Track Listing

1. Higher Than the World
2. Connswater
3. River of Time
4. Celtic Swing
5. Rave on, John Donne
6. Inarticulate Speech of the Heart No. 1
7. Irish Heartbeat
8. Street Only Knew Your Name
9. Cry for Home
10. Inarticulate Speech of the Heart No. 2
11. September Night

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #28178 in Music
• Released on: 1990-12-29
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .19 pounds

Customer Reviews

Rave On, Van Morrison!
As with several other Van Morrison albums, I first became aware of this album when I was living outside London in the early 1980s, and quickly became a re-confirmed Van Morrison fan. No one has a wider range of styles, interpretations, and abilities than Van, and he puts all of his eclectic talents to use here. From the opening "Higher Than The World" to the finals strains of the lovely instrumental "September Night", Morrison evokes a provocative journey into the mystic interiors within his heart. Along the way, Morrison shows why he has so confounded fans and critics for the last three decades. This album was part of his evolution into a new, less popular, but much more mature musical style, or styles, since Morrison is so multi-faceted in his approach to each song that it is hard to describe his musical tastes, uses of instruments or arrangements that he has to be heard across a number of albums to recognize common and recurring themes or approaches.

There is much to appreciate and enjoy here, from the haunting "Connswater" to the lilting "Celtic Swing", from the title cut of "Inarticulate Speech Of The Heart"' to the Irish recollection found in a memorable "Irish Heartbeat". There are several instrumentals here, and they do much to provide the atmospherics for the mood of the album. My own favorite of the album is the aforementioned "Irish Heartbeat' as well as the rap-like "Rave On, John Donne", an interesting and unusual chanted survey of the contemporary intellectual scene. When you hear an accomplished poet and lyricist like Morrison show you what rap could be, you realize just how prosaic and amateurish most of what passes as rap really is. Morrison later revved up his career with the blockbuster "Avalon Sunset" album later in the 80s. But all the elements he brought so memorably into that later comeback and reemergence onto the popular charts was here in this album in spades. I think you will a lot to enjoy and appreciate in this sleeper of an album by one of the best of the sixties generation of singer/songwriters. Enjoy

DEEPLY SPIRITUAL MUSIC
Van Morrison's softer side is revealed here and his R&B excursions are nowhere to be found. The lovely ballad Higher Than The World opens this album of mellow music and high spirituality and is followed by the beautiful instrumental Connswater. River Of Time sort of drifts along but Celtic Swing is stunning, another splendid instrumental with a foot tapping rhythm and evocative wind instruments. Rave On, John Donne is a tour de force in which Morrison mentions a long list of visionary artists of the last two centuries, a very powerful song in which I suppose he lists those writers with whom he feels a certain spiritual affinity. He even mentions the Rosy Cross, Theosophy and the Golden Dawn! Inarticulate Speech Of The Heart No. 1 is a flowing instrumental with outstanding piano and just a hint of ethereal backing vocals, whilst Irish Heartbeat is a tender, achingly beautiful ballad, almost like a lullaby. The Street Only Knew Your Name is a mid tempo rocker where Van does some of his characteristic vocalising. Cry For Home is another tuneful ballad with a lilting rhythm, whilst Inarticulate Speech No. 2 has Van's vocals that are missing in the first version and some great lyrics too. The album concludes with another semi-instrumental with ethereal backing vocals and wordless vocalising, the slow and winding September Night. This deeply spiritual album forms a cohesive whole. It may not be amongst Morrison's best, but true fans will love it for its melodic simplicity and stately elegance.

Soulful and lilting: my favorite Van Morrison ever
This is one of my "ten CDs for a desert island" albums: I've been in love with it since it came out in the mid-Eighties. It's aged well, too. Van definitely explores his mystical side here: he's a strong poet and singer.

Aside from his beautiful vocals, which are masterful as usual, there are several instrumental pieces on this recording. Back-up singers (gorgeous, full-voiced women) supply uncommon depth; the dreamy piano and guitar, breathy saxophone, and delicate bass work make this (honestly) the best "lie in bed all day Sunday with your lover" music I can think of.

It's an exquisite recording. I can't count the number of friends I've gifted with it. It's deep, and it's broad.

To quote him, "I'm just wild about it. I can't live without it" (the inarticulate speech of the heart).