From his earliest days, Van Morrison has channeled the influences of such giants as Hank Williams, Jimmie Rodgers, Muddy Waters, Mahalia Jackson, and Leadbelly. His music has defied boundaries, offering everything from the swinging soul-jazz of Moondance to the traditional Celtic styles of Irish Heartbeat. In the last few decades, he has collaborated with a range of artists including John Lee Hooker, Mose Allison, and Tom Jones, and dedicated projects to celebrating and re-exploring his blues, jazz, skiffle, and country roots.
‘New Arrangements And Duets’, represents a small percentage of the huge amount of unreleased material Van Morrison is hoping to roll out in the near future, rather than letting it gather dust in some archive.
The big band tracks were recorded in 2014. Paul Moran and Chris White individually picked the songs they wanted to do big band arrangements for. The duets, recorded across 2018 and 2019, highlight an array of leading vocalists in the shape of Kurt Elling, Curtis Stigers, Joss Stone and Willie Nelson. The Willie Nelson duets – ‘What’s Wrong With This Picture’ and ‘Steal My Heart Away’ – also showcase the guitar talents of Lukas Nelson of Promise Of The Real.
The First single ‘Choppin’ Wood’ provides a taste of what to expect, with Van Morrison’s inimitable vocal genius leading a rousing big band performance. It’s also a song that pays tribute to his late father, with its references to Belfast, the Harland & Wolff shipyard and his father’s admiration for jazz greats such as Sidney Bechet, Louis Armstrong and Jelly Roll Morton. The original version of the song featured on Van Morrison’s 2002 album ‘Down The Road’.
