136 – Astral Weeks
Van Morrison
Slip slidin’ in the slipstream on the cherry road
Containing my very favourite Van Morrison song, ‘Sweet Thing’ from a particular moment in time, this is quite a strange collection of songs. Some beautifully acoustic, some very jazzy, it all feels a bit rushed. ‘The Way Young Lovers Do’ is a good example of this as Van dooby doo doodles over trumpet solos annoyingly.
At the time Van Morrison, 23, was on a high having had success with ‘Gloria’ and ‘Brown Eyed Girl’, so the idea of going to New York City and hooking up with a bunch of jazz artists seemed a winner to new label Warner Brothers. So it proved with just two days in the studio and a record frequently regarded as a masterpiece through the ages this album is a real joy to listen to, once you get into it. I wouldn’t describe it as ground breaking but it has many stand out moments, not least ‘Madame George’ and ‘Slim Slow Slider’, not to mention ‘Astral Weeks’ itself.
Slip slidin’ in the slipstream on the cherry road, it’s all very Van and this album sets a fine tone for our summer ahead, as it did for Van Morrison’s career ahead.
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Album – Astral Weeks
Artist – Van Morrison
Favourite Tracks – Sweet Thing, Madame George
Released – 1968
Rating – 8.8
Time – 46′ 50″
Tracks – 8
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Source – Tidal Masters
Player/Streamers – Tidal Desktop App on Dell XPS (the iMAC has bitten the dust) with Bluesound Node 2i streamer
Amplifier/DAC – Roksan K2
Output – Jern 14 DS with REL 5i
Next Album – 137 – Sweetheart of the Rodeo by The Byrds
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