VAN MORRISON > Keep It Simple

Eschewing all the formal production elements of his last few albums, legendary vocalist Van Morrison digs into his past, strips away what is unnecessary and creates a collection of 11self-penned songs that speaks volumes to who he is, and what has musically shaped one of the most emotive catalogues on modern music.

Label: Lost Highway
[Rating: 3 STARS]

Eschewing all the formal production elements of his last few albums, legendary vocalist Van Morrison digs into his past, strips away what is unnecessary and creates a collection of 11self-penned songs that speaks volumes to who he is, and what has musically shaped one of the most emotive catalogues on modern music. Perhaps it’s the Irish in him-that love of true hearts and grand songs that allows the musical gallivanter to embrace jazz, country, gospel, soul, Celtic, blues, folk and Scottish music with equal ease. “Lover Come Back” and “Song of Home” each embrace their own brand of yearning, while “How Can A Poor Boy” and “School of Hard Knocks” offer a more pungent urgency. But that is Morrison: the chameleon who takes a sentiment and extrapolates then expands on its essence without ever overdoing.