Astral Weeks/Beside You/Sweet Thing/Cypress Avenue/Young Lovers Do/Madame George/Ballerina/Slim Slow Slider
Astral Weeks was the critically acclaimed follow up album from former Them frontman Van Morrison. It regularly features on many critics' choice lists as one of the best albums from the sixties.
"There's just something about this record, something beyond the individual songs, something about the atmosphere that runs through the whole thing that totally enchants me. After four or five listens I couldn't recall most of the melodies to save my life, but while they were playing they were achingly beautiful. The arrangements are wonderful too; the songs never get boring. The way he uses his voice is amazing. This record is so incredibly emotional, and perfectly beautiful."
"This album is absolutely phenomenal. This is one of the most personal, beautiful artistic statements I can think of. It is like a diary, but better, because the music adds colour and depth that no words can describe. It is rare when the music compliments the singer so well. It is as if the musicians are from the same vein, the same heart. This LP is perfect, beginning to end; musically and lyrically. Van Morrison will show you his lowest low and ever so sweetly, he will take you away to a place that is timeless, a place so wonderful it will make you want to weep."
"Van Morrison's Astral Weeks is a phenomenon. Recorded as if on a whim, within a few days with a bunch of musicians possessing (as it turned out) uncanny gifts of improvisation and collective spirit, it treads the line between rock, country and blues, even jazz. Song structures remind you of lyrical poems, rhythms and instruments are many times utilized in the best fashion imaginable. Better still, lyrics have something to say. It may take a while to get accustomed to the Irishman's elastic, sometimes growling singing, but in the end you may well realize that it just belongs with this music. Simply put, pop and rock music would be considerably poorer without this gem. Eclectic and beyond category, this is more than essential."
"Wispy, poetic and extremely soulful, Astral Weeks is an album that truly feels like one of a kind. The impressionistic lyrics and musical style really strike a chord with me, and songs like the title track and Sweet Thing have the power to make me stop in my place and just marvel the beauty of them."
"Morrison's vocal mannerisms are highly repetitive. He seems to have a few signature vocal 'licks' that he uses again and again and again."
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