William's Song a Day Blog - est. September 2007

From: His Band and the Street Choir ; Year: 1970; Genre: R&B/Jazz Rock Had this track on my mind today, which is one I like; really like his music. I should have chosen more of Van Morrison's songs by now, but have been turned off by way he has treat people who cover his material and the heavy-handedness therein. Anyway, the jazzy lines played in unison by most of the instruments has always been the major draw for me personally; that and the overall horn section that is. From wot I understand though, it was written as a tribute to Fats Domino , who was one of his big influences.   Hear Domino on YouTube.         My song pick 1 year ago today: Johnny Rivers - (I Washed My Hands In) Muddy Water     My song pick 2 years ago today: Billy Joel - Sleeping With the Television On     My song pick 3 years ago today: Supertramp - Don't Leave Me Now   My song pick 4 years ago today: 3rd Secret - Somewhere in Time   My song pick 5 years a...

From: The "Angry" Young Them ; Year: 1965; Genre: Rock/Pop This is one that much of the older generations will surely recognize and maybe some younger as well. For those unaware, Them was a band from Northern Ireland in which singer/songwriter Van Morrison would "cut his teeth" so to speak; they had a few hits in their brief tenure with this being the biggest. Van Morrison would, of course, go on to global success after the disillusion of Them, but they were a good band in somewhat of the vain of The Kinks and such.   Hear Gloria on YouTube.       My song pick 1 year ago today: Vince Guaraldi - Red Baron   My song pick 2 years ago today: Dire Straits - The Bug   My song pick 3 years ago today: The Stone Roses - Sally Cinnamon   My song pick 4 years ago today: Earth, Wind & Fire - Star   My song pick 5 years ago today: Living Colour - Type My song pick 6 years ago today: Dream Theater - A New Beginning My song pick 7 years ago today: Quee...

From: A Period of Transition ; Year: 1977; Genre: Rock/R&B Bringing August to end today and thought I should choose a song with an appropriate title/subject matter for the occasion. This one's got a nice, easy rhythm with a lot of soul within to boot.    Hear Cold Wind in August on YouTube.       My song pick 1 year ago today: Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Tiger in a Spotlight   My song pick 2 years ago today: Max Roach - Blues Waltz My song pick 3 years ago today: David Bowie - After All My song pick 4 years ago today: Asia - Never in a Million Years My song pick 5 years ago today: Duran Duran - My Own Way My song pick 6 years ago today: The Doors - Break on Through (To the Other Side) My song pick 7 years ago today: Megadeth - Seven My song pick 8 years ago today: Stratovarius - Under Flaming Skies My song pick 9 years ago today: Genesis - A Winter's Tale My song pick 10 years ago today: Chet Atkins - Drive In My song pick 11 years...

From: Tupelo Honey ; Year: 1971; Genre: Rock It's been a while since the last time I chose a song from Van Morrison. I've always been a fan of his music in some degree, so it's a bit odd that I haven't revisited his music for some time now. The only reason I can think of is/was that back some 5-10 years ago, if memory serves me correctly, him and his record company were being rather heavy-handed with streaming services and thus much of his music was not online and due to that I did not pick any of his songs. Anyway, this is one that's always been a favourite with most crowds; I remember when I used to play in a cover band no matter the audience people danced to this song. Hear Wild Nights on YouTube. My song pick 1 year ago today: Van Halen - Best of Both Worlds My song pick 2 years ago today: Santo & Johnny - Deep Purple My song pick 3 years ago today: Dire Straits - Expresso Love My song pick 4 years ago today: Earth, Wind & Fire - Power ...

1507 Van Morrison - Wavelength From: Wavelength , Year: 1978 Genre: Rock Off and on over the last few days or so I've had this song on my mind. I decided to check and see if it was available for view on YouTube and sure enough it was! A few years back Van Morrison and his record company were extremely draconian about having his music on YouTube; they even took it as far as making them take down live covers of his songs performed by amateur bands. That is the reason I haven't chosen very many of his songs; I hate picking a song without having a YouTube video to go along with it. Anyway, I like the way this song was written and arranged; I absolutely love the build at the beginning. This one contains quite a bit more synth than much of his other material, but still just as excellent as his others. Here is a fan video with the studio version on YouTube. Here is a live performance circa '80 on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Lee Michaels - Do You Know What I Mean? My s...

I did not have a song ready to choose again, so I decided on this incredible one by Van Morrison. Most would agree that this song is one of his best and usually is enjoyed by all sorts of different individuals. Anyway, this nice Jazz tune makes an excellent song for today. Here is the studio version on YouTube. +