10 Greatest Acoustic Rock Albums

3. Van Morrison - Astral Weeks

After finding success as a member of Them and a solo R&B powerhouse, Van Morrison quickly made the swerve to something completely different. The mesmerising, bucolic Astral Weeks was met with some confusion despite its hippy-era 1968 release, but it wasn’t long before it was reappraised as a classic.

The title track is awash with flutes, droning strings, and mandolins, all under Morrison’s textured vocals and insistent guitar strumming. It sets the tone for an album of loosely structured tracks, ebbing and flowing like nature as the players follow their instincts.

The closest the record gets to a conventional hit is “Sweet Thing”, a track built on a swirling, repeating sequence of chords while the folk track builds behind it and Morrison lays out a sequence of devotional, upbeat lyrics of love.

Things are less straightforward - but even more wildly ambitious - on “Madame George”. Morrison seems to abandon any rhythm in his vocals, rolling all over the track for nearly 10 minutes as a roaming violin similarly ventures wherever it pleases. It sounds, in the best way, unrehearsed, like these musicians came together, sat down, and happened to record a masterpiece.

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Contributor

Yorkshire-based writer of screenplays, essays, and fiction. Big fan of having a laugh. Read more of my stuff @ www.twotownsover.com (if you want!)