This was an awesome performance. And by now I was almost ready to be 100% on board on the Van Morrison train.
Which brings me to that original problem.
Van has this amazingly huge, but very spotty catalog. There have been several songs and albums along the way which have genuinely moved me, but the thing that has always been lacking is consistency. If only there were a single album I could own with all of the songs I have loved from Van over the years — "Gloria" and "Here Comes The Night" from his years with Them; stuff like "Moondance," "Wavelength," "Crazy Love," "Rave On John Donne," and more recently, "Stranded" from his solo output.
Still On Top is almost that album. Almost.
As it stands, this is probably the most complete overview of the best of Van Morrison one could ask for. Many of those favorite songs of mine I mentioned are indeed here. You've got everything from those early hits with Them, all the way through his best solo stuff from albums like Moondance, Tupelo Honey, and Wavelength, to his more recent output like the aforementioned "Stranded."
Still, what's missing is somewhat frustrating. I can understand the exclusion of my own personal faves like "Rave On, John Donne." The Inarticlate Speech record, while a personal fave, wasn't exactly a big commercial hit. But what about the amazing Astral Weeks?
Now, that is what I would call a major hole.
Still, for casual Van fans like me — the ones who sit patiently on the fence waiting to be converted — Still On Top will do nicely for now.
At least until that comprehensive retrospective boxed set comes along.
Article comments
1 - Holly Hughes
I saw Van in the early 70s one night when he just walked offstage in the middle of his set, never to return. Kinda hard to go on being a Van fan after that -- I persevered, but never again with my whole heart. I agree with you; his greatest hits are so mind-blowing, the weaker stuff is all the more baffling. And yet there are obscure gems on every album (like "Rave On John Donne") that it'd be a shame for first-time fans to miss. It's the idiosyncratic stuff that makes him who he is, not the radio-ready hits. Someday maybe somebody will also release a compilation that digs into those as well.
2 - Donald Gibson
I've seen Van once, in the '90s when The Healing Game was his current album. He was great, but the crowd misjudged what kind of show they were in for.
He had a small orchestra and was playing in a theatre, so most of the material leaned toward the slower (and often obscure) songs. The crowd that showed up, though, was hungry for "Gloria," "Brown Eyed Girl," and "Tupelo Honey". And so they shouted for them, which ticked Van off. He stopped mid-song ("In the Garden") and said if people did not quiet down, he would be gone.
-Donald
3 - Paradox
Glen, I understand your review and agree with most of it. The one point with which I take exception is the suggestion that somehow Astral Weeks should be on a compilation album. I personally hope that never happens. The sum of the whole on that album is greater than the sum of the individual songs; it needs to be listened to in its entirety to be fully appreciated. Bits and pieces on a compilation album would greatly diminish it. JMO, of course. Van remains a fascinating figure, though.
4 - Connie Phillips
Congrats! This article has been forwarded to the Advance.net websites and Boston.com.