|
Van Morrison - Live at Montreux 1974 and 1980
Eagle DVD
One of the best soul singers of all time (sure, maybe
most don't consider the kind of music Morrison makes to be soul
music but, in my opinion, all you have to do is listen to THAT
voice and you'll know what to call the music Morrison makes and
it sure ain't rock) Morrison has long earned the title of
legend. So, it is fitting that this legendary performer be feted
by the combining of two of his noteworthy perfromances at the
Montreux Jazz Festival, one from 1974 and the other from 1980.
Being his first home video release, the fine folks in charge of
the Live At Montreux series couldn't have picked a more
well-loved, yet performance-video challenged musician than
Morrison.
While some may bemoan Morrison's performances of late as
being perfunctory, I don't see it that way. Sure, the ticket
prices are high, but not as high as some of his peers such as
Paul McCartney and The Rolling Stones, neither of which can
quite hit the same highs vocally or energetically as their
greatest hits would warrant. Morrison, on the other hand, has
never claimed to be either a vocal gymnast or a dancing ponce
concerned about how his live show "looked", preferring instead
to simply sing his ass off while interpreting and writing
arguably some of the best songs ever. So he shows up on time and
sings his songs and leaves the stage at roughly an
hour-and-a-half without encores. What of it? Would I like a
three-hour-plus marathon like Springsteen? Sure. But
Springsteen's act has always been choreographed right down to
the last bead of sweat - Morrison would never think of doing
that. He sings his songs excellently and when he's done, he
leaves. To complain about that shows how idiotic the concert
business has become.
But, should you still be illogically upset by Morrison's
recent concert appearances, use this DVD set to return back to
an earlier time in Morrison's career when he was still regularly
on the charts and putting out some of his best music. The
ten-song set from 1974 is sublime, with stellar performances of
classics such as Foggy Mountain Hop and Harmonica Boogie. The
1980 set, a full six years and five subsequent albums later, is
equally as good, boasting definitive versions of his songs
Tupelo Honey, Summertime in England and thirteen other songs.
Morrison's bands on each of these performances just smoke! Truly
some inspired playing and always inspired work from the Irish
bluesman himself. I tell you, Morrison could just about recite
the phone book and I would pick it up and listen to it for
months but these performances are sublime! That he has, without
a doubt, only gotten better and more soulful with age makes me
wonder why he isn't a superstar heard on the radio with the same
frequency as the Beatles or The Rolling Stones. I suppose there
is really no justice in the music business but thankfully his
albums and live documents such as this DVD (with hopefully more
to come) prove he is at the very top echelon of his craft.
Of course, Morrison fans are going to love this, but I
would have no doubt that soul music fans and jazz fans would
love this as well. Morrison has crafted his music as few artists
can: he has dispensed with all of the trappings of labels and
genres and simply makes the music Van Morrison would make. There
is no other way to classify it except as Van Morrison's music
and that truly should be the goal of any artist: to make your
music undoubtedly your own. That Morrison has managed to do it
from about the point he first started is a testament to his
genius. This is a great DVD. Pick it up. - Scott Homewood
www.eaglerecords.com
|
