Van Morrison has spent six decades proving that the blues, soul, and R&B records he absorbed growing up in Belfast weren't just influences, they became the very marrow of his musical identity. Artists like John Lee Hooker and Sam Cooke weren't peripheral to his story; they were the foundation. Hearing him return to that source material this deep into a legendary career feels less like nostalgia and more like a homecoming. 2018 album from the veteran singer/songwriter. This fourteen track album follows a recent run of hugely acclaimed albums (Roll With The Punches, Versatile and You're Driving Me Crazy), each of which has delved deep into the musical styles that have continued to inspire Van throughout his life - vocal jazz and R&B. Here, Van takes on a series of unarguable classics by the likes of John Lee Hooker, Sam Cooke and Solomon Burke (among others) and makes them unmistakably his own. Alongside these reinterpretations, The Prophet Speaks features six phenomenal new Van Morrison compositions. "It was important for me to get back to recording new music as well as doing some of the blues material that has inspired me from the beginning. Writing songs and making music is what I do, and working with great musicians makes it all the more enjoyable." Van Morrison. The Prophet Speaks again finds Van working with the incredible multi-instrumentalist Joey DeFrancesco (the artist co-credited on You're Driving Me Crazy) and his band (including Dan Wilson on guitar, Michael Ode on drums and Troy Roberts on tenor saxophone). Tracklist 1. Gonna Send You Back To Where I Got You From (4:42) 2. Dimples (5:33) 3. Got To Go Where The Love Is (4:23) 4. Laughin And Clownin (5:31) 5. 5 Am Greenwich Mean Time (5:37) 6. Gotta Get You Off My Mind (3:44) 7. Teardrops (6:00) 8. I Love The Life I Live (3:35) 9. Worried Blues/Rollin And Tumblin (6:22) 10. Ain't Gonna Moan No More (6:16) 11. Love Is A Five Letter Word (3:46) 12. Love Is Hard Work (4:29) 13. Spirit Will Provide (4:03) 14. The Prophet Speaks (4:55) UPC: 602577071867Label: ExileRelease Date: 12.7.18Format: CD
