Week #21: Van Morrison – Astral Weeks
To start off the summer with a swell and bohemian-kinda-vibe soundtrack, what better album to listen to than Van Morrison’s 1968 soulful Astral Weeks?
The album is not easily definable when it comes to its genre. Morrison had acquired a certain renown with his song “Brown Eyed Girl” in 1967, a more “classifiable” pop/rock song, but diverged towards a blend of folk, blues, jazz and classical style in his second record. Some even define it as an “impressionist” or “hypnotic” album.
Despite the cult status it has earned over the years, Astral Weeks was not a sudden one time hit. In fact, its success was pretty constant : it sold as many copies in 1968 than in the following years, finally reaching gold (500 000 copies sold) in 2001.
Listen to the timeless “Cyprus Avenue” and “Slim Slow Slider” by clicking the album below.
