It hasn't been easy keeping up with Van Morrison these last few years. He's been cranking out records like crazy. Since Roll With The Punches in 2017, he's released no less than nine records, including three in 2023.
Versatile 2017 is mostly a jazz album with a few Morrison originals that shows Van to be, well, pretty versatile. It is a solid record with plenty of jazz classics, and Van's originals fit nicely. I wasn't wowed by it, but it was enjoyable, and it pretty much lived up to the title. There are better versions of most of these chestnuts for sure, but Van certainly holds up his end quite well.
You're Driving Me Crazy and The Prophet Speaks, both from 2018, feature Joey Defrancesco's quartet with his Hammond B3 and trumpet plus guitar (Dan Wilson), drums (Michael Ode), and saxophone (Troy Roberts). Both feature Morrison originals as well as jazz and R&B compositions, and both are very good. Morrison seems thrilled/motivated by a different, and jazzier band, than his usual highly skilled accompanists. You're Driving Me Crazy has a more interesting song selection, especially the Morrison originals, all songs that had been recorded previously over the years.
2019 saw Van return to his own band for Three Cords And The Truth. The record features the bluesier side of R&B, and Van writes all the songs for the first time since Keep Me Singing in 2016 (which contained one cover song). The "three cords and the truth" quote from Harlan Howard refers to country music, but thankfully the record has nothing to do with country music. It is merely another very good record from Morrison along the lines of Magic Time 2005 or Keep It Simple 2008, both examples of Morrison's late career resurgence.
I reviewed Latest Record Project Vol. 1 2021 and What's It Gonna Take? 2022, both generally good music dragged down by Van's Covid and divorce inspired whining and bitching. I also reviewed Moving On Skiffle 2023, a relief after the previous two, but not a terribly exciting record.
And that brings us to the other two 2023 Van Morrison records. The first, which is available from Van's web site, is Beyond Words: Instrumental. Other than the pretty awful scatting that is the first song, most of the record is mildly enjoyable. An archival release of instrumentals recorded in the 1970s and 80s, it is mostly studio jams on generally minor musical statements, but it makes nice easy listening (in a good way). It is probably best left to the devoted.
And finally, there's Accentuate The Positive 2023. As with the previous skiffle outing, this one is all covers, except this time it's old time 50s rock and roll with a few country, R&B and pop tunes thrown in. I have mixed feelings about the record. The band is the usual stellar line-up that Morrison assembles, and many of them have been with him for a while now. They take the punch out of some of these oldies, but mostly they sound highly skilled and engaged in the material, and maybe even just having fun. Morrison sings these gems with reverence and genuine excitement and joy. In fact it is remarkable how well Van Morrison still sings. But it is an oldies cover record, and like most of those things, only one or two songs will compete with the originals.
I did a career overview back in 2011, and I have now reviewed or at least mentioned the fourteen records he's made since then in one or more of these Morrison related entries.
