Born in Belfast in the 1945, in Northern Ireland George Ivan Morrison was an only child. His father George was a ship worker, and mother Violet a housewife, and a competent tap dancer and entertainer in her youth. Fortuitously, his father had acquired a large record collection during a trip to the United States and Van grew up listening to blues artists such as Ray Charles and Leadbelly who were to influence his style later in life.
Morrison is a critically acclaimed singer and songwriter with a reputation for being stubborn, opinionated and untouchable with his live performances often described as seminal. The studio albums Astral Weeks and Moondance frequently top voter charts for being some of the best albums ever made.
Morrison’s father bought him his first acoustic guitar when he was eleven, and he learned to play some basic chords. He started performing as a professional as a young teenager in the late 1950s playng a number of instruments, including the harmonica, guitar, keyboards, and saxophone in a range of Irish bands covering popular hits of the day.
His first band was known as “The Sputniks” after the Russian satellite and in 1958, the band started to play small venues with Morrison taking the lead with his bluesy rich voice and making organizing most of the arranging.
Not particularly academic, and having no time for school, he left in 1960 with no qualifications. Coming from a working class background he was expected to get a full-time job to contribute to the family upkeep. After a series of unsuccessful soirees into traditional apprenticeships, he finally settled for window cleaning as a stop gap. He later wrote about his experiences in a number of his songs. Morrison had been evolving his musical interests from an early age and was driven to his unique musical direction.
He toured Europe for the first time with the International Monarchs at seventeen, with Morrison playing saxophone, guitar and harmonica, and bass and drums as required, touring clubs and Army bases in Scotland, England, and Germany, often playing five sets a night. The band cut a single, which was Morrison’s first recording at Ariola Studios in Cologne. He played saxophone and it just crept in to the German charts.
In the mid-1960s he was the lead singer with Them and recorded the classic “Gloria”, one of the favorites in his sets. When he returned to Belfast the group disbanded and he began his solo career.
Under the tutelage of pop impresario Bert Berns, he released the hit single “Brown Eyed Girl” in 1967. Warner Brothers bought out his contract shortly after his manager had died. In several sessions he recorded Astral Weeks in 1968 which was critically acclaimed, but sales were initially poor. It has now grown to become an all-time classic. The album and title tune Moondance, established him as a major recording artist, and throughout the 1970s he built his reputation. Van Morrison continues to tour, record and collaborate with other artists, producing albums and live performances that are well received. In 2008 and in to 2009 he continues to perform Astral Weeks live always leaving the crowd wanting more.
Morrison has been inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and appearing on several “Greatest Artists” lists as well as receiving six Grammy Awards.
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