First time hearing Van Morrison “Moondance” Reaction | Asia and BJ

[@paulprendergast3184]

The A side of this album, also called Moondance, is possibly the best single side of any record ever. And it Stoned Me, Moondance, Crazy Love, Caravan and Into the Mystic....

[@bobsteinzig]

B side of Into the Music for me

[@jonathanflopstein8587]

It's amazing

[@michaelwebster8389]

It Stoned Me is one of my favourites, though I came to it through Jerry Garcia's cover of it.

[@jasonremy1627]

Not just this one. He put together a string of about 6 albums in the early 70s that is an unbroken string of perfect albums.

[@bostonvair]

Paul Prendergast, I totally agree. Years ago, I was driving home on a long trip late one night and a radio station played the A side of this album. Driving alone in the middle of the night in the middle of nowhere was an amazing way to hear this album side being played. When I got home, I bought the album.

[@bjm9071]

Van is 76 years old and still touring. He was nominated for an Oscar this year for a song from "Belfast".

[@jeffharry9675]

I've loved The Man for 50 years.

[@congydave]

78 now and a saw him play at Shepard's bush empire last month! 🪄

[@victorcowboywest]

Written by Sir George Ivan Morrison OBE (Van Morrison) 1970, it's regarded as one of his most successful jazz composition. Moondance is a Sacred Dance Ceremony where woman all ages all over the world gathered to Dance and Sing under the light of Mother Moon for 4 nights.

[@davidpahlka6301]

Didn't know that! Did know Morrison was deep into Celtic music, actually all music.

[@stefaniemorelli5816]

I just adore how open you both are to listen to a myriad of genres of music!! God bless you both 🙏❤️

[@MrStyn-ud3bj]

I love Van Morrison. My favorite song by him is "Into the Mystic" and another one I think you'd like is "Crazy Love" that Brian McKnight covered back in the day.

[@jopay142]

"Into The Mystic"... truly, a masterpiece!

[@kastearman]

Into the Mystic is one of the best songs ever written

[@MrStyn-ud3bj]

Facts!

[@kathylee1261]

Love crazy Love. Not a Brian McKnight fan. Many good covers of that song like Aaron Neville.

[@nadinewilliams6465]

I would dance to Into the Mystic with my infant son. Around 2 am and no sleep. He still loves the song. Brown eyed girl makes me cry. It was my friend's fave. RIP Kare miss you. 💙

[@jasonrichardson1208]

Great reaction Asia and BJ! Van Morrison is an icon....and I love almost everything in his extensive catalog! Van does jazz, blues, soul, adult contemporary, folk rock, country, Irish folk, Big Band, and even spoken word.... but you can't define him by a single genre. He's absolutely brilliant....that's why he's called Van the Man! 🤘

[@blackprix]

Love van Morrison! I was enamored by his style, his songwriting. He has a wonderful catalog of music, an exceptional artist

[@johntremmel3949]

“Have I told you lately” is another van Morrison classic, it to has exquisite piano work

[@gaillouise8310]

This wasa 60's hit. Van is called the Irish Troubador and truly is that. The Irish are known for their love of music and their gift of gab. They are the only country with a musical instrument as their flag ...the harp. Other countries may have horns on their flags which were used in battle, but their harps were used to sing their history as well as their personal stories because they didn't have a written language.There bards went from town to town to spread the news in this way. I really love Van but I am Irish!

[@BRIDINC1972]

Me too

[@gaillouise8310]

@@BRIDINC1972 Your name testifies to that, I love it. I always wanted to be Kathleen.

[@Serai3]

It's the bass. That's what gives it that jazzy feel. Fabulous bass work on this song.

[@denroy3]

And the jazz piano

[@richardlovell4713]

And the brass (particularly the sax solo). It’s the brass that makes many people think of jazz, but all the elements are there, as others have stated.

[@lisarainbow9703]

And the jazz flute...

[@derwoodbowen5954]

The bass is soooo good in this song. The whole song is so cool.

[@nadinewilliams6465]

Yes!! If that bass just doesn't move you, get a Dr. appt. 😂 It just instantly gets me.

[@gasser217]

GOOD GOD! This song is perfect and so is Van Morrison!

[@bostonvair]

I mentioned this album in the past. This album (also entitled "Moondance") is just awesome. THis song is unique in its Jazziness. I play the bass in multiple jazz bands and was requested to play this song at a birthday party, so I got to play that iconic bassline. There's something totally sexy about this song. Listen carefully to the lyrics the next time you listen to it.

[@patrickvarine8476]

My favorite Van Morrison records are "Astral Weeks" and "Tupelo Honey." Tons of great tunes to check out. Van Mo was able to take a lot of different genres and make them his own.

[@meanderer06513]

Tupelo Honey is probably the deepest Van Morrison song that ALWAYS seems to catch me off-guard. Always amazes me, no matter how many time I hear it.

[@audreys5651]

Love Van Morrison!!! Thank you two, love watching

[@richhahn2443]

I think you both missed this one. Van combined jazz with rock with some Celtic soul. You might be confusing Van Morrison with Jim Morrison of the Doors.

[@michaellockhart554]

This my favorite Van song and one my favorites of all time, next has to be Into The Mystic, makes you think of a smokey old wooden bar room with a 5 piece Jazz Ensemble on a smallish stage in the back

[@lordessducky8494]

Yes! And you have to go down some stairs to get to it.

[@michaellockhart554]

@@lordessducky8494 sounds like my kinda place 😎

[@johnsrensen3366]

Irish blues soul singer no 1

[@surlechapeau]

Asia & BJ, you’ll love his “Wild Night”, “Domino” and “Wavelength”!!!

[@sylviafarese8837]

Yes!

[@andrew348]

Domino is along the same vein but with a faster tempo and stronger brass

[@jimfrederick3907]

I still remember when he did this on "Saturday Night Live". The entire audience was on their feet! It was pure magic!

[@sherigrow6480]

This is a dark, smoky, jazz club song. The instrumentation, the bass, the alcohol warm on your tongue while you enjoy the music and exchange glances with your sweetie.

[@jamesknox7171]

Van Morrison is a classic gem. I love his album "Magic Time". The entire album is incredible, but my favorite track is "Just Like Greta".

[@jimagent1826]

Like, just like Greta, too. I just want to be alone

[@italcook1]

Van Morrison’s Album Moondance was Magical! released in 1970. Us music loving younguns were all experimenting in Hallucigenics LSD and this album literally had you dancing by the moon. Such good memories of this Album, everyone has a copy from those wild years in our youth. Long hair, parted in the middle, flowers in our hair and barefoot. Flower Children.

[@kathylee1261]

Asia, that was a unique reaction to Van Morrison. I do love his mix of jazz and pop and blues.

[@milquetoast_tony]

Dude is from Northern Ireland (lived through the Protestant vs Catholic violence aka The Troubles) but was raised on Motown records his dad brought back home from the US. Totally unique Irish + Soul flavor. This whole album is a masterpiece but my other favorite songs are: Into The Mystic, And It Stoned Me, Gypsy, Saint Dominic's Preview.

[@myownchannel247]

scat vocals is what BJ is talking about

[@markwilliams5606]

First time seeing Van Morrison in Detroit in 72. He was opening up for Bob Seger. Very Good! 🇺🇸🇨🇦🍷

[@phonebone81]

Van Morrison can and does everything between folk, blues and jazz and is also great at mixing these genres. You just can't put him in a drawer and that's exactly what makes him special. In addition, he can play many instruments, first he played a saxophone with great virtuosity. He's just one of the best musicians and of course songwriter of his time. Best regards @all from Hamburg (Germany)

[@cynergy4]

Van is one of my all time fave musical artist. This whole album is a treasure! The smoothest horn section ever

[@donjenkins3861]

Give a listen to "And It Stoned Me" one of my favorite Van songs. You'll enjoy.

[@paulamoya7956]

One of the greatest songs ever ..🤍

[@robinmuir7799]

you've got to tell BJ that Van Morrison wasn't with the Doors. That was Jim Morrison. But the Doors did do a cover of "Gloria" which was originally written and sung by Van Morrison.

[@brucebliss165]

Moondance is the coolest of cool jazz. Van Morrison's vocal is perfect. Also his tone is filling in for the trumpet in this jazz band. Cant get any better.

[@MARKB3946]

Smooth, jazzy and a vibe for sure.

[@StephenDouthart-f8r]

Van!!!....not Jim!!

[@richardderrick3549]

This song reminds me of one evening when my girlfriend came over, just to say hi, nothing planned, but the night unfolded with the moonlight breaking in through my bedroom window, enough said!

[@maryannturton9830]

YAAASSSS!VAN THE MAN MORRISON!His catalog of songs could keep your channel busy for a year! Some classic Van songs to check out are Into the Mystic, Sweet Thing,Tupelo Honey,Brown Eyed Girl.Van was influenced heavily by early jazz performers,so you got that.He is from Ireland.☘☘☘☘☘☘☘🎙

[@Cheryworld]

Jazz, yes. Such Style with Van Morrison always

[@happymethehappyone8300]

Van (The Man) Morrison Is A Legendary Music Icon With A Large Catalog Of Great Music.

[@AzaleaLala]

Moondance is so good and jazzy. Love it.

[@jimmeltonbradley1497]

This is why they call him Van the Man. Jazz, rock, blues and, at times, Irish folk. He's not just a singer/songwriter; he's a phenomen

[@FallenHellscape]

Love this song.

[@jenniferkasowicz9463]

If you want to hear one of the most beautiful love songs ever, check Van’s “Someone Like You”. Became a staple wedding song. Gah, I could listen to Van all day (I have).

[@markmiller3101]

Jazz-fusion kinda thing. LOL. I LOVE Van Morrison, have you heard “In the Mystic”? That’s probably the most relaxing songs I’ve ever heard, It’s beautiful.

[@metalmark1214]

An album by the name of Moondance released in 1970 and as a single in 1977.

[@skyepuppy7763]

I went to a wedding back in the day, and this was the song they played as they walked back down the aisle together as brand-new husband and wife. 😍

[@loadedorygun]

and that little vocal trill he does at the end…a singular moment in pop!

[@happymethehappyone8300]

Van (The Man) Morrison "Domino"...Nuff Said.

[@bwilliams463]

It's such an evocative song. It makes me feel like Autumn, on a dark drizzly night walking under the street lamps through a deserted park.

[@ws3764]

Guys....the vibe is a smoked filled basement jazz club in the early 60s

[@gregfagan199]

It's definitely a piece of nightclub jazz. The musicianship is incredible.

[@jimglenn6972]

This song has a lot jazzy, nightclub feel to it. BJ is right that this could have been a big band tune but this is from 1970 and it would have been 15 or 20 years too late. It stopped making financial sense to pay 25+ musicians. Groups had fewer members or hired session performers. Cheers to you for selecting a truly classy cut.

[@karenj3611]

Great song from Van, one of my favorites

[@kimheffernan5511]

Love me some Van. The Irish Trubadour!!!!

[@danielmarshall3102]

My favourite Van Morrison song. Love the reaction by you two. Asia I think you're right about BJ trying to swoon you. Hold him to it, but not in an October evening, why wait !! For another great song of his that is very eclectic listen to "BLUE MONEY"

[@happymethehappyone8300]

Bo Diddley "Road Runner"...An Iconic Classic.

[@timothymyers6827]

As I mentioned before I love Van Morrison. listened to this LP over 40 years ago and just can not stop. Listen to the CD in my truck all the time. One of the greatest song writers of all time too. Actually listening to Van was mellow time back in the day, tokin' up and just chillin'

[@sarafrey3163]

Into the Mystic, Gloria, Tupelo Honey, crazy love......all fantastic🥰

[@edwardhoward8485]

Was able to get tickets for a Van concert in Clearwater, Florida. They had one show scheduled, but had to add two more due to demand. The amount of big time artists that attended those shows was unbelievable. There were some legends there, Allman, Petty, Wilsons, Springsteen, can't even think of them all.

[@classiclife7204]

Not so long ago, I and an old jazz musician friend of mine - a fellow veteran of the 80s & 90s Party Wars - were talking about pop music, and he came out with a statement, full of wine-fueled certainty, that this was the only pop song after 1965 that would have been popular in 1922 all the way through 2022. Me: "Not 'Hot for Teacher', eh?" Him: 😒

[@ericsmith6615]

Wife here...Always Love the Selection.., this is a great Van Morrison song.., " definitely a Jazz Hands song"..Yes..., Ms. Asia,.."Big Band Vibes"..Absolutely BJ!!

[@byronmitchell3784]

VAN MORRISON, "MOON DANCE". I just have to say this is my favorite song by him. Some more, groovy example of greatness.

[@noneofurbizness5838]

Reminds me of a high end piano bar, late 50's to mid 60's

[@jeffsmith5494]

Love how his voice goes with the music, the inflection I think.

[@snoozinglion8596]

My favorite Van Morrison Album is the one that is currently on my playlist... Van Morrison - Poetic Champions Compose... 1. Queen of the Slipstream 2. Someone Like You 3. I Forgot that Love Existed 4. Alan Watts Blues

[@garymanley6612]

What a great song. It makes me happy.

[@benb4343]

Van is criminally underrated. If you pick another & wanna hear one of the best love songs of all time, go with Someone Like You

[@weswohlgemuth2956]

All his cuts are great. My favorite is Days Like This

[@brendanfromireland]

You should do some songs from when Van was in the band Them like "Gloria", "Baby Please Don't Go", "It's All Over Now Baby Blue", and "Here Comes The Night".

[@MyRoom_is_old]

Tupelo Honey and Brown Eyed girl are great songs.

[@rickfortier8664]

This is a jazzy sound!

[@jeffjones6221]

Van Morrison played sax as well. Most of the sax solos in his tunes are him.

[@dagmar.6954]

This is another great performer who's music I grew up with. His recording career spans nearly seven decades. Van Morrison is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter & multi-instrumentalist. He can play guitar, harmonica, keyboards & saxophone. In the mid 60's he was in the band "THEM" & their biggest hits were "Gloria", "Baby Please Don't Go", "Here Comes The Night" & "Mystic Eyes". Van Morrison later went solo & has had tons of hits such as "Tupeleo Honey", "It Stoned Me", "Have I Told You Lately", "Crazy Love", "Jackie Wilson Said", "Days Like This", "Someone Like You" etc.

[@honoraryamerica5943]

Van Morrisons always seem to possess a unique rhythm in his vocal delivery. The wrong Morrison. The Doors had Jim, Van is from Ireland, which when I first learned certainly surprised me.

[@bobblethreadgill4463]

Hehehe, when I hear this tune, for some reason, I picture the "Peanuts" gang performing. With Schroeder on piano, PIG pen slapping bass, Linus strumming guitar, Lucy on flute, and Charlie thumping a drum kit. Snoopy would wave a conductor wand, last but not least is good 'ol Peppermint Patti doing vocals and saxophone .Lol

[@sharilynbratton6476]

Ha, now I'm not gonna be able to get that version out of my head!!

[@tanisdevelopment]

I think it would have to be Marcie on sax... sir.

[@tanisdevelopment]

Or the "Joe Cool" version of Snoopy.

[@SteveShovlar]

Bobby McFerrin did a great cover of this track.

[@dnf-dead]

One of my favourite songs

[@jackpeters9048]

Really liked this song when it came out....appreciate it more now...He had a lot if great songs...

[@laneykehel5057]

One of my favorites is on the Moondance album. The song is Brand New Day. Backing vocals include Cissy Houston, Whitney's mother and Dionne Warwick's sister. Very deep as well.

[@cindyphifer970]

Love Van. Northern Muse, She gives me Religion, Cleaning Windows, Into the Mystic. He has so many great songs

[@AlBarzUK]

It sounds jazzy because … it’s jazz. 😜🤗

[@danjmcs]

Such a great song and album... often described as "folk-jazz swing", a bit of everything mixed in... but that bass... so brilliantly played by John Klingberg.

[@jaccilowe3842]

BJ got it exactly right. One of my favourite blues/jazz songs. It's very intimate.

[@tylerhackner9731]

Van the man! Another one I think you’ll enjoy is into the mystic

[@chrisjamieson3452]

Moondance, Astral Weeks, St. Dominic's Preview. Excellent classic albums & period from Van.

[@prettybullet7728]

One of my favorite Van Morrison songs.

[@mamamurray2]

I visualize a dark smoky jazz club. 1. I think the dance and the dresses you were thinking of might be the can-can....??? 2. I think you've confused Van Morrison with Jim Morrison. Both cool but very different. 3. The jazz vocalizing you were referring to is called scatting. Ella Fitzgerald was a master at it, and you should check her out if you haven't, and again if you have. 😊

[@kimheffernan5511]

Crazy love with Bob Dylan is amazing. Into the Mystic classic!

[@marymargaretmoore9034]

A great singer and songwriter from Ireland. He wrote this song in 1970 btw.

[@ecnoto]

Wait- it seemed like you were maybe confusing this with Jim Morrison of The Doors…I thought I heard that from BJ but maybe I’m mistaken. So completely different, of course. But lovin you guys.

[@johntremmel3949]

The piano is exquisite 😎

[@donthomasdunigan7004]

Gown, i believe, is the word. I could picture a glamourous woman in a gown, a grand piano behind her, the band in tuxedos. Yeah.

[@ProdigyBowlersTour]

Van Morrison definitely wasn't a "showgirls" type of artist. He was a rocker. Blues rock, maybe. But this song definitely has a jazzy feel to it, no question. Check out his biggest hit, "Brown Eyed Girl." And his other hits, "Come Running," "Tupelo Honey," "Wild Night" and "Domino." Van didn't have a huge run making hits, but the ones he made were really tasty. His biggest ones were condensed from about 1967 thru about 1972. "Moondance" came a little later (1977).

[@CarolynStewart-v5q]

Van Morrison is a genius and his music is very special to me. His sound is so unique. He's an Irishman with so much soul.

[@waitn4theharpazo]

It's definitely a jazz vibe.

[@marietheresahughes2911]

Yes VAN the Man 👨 he has a fantastic collection in his VAULT 💖💫💖 I Love "Days Like This" and "Carrickfergus" 🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀

[@mikefetterman6782]

You are both mostly right. The big band era was in the 40s. It was a mix of jazz and swing. This is closer to New York 60s jazz. It is a specific sound that if you are not familiar, you would not realize. Billy Joel touches on this style a bit sometimes.

[@mikefetterman6782]

NEW YORK STATE OF MIND billy joel.

[@CJ-Fischer]

Nobody like Van….so unique and so loved over the years…Scotland boy with all this blues and jazz…he’s incredible

[@sharonlabrecque1655]

Irish not Scottish...

[@cindydlittle]

I saw him decades ago (I'm aging both of us) in a club in Dallas. He may be slightly short on stature, but he is long on talent! I love his voice. It is one of a kind.

[@cindydlittle]

I forgot to say my favorite is Brown Eyed Girl, 'cuz my eyes are brown, so that song is for me. -)

[@russelbarnes7235]

Paul P told you right. That 1 side of Moondance may be better than any 1 side of any other album. You gotta give a listen, you'll love the songs. Into the Mystic is worthy of being next up. But so are the others.Enjoy🙂

[@DavidGonzalez-rt6gm]

Spoken from a pro ballroom dance instructor for nearly five decades, this dance music is called "Fox Trot" guys.

[@kellyjohnson3617]

This is a great upbeat jazz song. It has a lot of straight ahead jazz licks in it. With those classic solos to throw respect to every member of the band. I love the flute with the piano and bass and drums. With the winds and horns behind it. This is van Morrison, not Jim Morrison of the doors. Van Morrison is Irish. So he brings that sensibility to his music.