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A collection of songs that he'd performed throughout the summer of 1968 with a band, only to have the producer cast them aside. It was recorded in a couple of days with seemingly indifferent professional jazz musicians. A couple of songs would have been classic, had the instrumentation been stripped-down. The flute, especially, is annoying. The would-be classic songs are "Madame George" and "Cyprus Avenue." The title song is okay, the rest is an endurance fest, especially "The Way Young Lovers Do," which has to be one of the worst songs that he ever wrote. The sound quality is good. Get it as cheaply as you can.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
There are two kinds of people in the world, those few of us who recognize the brilliance of Van Morrison's Astral weeks and the rest of the world. For those of us who get it, this LP is by far the best of all time. It cannot be easily defined or placed in any specific genre, but rather exists as one of those rare examples of art that come together by some special circumstance. I first heard Madame George when I was 16 in 1968 and I still listen to it often. But many people, my college roommates for example just don't get it. But the other reviews covered all this. I just wanted to point out that Madame George is not about an ageing transvestite. The review by Bangs, written back in the day, is a piece of work worthy to be read, but Bangs got it all wrong. In his twisted and demented state of drug addiction he wrote about things he imagined. He misinterpreted the line "Playing dominos in drag" and went off on this crazy story about a transvestite. Tell me where he/she fits into the story of this album? This album is about Van and his life and experience of youth and transcendence. Van had himself denied that it has anything to do with a transvestite and spoke of how it was written as stream of consciousness and that it was a sort of composite character. Van had been influenced by the mystic poems of W B Yeats and his young wife Georgie who went by George, and was the catalyst for Yeats automatic writing. It is possible that George Yeats is alluded to here, but there is a more specific metaphor, and that Madame George which was originally Madame Joy, is a reference to drugs. In the song the lyrics are "happy taking Madame Joy" which results in falling into a trance, and then you get weaker and your knees begin to sag. Hey it happens when you get stoned. And then "in the corner playing dominos and drag" that is inhale, "the one and only madame Joy". Clearly the next scene is a drug bust "Lord have mercy I think that its the cops" and then its all thrown out to the street below. The lyrics are not really that obscure. But the song is not just about getting stoned, rather it is about passing though that period of youthful turmoil and the memories and loves and experiences that consume all young people. Remember Van's first name is also George and at some point he has to go and says goodby to Madame Joy. The song Puff the Magic Dragon was a thinly veiled allegory of the same story. Van's is just so much more vivid and real yet vague enough that it becomes a universal experience. I hope you are someone who gets it, most musicians do and that is why it is always considered one of the most important albums of its era.Read full review
I wanted a CD of Van Morrison. The date here says CD 1987? I thought that was the publish date but apparently VM put out this music in 1967! The notes say it was his first record and it does have his signiture songs on it such as Cyprus Avenue and Madame George. My fav is a tasty love ballad called Ballerina. Actually, when I bought this I was thinking of VM's more commercial hits like Moondance and a really far out spiritual song called Into the Mystic. His characteristic R&B influence is infused throughout these songs. But Rolling Stone Magazine rated Astral Weeks as the number 19 in the top 500 most influencial records. On first hearing, you are struck by the intense vocals. It was jarring. Then a few times later you start to hear the nuances. He's got all acoustic back up of seasoned jazz musicians. They recorded these 8 songs in two days. Just as the jacket notes explain, the songs interweave in the lyrics until the whole collection becomes a tapestry all seemingly as if one complete song. This explains why you've probably not heard any of these become hit songs. The music is acoustic and you can hear the upright bass throughout sliding up and down behind the melodies. Then the trademark horns come blowing through in the minor key love ballad that was probably the older sister of Moondance, it was called The Way Young Lovers Do. This cut actually may have made the charts at some time. Realizing that when this record was being made everybody was going electric like Dylan and the Beatles were putting Sgt. Peppers together. Here comes Van Morrison fresh on the musical scene with an all acoustic collection of songs that weave together his personal experiences into a beautiful array of songs that get better with every time through. The vocal range is amazing. VM's horn-like tenor rings true and clear playing on the lyrics with repetition and melodic runs that keep true to the spirit of the song and build on its expressive feeling. I was put off initially by the lack of pop sound on this recording. But I trusted the Rolling Stone reviewers and the artistry of Van Morrison that makes this a musical gem.Read full review
Brilliant effort by the great Van Morrison. The man is a fantastic talent; his music is at times subtle and at times charismatic, and often very soulful. Many consider Astral Weeks to be his greatest work. Van of course has many very fine albums; but I can't think of a better one than this one. His music (in other words his recordings) works well when taken together as a whole. Van never completely changes; but each LP or CD reveals a slightly different side or aspect of the man's music. The music is perhaps hard to define; but I would say the elements or maybe influences are R&B, Soul, Pop, Jazz, and Folk, as with all of Van's records. My impression is that Astral Weeks was influenced by Bob Dylan's work as well. The lyrics are personal and somewhat impressionistic. I don't try to read too much into them. This recording definitely bears the imprint of the 60's milieu; which in my mind is a good thing. The record cover itself is a good representative of the music inside. Give it a listen- most likely you'll find it to be a culturally enriching experience.Read full review
Perfect condition
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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