Van Morrison discography

Van Morrison discography
Releases
Studio albums 35
Live albums 6
Compilation albums 6
Singles 71
Video albums 4

George Ivan Morrison OBE (generally known as Van Morrison) (born 31 August 1945) is a Northern Irish Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, who has been a professional musician since the late 1950s. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993 and the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2003. The R&R HOF biography for Morrison describes his music:

His travels have led him down pathways where he's explored soul, jazz, blues, rhythm & blues, rock and roll, Celtic folk, pop balladry, and more, forging a distinctive amalgam that has Morrison's passionate self-expression at its core. With a minimum of hype or fanfare, working with a craftsman's discipline and an artist-mystic's creativity, Morrison has steadily amassed one of the great bodies of recorded work in the 20th century.[1]

Morrison made his first recording playing saxophone on "Boozoo Hully Gully" with the International Monarchs in 1962.[2] His first recording session as lead singer/songwriter with Them was produced by Dick Rowe at Decca's studio. "Don't Start Crying Now" was the first single released and the garage rock classic, "Gloria" was also recorded at this session.[3] "Baby, Please Don't Go" (recorded October 1964) was released November 1964 with "Gloria" as the B-side and was a Top Ten hit in the UK.[4] "Here Comes the Night" was Them's second hit in 1965, charting at No. 2 in the UK and No. 24 in the US.[5]

Morrison had his first recording session as a solo artist for Bang Records in New York City for Bert Berns on 28 March 1966. One of the songs was "Brown Eyed Girl" which charted at No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.[6] Since then he has been on the Billboard album charts a total of 787 weeks by April 2008 (including the Them albums) a total of almost 43 years when his 33rd solo studio album Keep It Simple debuted at No. 10 on the Billboard 200 charts.[7]

Them

Highlights of albums and songs as the lead vocalist and songwriter for the group Them from 1964–1966 include:

Compilation Album:

Singles:

With Them use the link below.

Studio and live albums

Year Title Chart positions Certifications
(sales thresholds)
UK[8] US[9] NL[10] NZ[11] NOR[12] SWE[13]
1967 Blowin' Your Mind!
  • Label: Bang
  • Released: September 1967
  • Format: LP
11 182
1968 Astral WeeksA 140 US: Gold
1970 Moondance
  • Label: Warner Bros. Records
  • Released: February 1970
  • Format:LP
32 29 9 36 19 US: 3×Multi-Platinum
His Band and the Street Choir
  • Label: Warner Bros. Records
  • Released: 15 November 1970
  • Format:LP
18 32 48
1971 Tupelo Honey
  • Label: Warner Bros. Records
  • Released: October 1971
  • Format:LP
27 US: Gold
1972 Saint Dominic's Preview
  • Label: Warner Bros. Records
  • Released: July 1972
  • Format:LP
15 10
1973 Hard Nose the Highway
  • Label: Warner Bros. Records
  • Released: August 1973
  • Format:LP
22 27
1974 It's Too Late to Stop Now (Live)B
  • Label: Warner Bros. Records
  • Released: January 1974
  • Format:LP
167 53 UK: Silver
Veedon Fleece
  • Label: Warner Bros. Records
  • Released: February 1974
  • Format:LP
41 53 43 UK: Silver
1977 A Period of Transition
  • Label: Warner Bros. Records
  • Released: April 1977
  • Format:LP
23 43
1978 Wavelength
  • Label: Warner Bros. Records
  • Released: September 1978
  • Format:LP
27 28 50 9 UK: Silver
1979 Into the Music
  • Label: Warner Bros. Records
  • Released: August 1979
  • Format:LP
21 43 33 13 16 UK: Silver
1980 Common One
  • Label: Warner Bros. Records
  • Released: August 1980
  • Format:LP
68 73 28 23 22
1982 Beautiful Vision
  • Label: Warner Bros. Records
  • Released: February 1982
  • Format:LP
31 44 25 13 9 36
1983 Inarticulate Speech of the Heart
  • Label: Warner Bros. Records
  • Released: March 1983
  • Format:LP, CD
24 116 14 4 17
1984 Live at the Grand Opera House Belfast (Live)
  • Label: Mercury
  • Released: 1984
  • Format:LP, CD
47 50 24
1985 A Sense of Wonder
  • Label: Mercury
  • Released: December 1984
  • Format:LP, CD
25 61 30 19 43
1986 No Guru, No Method, No Teacher
  • Label: Mercury
  • Released: July 1986
  • Format:LP, CD
27 70 30 20 9
1987 Poetic Champions Compose
  • Label: Mercury
  • Released: September 1987
  • Format:LP, CD
26 90 13 21 19
1988 Irish Heartbeat
with The Chieftains
  • Label: Mercury
  • Released: June 1988
  • Format:LP, CD
18 102 35 23 15 26
1989 Avalon Sunset
  • Label: Mercury
  • Released: 6 June 1989
  • Format:LP, CD
13 91 8 18 11 10 UK: Gold

US: Gold

1990 Enlightenment
  • Label: Mercury
  • Released: October 1990
  • Format:LP, CD
5 62 33 14 7 UK: Gold
1991 Hymns to the Silence
  • Label: Mercury
  • Released: September 1991
  • Format:LP, CD
5 99 34 12 12 10 UK: Silver

US: Gold

1993 Too Long in Exile
  • Label: Exile/Polydor
  • Released: June 1993
  • Format:LP, CD
4 29 21 3 2 9 UK: Silver
1994 A Night in San Francisco (Live)
  • Label: Polydor
  • Released: May 1994
  • Format:LP, CD
8 125 39 9 23
1995 Days Like This
  • Label: Polydor
  • Released: June 1995
  • Format:LP, CD
5 33 33 8 7 8 UK: Gold

US: Gold

1996 How Long Has This Been Going OnC
with (Georgie Fame)
  • Label: Polydor
  • Released: June 1995
  • Format:LP, CD
76 55 81 47
Tell Me Something: The Songs of Mose AllisonC
  • Label: Polydor
  • Released: October 1996
  • Format:LP, CD
1997 The Healing Game
  • Label: Polydor
  • Released: March 1997
  • Format:LP, CD
10 32 29 6 8 13 UK: Silver
1999 Back on Top
  • Label: Virgin/Point Blank
  • Released: 9 March 1999
  • Format:LP, CD
11 28 21 5 1 5 UK: Gold

US: Gold

2000 The Skiffle Sessions - Live in Belfast 1998
with (Lonnie Donegan and Chris Barber) (Live)
  • Label: Virgin/Point Blank
  • Released: 17 January 2000
  • Format:LP, CD
14 99 14 33 51
You Win Again
with (Linda Gail Lewis)
  • Label: Virgin/Point Blank
  • Released: 25 September 2000
  • Format:LP, CD, MD (Exile 7243 8 50258 8 4)
34 161 94 36 32 21
2002 Down the Road
  • Label: Polydor
  • Released: May 2002
  • Format:LP, CD
6 25 13 8 5 10 UK: Silver
2003 What's Wrong with This Picture?
  • Label: Blue Note / EMI
  • Released: 21 October 2003
  • Format:LP, CD
43 32 13 17 10 18
2005 Magic Time
  • Label: Exile/Polydor
  • Released: 16 May 2005
  • Format:LP, CD
3 25 10 21 6 6
2006 Pay the DevilD
  • Label: Exile/Polydor (UK), Lost Highway (US)
  • Released: 7 March 2006
  • Format:LP, CD
8 26 31 10 16
2008 Keep It Simple
  • Label: Exile/Polydor (UK), Lost Highway (US)
  • Released: 17 March 2008 UK
  • Released: 1 April 2008 US
  • Format:CD
10 10 12 15 7 11
2009 Astral Weeks Live at the Hollywood Bowl (Live)
  • Label: Listen to the Lion/EMI
  • Released: 24 February 2009 US
  • Format:CD
61 33 31 15 36 17
2012 Born to Sing: No Plan B 15[14] 10[15] 20 12 14 7
2015 Duets: Re-working the Catalogue
  • Label: RCA
  • Released: March 2015
  • Format:CD
5 23 3 2 33
Notes

Limited editions

Compilations

Year Album Chart position Notes
UK US NL NZ NOR SWE
1973 T.B. Sheets 181 181
1982 This is Where I Came In
1990 The Best of Van Morrison 4 41 13 3 6 9 US: 4×Multi-Platinum
UK: Gold
1991 Bang Masters
1993 The Best of Van Morrison Volume Two 31 176 38 6
1998 The Philosopher's Stone 20 87 80 17 11 14
2007 Van Morrison at the Movies - Soundtrack Hits 17 35 16 10 8 12 UK: Silver
The Best of Van Morrison Volume 3 23 149 89 47
Still on Top - The Greatest Hits 2 48 25 14 3 1

Performer

Videos and DVDs

Singles

Year Title US[20] US Rock UK NED[21] IRE[22] NZ Album
1967 "Brown Eyed Girl"1/"Goodbye Baby (Baby Goodbye)" 10 60 12 Blowin' Your Mind
1967 "Ro Ro Rosey"/"Chick-A-Boom" 107
1967 "Spanish Rose"/"Midnight Special" 18
1970 "Come Running"/"Crazy Love" 39 Moondance
1970 "Crazy Love"/"Come Running" (NL)
1970 "Domino"/"Come Running" (Spain)/"Sweet Jannie" 9 22 His Band and the Street Choir
1971 "Blue Money"/"Sweet Thing" (US)/"Call Me Up in Dreamland" (Europe) 23
1971 "Call Me Up in Dreamland"/"Street Choir" 95
1971 "Wild Night"/"When That Evening Sun Goes Down" 28 24 Tupelo Honey
1971 "Tupelo Honey"/"Starting a New Life" 47
1972 "(Straight to Your Heart) Like a Cannonball"/"Old Old Woodstock" 119
1972 "Jackie Wilson Said (I'm in Heaven When You Smile)"/"You've Got the Power" 61 Saint Dominic's Preview
1972 "Redwood Tree"/"Jackie Wilson Said (I'm in Heaven When You Smile) (Germany)/"Saint Dominic's Preview" 98
1973 "Gypsy"/"Saint Dominic's Preview" 101
1973 "Warm Love"/"I Will Be There" Hard Nose the Highway
1973 "Bein' Green"/"Wild Children"
1974 "Ain't Nothing You Can Do"/"Wild Children" It's Too Late to Stop Now
1974 "Bulbs"/"Who Was That Masked Man?" (UK)/"Cul De Sac" Veedon Fleece
1974 "Caledonia"/"What's Up Crazy Pup?" (Germany, NL)
1974 "Gloria" (Live)/"Warm Love" (Germany) It's Too Late to Stop Now
1977 "The Eternal Kansas City"/"Joyous Sound" A Period of Transition
1977 "Joyous Sound"/"Mechanical Bliss"
1977 "Moondance"/"Cold Wind in August" 92 Moondance
1978 "Wavelength"/"Checkin' it Out" 42 Wavelength
1979 "Natalia"/"Lifetimes"
1979 "Kingdom Hall"/"Checkin' it Out"
1979 "Bright Side of the Road"/"Rolling Hills" 110 63 48 Into the Music
1979 "Full Force Gale"/"Bright Side of the Road"
1980 "You Make Me Feel So Free"/"Full Force Gale"
1982 "Cleaning Windows"/"It's All in the Game" (UK)/"Aryan Mist" (Spain)/"Scandinavia" Beautiful Vision
1982 "Scandinavia"/"Dweller on the Threshold"
1983 "Cry For Home"/"Summertime in England" 98 40 Inarticulate Speech of the Heart
1983 "Celtic Swing"/"Mr. Thomas"
1984 "Dweller on the Threshold"/"Northern Muse (Solid Ground)" Live at the Grand Opera House Belfast
1984 "A Sense of Wonder"/"Haunts of Ancient Peace" A Sense of Wonder
1985 "Tore Down a la Rimbaud"/"Haunts of Ancient Peace" 101 19
1986 "Ivory Tower"/"A New Kind of Man" 21 No Guru, No Method, No Teacher
1986 "Got to Go Back"/"In the Garden"
1987 "Did Ye Get Healed?"/"Allow Me" Poetic Champions Compose
1987 "Someone Like You"2/"Celtic Excavation"
1988 "Queen of the Slipstream"/"Spanish Steps"
1988 "I'll Tell Me Ma"/"Tà Mo Chleamhnas Déanta" Irish Heartbeat
1989 "Have I Told You Lately"3/"Contacting My Angel" 74 14 12 Avalon Sunset
1989 "Whenever God Shines His Light" (with Cliff Richard)/"I'd Love to Write Another Song" 20 3
1989 "Orangefield"/"These Are the Days" 70
1990 "Coney Island"/"Have I Told You Lately" 76 30
1990 "Gloria"/"Rave on, John Donne" The Best of Van Morrison
1990 "Real Real Gone"/"Start All Over Again" 18 79 Enlightenment
1990 "In The Days Before Rock 'N' Roll"/"I'd Love to Write Another Song" 94
1991 "Enlightenment"/"Avalon of the Heart"
1991 "I Can't Stop Loving You" (with The Chieftains)/"All Saints Day" Hymns to the Silence
1991 "Why Must I Always Explain?"/"So Complicated"
1993 "Gloria"/"It Must Be You" 36 31 37 17 46 Too Long in Exile
1995 "Have I Told You Lately" (with The Chieftains)/"Love is a Teasin'"/"Fenny Hill" 71 The Long Black Veil
1995 "Days Like This"/"I Don't Want to Go On Without You"/"That Old Black Magic"/"Yo" 65 Days Like This
1995 "Perfect Fit"/"Raincheck"/"Cleaning Windows"
1995 "No Religion"/"Whenever God Shines His Light"/"Have I Told You Lately"/"Gloria" 54
1996 "That's Life"/"Moondance"/"That's Life"
all with (Georgie Fame)
111 How Long Has This Been Going On
1997 "The Healing Game"/"Have I Told You Lately"/"Whenever God Shines His Light"/"Gloria" \
"Full Force Gale 96"/"Look at What the Good People Done"/"Celtic Spring"
46 The Healing Game
1997 "Rough God Goes Riding"/"At the End of the Day"/"The Healing Game" 168
1999 "Precious Time"/"Jackie Wilson Said (I'm in Heaven When You Smile)"/"Call Me Up in Dreamland" 36 96 Back on Top
1999 "Back on Top"/"John Brown's Body"/"I'm Ready" 69
1999 "Philosopher's Stone"/"These Dreams of You"/"Raincheck" 171
2000 "I Wanna Go Home"
with (Lonnie Donegan and Chris Barber)/"New Burying Ground"/"Midnight Special"
114 The Skiffle Sessions - Live in Belfast 1998
2000 "Let's Talk About Us"
with (Linda Gail Lewis)/"Singing the Blues"/"The Ballad of Jesse James"
100 You Win Again
2002 "Hey Mr. DJ"/"Someone Like You"/"Bright Side of the Road" 58 91 41 Down the Road
2002 "Meet Me in the Indian Summer"/"In the Afternoon/Ancient Highway/Raincheck/Meditation/
Joe Turner Sings/Don't You Make Me High" (Live)/"In the Midnight" (Live)
116
2003 "Once in a Blue Moon"/"Walkin' My Baby Back Home"/"When You're Smiling" What's Wrong with This Picture?
2005 "Celtic New Year" Magic Time
2006 "Playhouse" Pay the Devil
2006 "And It Stoned Me" (Live) Live at Montreux 1980/1974
2006 "Cry for Home"(with Tom Jones) The Best of Van Morrison Volume 3
2007 "Blue and Green"
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or was not released.

Notes

Bang sessions unofficial compilation albums

Other appearances

Year Song Album
1999 "Sometimes We Cry" Reload (Tom Jones)
2000 "The Last Laugh" Sailing to Philadelphia (Mark Knopfler)
2002 "Back O' Town Blues" Jools Holland's Big Band Rhythm & Blues[23]

Tribute albums

The Van Morrison Songbook was released in March 1997 on the Connoisseur Collect label. The cover versions chosen range from the 1964 garage rock classic "Gloria" performed by Eddie and the Hot Rods to the ballad "Have I Told You Lately" performed by Emilio Navaira. Other covers include "I Wanna Roo You" performed by Goldie Hawn; "Jackie Wilson Said (I'm in Heaven When You Smile)" performed by Dexys Midnight Runners; "Sweet Thing" performed by The Waterboys; "Tupelo Honey" performed by Dusty Springfield; and "Irish Heartbeat" performed by Billy Connolly.

Instrumental only tribute albums

Notes

  1. "Van Morrison:inductee 1993". rockhall.com. Retrieved 18 August 2008.
  2. Turner1993. p43.
  3. Turner1993. p48.
  4. Turner1993. p51.
  5. Turner1993. p53.
  6. Turner1993. p76-77.
  7. Fred Bronson (8 April 2008). "Van Arrives". billboard.com. Archived from the original on 15 June 2008. Retrieved 16 August 2008.
  8. "album artist #31". tsort.info. Retrieved 18 August 2008.
  9. "Van Morrison:charts & awards". allmusic.com. Retrieved 18 August 2008.
  10. "Dutch album chart – Van Morrison". Retrieved 4 December 2010.
  11. "New Zealand album chart – Van Morrison". Retrieved 4 December 2010.
  12. "Norwegian album chart – Van Morrison". Retrieved 4 December 2010.
  13. "Swedish album chart – Van Morrison". Retrieved 4 December 2010.
  14. "Van Morrison – Born To Sing;No Plan B". aCharts. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  15. "Music Albums, Top 200 Albums Music Album Charts – Billboard 200". 20 October 2012. Retrieved 11 October 2012.
  16. "Artist Chart History – Van Morrison". Billboard. Retrieved 4 December 2010.
  17. "One Irish Rover:Hill of the Muses". freelib.org. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
  18. "Episodes:Van Morrison (2006)". pbs.org. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
  19. "Riaa Gold & Platinum search results:Van Morrison". riaa.com. Retrieved 18 August 2008.
  20. DeWitt1983 p63
  21. "Dutch singles history:Van Morrison". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
  22. "The Irish charts". irishcharts.ie. Retrieved 29 January 2010.
  23. Koda, Cub. Jools Holland's Big Band Rhythm & Blues – Jools Holland at AllMusic. Retrieved 25 November 2011.

References