As befits a musical legend, this was no ordinary Ironworks show. Stewards enforced a strict no drinks policy beyond a line close to the door, allowing the non-drinkers to pick prime positions near to the stage, while the bar shut quarter-of-an-hour before Morrison and his band appeared, so no danger of Babyshambles-style beer chucking for this show.

The other ruling from the Morrison camp that discouraged anyone entering or leaving the auditorium while he was playing, combined with a venue packed to capacity, led to some grumbles among the crowd, but there could have been little cause for complaint about the quality of the music.

Heralded by 1999's defiant retort to those who might have written him off, "Back on Top", the trilby-hatted and sharply suited Morrison strode on stage and immediately set to work, first on harmonica before starting up that familiar bluesy mellow rumble.

After the opening number he announced "I'd like to bring on my right hand man" to signal the addition of UK jazz scene veteran Chris Barber to his backing band and these were almost the only words Morrison spoke to the audience over the course of his set, save for a mumbled "Thank you, you did very well" when old favourite "Jackie Wilson Said" allowed the crowd to sha-la-la along with the band.

Instead, Morrison did most of his communication to his fellow musicians, much of that non-verbal as he directed his musicians with a raised hand or simple gesture, instantly turning from front man to conductor, ever alert to how his band sounded.

Barber's trombone easily fitted into the tight and professional combo with all his years of experience while Van the Man also proved no slouch on the brass as he picked up his saxophone for several of the distinctly jazz-toned numbers which dominated the majority of the show, though the several guitars which lay around his feet remained untouched.

The jazzy format, which even saw Morrison's tender love song "Have I Told You Lately That I Love You?" given a more swinging arrangement, allowed most of his backing band to show off their own skills, whether on steel guitar, double bass, keyboards or trumpet.

Van Morrison in full flow at The Ironworks.

When you have the musical pedigree Morrison has, you can have your pick of sidemen (and women) and each solo was a masterful example of the instrumentalist's skill.

However, as the show wore on, a distinctive conversational hum could be heard underneath the instrumental breaks, but this was quickly silenced when the original Celtic soul brother decided to re-visit his rock and roll roots, complete with his much imitated own unique form of Celtic scat singing.

Not the most passionate performers, he even got his own feet tapping as the show approached its climax with hits like "Irish Heartbeat" and "Brown-eyed Girl" before bowing out with a rapturously energetic take on the timeless "Gloria", dating back over 40 years to his first band Them.

The venue lights came up to indicate that there would be no encores, but for most of the crowd, they had already had their money's worth.

If Morrison has a reputation for inconsistent performances, then for his Inverness show he was most certainly on form, even if true to character he did not engage much with the audience and his material contained rather too many songs moaning about the record industry. CM

Printer friendly version

Email this article to a friend

Bookmark this

---