Almost Independence Day
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| “Amost Independence Day” | ||
|---|---|---|
| Song by Van Morrison | ||
| Album | Saint Dominic's Preview | |
| Released | July 1972 | |
| Genre | Folk rock, R&B | |
| Length | 10:03 | |
| Label | Warner Bros. Records | |
| Writer | Van Morrison | |
| Composer | Van Morrison | |
| Producer | Ted Templeman, Van Morrison | |
| Saint Dominic's Preview track listing | ||
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"Almost Independence Day" is the closing song on Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison's 1972 album Saint Dominic's Preview. The song is ten minutes long and features Morrison trading guitar licks with Ron Elliott.[1]
In a 1984 interview, Morrison recalls that he took a cue for the first line from the following incident:[2]
I picked up the phone and the operator said, "You have a phone call from Oregon. It's Mister So-and-So." It was a guy from the group Them. And then there was nobody on the other end. So out of that I started writing, "I can hear Them calling, 'way from Oregon." That's where that came from.
The song is written in a stream of consciousness style of writing and was recorded live except for one high part on a moog synthesizer (played by Bernie Krause of "Space Odyssey" with the Byrds fame). Morrison said he had "asked Krause to do this thing of China Town and then come in with the high part because I was thinking of dragons and fireworks." It has been said to be a sequel to "Madame George", although Morrison has said that was not his concept.[3]
Contents |
[edit] Personnel on original release
- Van Morrison: 12 string guitar, vocal
- Lee Charlton: drums
- Ron Elliot: guitar
- Bernie Krause: moog synthesizer
- Mark Naftalin: piano, moog synthesizer
- Leroy Vinnegar: bass
[edit] Notes
[edit] References
- Flanagan, Bill (1986). Written In My Soul. Contemporary Books, Inc. ISBN 0-8092-5153-1.
- Hinton, Brian (2000). Celtic Crossroads: The Art of Van Morrison, Sanctuary, ISBN 1-86074169X
- Yorke, Ritchie (1975). Into The Music, London:Charisma Books , ISBN 0-85947-013-X
[edit] External links
- Lyrics and Audio Sample 1970s, Saint Dominic's Preview
