Search - Van Morrison :: Blowin' Your Mind

OF HUMAN BONDAGE

KrossD | Los Angeles, CA | 01/11/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I found an old copy of this on vinyl a while back. The guy selling it wanted $75.00 for it. He thought I'd be his rube. There was some controversy about the lyric "making love in the green grass...behind the stadium with you" which led to a "clean" version that involved skipping, and running, and hey-heys. As if we don't know what the hey-heys are all about. Anyway this guy is trying to off the censored version for twice what it's worth. I passed. Having come across it though, the salivating began. The memory of it, the magic horror within, it all came flooding back to me.



I realize Van never intended this to be his first solo album. I know he made a deal with the Bang devil (Bert Burns), and these wildly varied songs got slapped together in a manner that doesn't have any cyclical flow, and then wrapped in a cover of swirling dung...and I know there was nothing he could do about it. I know all this and I do not care. Because it's Van and no matter how you Rubik the cube, these songs will take you on a journey. This is one of the darkest.



That "Brown Eyed Girl" is the lead-off track is almost laughable. It's a trap! There's nothing in it to prepare you for the upheaval that will follow. Still, even forty years later, I defy you not to dance in your head a little bit when you hear it for the umpteenth time. Beyond that lies "He Don't Give You None". It's the kind of homage to the blues and soul singers of his youth that would become a Morrison staple, only the vehicle here is a quietly disturbing tale of sexual conquest attempting to fill a spiritual void. Then again, maybe it's just about jelly rolls. After that the hammer falls...hard! "T.B. Sheets" is nearly ten minutes of lilting, excruciating pain and devastating loss. Julie lies awake in a hospital bed with tuberculosis, "foreign bodies" swirling in the air...and she's dying...in his arms. Even though Van Morrison would go on to make ASTRAL WEEKS, and even though he would remain a fascinating artist to follow, never again would he shake you to your core, chill you to the bone and bring you to your knees with quite the force with which he does here.



I bought the SUNDAZED vinyl re-issue* of this. "T.B. Sheets" is the last song on side one. Since I brought this home, I've listened to side two exactly once. There's nothing wrong with any of those songs. I love "Ro Ro Rosey" & "Goodbye Baby (Baby Goodbye)", but what transpires on the first side can't be trifled with. It's raw, unflinching honesty will drain you. If you're a glutton for abuse (like myself), when side one ends, you'll take the needle right back to the start and suffer along with Van all over again.



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*The SUNDAZED 180 gram vinyl re-issues have the cleaned-up version of "Brown Eyed Girl". I can't imagine what difference that makes. The line (either way) doesn't add or detract anything from the song.



There are various versions that have been released on CD. Some have bonus songs and/or alternate takes, all of which have their merit (or at the very least some curious value to completists), but I'm of the opinion that the most rewarding way to experience this album is on vinyl.

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One of VAN'S best albums

grew up in the 1960s | usa | 01/03/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"this cd is the great "lost" VAN MORRISON album. recorded in 1967, it's a bridge between his BELFAST rock band THEM and his first official solo album ASTRAL WEEKS. for some reason VAN objected to this album's release. probably it was some problem with the producer BERT BURNS. maybe it was the silly album title, who knows. after some delay it was released anyway and it produced one hit single; the great, classic song BROWN EYED GIRL. all the rest of the songs on the album (except maybe SPANISH ROSE) are very good as well. this cd includes 5 alternate takes (recorded at the same time) which are different but just about as good as the originals. overall it's one of MORRISON'S best, most straight forward rock albums. at 8.99 it's a steal. you'll love it."

Fantastic CD

Camilla A. Conde | Bethesde, Maryland | 07/04/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I love Van. I like most everything he has done but I love this CD. I do not know if it is the roughness of the recording or the fact that it is his first solo album, but I always end up listening to this CD the most."