- Moonshine Whiskey
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"Moonshine Whiskey" Song by Van Morrison from the album Tupelo Honey Released October 1971 Recorded Wally Heider Studios, San Francisco
Spring 1971Genre Country-rock, soul Length 6:48 Label Warner Bros. Records Writer Van Morrison Producer Van Morrison
Ted TemplemanTupelo Honey track listing - "Wild Night" – 3:33
- "(Straight to Your Heart) Like a Cannonball" – 3:43
- "Old Old Woodstock" – 4:17
- "Starting a New Life" – 2:10
- "You're My Woman" – 6:44
- "Tupelo Honey" – 6:54
- "I Wanna Roo You" (Scottish Derivative) – 3:27
- "When That Evening Sun Goes Down" – 3:06
- "Moonshine Whiskey" – 6:48
"Moonshine Whiskey" is a song written by singer-songwriter, Van Morrison and is the concluding track of his 1971 album, Tupelo Honey.
It was a popular tune with Morrison in the 1970s and he regularly performed it in concert. Brian Hinton writes that Morrison later admitted that he had written this song "for Janis Joplin or something" but Hinton goes on to say "though it is not autobiographical in the same way as Leonard Cohen's 'Chelsea Hotel Number Two'".[1]
In Tupelo Honey's Rolling Stone review Jon Landau says the song "is a joyful statement about the existence and continuation of love and the stability it offers."[2]
Contents
Music
The song contains the two main genres Morrison used on Tupelo Honey: country-rock and soul. The introduction features both electric and steel guitars, in what Allmusic reviewer Tom Maginnis calls "a halting country vamp".[3] Bruce Springsteen would later use this passage of music to inspire him to write the introduction of "Blinded by the Light".[citation needed] The song changes tempo many times in its six and a half minute duration, changing from a fast 4/4 time to a slow 6/8 sauteuse waltz and back to 4/4 time on various occasions.[4] At the end of the song, Tom Maginnis concludes that "the arrangement kicks into a full-scale gospel rave-up complete with call and response backing vocal, group handclaps, pumping piano, and blaring horns all at breakneck speeds before pulling up to a slamming halt."[3]
Filmed performances
- The song was included in the 1974 broadcast of Morrison's July 23 1973 performance at the Rainbow Theatre, London that featured The Caledonia Soul Orchestra.[5]
- "Moonshine Whiskey" is also one of the songs performed in 1979, on Morrison's first video Van Morrison in Ireland, released in 1981.
- There is black and white footage of Morrison performing "Moonshine Whiskey" at Passaic, New Jersey in 1979.[6]
Personnel
- Van Morrison - acoustic guitar, vocals
- Ronnie Montrose - electric guitar, mandolin
- Bill Church - bass
- Luis Gasca - trumpet
- Mark Jordan - piano
- Gary Mallaber - percussion
- John McFee - pedal steel guitar
- Janet Planet - background vocals
- Rick Shlosser - drums[7]
- Ellen Schroer - background vocals
- Jack Schroer - alto saxophone
Notes
- ^ Hinton, Celtic Crossroads, p.137
- ^ Landau, John (1971-11-25). "RS review: Tupelo Honey". rollingstone.com. http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/vanmorrison/albums/album/249336/review/5941754/tupelo_honey. Retrieved 2009-02-07.
- ^ a b Maginnis, Tom. "Moonshine Whiskey at Allmusic". allmusic.com. http://www.allmusic.com/song/t4170702. Retrieved 2009-01-24.
- ^ Van Morrison Anthology, pp.54-59
- ^ Collis. Inarticulate Speech of the Heart. p.234
- ^ Collis. Inarticulate Speech of the Heart. p.236
- ^ "Rick Shlosser - About". rickshlosser.com. http://www.rickshlosser.com/. Retrieved 2010-06-07.
References
- Collis, John (1996). Inarticulate Speech of the Heart, Little Brown and Company, ISBN 0-306-80811-0
- Hinton, Brian (1997). Celtic Crossroads: The Art of Van Morrison, Sanctuary, ISBN 1-86074-169-X
- Van Morrison Anthology, Los Angeles: Alfred Music Publishing, 1999, ISBN 0-7692-8967-3
External links
Categories:- 1971 songs
- Van Morrison songs
- Songs written by Van Morrison
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