Astral Weeks
Studio album by Van Morrison
Released	November 1968
Recorded	September 25, October 1 and 15, 1968
Genre	Folk rock
Length	46:05
Label	Warner Bros. Records
Producer	Lewis Merenstein
Professional reviews
All Music Guide [1] Rolling Stone [2]
Van Morrison chronology
Blowin' Your Mind! (1967) Astral Weeks (1968) Moondance (1970)

Astral Weeks is a folk-rock and R & B album by Northern Irish musician Van Morrison, released in November 1968 on Warner Bros. Records. Astral Weeks was critically acclaimed upon its first release. It has often been placed on the most authoritative lists of best albums of all time. In the 1995 MOJO list of 100 Best Albums, it was listed as #2, and was #19 on the Rolling Stone Magazine's The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in 2003.^[1]It became and remains a cult favourite, despite the fact that it failed to achieve significant mainstream sales success for decades. (It finally went gold in 2001). Astral Weeks is an album by Charles Mingus. ... Cover of the Van Morrison album Astral Weeks. ... A studio album is a collection of previously unreleased, studio-recorded tracks by a recording artist. ... George Ivan Morrison OBE (generally known as Van Morrison) (born August 31, 1945) is a singer-songwriter from Belfast, Northern Ireland. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Bob Dylans folk-rock album, Blonde on Blonde Folk-rock is a musical genre, combining elements of folk music and rock music. ... In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. ... Warner Bros. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... Lewis Merenstein is most famous as the record producer for the legendary Van Morrison albums, Astral Weeks and Moondance. ... The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music, owned by All Media Guide. ... Image File history File links 5_stars. ... This article is about the music magazine. ... Image File history File links 5_stars. ... George Ivan Morrison OBE (generally known as Van Morrison) (born August 31, 1945) is a singer-songwriter from Belfast, Northern Ireland. ... Blowin Your Mind! is the solo debut album by Irish musician Van Morrison recorded on the 28th and 29th of March 1967. ... Moondance is a folk-R & B album by Irish singer/songwriter Van Morrison, released in 1970 (see 1970 in music). ... Folk rock is a musical genre, combining elements of folk music and rock music. ... For other uses, see Rhythm and blues (disambiguation). ... Northern Ireland (Irish: ) is a part of the United Kingdom lying in the northeast of the island of Ireland, covering 5,459 square miles (14,139 km², about a sixth of the islands total area). ... George Ivan Morrison OBE (generally known as Van Morrison) (born August 31, 1945) is a singer-songwriter from Belfast, Northern Ireland. ... Warner Bros. ... For other uses, see Mojo (disambiguation). ... This article is about the music magazine. ... Promotional Book Cover The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time was the cover story of a special issue of Rolling Stone magazine published in November 2003. ... “Golden record” redirects here. ...

Background

At the beginning of 1968, Van Morrison was involved in a contract dispute with Bang Records that kept him from any recording activity. The situation was worsened by the sudden death of the label's founder Bert Berns; born with a congenital heart condition, he experienced a massive heart attack and was found dead in a New York hotel room on December 30, 1967. Prior to Berns's death, Morrison and Berns were having some creative difficulties, with Berns pushing Morrison towards a more pop-oriented direction and Morrison wanting to explore a new sound. As a result, Berns's widow, Ilene Berns, held Morrison responsible for her husband's death. Years later, Ilene Berns would downplay this scenario, but several witnesses from that time, including Morrison's ex-wife Janet Planet, have gone on record describing her subsequent vindictiveness towards Morrison.^[2] George Ivan Morrison OBE (generally known as Van Morrison) (born August 31, 1945) is a singer-songwriter from Belfast, Northern Ireland. ... Bang Records was created by Bert Berns in 1965 together with his partners from Atlantic Records: Ahmet Ertegun, Neshui Ertegun and Jerry Wexler (Gerald). ... Bertrand Russell Berns (November 8, 1929 - December 30, 1967) (a/k/a Bert Russell and Bert Berns) was one of the great American songwriters and record producers of the 1960s. ... is the 364th day of the year (365th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. ...

Meanwhile, Ilene was given ownership of Bang Records, and the annual option on Morrison's recording contract was also due roughly the same time as her inheritance. Legally bound to Bang Records, Morrison was not only kept out of the studio, but unable to find performing work in New York as most clubs were afraid to book him, fearing reprisals.^[3] Ilene Berns then discovered that her late husband had been remiss in filing all the appropriate paperwork to keep Morrison (still a British citizen) in New York. She contacted immigration and attempted to get him deported. However, Morrison was able to stay when his then-girlfriend Janet Planet agreed to marry him.^[4] Once they were married, Morrison and his wife moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he was able to find work performing in the local clubs. Morrison began performing with a small electric combo consisting of local students, but this group only lasted one summer. Two of the members left due to other commitments, but Morrison was able to retain the bassist, Tom Kielbania, who was a student at the Berklee School of Music. It was then that Morrison decided to try an acoustic sound, and he and Kielbania began performing shows as an acoustic duo.^[5] Location in Massachusetts Coordinates: , Country United States State Massachusetts County Middlesex County Settled 1630 Incorporated 1636 Government  - Type Mayor-council city  - Mayor Kenneth Reeves (D) Area  - City  7. ...

Later, Kielbania heard flautist John Payne for the first time while sitting in on a jazz jam session. He took Payne to see Morrison, hoping Morrison would invite him to join them, and after allowing Payne to sit-in on one performance (switching off between flute and saxophone), Morrison did extend an invitation that Payne accepted.^[6] The trio of Payne, Kielbania, and Morrison would continue to perform for four months,and it was around this time that Warner Bros. Records approached Morrison, hoping to sign him to their roster.^[7] Presumably their interest was based on the prior success of "Brown-Eyed Girl," not on Morrison's current acoustic work. Regardless, their interest allowed Morrison to return to the recording studio.^[8]

At the time, Warner Bros. had a deal with Inherit Productions, the production arm of Schwaid-Merenstein which was founded by manager Bob Schwaid (who worked for Warners Publishing) and producer Lewis Merenstein. While Merestein went to see Morrison in Boston, Schwaid went to work on Morrison's legal troubles.^[9]

Morrison was still legally bound to Bang Records, and he would have more issues with them in the future. For the time being, Schwaid was able to free him from those obligations, under several conditions. First, Morrison had to write and submit to Web IV Music (Bert Berns's publishing company) three original compositions per month over the course of one year. An unusual and outrageous demand by any standard, Morrison was able to fulfill it by recording thirty-six nonsense songs in a single session. Such action risked legal reprisals, but none was taken. Morrison then had to assign Web IV one half of the copyright to any composition written and recorded by Morrison and released as a 45 rpm single within one year from September 12, 1968. That demand would become a moot point when Warner Bros. would refrain from releasing any single during that time frame. Finally, Morrison had to include two original compositions controlled by Web IV on his next album. Morrison would fulfill that demand with two of his own compositions, "Madame George" and "Beside You"^[10] though the versions subsequently released were vastly different musically than the original versions recorded with Bang.

Recording sessions

With legal matters settled, Morrison was now able to proceed with his Warner Bros. debut. Sessions were held at Century Sound Studios in New York on September 25, October 1 and October 15, 1968.

Musician John Cale was recording next to Van Morrison's studio, and reported "Morrison couldn't work with anybody, so finally they just shut him in the studio by himself. He did all the songs with just an acoustic guitar, and later they overdubbed the rest of it around his tapes."^[11]This is in fact completely untrue - the live tracks for the sessions were performed by Van on vocals and acoustic guitar, along with upright bass (not bass guitar), second acoustic guitar, vibes, flute, and drums. The only instruments added afterwards were strings, horns and the occasional drum part.^[12] Not to be confused with J.J. Cale. ... A steel string acoustic guitar is a modern form of guitar descended from the classical guitar, but strung with steel strings for a brighter, louder sound. ... Side and front views of a modern double bass with a French bow. ... A string orchestra is an orchestra composed solely of stringed instruments. ... Image of a trumpet, foreground, a piccolo trumpet behind, and a flugelhorn in background. ...

Producer Lewis Merenstein had a background in jazz, and according to Merenstein, Morrison "was not an aficionado of jazz when I met him. R&B and soul, yes; but jazz, no."^[13]For these sessions, Merenstein first contacted veteran bassist Richard Davis. Perhaps best known for his work with Eric Dolphy, Davis was essentially the session leader, and it was through Davis that Merenstein was able to recruit guitarist Jay Berliner, percussionist Warren Smith, Jr., and drummer Connie Kay. All of these musicians had strong backgrounds in jazz; Berliner had worked closely with Charles Mingus and Kay was part of the Modern Jazz Quartet.^[14] Morrison was still working with Kielbania and Payne, but for these sessions, they were essentially replaced. According to Kielbania, "I got to show all the bass lines to Richard Davis. He embellished a lot of them, but I gave him the feeling."^[14] For other uses, see Jazz (disambiguation). ... This article is about the novel Soul Music. ... Richard Davis (born April 15, 1930) is an American double bass player who has been a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison since 1977, after establishing himself for twenty-three years in New York City. ... Eric Allan Dolphy (June 20, 1928 – June 29, 1964) was a jazz musician who played alto saxophone, flute and bass clarinet. ... Connie Kay (born Conrad Henry Kirnon on 27 April 1927-died 30 November 1994) was an American jazz drummer. ... Charles Mingus (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz bassist, composer, bandleader, and occasional pianist. ... The Modern Jazz Quartet was established in 1952 by Milt Jackson (vibraphone), John Lewis (piano, musical director), Percy Heath (bass), and Kenny Clarke (drums). ...

Davis was perhaps the most pivotal instrumentalist during these sessions. "If you listen to the album, every tune is led by Richard and everybody followed Richard and Van's voice," says Merenstein. "I knew if I brought Richard in, he would put the bottom on to support what Van wanted to do vocally, or acoustically. Then you get Jay playing those beautiful counter-lines to Van."^[14] Davis was not impressed by Morrison, but not out of disdain or any preconceived notion. "No prep, no meeting," recalls Davis. "He was remote from us, 'cause he came in and went into a booth… And that's where he stayed, isolated in a booth. I don't think he ever introduced himself to us, nor we to him… he seemed very shy…^[15] Drummer Connie Kay later told Rolling Stone that he approached Morrison and asked "what he wanted me to play, and he said to play whatever I felt like playing. We more or less sat there and jammed."^[16] Davis explained that "jamming" is typically not merely random improvisation; it starts with a lead sheet, which is "a skeletal frame of what is to be done, and you fill in the flesh. What you fill in [comes] through your own imagination - nobody can tell you what to do. You just play it." This article is about the magazine. ... A jam session is a musical act where musicians gather and play (or jam) without extensive preparation or predefined arrangements. ... Improvisation is the practice of acting and reacting, of making and creating, in the moment and in response to the stimulus of ones immediate environment. ... A lead sheet is form of music notation the describes the melody, lyrics and harmony of a popular song. ...

But for the Astral Weeks sessions, lead sheets apparently were not used or at least handed out. "What stood out in my mind was the fact that he allowed us to stretch out," recalls Berliner. "We were used to playing to charts, but Van just played us the songs on his guitar and then told us to go ahead and play exactly what he felt." Berliner actually had great appreciation for the freedom given to him and the band; something few, if any, of them were used to. "I played a lot of classical guitar on those sessions and it was very unusual to play classical guitar in that context," says Berliner.^[17] A classical guitar, also called a Spanish guitar, is a musical instrument from the family of musical instruments called chordophones. ...

The first session held on September 25, 1968 produced four recordings that were used on the album. Only three were initially scheduled: "Cyprus Avenue," "Madame George," and "Beside You." Though Payne was not supposed to play, he still attended the first session and listened as another flautist played his parts. To this day, nobody recalls the name of the flautist as he has not been identified on any documentation; he does play flute on the released takes of "Beside You" and "Cyprus Avenue" but is not credited on the album. When Morrison tried to squeeze in one last tune during the end of that first session, Payne spoke up and pleaded to Merenstein to let him play. Payne was then allowed to play on what became the title track of the album - "Astral Weeks"-the fourth song produced from this session. For the remainder of the sessions, John Payne played on every song.^[18] is the 268th day of the year (269th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Cyprus Avenue is a song written by Van Morrison and included on his 1968 album Astral Weeks. ... Madame George is a song by Irish musician Van Morrison. ... Beside You is the second track on the 1968 album Astral Weeks by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. ... Astral Weeks is the title song and opening track on the 1968 album Astral Weeks by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. ...

The next session, according to John Payne, was early in the morning, possibly the next day, but it didn't work and nothing from this session was used. "It just didn't happen'" says Payne. "It was the wrong time of day for jazz musicians to create. I think that by the end of that session we all knew that nothing was going to be used. They just said, let's forget it."^[19] According to Merenstein there was tension at this second session and it was stopped after about three hours.^[20]

The third and final session on October 15th produced four more recordings that finished off the album — "The Way Young Lovers Do" "Sweet Thing", "Ballerina" and "Slim Slow Slider".^[21] Both "Sweet Thing" and "Ballerina" were originally scheduled for the session, but much time was spent searching for a 'closer.' A number of songs were attempted and rejected before Morrison suggested "Slim Slow Slider." "I don't think we'd ever done [it] live," recalls Payne. "[Morrison] had a book full of songs… I don't know why he decided to do it...And we were first doing it with the drums, with Richard Davis and Connie Kay and the guitar player and the vibe player and me and Van - all of us were playing. Then I started playing soprano [sax] on the thing, and Lew said, 'OK, I wanna try it again. Start again. And I want just the bass, the soprano sax and Van.'" It was a successful take, but it also came with a very long coda, prompting Merenstein to make a large edit. Many of the tracks on Astral Weeks would be subjected to edits (mainly to tighten the performances), but the one on "Slim Slow Slider" was easily the most substantial. "I would estimate three, five minutes of instrumental stuff," says Payne. "We went through stages [until] we got to be avant-garde kind of weird, which is what you hear after the splice - all that weird stuff we're playing - but there was a whole progression to that." According to Merenstein, before he cut it, the coda "was a long, long ending that went nowhere, that just carried on from minute to minute...If it had [some] relativity to the tune itself, I would have left it there."^[22] The Way Young Lovers Do is one of the songs included on Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrisons second solo album Astral Weeks that was recorded in 1968 in New York City. ... Sweet Thing is one of the songs included on Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrisons 1968 acclaimed second album Astral Weeks. ... Ballerina is one of the songs included on Astral Weeks the 1968 album of Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. ... Slim Slow Slider is the closing track on the 1968 album Astral Weeks by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. ...

Songs

With varied rhythms and frenzied vocals, mixed with bizarre lyrics that evoke images instead of coherent ideas and narratives, Astral Weeks has been compared to the school of Impressionism in painting, which similarly seeks to evoke emotions associated with an image. Although usually described as a "song cycle" rather than a concept album, the songs do seem to link together and form a loose narrative. This article is about the art movement. ... “Painter” redirects here. ... A song cycle is a group of songs designed to be performed in sequence as a single entity. ... In popular music, a concept album is an album which is unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical (Shuker 2002, p. ...

The album uses a form of symbolism that would eventually become a staple of Morrison's songs, equating earthly love and heaven, or the closest a living being can get to it. Morrison and Berliner's guitars and Davis's upright bass can be seen as the earth opposing the tuneful horns and Kay's percussion. For other uses, see Guitar (disambiguation). ... Side and front views of a modern double bass with a French bow. ... The Modern Jazz Quartet was established in 1952 by Milt Jackson (vibraphone), John Lewis (piano, musical director), Percy Heath (bass), and Kenny Clarke (drums). ... “Percussion” redirects here. ...

Morrison said the song "Astral Weeks" is "one of those songs where you can see the light at the end of the tunnel… I don't think I can elaborate on it any more than that."^[23]The words in the song: "Talkin' to Huddie Ledbetter/Showin' pictures on the wall/" appear to be based on Morrison's real life custom of carrying around a poster of Lead Belly and hanging it on the wall wherever he was living. This was revealed in a Rolling Stone interview in 1978.^[24] Astral Weeks is the title song and opening track on the 1968 album Astral Weeks by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. ...

The oldest composition on Astral Weeks is "Ballerina", which was composed sometime in 1966, while Morrison was still a member of Them and about the same time he first met his future wife, Janet (Planet) Rigsbee. Inspired by "a flash about an actress in an opera house appearing in a ballet" (according to Morrison), former Them guitarist Jim Armstrong recalls the band working on the song between engagements. "[Morrison] had all these words," Armstrong says, "we sort of formalized it, 'cause there was no structure to it." Them would perform the song one night in Hawaii, but it would not be recorded until Astral Weeks. Maya Plisetskaya, prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Ballet from 1943 to 1960 and prima ballerina assoluta from 1960 to 1990. ... Them was a Northern Irish band formed in Belfast in April 1964, best known for the garage rock standard Gloria and launching singer Van Morrisons career. ... Actors in period costume sharing a joke whilst waiting between takes during location filming. ... New York State Theater, Lincoln Center, home of the New York City Opera Bolshoi Theatre. ... For other uses, see Ballet (disambiguation). ...

Morrison has denied that "Madame George" is about a transvestite, as many have believed. The original title of the song is "Madame Joy" and Morrison later changed the title although he actually sings the words "Madame Joy" in the song. An earlier recording with slightly altered lyrics and a much swifter tempo changes the tone considerably from the Astral Weeks recording, which is downbeat and nostalgic; the earlier recording is joyous, and seems to be from the point-of-view of a partygoer who sees the titular character. Madame George is a song by Irish musician Van Morrison. ... This article deals with the history of the word transvestite. For information about cross-dressing, see there. ...

The song "Cyprus Avenue" is a live favourite of Van Morrison's fans and was the closing song for most of his live shows for many years. According to Roy Kane, who grew up with Morrison in Belfast, Cyprus Avenue "…was the street that we would all aspire to - the other side of the tracks ... the Beersbridge Road had the railway line cut across it; and our side of it was one side of the tracks and Cyprus Avenue was the other… there was an Italian shop up in Ballyhackamore, that's where all the young ones used to go of a Sunday… we used to walk up to the Sky Beam for an ice cream or a cup of mushy peas and vinegar… We used to take a short cut up Cyprus Avenue, 'cause that's where all the expensive houses and all the good-looking totty came from… mostly upper-crusty totty… There's a couple of big girls' grammar schools up 'round that direction… That would have sunk in my head as [much] as his."^[13] Cyprus Avenue is a song written by Van Morrison and included on his 1968 album Astral Weeks. ... This article is about the city in Northern Ireland. ... Ballyhackamore is an electoral ward of East Belfast. ...

Van Morrison told Ritchie Yorke, his biographer, that the songs "Madame George" and "Cyprus Avenue" were both written in stream of consciousness: "['Madame George'] just came right out...The song is just a stream of consciousness thing, as is 'Cyprus Avenue'...I didn't even think about what I was writing."^[25] In literary criticism, stream of consciousness is a literary technique which seeks to portray an individuals point of view by giving the written equivalent of the characters thought processes. ...

Critical acclaim and influence

Besides the #2 rating by Mojo In 1995 and the #19 ranking by Rolling Stone magazine in 2003, Astral Weeks was listed at #3 on The Times Magazine list of The Times All Time Top 100 Albums.^[26]In 1997 it was named the 9th greatest album of all time in a "Music of the Millennium" poll conducted by HMV, Channel 4, The Guardian and Classic FM. A separate readers' poll published in January 1996 placed Astral Weeks at #5 behind three Beatles albums and the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds. In 1998 Q magazine readers placed it at #52, and in 2000 the same magazine placed it at # 6 in its list of the 100 Greatest British Albums Ever. In 2003 the TV network VH1 named it the 40th greatest album ever. In 1999 Astral Weeks and Moondance, Morrison's next album, were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. The Times is a national newspaper published daily in the United Kingdom (and the Kingdom of Great Britain before the United Kingdom existed) since 1788 when it was known as The Daily Universal Register. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... This article is about the British television station. ... The Guardian is a British newspaper owned by the Guardian Media Group. ... Classic FM is the United Kingdoms first national commercial radio station, broadcasting classical music in a popular and accessible style. ... The White Album, see The Beatles (album). ... The Beach Boys are an American rock and roll band. ... Pet Sounds is a 1966 album recorded by American pop group the Beach Boys. ... Q is a music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom, with a circulation of 140,282 and a readership of 731,000. ... A television network is a distribution network for television content whereby a central operation provides programming for many television stations. ... VH1 (VH-1: Video Hits One until 1994) is an American cable television channel that was created in January 1985 by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, at the time a division of Warner Communications and owners of MTV. VH1 and sister channel MTV are currently part of the MTV Networks division... Moondance is a folk-R & B album by Irish singer/songwriter Van Morrison, released in 1970 (see 1970 in music). ... The Grammy Hall of Fame Award is a special Grammy award established in 1973 to honor recordings that are at least twenty-five years old and that have qualitative or historical significance. Alphabetical listing by title: List of Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients A-D List of Grammy Hall...

It was listed along with Moondance among the All-Time 100 albums by CNNTime magazine in November 2006.^[27] Moondance is a folk-R & B album by Irish singer/songwriter Van Morrison, released in 1970 (see 1970 in music). ... The Cable News Network, commonly known as CNN, is a major cable television network founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. ... Look up November in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The influential rock journalist Lester Bangs wrote in 1979: "It sounded like the man who made Astral Weeks was in terrible pain, pain most of Van Morrison's previous works had only suggested; but like the later albums by The Velvet Underground, there was a redemptive element in the blackness, ultimate compassion for the suffering of others, and a swath of pure beauty and mystical awe that cut right through the heart of the work."^[28] Lester Bangs during an interview Leslie Conway Bangs (December 14, 1948 – April 30, 1982) was an American music journalist, author and musician. ... This article is about the rock band. ...

Elvis Costello described Astral Weeks as "still the most adventurous record made in the rock medium, and there hasn't been a record with that amount of daring made since."^[29] Elvis Costello (born Declan Patrick McManus August 25, 1954) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter. ...

Greil Marcus, in a 2006 interview in The Believer, said that Martin Scorsese told him that the first half of his movie Taxi Driver was based on Astral Weeks.^[30] Greil Marcus (2006) Greil Marcus (born 1945) is an American author, music journalist and cultural critic. ... Cover of The Believer, April 2005 The Believer is an intellectual yet playful magazine mainly about literature. ... Martin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese (IPA: AmE: ; Ita: []) (born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, writer and producer and founder of the World Cinema Foundation. ... This article is about the 1976 American film. ...

Origin of the title of the album

Steve Turner, one of Van Morrison's biographers, has said, "Eccentric Irish painter Cezil McCartney......was an influence on the titling of Astral Weeks." 'A friend of mine had drawings in his flat of astral projection,' "Van told me:" 'I was at his house when I was working on a song which began, If I venture down the slipstream and that's why I called it Astral Weeks.'^[31] '"It was a painting," McCartney corrects."'There were several paintings in the studio at the time. Van looked at the painting and it suggested astral travelling to him."'^[32] Category: ...

An album of music by Charles Mingus with the same title was released (possibly without authorization) at about the same time that Morrison's seminal work appeared. The relationship between Mingus' relatively obscure Astral Weeks and Van Morrison's famous Astral Weeks is poorly documented. It is uncertain as to who used the title first. Some of the musicians and others that Morrison employed had worked with Mingus. Charles Mingus (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz bassist, composer, bandleader, and occasional pianist. ... Astral Weeks is an album by Charles Mingus. ...

Album cover image

The album cover photograph of Van Morrison was taken by Joel Brodsky, best known for his "Young Lions" photoshoot with Jim Morrison that resulted in the photograph of Jim used on the 1985 album cover of The Best of the Doors.^[33] For other persons named James or Jim Morrison, see James Morrison. ... The Best of The Doors is a two-disc compilation album consisting of 19 of The Doors best songs during their run. ...

Track listing

All songs were written by Van Morrison. George Ivan Morrison OBE (generally known as Van Morrison) (born August 31, 1945) is a singer-songwriter from Belfast, Northern Ireland. ...

Side one: Part One: In The Beginning

1. "Astral Weeks" – 7:00
2. "Beside You" – 5:10
3. "Sweet Thing" – 4:10
4. "Cyprus Avenue" – 6:50

Astral Weeks is the title song and opening track on the 1968 album Astral Weeks by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. ... Beside You is the second track on the 1968 album Astral Weeks by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. ... Sweet Thing is one of the songs included on Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrisons 1968 acclaimed second album Astral Weeks. ... Cyprus Avenue is a song written by Van Morrison and included on his 1968 album Astral Weeks. ...

Side two: Part Two: Afterwards

1. "The Way Young Lovers Do" – 3:10
2. "Madame George" – 9:25
3. "Ballerina" – 7:00
4. "Slim Slow Slider" – 3:20

The Way Young Lovers Do is one of the songs included on Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrisons second solo album Astral Weeks that was recorded in 1968 in New York City. ... Madame George is a song by Irish musician Van Morrison. ... Ballerina is one of the songs included on Astral Weeks the 1968 album of Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. ... Slim Slow Slider is the closing track on the 1968 album Astral Weeks by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. ...

Personnel

• Van Morrison - rhythm guitar, keyboard, saxophone, vocals
• Jay Berliner - guitar
• Barry Kornfeld - guitar on "The Way Young Lovers Do"
• Richard Davis - bass
• Connie Kay - drums
• John Payne - flute, soprano saxophone
• Warren Smith, Jr. - percussion, vibraphone

Rhythm guitar is a guitar that is primarily used to provide rhythmic and harmonic accompaniment for a singer or for other instruments in an ensemble. ... Piano, a well-known instance of keyboard instruments A keyboard instrument is any musical instrument played using a musical keyboard. ... The saxophone (colloquially referred to as sax) is a conical-bored instrument of the woodwind family. ... In music a singer or vocalist is a type of musician who sings, i. ... For other uses, see Guitar (disambiguation). ... Richard Davis (born April 15, 1930) is an American double bass player who has been a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison since 1977, after establishing himself for twenty-three years in New York City. ... Side and front views of a modern double bass with a French bow. ... Connie Kay (born Conrad Henry Kirnon on 27 April 1927-died 30 November 1994) was an American jazz drummer. ... For other kinds of drums, see drum (disambiguation). ... ♠ This article is about the family of musical instruments. ... The soprano saxophone is a variety of the saxophone, a woodwind instrument. ... “Percussion” redirects here. ... A typical Ludwig-Musser vibraphone. ...

Production

• Producer: Lewis Merenstein
• Engineer: Brooks Arthur
• Arranger and Conductor: Larry Fallon

Notes

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 89th day of the year (90th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 123rd day of the year (124th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Lester Bangs during an interview Leslie Conway Bangs (December 14, 1948 – April 30, 1982) was an American music journalist, author and musician. ... Greil Marcus (2006) Greil Marcus (born 1945) is an American author, music journalist and cultural critic. ... This article is about the state. ... Random House Logo Random House is a publishing division of the German media conglomerate Bertelsmann based in New York City. ... Cover of The Believer, April 2005 The Believer is an intellectual yet playful magazine mainly about literature. ...

References

• Heylin, Clinton (2003). Can You Feel the Silence? Van Morrison: A New Biography, Chicago Review Press ISBN 1-55652-542-7
• Hinton, Brian (1997). Celtic Crossroads: The Art of Van Morrison, Sanctuary, ISBN 1-86074169X
• Rogan, Johnny (2006). Van Morrison:No Surrender, London:Vintage Books ISBN 9780099431831
• Turner, Steve (1993). Too Late to Stop Now, Viking Penguin, ISBN 0-670-85147-7
• Yorke, Ritchie (1975). Into The Music, London:Charisma Books , ISBN 0-85947-013-X

External links

• Lyrics
• Commentary on Astral Weeks by Lester Bangs, from the 1979 anthology Stranded
• Sean O'Hagan's retrospective on Astral Weeks, 2004 for The Observer
• Astral Weeks on Popmatters
• Astral Weeks Review by Greil Marcus, from the March 1969 issue of Rolling Stone Magazine
• neuma article by Michael Goldberg "The Masterpiece that is Astral Weeks" 2003-06-23