 | By: Van Morrison Label: Polydor Released: 18 Jun 1999 RRP: Average Rating:  |
The other songs are music of deep spiritual yearning in various styles. These include the catchy pop of Real Real Gone, the spoken poetry & social commentary of Rave On John Donne, the poignant childhood reminiscing of Coney Island, the gentle, evocative strains of Sense Of Wonder & the engaging gospel sounds of Hymns To The Silence.
I would have also expected to find the track Be Thou My Vision from the Hymns album here, as it is a passionately numinous listening experience but the artist was the compiler & this selection is his personal choice.
The fact that these tracks are relatively obscure only enhances the listening experience, proving that some of Van's least commerciallly successful work has grown in stature down the years & that his output has been consistently excellent.
Sadly this collection tries hard but ultimately fails to demonstrate "The Man" at his best. On the surface it seems like the CD has a wide variety of styles: Rock (Its alll over now baby blue), Pop (Real Real Gone), Blues (Motherless Child), Comedy (Rave On John Donne) & Sandy Row "stylee" (I'll Tell Me Ma).
The highlight for me is Coney Island, which alll will remember from the famous Thompson/Windrum/McCoy/Bailie movie of the same name. Plus who can forget the image of Van in Matador gear on the cover of Sense of Wonder.
What lets this one down is the absence of material from Astral Weeks & Moondance. A wee blast of Jackie Wilson Said would have made this a masterpiece (who can forget the cover by Belfast band, Us The Us - 'Honey Chilli' indeed). It should also be noted that they have managed to select 15 songs without a single mention of Davey's chipper - wow!!.
However if you dont own any Van stick to Vol 1 & buy the afore mentioned albums.
Rave on, rave on , rave on ....
Sandy Arbuthnot
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