Van the Man is without question one of rock and roll’s all-time visionaries. Few artists have ever cut a pop single more perfect in every way than "Brown Eyed Girl" and fewer still have then walked away, going in an utterly different direction, rather than follow the money. Astral Weeks and Moondance are two of the most astonishing albums in rock history and while he’s generally made subsequent albums that draw from one or both of those touchstones, he’s never tried to duplicate their success, instead using what he learned from them to continue further on down the road. He’s a mystical, mythical performer who truly seems at times to be so deep into the music that his connection is spiritual and otherworldly.
But ‘twas not always thus.
My imaginary friend Chris forwarded me the following link. I have to admit, I thought at first it was a joke. I love Van but I’m not a fanatic. Still, I have a pretty good knowledge of his history and I’d never heard of this album. And surely, surely, this would be common knowledge amongst those who are, uh…knowledgeable.
Guess not. Turns out it’s real. And my life is better for listening.
Van Morrison’s Contractual Obligation Album
In the great pantheon of contractual obligation records, there is the noisy (Lou Reed's Metal Machine Music), the brassy (Neil Young's This Note's For You) and the phony (Monty Python's Contractual Obligation Record).
And then there is Van Morrison's Bang Records Sessions.
In order to fulfill his obligation to his early solo label Bang Records, Van Morrison sat down in 1967 or so and cranked out 31 songs on the spot, on topics ranging from ringworm to wanting a danish, to hating his record label and a guy named George. Make sure you get past the first few tunes - it takes him a few to get cooking
My personal favorite is either "Ring Worm" or "Freaky If You Got This Far." The oddest I’ve heard is not "Blow In Your Nose"—a take-off, presumably, on the album Blowin’ Your Mind, which the record label released without Van’s knowledge while he was out on tour. No, the oddest would be the sequel, "Nose In Your Blow," which…well, dammit, it sounds like Van Morrison. It’s a stupid, stupid tune, but had he actually written half-decent or, hell’s bells, quarter-decent lyrics, there are points where it sounds like it really could have been pretty great. It’s not. But it sounds like there was actual potential there, buried deep down. Which, perhaps, goes to show you that you can’t hide genius no matter how hard you try.
Or perhaps not. Because if there’s any genius hiding underneath the bushel of "Have a Danish" I’m not perceptive enough to pick up on it. But I’m sure mighty glad I got the chance to try.
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