SACD Van Morrison – His Band And The Street Choir

His Band And The Street Choir as a hybrid stereo SACD from Analogue Productions’ Acoustic Sounds 40th Anniversary Series, mastered to DSD by Matthew Lutthans at The Mastering Lab. All twelve tracks play in one sequence – from “Domino” to “Street Choir”.

A chorus with room for the whole band

“Domino” sets up its world with remarkably few ingredients: a springy rhythm, compact horn phrases and a singer who refuses to sit politely on the beat. Van Morrison stretches a syllable, pushes the next phrase forward and leaves the band something to answer – and His Band And The Street Choir thrives on exactly that exchange. The songs welcome you in at once, and the arrangements keep giving you reasons to listen beyond the first chorus.

Released in 1970, the same year as Moondance, it is far more than a sequel: rhythm and blues, soul and shared vocals move closer to the centre, and the musicians get to animate the songs from within. Morrison produced the album himself – and his authorship lives not only in the songs but in the way he brings these players into conversation.

From Woodstock to New York

Preparations included demos in a small church in Woodstock before the main work took Morrison to A&R Studios in New York. The places don’t explain the sound on their own – but they trace the journey from trying out an idea to building an arrangement that holds singer, rhythm section and horns together without losing its freedom.

John Platania’s guitars, John Klingberg’s bass and Dahaud Shaar’s drums form that framework, Alan Hand adds keyboards, and Jack Schroer and Keith Johnson widen the instrumental palette. Follow those individual roles: an answer to Morrison’s voice doesn’t have to come from the guitar – a short horn entry or a small piano accent can turn a phrase in a fresh direction just as well.

Beyond the familiar singles

“Domino”, “Blue Money” and “Call Me Up In Dreamland” are inviting ways in, but there is much more. “Crazy Face” reveals another facet of the band: Morrison himself plays tenor saxophone – the instrument is part of his own performing vocabulary, right next to the voice that dominates our first impression.

On “If I Ever Needed Someone”, Judy Clay, Cissy Houston and Jackie Verdell widen the vocal company. Credits like these are more than collector’s small print: they explain what changes when a chorus is carried by several distinct voices instead of one. The Street Choir is not just an evocative title – communal singing is part of the album’s expressive engine.

Follow the reply

Spend one pass listening to what happens right after each vocal phrase: who picks up the momentum, who holds back and leaves space? It doesn’t make the songs more complicated – it makes their apparent ease more fascinating. Beneath those open-armed choruses is an ensemble that can say a great deal with a brief gesture.

The hybrid stereo SACD from Analogue Productions

CAPR 027 SA is a hybrid stereo SACD from Analogue Productions’ Acoustic Sounds 40th Anniversary Series. According to the publisher, Matthew Lutthans at The Mastering Lab mastered it to DSD from a one-off EQ tape copy. In Rolling Stone, Jon Landau called it “a free album”, recorded with minimal overdubbing – quoted by the publisher. The SACD layer plays on SACD-capable players, the CD layer on any conventional CD player. The disc contains the twelve tracks of the original album.

You order from Michael 45 in Germany. We arrange the US import and ship from Hilden.

More from the series: Acoustic Sounds 40th Anniversary Series

Also in another edition: His Band And The Street Choir

More SACDs by Van Morrison: Astral Weeks · Moondance

Artist page: All titles by Van Morrison

Customer question: Buying Analogue Productions records in Europe

Musicians

Band, Street Choir and guest singers; personnel vary by track.

• Van MorrisonTenor saxophone, Lead vocals, Harmonica, Guitar
• Alan HandPiano, Hammond organ, celeste
• Keith JohnsonTrumpet, Organ
• John KlingbergBass
• John PlataniaElectric and acoustic guitar, mandolin
• Jack SchroerSoprano, alto and baritone saxophone, piano
• Dahaud ShaarBacking vocals, Bass clarinet, Percussion, Drums
• Judy ClayBacking vocals on “If I Ever Needed Someone”
• Jackie VerdellBacking vocals on “If I Ever Needed Someone”
• Larry GoldsmithChoir vocals (The Street Choir)
• Janet PlanetChoir vocals (The Street Choir)
• Andrew RobinsonChoir vocals (The Street Choir)
• Ellen SchroerChoir vocals (The Street Choir)
• Martha VelezChoir vocals (The Street Choir)
• Cissy Houston (Emily Houston)Backing vocals on “If I Ever Needed Someone”