van morrison / albums

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- Astral Weeks
- - 23,685 plays
  - 9 favs
  - 10 shares
Van Morrison
Released 1968

Sweet Thing
04:26
4,330 plays

Astral Weeks
07:06
4,124 plays

Beside You
05:17
2,657 plays

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songs

- 1
- Astral Weeks
- 07:06
- 4,124 plays

- 2
- Beside You
- 05:17
- 2,657 plays

- 3
- Sweet Thing
- 04:26
- 4,330 plays

- 4
- Cyprus Avenue
- 07:00
- 2,479 plays

- 5
- The Way Young Lovers Do
- 03:18
- 2,526 plays

- 6
- Madame George
- 09:45
- 2,140 plays

- 7
- Ballerina
- 07:03
- 2,050 plays

- 8
- Slim Slow Slider
- 03:18
- 1,888 plays

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album review

Astral Weeks is generally considered one of the best albums in pop music history. For all that renown, Astral Weeks is anything but an archetypal rock & roll album: in fact, it isn't a rock & roll album at all. Employing a mixture of folk, blues, jazz, and classical music, Van Morrison spins out a series of extended ruminations on his Belfast upbringing, including the remarkable character "Madame George" and the climactic epiphany experienced on "Cyprus Avenue." Accompanying himself on acoustic guitar, Morrison sings in his elastic, bluesy voice, accompanied by a jazz rhythm section (Jay Berliner, guitar, Richard Davis, bass, Connie Kay, drums), plus reeds (John Payne) and vibes (Warren Smith, Jr.), with a string quartet overdubbed. An emotional outpouring cast in delicate musical structures, Astral Weeks has a unique musical power. Unlike any record before or since, it nevertheless encompasses the passion and tenderness that have always mixed in the best postwar popular music, easily justifying the critics' raves. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide