Artist:     Van Morrison

Album:     Three Chords and the Truth

Label:     Caroline/Exile

Release Date:     10.25.2019

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Here we are again. Three Chords and the Truth is the Belfast Cowboy’s sixth album in the last four years, a prolific pace that matches his early ‘70s output. Yet, as the title suggests, these songs, almost all of them written by Morrison, are more in the groove and in the flow. The creative spark of Astral Weeks, Poetic Champions Compose, No Guru No Method, No Teacher and his many innovative breakthroughs are long gone. This is Van, who in his words offers, “You’re just plugging into the feeling of it, more the feeling of it…when they’re playing….It’s like reading me. So, I think there’s more of that connection.” In other words, he’s settling into his signature R&B/soul groove and singing about what he’s usually sung about: the music business (“Read Between the Lines”), the downside of fame (“Fame Will Eat The Soul”), love (“Does Love Conquer All”), spirituality (“In Search of Grace”), and various aspects of nostalgia (‘Early Days,” “Days Gone By”). These 14 songs had to come easy. And, while for most artists, this would be a strong set of material, it’s only kind of average for Morrison. His own catalog is his worst enemy. While it’s stronger than his mid-‘90s albums, it doesn’t match the fire of his previous two efforts with Joey DeFrancesco’s band. This writer is tempted to read a political connotations into “Nobody in Charge” and although it’s not what Morrison typically writes about, consider these lines: “And speculation across the nation/Media implantation rules the day/Brainwash is easy, if everybody’s lazy/Everything looks so great.”

You may have already heard the single, “Dark Night of the Soul,” a vintage mid-tempo groove of shuffling drums, silky guitar, rolling piano and the occasional keening organ. Morrison moves with nimble grace over these instrumentals, showcasing his perennial vocal prowess during the final two minutes of the track, most of which he spends riffing on the refrain with an array of deft runs, as he does on many like “You Don’t Understand,” and “Read Between the Lines.” As mentioned, Morrison wrote all the tracks, save for “If We Wait for Mountains,” which he co-wrote with Don Black. The album also features a duet with the Righteous Brothers’ Bill Medley (“Fame Will Eat the Soul”) and contributions from guitarist Jay Berliner, who famously played on Astral Weeks and its fabulous live version from 2009. Morrison plays acoustic and electric guitars, alto sax (one track), and electric piano (one track) and no harmonica (which is fine). He’s in his comfort zone with long-time cohorts, staples of his road band, Dave Keary (electric guitar), David Hayes (bass), and Bobby Ruggerio (drums) along with percussionist and vibraphonist Teena Lyle, who has contributed to so many great Van Morrison albums. Configurations and players change a bit throughout but the B# is prominent whether through John Allair or Richard Dunn, along with guitars, and rhythm. Another departure of sorts is the absence of background vocalists.

To be fair, this album is on a par with his highly acclaimed Born To Sing: No Plan B and Morrison’s vocals are as vibrant as they’ve ever been, which is remarkable, given his age, and a career that still has him constantly touring. Most of us, certainly this writer, are so used to hearing Morrison that we instantly recognize his bluesy constructs. Yet, as we re-examine the material, there are certainly standouts “Dark Night of the Soul,” Early Days” (a look back at the genesis of rock ‘n’ roll, as he’s done before with a Wynonie Harris beat and one of Van’s better sax solos in a true R&B vein), and “Days Gone By” (which is better than “Days Like This”). There’s really nothing not to like, it’s just that you’ll probably like the DeFrancesco albums and his earlier material just a bit more.

—Jim Hynes