VAN MORRISON – ROLL WITH THE PUNCHES 2LP – MINT 2017

Van Morrison – It’s Too Late To Stop Now
(Exile/Caroline International Records  2017  5771853)

Gatefold Sleeve in MINT condition

Double Vinyl in MINT condition

Sir George Ivan Morrison, OBE (born 31 August 1945), known as Van Morrison, is a Northern-Irish singer-songwriter, instrumentalist, and producer from Ulster. He is one of the most acclaimed and renowned songwriters of the rock era. In 2016, Morrison was knighted for his musical achievements and his services to tourism and charitable causes in Northern Ireland.

Known as “Van the Man”, Morrison started his professional career when, as a teenager in the late 1950s, he played a variety of instruments including guitar, harmonica, keyboards and saxophone for various Irish showbands covering the popular hits of the day. He rose to prominence in the mid-1960s as the lead singer of the Northern Irish R&B band Them, with whom he recorded the garage band classic “Gloria”. His solo career began under the pop-hit oriented guidance of Bert Berns with the release of the hit single “Brown Eyed Girl” in 1967. After Berns’ death, Warner Bros. Records bought out his contract and allowed him three sessions to record Astral Weeks (1968). Even though this album would gradually garner high praise, it was initially a poor seller; Moondance (1970), however, established Morrison as a major artist, and he built on his reputation throughout the 1970s with a series of acclaimed albums and live performances. Morrison continues to record and tour, producing albums and live performances that sell well and are generally warmly received, sometimes collaborating with other artists, such as Georgie Fame and the Chieftains. In 2008, he performed Astral Weeks live for the first time since 1968.

Much of Morrison’s music is structured around the conventions of soul music and R&B, such as the popular singles “Brown Eyed Girl”, “Jackie Wilson Said (I’m in Heaven When You Smile)”, “Domino” and “Wild Night”. An equal part of his catalogue consists of lengthy, loosely connected, spiritually-inspired musical journeys that show the influence of Celtic tradition, jazz and stream-of-consciousness narrative, such as the album Astral Weeks and lesser-known ones such as Veedon Fleece and Common One. The two strains together are sometimes referred to as “Celtic soul”. He has received six Grammy Awards, the 1994 Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music, and has been inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Roll with the Punches is the 37th studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. The album was released on 22 September 2017 by Caroline Records.

Track listing

Personnel

Musicians

• Van Morrison – electric guitar, harmonica, percussion, saxophone, vocals
• Jeff Beck – electric guitar
• Mez Clough – drums, percussion, background vocals
• Laurence Cottle – electric bass, trombone
• Ned Edwards – electric guitar, harmonica, background vocals
• Dan Ellis – percussion
• Georgie Fame – Hammond organ, vocals
• Chris Farlowe – vocals
• Colin Griffin – drums
• Chris Hill – double bass
• Pete Hurley – electric bass
• Sumudu Jayatilaka – background vocals
• Paul Jones – harmonica, vocals
• Dave Keary – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, background vocals
• Dana Masters – background vocals
• Stuart McIlroy – piano, electric voice, harmonica
• Joseph Jordan-Richardson – Organ, Piano reserve, pig skin drums
• Paul Moore – electric bass
• Paul Moran – Hammond organ, trumpet
• James Powell – drums
• Jason Rebello – piano
• Elizabeth Williams – background vocals

Technical

• Dick Beetham – mastering
• Poppy Kavanagh – assistant engineer
• Rowan McIntosh – assistant engineer
• Gerry McLernon – engineer, mixing
• Phil Parsons – assistant engineer
• Patrick Phillips – assistant engineer
• Tristan Powell – engineer, mixing
• Will Purton – assistant, assistant engineer, engineer, mixing
• Matt Tait – engineer, mixing
• Richard Wade – photography
• Enda Walsh – engineer, mixing