Van Morrison
Prolific singer/songwriter Van Morrison was born George Ivan Morrison on August 31, 1945 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Growing up, Van listened to American blues and jazz records that his father collected, and was inspired early on by the sounds of Muddy Waters, Mahalia Jackson, Lightnin' Hopkins and John Lee Hooker. As a teenager, Van took up the guitar, saxophone, and harmonica, and began gigging with local Irish bands before eventually forming his own R&B band in 1964, named Them.
At age 22, Van moved to New York City to pursue a solo music career. He recorded an LP titled Blowin' Your Mind with Bert Berns, the same producer who had previously produced for his group, Them. That same year, Van married violinist Janet Planet, with whom he had a daughter, singer-songwriter Shana Morrison. The couple divorced in 1973.
Between Boston and California, Van produced a series of albums such as Moondance (1970) Tupelo Honey (1971) and St Dominic's Preview (1972), while at the same time touring with his next band, the Caledonia Soul Orchestra. After releasing his 1974 live set It's Too Late To Stop Now, Van returned to Ireland. The Celtic influence he found there can be heard on his 1974 album, Veedon Fleece. In the 1960's Van Morrison had a number of chart hits, most notably the rock standard "Gloria", subsequently covered by and Jimi Hendrix.
After a three-year hiatus from the public eye, Van returned in 1977 with a new album, A Period Of Transition. He then re-located to London, where he released Wavelength (1978) and Into The Music (1979). The albums’ expressions of spirituality were further echoed into the 80s, with his albums Common One (1980), Beautiful Vision (1982) Inarticulate Speech Of The Heart (1983), A Sense Of Wonder (1985), No Guru No Method No Teacher (1986) and Poetic Champions Compose (1987). In 1988, Van once again explored his Irish roots with The Chieftains on Irish Heartbeat. The following year he released Avalon Sunset to much commercial success which featured the hit duet with Cliff Richard, "Whenever God Shines His Light".
Van’s prolific success continued going strong throughout the 90s; he released Enlightenment (1990), Hymns To The Silence (1991), Too Long In Exile (1993), Days Like This (1995), How Long Has This Been Going On (1995), and The Healing Game (1997). For Van’s 1998 album, The Philosopher's Stone, he compiled 30 previously unreleased tracks recorded between 1971 and 1988 as well as different spins on old classics such as Wonderful Remark and Bright Side Of The Road. That same year, he was recognized with a Grammy for his collaboration with John Lee Hooker on Don't Look Back. Van rounded out a productive decade with Back On Top (1999), which included his first solo Top 40 hit, Precious Time.
The dawn of the new millennium saw Van returning to his Irish roots once again with The Skiffle Sessions - Live In Belfast (2000). In 2002, he released Down the Road, featuring new tracks as well as a new version of Georgia On My Mind. In June 2003, Van was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. That same year, he signed with jazz label Blue Note Records, where he released What's Wrong With This Picture? The album earned Van a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Blues Album.
In 2005, Van released his self-produced album, Magic Time, marking his 38th solo release. 2006 brought Van Morrison recognition with his version of 'Comfortably Numb' being featured on the soundtrack of Martin Scorsese's movie 'The Departed' which starred Martin Sheen, Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon and Jack Nicholson. He continues to tour throughout Europe and the United States.
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