Van Morrison sist at #3 on my list of the best albums of 1970 with his third release, Moondance. This record could easily claim the #1 position but I have a soft spot for the two albums still to come.
The folk, soul and R&B sounds on this album, paired with Morrison’s unique vocals, put it in a class all its own. I can’t say that I reach for Moondance on a regular basis, but every time I hear it I wonder why I ever bother listening to anything else.
Almost every album on this list was recorded by a group or artist that shows up frequently in my music collection. In fact, some artists on this list have more than one album on this list.
But Van Morrison’s Moondance sits alone on my CD shelf, despite the fact that the Irish bard has released more than 40 albums, some of them considered classics.
Back in the early weeks of the Song of the Day series, I did a theme week on duets. I wrapped up with Mark Knopfler and James Taylor singing the title song of Knopfler’s Sailing to Philadelphia.
Nearly a thousand songs later, I’m doing another week of duets, and I’m kicking it off with a track from the same album.
This time it’s Van Morrison joining Knopfler on ‘The Last Laugh,’ another stellar song from one of the most underrated albums of the 2000s.
I have two albums on this list of favorites that represent the only music I own by the given artist. The first is Van Morrison’s Moondance. Can you guess the other one?
I’m not sure when I first discovered this album. I don’t recall it playing a major role in my childhood so it could well be that I didn’t hear it in its entirety until high school or college. I knew the title song prior to that, I’m sure, and I was familiar with ‘Brown Eyed Girl’ (which doesn’t appear on this album) but if I had to guess I’d say I picked it up during my late teens when I was on a quest to hear the classics.
Top Ten Male Vocalists – #9 – Van Morrison
Like a lot of people on this list, Van the Man earns my admiration for far more than just his voice. He’s responsible for Moondance, after all, one of the finest albums ever recorded. But his distinctive vocals have always been a huge part of his appeal for me.
Counting Crows’ Adam Duritz has often been compared to Van Morrison, both favorably and unfavorably. I see the connection… a certain earthy-quirkiness and rhythmic quality they share. But, though I prefer Counting Crows to Morrison overall, I like Van’s voice more than Duritz’s.
Meet Me In Montauk 