Live at the Capitol Theatre Passaic NJ 1979 is a live recording of Van Morrison while he was promoting the Into The Music studio album.
It was recorded in New Jersey, USA on October 6, 1979 and has been released on the 101 Distribution label. As such, this is not an artist approved release but squeezes through the copyright laws in Europe.
Van Morrison has not released enough official live albums in my opinion because his studio output in the late 1970s ranged from outstanding to interesting. Live, he has a reputation as a moody, unpredictable performer with concerts ranging from brilliant to awful.
Caught on a good night, his music can redeem your soul.
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Songs On Van Morrison Live at the Capitol Theatre Passaic NJ 1979
Disc: 1
1. Kingdom Hall (originally on the studio album Wavelength)
2. Bright Side Of The Road (Into The Music)
3. Here Comes The Night (single by Them)
4. Into The Mystic (Moondance)
5. You Make Me Feel So Free (Into The Music)
6. Warm Love (Hard Nose The Highway)
7. Call Me Up In Dreamland (His Band And The Street Choir)
8. It’s All In The Game; You Know What They’re Writing About (both on Into The Music)
9. Ain’t Nothin’ You Can Do
Disc: 2
1. Angeliou (Into The Music)
2. Full Force Gale (Into The Music)
3. Moondance (Moondance)
4. Wavelength (Wavelength)
5. Tupelo Honey (Tupelo Honey)
6. I’ve Been Working (His Band And The Street Choir)
7. Troubadours (Into The Music)
8. Brown Eyed Girl (early single)
9. Gloria (single by Them)
Seven songs are covered from his latest album, Into The Mystic and he picks two from from Moondance, His Band And The Street Choir and Wavelength. Despite ignoring three of his very best studio albums – Astral Weeks, St Dominic’s Preview and Veedon Fleece – it is still an excellent selection of songs.
The performance is also top notch. This is a night when Morrison was feeling inspired. It also has the benefit of being sourced from a single concert so it hangs together very well.
The weakness is in the sound quality. I accept that it’s not as good as his official live albums but I still think it’s well within the acceptable range for most people. I’m surprised that there are so many complaints at Amazon. Yes it would be great if it was better recorded but I don’t see sound quality as a strong enough reason to deprive you of such an excellent concert recording.
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Buying Van Morrison Live at the Capitol Theatre Passaic NJ 1979
It is available from Amazon.com – Amazon.co.uk
These links will help you get to the albums quickly and easily but I recommend that you still search for the best deal.
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