELY see why people put this up on a tower for all to see - I can totally interpret the music that way. On the other, I can also see Van Morrison saying literally nothing at all and just delivering pretty meaningless stuff in a super competent soul/R&B manner. Maybe that's the genius?
Great record. Second half is a bit forgettable.
Lo oí pero no lo escuché, supongo que no era gran cosa.
dislike
eh
Some songs I never heard before, with that unmistakable Van Morrison sound and style. Not something I'd normally listen to but great in it's own right
Masterpiece. One of the most peaceful albums ever. 9-10/10
Meh. All I kept hearing was a unplugged, down tempoed version of Brown Eyed Girl.
i just don't like van morrison, no matter how hard i try. he just sounds like his tongue is five sizes too big half the time.
Loves the sound.
Beautiful instrumentation. Melodic, but dreamy and wandering. Very raw. Great flow and consistent concept. However, Morrison's screams of anguish become repetitive and songs lack some needed focus or change-up.
Not my favorite work from him.
Another one I just don't get. I want to feel inspired by the Celtic poetry, the starving artist beauty that so many hear, but I hear a slightly annoying guy in a cheezy bar in Vegas. It's surely an interesting follow up to Brown Eyed Girl.
Boring
I guess you had to be there. It's good and all, but it doesn't feel like some turning point in music like the music writers make it out to be. Great lyrics, some wonderful licks and passages, but the songs themselves meander too much.
De esos discos que no vale la pena ni saber que existen.
Olvidable creo yo
Liked the sound
folk, soul and poetry. nice
Was alright! again, all songs of Van Morrison I like were in this album, so worth listening to again.
En otrolig resa mellan fantastiska texter och melodier. Instrumentation fantastico. Historisk skiva under musikens, troligtvis, mest intressanta och viktigaste tid.
I get the feeling I would need to listen to this record multiple times to appreciate it. I have purposefully avoided Van Morrison in the past because of "Brown Eyed Girl," a song I don't really like much. Hearing this record might make me reevaluate looking into his work. The background behind the album and the "mystique" it has garnered are interesting. Seems the type of record where knowing the lyrics would enhance the overall impression. I enjoyed listening, but I did not hear anything that jumped out to me as a truly transcendent track.
Its Van Morrison thats for sure. Only listened to about half of it. It's good I guess not my thing though.
not a fan of morrisons sound
There is a very nice vibe to it, quite hippy. A little too screamy for me but I can definitelly see why some would love it. Madame George is definitely a highlight of this album.
Fine music for a lazy summer day
I know I’m suppose to love it and appreciate it, but the album just felt boring to me.
Couldn’t get through it. Too “hippy flower power” for my liking. Can see the appeal, just not my music.
Pretty nice ambience. I'm not sure why I expected more of a rock sound, but this is nice and folky. Nothing particularly mind-blowing, but a good vibe.
Really love this album. A voice like no other.
Not bad, bit didn't feel compelled to listen to all of it.
@@@@. Very nice acoustic album.
Van Morrison is best when Brown Eyed Girl is not involved. Very much enjoyed this album and a full listening gave me a new appreciation for the group. 10/10.
No bangers.
A real big surprise for me- I had a feeling I'd dislike this one, but there were some bangers on here, "The Way Young Lovers Do", "Madame George"
It’s got a good feel to it
Don't need any. This is one of my favorite albums of all time.
Poetry. Up there with Dylan's best.
ok. would listen to it again.
Another album known to me. The only Van Morrison album I've ever listened to.
Melodious. Different instruments in left and right channel. Long tracks. Voice easy to listen to and rides the instrumentation well. Nice flourishes of single wind or string instruments. Not sure what the lyrics are alluding to, don't have a good imagery of the emotions presented. Presents a sad but hopeful mood.
This album suffers from the same thing many do for me, it's too much of the same thing. Maybe it's an issue with me. I like Van Morrison, Moondance is among my most favourite songs, and there are great songs on here. It's just too much Van Morrison in one go though.
Nice voice but songs are too long
Been listening to this since the 70s. Hard to listen to anything of Van since his COVID prevention outrage with the douche himself. Eric Clapton.
ANTI MASKERRRRRRRR. Really too bad because this really is an exceptional record. It would’ve been a 5 but I’ll give it 3 because of his recent transgressions and being an old loser boomer.
Nothing wrong with album. Just want to say that creators of this list love Van Morrison. Is it really necessary to have so many of his albums on this list?
It's good, I don't think it'll be on the regular rotation. 3 star
I thought I would have been a bigger fan of this than I actually am, but Morrison's voice is just too jarring for my tastes.
Quaint, meditative...
Did get a chance to fully listen
This album really didn't do it for me. It might just be the day, my mood, whatever, but I found his voice to be mostly grating instead of endearing on this record. The music itself is OK, but this isn't something I would come back to quickly... 2 stars.
I found this uninteresting. Very little variety throughout, particularly in terms of melody. Feels like the same song repeated multiple times at different tempos. I kind of like his voice, but don't like what he does with it.
i love this album. Can't tell me shit about it.
It's a sweet album with a lot of nice instrumentals. A lot of surprising little instrumental moments that fit really well in the overall context of the album. I can't say that it really grabbed me, but there's also nothing to take issue with. A great album to play in the background. Very summery feel. It drags a bit at the end, though it is overall a very pleasant listen. I might be even more fond of it if Van Morrison wasn't a COVID-denying dick.
Owned on vinyl.
Surprisingly good.
Van the man
Only somewhat did it for me
verbal
Morrison's soothing voice backed by the beautiful strumming of the guitar took my mind to another place and almost put me to sleep.
so rich and shaped folk acoustic music forever
3.5
I don't dislike Van Morrison, but he's always seemed to me to be the product of the English press trying way too hard to make him into an Irish Bob Dylan. The lyrics here are mostly non-sensical, and there's way too much flute, but it's a solid album. I get why it's on this list, but I don't get why it's treated as if it's part of the Pantheon of Great Music. Best track: Cyprus Avenue
Voice still kinda grates against me but thank god it’s not Brown Eyed Girl level
Perfect for car rides and night vibes.
I liked it, but it kind of started to blur together at times.
Speaks for itself
it's like someone took a bunch of self indulgent spoken word and added some background music.
It’s good and that but not super engaging
I love this album. It’s so soulful and reflective. Perfect for a summers morning!