Keep It Simple

Infobox Album |
Name = Keep It Simple
Type = Album
Artist = Van Morrison


Released =flagicon|United Kingdom March 17, 2008 flagicon|United States April 01, 2008
Recorded =
Genre = Jazz, Folk, Blues, Celtic, Country, Soul, Gospel
Length = 49:70
Label = Exile Polydor-U.K.,
Lost Highway Records-U.S.
Producer = Van Morrison
Reviews =

*"Rolling Stone" Rating|3.5|5 [http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/vanmorrison/albums/album/19451587/review/19517156/keep_it_simple link]
*Allmusic Rating|3|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:3ifyxz8jldde link]
*Popmatters rating-10|7 [http://www.popmatters.com/pm/music/reviews/55839/van-morrison-keep-it-simple/ link]
*Uncut Rating|4|5 [http://uncut.co.uk/music/van_morrison/reviews/11397 link]
*The Times Rating|4|5 [http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/cd_reviews/article3529761.ece link]
*The Sun Rating|4|5 [http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/sftw/article914106.ece link]
*inthenews.co.uk rating-10|8 [http://www.inthenews.co.uk/entertainment/reviews/music/rockindie/van-morrison-keep-it-simple-$1199273.htm link]
*Mirror.co.uk Rating|5|5 [http://www.mirror.co.uk/showbiz/entertainment/music/2008/03/14/review-van-morrison-keep-it-simple-89520-20351029/ link]
*The Star Rating|4|5 [http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/article/407743 link]
*Entertainment Weekly (B) [http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20186680,00.html link]
Last album = "Still on Top - The Greatest Hits"
(2007)
This album = "Keep It Simple"
(2008)
Next album =

"Keep It Simple" is the thirty-third solo studio album recorded by Northern Irish singer/songwriter Van Morrison. It was released on March 17, 2008 by Exile Productions Ltd./Polydor in the U.K.. and on the Lost Highway Records label on April 01, 2008 in the U.S.. [ [http://www.vanmorrison.co.uk/?m=Content&Content(record_id)=ddfb44573fa3c6ab6b6a267f526f45ad First album of all new material in 2 years] ] His last studio album "Pay the Devil" was also released on the Lost Highway label in March 2006.

This is the first studio album of all new original material since his 1999 album "Back on Top". Other albums released since then have contained some cover songs. The May 2005 album, "Magic Time" was comprised of 10 originals and 3 cover songs.

Morrison wrote all eleven songs featured on the album and has been quoted as saying: "I felt I had something to say with these songs."

The album features most of the various genres that Morrison has been influenced by such as jazz, folk, blues, celtic, country, soul and gospel.

In an interview on BBC Four Radio on March 10, 2008, Morrison spoke of his inspiration for the songs on the album:"Its got elements of blues, folk, gospel all my influences - Curtis Mayfield. Its got a lot of inspiration from various things I was inspired by out there but it comes out like a new album." [web cite| date=2008-03-10|url=http://mog.com/Charley_Rogulewski/blog_post/148989| title= Van Morrison speaks about new blues - inspired album|publisher= MOB |accessdate=2008-03-11]

On its first week of release the album reached #10 on the U.S. charts, which is Morrison's highest placement ever in the U.S.. [ [http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003787340 Billboard.com] ] His sixth solo album, "Saint Dominic's Preview" charted at #15 in 1972.

ongs

In one of the songs, "That's Entrainment", Morrison says he has explained his approach to the music on the album. In his words::Entrainment is when you connect with the music...Entrainment is really what I'm getting at in the music...It's kind of when you're in the present moment - you're here - with no past or future. [ [http://www.sys-con.com/read/485239.htm Van Morrison's Keep It Simple to be released by Lost Highway] ]

"That's Entrainment" was played for the first time, at the beginning of the second hour, on Chris Evans BBC 2 Drivetime show on Wednesday, January 30 2008, with Evans commenting "The new Van Morrison album came with a shoot to kill warning if played before a certain date, but that's now been lifted so we can play it." [cite web | url= http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/shows/evans/index.shtml |title=Chris Evans Drivetime| accessdate=2008-01-31]

One minute and thirty second audio clips of four of the songs on the new album appeared on MySpace|vanmorrison on February 27, 2008.The four featured songs are: "That's Entrainment, "Lover Come Back", "Soul" and "Keep It Simple".

Full length streaming versions of all of the songs on the album are available on the [http://prod.losthighwayrecords.com/artist/releases/release.aspx?pid=1732&aid=248 Keep It Simple Link] page at the Lost Highway Records website and the live performance concert featuring the songs from "Keep It Simple" can be heard at [http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod/mainframe.shtml?http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod/radio2_aod.shtml?radio2/r2_vanmorrison BBC Radio 2 Link] .

Promotion

Morrison announced a short U.S. tour to promote the album with appearances in Austin, Texas, Nashville, Tennessee at the Ryman Auditorium, Boston, Massachusetts and in New York City starting on March 11, 2008. During this tour, he also performed at La Zona Rosa in Austin, Texas at the South by Southwest (SXSW) music conference and festival on March 12, 2008. [ [http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/M/Morrison_Van/ConcertReviews/2008/03/14/pf-5002231.html South by Southwest Music Festival] Review: Sun Media] [ [http://www.austin360.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/music/entries/2008/03/13/sxsw_review_van_morrison.html SXSW Review: Van Morrison] austin360.com]

In the U.K. on March 15, BBC Radio 2 presented an exclusive concert performance of Morrison performing all of the songs from the album. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/musicclub/event_vanmorrison.shtml BBC Radio 2 Music -Van Morrison] ] According to Van Morrison's website, playing the entire album in concert ahead of its release date is unprecedented by any other artist to date. [ [http://www.vanmorrison.co.uk/ Van Morrison official website] 27March 2008]

Morrison gave an interview on BBC Four Radio's Today show in the morning on March 10, 2008 [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/today/listenagain/Today BBC Radio 4] ] and an hour long interview on the Paul Jones show at BBC Two Radio the same evening. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/shows/jones/playlist.shtml?focuswin Paul Jones Monday 1900-2000] ] [ [http://www.vanmorrison.co.uk/ Music Club presents Van Morrison live and exclusive] ]

Reviews

*"There's a certain grace to Van's stripped-back band and as always he evokes images of sorrow and anguish but with such beauty and warmth that you can't help but smile when you hear them." [ [http://www.inthenews.co.uk/entertainment/reviews/music/rockindie/van-morrison-keep-it-simple-$1199273.htminthenews.co.uk Review: inthenews.co.uk] ] Mat Strowbridge/inthenews.co.uk
*"Typically the band settles into a groove while Morrison lifts off into the trancelike realm he calls "entrainment." [ [http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/vanmorrison/albums/album/19451587/review/19517156/keep_it_simple Review: Rolling Stone Magazine] ] Anthony Decurtis/Rolling Stone Magazine

Track listing

All songs by Van Morrison

#"How Can a Poor Boy" - 5:43
#"School of Hard Knocks" - 3:44
#"That's Entrainment" - 4:32
#"Don't Go to Nightclubs Anymore" - 4:31
#"Lover Come Back" - 5:15
#"Keep It Simple" - 3:34
#"End of the Land" - 3:16
#"Song of Home" - 4:13
#"No Thing" - 4:31
#"Soul" - 3:37
#"Behind the Ritual" - 6:59

ITunes Bonus Track

(available U.K. week of March 17, 2008 and U.S. on April 01, 2008)
# "Little Village" - 6:11 (Live) (Album Only)

Personnel

*Van Morrison - lead vocals,piano, alto saxophone, acoustic guitar, ukelele
*John Platania - guitar
*Mick Green - guitar
*Ned Edwards - guitar, harmonica, backing vocals
*Sarah Jory - steel guitar, banjo ("Song of Home"), ("Don't go to Nightcubs Anymore")
*Cindy Cashdollar - steel guitar ("No Thing"), ("Lover Come Back")
*Paul Moore - bass
*David Hayes - bass ("No Thing"), ("Lover Come Back"), ("End of the Land")
*Geraint Watkins - piano, accordion ("Soul"), ("Keep It Simple"), ("School of Hard Knocks")
*John Allair - organ
*Liam Bradley- percussion
*Tony Fitzgibbon - fiddle ("How Can a Poor Boy?")
*Neal Wilkinson - drums
*Crawford Bell - acoustic guitar, backing vocals
*Katie Kissoon - backing vocals ("Lover Come Back"), ("End of the Land"), ("No Thing")
*Karen Hamill - backing vocals
*Margo Buchanan - backing vocals ("How Can a Poor Boy?"), ("Don't go to Nightcubs Anymore"), ("Song of Home")
*Steve Lange - backing vocals ("How Can a Poor Boy?"), ("Don't go to Nightcubs Anymore"),("Song of Home")
*Jerome Rimson - backing vocals ("School of Hard Knocks"), ("Soul"), ("Behind the Ritual")

leeve notes

*Mastered by Tim Young at Metropolis Mastering
*Design by Jon Gilbert@Angelfire
*Photograph of Van Morrison by Patrick Baird

Charts

[ [http://acharts.us/ WorldWide Charts] ] [ [http://www.hitsdailydouble.com/news/newsPage.cgi?news07048m01 US Charts] ] [ [http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/chart_display.jsp?g=Albums&f=Top+Internet+Albums Top Internet Albums] ]

Notes

External links

* [http://prod.losthighwayrecords.com/artist/releases/release.aspx?pid=1732&aid=248 Van Morrison] at Lost Highway Records
*MySpace|vanmorrison
* [http://www.vanmorrison.co.uk/?m=Content&Content(record_id)=b2950180e54389f3cf9d93ad908ac00e# Lyrics, sleeve notes and audio clips] discography at Van Morrison 0fficial website
* [http://www.newyorker.com/arts/reviews/recordings/2008/03/17/080317gore_GOAT_recordings_greenman Review: Keep It Simple:Simple Pleasure] by Ben Greenman@ The New Yorker
* [http://www.culturenorthernireland.org/article.aspx?art_id=145 Review:Keep it Simple] culturenorthernireland.org
* [http://www.gloriousnoise.com/reviews/2008/van_morrison_keep_it_simple.php Review:Keep It Simple] by Stephen Macaulay @Glorious Noise