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Into the Music [Original recording remastered]

Van Morrison Audio CD
4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)

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Biography

One of music’s true originals Van Morrison’s unique and inspirational musical legacy is rooted in postwar Belfast.
Born in 1945 Van heard his Shipyard worker father’s collection of blues, country and gospel early in life.

Feeding off musical greats such as Hank Williams, Jimmie Rodgers, Muddy Waters, Mahalia Jackson and Leadbelly he was a travelling musician at 13 ... Read more in Amazon's Van Morrison Store

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Product details

  • Audio CD (6 April 1998)
  • Number of Discs: 1
  • Format: Original recording remastered
  • Label: Polydor
  • ASIN: B00000IYDQ
  • Other Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 35,524 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

1. Bright Side Of The Road
2. Full Force Gale
3. Steppin' Out Queen
4. Troubadours
5. Rolling Hills
6. You Make Me Feel So Free
7. Angelou
8. And The Healing Has Begun
9. It's All In The Game
10. You Know What They're Writing About

Customer Reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5 stars
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars It really is a full force gale 31 Mar 2008
Format:Audio CD
I was really lucky, you know. I had never heard any of his records when he came to my city (La Coruña, Spain) for a concert, and everybody in the local press went nuts praising him, so I decided to buy a record and see what the hype was all about. And I picked this one. So, of course, I got caught. Now I own 18 of his records plus the THEM best of, but this one is the one I keep on hearing again and again. It's easy to see why. It is a full force gale unleashed, from the vigorous intro to Bright side of the road to the beautiful end of the record. A musical rollercoaster, ranging from the lush arrangements of Steppin' out queen to the beautiful old bouquet of Troubadors (My favourite track) and the longing of Angelou. So, I was lucky, I picked this one first. The best way of entering his world, and get lost in it. It's a superb record.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Audio CD
Sandwiched between 'Wavelength's guitar & synth rock and 'Common One's bizarre mixture of epic 'poems to music' and brassy soul is this belter of an album which starts off as spritely as can be (Bright Side of the Road) and gradually calms down toward the final slow balladeering of 'It's All in the Game/You Know What They're Writing About'.

Featuring gypsy violins, regal trumpets and Ry Cooder's acoustic slide guitar, 'Into the Music' is like no other Van album, but yet sits perfectly amongst all his other recordings. Probably the most accessible (i.e. commercial) of all his 1974-1986 output (possibly excluding 'Beautiful Vision') there are singable tunes aplenty - happy and sad love songs, affirmation of spiritual belief, jolly folk stories - all sung with Van's usual gritty passion and whispered tenderness.

Not as breath-taking as some of his other work, it definitely stands out as a bit of a one off. Certainly check it out before any of his early 80s stuff. In my opinion no Van collection would be complete without it.

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30 of 32 people found the following review helpful
By Mark Barry, Reckless Records, London HALL OF FAME TOP 50 REVIEWER VINE™ VOICE
Format:Audio CD
This is the 3rd or even 4th re-issue on CD of "Into The Music" (released originally in August 1979) and I'll happily admit it - I'm blown away! I played this album to death at the time, and rehearing today in this extraordinary sound quality is a rediscovery well worth making. It's by far the best version of the album to date.

Here's how it's laid out: Tracks 1 to 10 make up the original album with Tracks 11 and 12 being previously unreleased alternate takes of "Steppin' Out Queen" and "Troubadours". At seven minutes "Steppin' Out Queen" is extended over the 5:20 minutes of the final album cut - and it's an absolute peach. The alternate take of "Troubadours" clocks in at 5:32 minutes as opposed to the 4:41 of the album final - and again, a superb version. I'm always wary of outtakes and alternate versions as bonus material on re-issue CDs when they're not any better nor an equal to the original and act as a cheap way of suckering fans to purchase more of the same. But these two choices are inspired - and an absolute must-have for Van lovers.

The upgraded booklet contains all the lyrics in the same script style as the original vinyl album and a detailed list of who sessioned on what, but disappointingly there's no history of where the album fits in, no new liner notes, nor any photographs. However, a nice touch is the lyrics to the alternate takes - the record company could have lazily reproduced the lyrics twice at the end of the booklet, but closer examination shows they haven't - the lyrics actually reflect the free-forming of the different expanded versions - a nice touch.

But the best bit is definitely the SOUND. The original analogue master tapes have been 96K/24 Bit digitally remastered by Tim Young at Metropolis Mastering in London for this 28 January 2008 release - and the sound is BEAUTIFULLY CLEAR and WARM - making you reassess every song and the superb musicianship on each. RY COODER lends his Slide Guitar to "Full Force Gale", MARK ISHAM his trumpet playing to almost every track, while ROBIN WILLIAMSON of THE INCREDIBLE STRING BAND puts a penny whistle into "Troubadours" and "Rolling Hills" (for me one of the weakest tunes on here). KATIE KISSOON adds complimentary backing vocals to "Bright Side Of The Road" and the lovely "You Make Me Feel So Real". TONY MARCUS' violin is also heavily featured on almost every track. The remaster also brings out the rhythm section of PETER VAN HOOKE on Drums and DAVID HAYES on Bass.

His lovely cover of the Tommy Edwards 1950s hit "It's All In The Game" runs seamlessly into "You Know What I'm Writing About" and ends the album. Speaking of which, at 2:18 minutes into "It's All In The Game", Mark Isham's trumpet sails in like a soothing dollop of honey - and it's a truly beautiful flourish - puts a tear in my eye - sheer genius - and I realise again why I adored this album so much all those years ago! And the issue is mid-price too - I picked up my copy for £6 in Central London.

All in all, a FANTASTIC REMASTER and one I urge fans and the uninitiated to get stuck into soonest.

PS:
Like "Into The Music", 30 Van Morrison albums are to be re-issued in remastered form throughout 2008 and into 2009. Each will contain upgraded booklets, previously unreleased material and all will be at mid-price. They'll be released in 4 batches as follows:

January 2008 (7 titles, see reviews)
Tupelo Honey (1971), It's Too Late To Stop Now (2 CD Live Set) (1974),
Wavelenght (1978), Into The Music (1979), A Sense Of Wonder (1985),
Avalon Sunset (1989) and Back On Top (1999)

June 2008 (8 titles, see reviews)
Veedon Fleece (1974), Common One (1980), Inarticulate Speech Of The Heart (1983), Live At The Grand Opera House, Belfast (1984), No Guru, No Method, No Teacher (1986), Enlightenment (1990), A Night In San Francisco (2CD Live Set) (1994) and The Healing Game (1997)

September 2008 - now delayed until February 2009 (7 titles)
Saint Dominic's Preview (1972), A Period Of Transition (1977), Beautiful Vision (1982), Poetic Champions Compose (1987), Hymns To The Silence (2CD Studio Set) (1991), How Long Has This Been Going On (Live At Ronnie Scott's) (1995), Tell Me Something - The Songs Of Mose Allison (1996)

January 2009 - delayed, probably May/June 2009 (8 titles)
Hard Nose The Highway (1973), Irish Heartbeat (with The Chieftains) (1988),
Too Long In Exile (1993), Days Like This (1995), The Story Of Them (2CD Set) (1999), The Skiffle Sessions - Live In Belfast (with Lonnie Donegan & Chris Barber) (2000), Down The Road (2002) and What's Wrong With This Picture? (2003)

PPS:
Those hoping to see desperately needed sonic upgrades of his 1st and 2nd album masterpieces on Warner Bothers "Astral Weeks" (1968) and "Moondance" (1970) or even "His Band & The Street Choir" (late 1970) will be disappointed to hear that they're NOT in this re-issue campaign. Apparently there is still some dispute between the record label and Van that remains unresolved. A damn shame! "Astral Weeks" and "Moondance" have both been languishing on crappy-sounding non-remasters for over 20 years now and they're glaringly obvious omissions here. These universally recognized masterpieces deserve 2CD DELUXE EDITION treatment and soon. (Some tracks in remastered form are available across the 3 volumes of "Best Of"). Let's hope they sort their differences and soon!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars One of vans best
A great album from van. Not a weak track and the quality of songs are maintained throughout. The tracks vary from the uptempo, Bright side of the road, and Full force gale to the... Read more
Published 3 months ago by the grimster
4.0 out of 5 stars ...like a finger-waving preacher
Van Morrison has been a professional musician for quite a while now. Since the late 1950s his work has covered a fair few genres, including soul, jazz, hymnals, and R&B. Read more
Published 7 months ago by S. Bailey
5.0 out of 5 stars into the music - van the man
I ALREADY HAD THIS ALONG WITH ABOUT 15 OTHER VAN CD,S - DEPENDING ON MY
MOOD THIS IS IN MY TOP 3 - NEEDED A COPY FOR THE CAR - THIS IS FROM 1979
BUT I SAW HIM AT THE... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Robert Mcconnell
4.0 out of 5 stars Another great!
Another great collection from Van the Man - the only reason I didn't give it five stars is that I don't think EVERY track has the wow factor, but that's just personal taste. Read more
Published on 26 May 2010 by S. Ford
5.0 out of 5 stars I love this album ...
I got to know and be amazed and uplifted by this album when I fell in love with the woman who is now my wife. Read more
Published on 10 Nov 2009 by David
5.0 out of 5 stars Never tire
One of the best by one of the best.

When this was vinyl, I could reliably put on side 2 (starting with Angelou), settle down on the sofa, or under the student duvet, and... Read more
Published on 12 April 2009 by E. Mills
5.0 out of 5 stars Masterpiece enhanced
This uplifting album kicks off with the snappy Bright Side Of The Road and continues in the same powerful vein with the stirring Full Force Gale, a full throttled celebration of... Read more
Published on 1 May 2008 by Pieter Uys
5.0 out of 5 stars Van's bucket
Tasteful?? Bland?? Get the guy to an ER now!! Give him the kiss of life!! Apply those nifty shock paddles!! Read more
Published on 26 Feb 2008 by Stuart
5.0 out of 5 stars "Will You Be My Baby?" Van Asks On "Angelou" & After Hearing This FAB...
This is the 3rd or even 4th re-issue on CD of "Into The Music" (released originally in August 1979) and I'll happily admit it - I'm blown away! Read more
Published on 6 Feb 2008 by Mark Barry, Reckless Records, London
5.0 out of 5 stars His Best
I'm a fan and have all his records. This is my favourite and has been ever since I first heard it. There isn't a bad song on it and he appears to be involved totally in the mood... Read more
Published on 2 Feb 2008 by B. W. Thew
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