Van Morrison: The Philosopher's Stone

This remarkable 30 track compilation of previously unreleased material is a real gem in Morrison's already mighty canon. The material's sources are the subject of endless debate among Morrison experts, but most of them would seem (and sound) to date from the period from Hard Nose The Highway to A Period Of Transition - late 1972 to 1976-77. 

Anyway, this is a veritable cornucopia of Morrison magic - many of the tracks here would have considerably enhanced Hard Nose The Highway, Veedon Fleece and A Period Of Transition. Particularly the first and third of these three. Why the tracks were rejected is a mystery that only Morrison knows the answer too, like Dylan, Springsteen and Costello, his rejects would be others' works of genius, their exclusion incomprehensible. 

Many of the songs are bluesy and this is reflected in the openers - Really Don't Know and Ordinary People are solid chugging bluesers.

Soul (Morrison's unique brand of it) is present in a lot of them too and the full length, extended Wonderful Remark (not the shorter, slightly faster one found on the Best Of Van Morrison Volume One) is an absolute delight. Morrison's vocals are soulfully top notch and the flute backing enhances the song no end, as it slowly builds up its feeling. Great stuff.

Not Supposed To Break Down sounds very 1974 Veedon Fleece-ish to me. 

Madame Joy is a wonderful, lively companion to the 1968 classic Madame George. 

Contemplation Rose is very typical of Morrison's early mid-seventies work while Don't Worry About Tomorrow is a harmonica-driven blues number with a long instrumental introduction. Try For Sleep is also a fine piece of laid-back Morrison blues, featuring the higher parts of his vocal range, that he employed a lot more in the early seventies.

Lover's Prayer is a slow paced, soulful one. Drumshanbo Hustle has Morrison embarking on one of his early rants against that old Satan - the music industry. "You were puking up your guts when you read the standard contract you just signed...". Don't sign it then, Van.

Twilight Zone is a blues that possibly goes on a few minutes too long, but Foggy Mountain Top has Morrison doing the blues in his own unique style and it sounds almost like a one-take "live" recording, it is so spontaneous-sounding. 

Naked In The Jungle finds Van getting lively and funked-up, in a piano-driven, barroom sort of way. It also features a killer saxophone solo. There There Child is beautifully rhythmic and bassy in its sheer relaxed soulfulness.

The alternative version of The Street Only Knew Your Name - a song which dates eventually from 1983's Inarticulate Speech Of The Heart (although this was an early recording of it from 1975) - positively drips with Morrison-style soul, as does his cover of the folk song, John Henry, which once more finds Van getting surprisingly funky. Check out those funky drums and basslines on Western Plain too. There is no stuff like this on any of Morrison's albums.

Joyous Sound is exactly that - a brassy, upbeat serving of Celtic soul. I Have Finally Come To Realise is slow paced, saxophone-enhanced soul. Street Theory also has a brassy, funky beat. For Mr. Thomas is a wonderfully evocative, uplifting tribute to fellow curmudgeon, Welsh poet Dylan Thomas.

The alternative versions of songs on here are great too, especially the catchy Real Real Gone and a harmonica-drenched Bright Side Of The Road.

I am not a huge fan of the strange, spoken duet Song Of Being A Child and Showbusiness (another familiar Morrison gripe) probably goes on a minute or two too long, however wonderful it is at times. Crazy Jane On God and the Irish instrumental High Spirits sort of pass me by too, but maybe that is because they come at the end of the album. 

As always with these long compilations and/or double albums, I run out of steam when reviewing them. I think you have got the picture by now - if you're a Morrison aficionado of any sort of fortitude, you will eat this up. There is a fair case for this being the best collection of Van Morrison songs in one place outside of the "best ofs". Seriously.