The The Healing Game [20th Anniversary]

by Van Morrison

Overview

Van Morrison never stopped recording during the 1990s, but for a little while it seemed as if he was disconnected from his muse. It wasn't so much his series of jazz cover albums -- he'd return to this vein often in subsequent decades -- but his songwriting that showed signs bitterness, particularly on 1995's Days Like This, where he seemed dismissive of the very notion of being a songwriter. In that light, it's hard not to see 1997's The Healing Game as a rejuvenation. Indeed, the album's very title suggests that Morrison is in the process of mending fences and reconnecting with a sense of joy, a process that began during his deep dive into Mose Allison and other bluesy jazz artists in the mid-'90s. Morrison retains that sense of swing on The Healing Game -- he also retains keyboardist Georgie Fame, who would become a fixture on Morrison's albums over the next two decades -- and it invigorates a set of songs that aren't necessarily all that different from what he's been writing as of late; he's still specializing in ballads, blues, and folk-rock colored by R&B. The subtle differences make a difference, though, whether they lie in the lyrics or, especially, the music, which feels warmer and more relaxed than the album's relatively recent companions. Morrison seems at home within the easy grooves of The Healing Game, and while that alone is enough to make the album worth revisits, it's also true the album boasts a sturdy selection of songs, highlighted by the meditative title track, the searching "Rough God Goes Riding," and the impassioned "Fire in the Belly." ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	03/22/2019
Label:	Legacy
UPC:	0889854284114
Rank:	50461

Tracks

1. Rough God Goes Riding
2. Fire in the Belly
3. This Weight
4. Waiting Game
5. Piper at the Gates of Dawn
6. Burning Ground
7. It Was Once My Life
8. Sometimes We Cry
9. If You Love Me
10. The Healing Game

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Van Morrison   Primary Artist,Guitar,Vocals,Harmonica,Guitar (Acoustic)
Lonnie Donegan   Primary Artist
Carl Perkins   Primary Artist
John Lee Hooker   Primary Artist
Brian Kennedy   Guest Artist,Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Paddy Moloney   Guest Artist
Pee Wee Ellis   Guest Artist,Saxophone,Sax (Tenor),Sax (Soprano),Sax (Baritone),Vocals (Background)
Phil Coulter   Guest Artist,Piano
Georgie Fame   Guest Artist,Organ,Vocals,Organ (Hammond),Vocals (Background)
Robin Aspland   Drums,Piano
Ronnie Johnson   Guitar,Guitar (Electric)
Katie Kissoon   Vocals (Background)
Nicky Scott   Bass,Bass (Electric)
Alec Dankworth   Double Bass
Guy Barker   Trumpet
Matt Holland   Trumpet,Vocals (Background)
Ralph Salmins   Drums,Percussion
Liam Bradley   Drums
Leo Green   Saxophone,Sax (Tenor),Vocals (Background)
Geoff Dunn   Drums,Percussion
Peter O'Hanlon   Dobro
Pat Fitzpatrick   Organ (Hammond)
Haji Akbar   Flugelhorn
Paddy Maloney   Uillean Pipes,Whistle (Instrument)

Technical Credits

Enda Walsh   Engineer
Ray Charles   Composer
Ciaran Cahill   Assistant Engineer
Fats Domino   Composer
Howard Griffin   Composer
Walter Samuel   Mixing,Engineer
Leslie Bricusse   Composer
Pee Wee Ellis   Horn Arrangements
Van Morrison   Arranger,Composer,Producer
Jimmie Rodgers   Composer
Brian Hodgson   Producer
Matt Holland   Horn Arrangements
Harry Ruby   Composer
Bert Kalmar   Composer
Sylvester Stewart   Composer
Anthony Newley   Composer
Carl Perkins   Composer
Oscar Hammerstein II   Composer
John Lee Hooker   Composer
Leo Green   Horn Arrangements
Dave Slevin   Assistant Engineer
David Conroy   Editing,Technical Support
Matt Curtis   Design,Art Direction
Matthew Lawrence   Editing,Assistant Engineer
Edna Walsh   Engineer
Paul Cox   Photography
Tim Young   Mastering