Van Morrison : Inarticulate Speech of the Heart [Paperback]

John Collis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 22, 1997

In an age when image and self-promotion increasingly dominate the rock industry, Van Morrison remains a proud, belligerent outsider. An intensely private man and a revelatory performer, he has communicated more deeply within the limits of rock songwriting—and has been less responsive to the obsessional inquiries of the media—than almost any other artist. Ever since connecting with classic American jazz, blues, and gospel music during his Belfast youth, Van Morrison has stayed one step ahead of fellow musicians, fans, and critics. From the explosive teenage days with Them, through the creation of 1968s seminal Astral Weeks, to the vocal and spiritual experimentation of Veedon Fleece and Into the Music, Morrison has never stopped developing complex lyrical and instrumental visions that defy easy classification. Enjoying commercial success, the recognition of a younger generation, and collaborations ranging from John Lee Hooker to Tom Jones, he continues to dazzle and beguile his audience.In this definitive survey of Van Morrison's life and music, John Collis charts the scale of his achievement and the sources of his creativity, and provides stimulating assessments of his music. Drawing on interviews with those closest to Morrison at every stage of his career, with a full discography and many rare photographs, Van Morrison: Inarticulate Speech of the Heart offers unique insight into one of rock's greatest singer-songwriters and most instantly recognizable voices.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

A rock writer and journalist, John Collis was music editor of Time Out during the 1970s and cofounder of the pioneering monthly magazine Let It Rock. He lives in London.

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press (August 22, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0306808110
• ISBN-13: 978-0306808111
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,344,703 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Inarticulate Speech of the Heart, February 13, 2000

By 

Capt. M. (Rhode Island, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Van Morrison : Inarticulate Speech of the Heart (Paperback)

I do not advise purchasing this book. The author seems focused on Morrison's anti-journalism to the extent that he seems to lose sight of his subject. Since Morrison is difficult (if not impossible) to interview, the author has been left with little more than the music to review. His reviews are passable but his insistence on noting numerous incidents where Morrison is arrogant and/or unappreciative of others turns the book into one long, cynical complaint regarding Van's character. The ending alone, wherein the author quotes Morrison's obscene rant to an audience member who requests a song from him, is depressing enough for me to recommend anyone to pass on this one. Sometimes ignorance IS bliss. Go buy Saint Dominic's Preview and listen for the real story!

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars An uneven biography: inconsistent and incomplete., June 10, 2000

By 

John F. Miller (Birmingham, Alabama, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Van Morrison : Inarticulate Speech of the Heart (Paperback)

After reading John Collis' VAN MORRISON: INARTICULATE SPEECH OF THE HEART, I'm not sure of the author's intention. In the introduction, Collis claims that he "offers only respect, and simply wants to get amateur psychoanalysis out of the way at the outset." During the course of the next 200 or so pages, however, Collis revels in shameless psycho-babble of the lowest sort while repeatedly criticizing Morrison's notoriously reticent personality.

Another criticism is that Collis seemed to focus a disproportionate amount of his ten chapter biography on Van's years with Them and Van's early solo career. The first seven chapters roughly cover Van's childhood in Belfast up to the release of the WAVELENGTH album in 1978. It is thus left to the remaining three chapters to cover a twenty some odd year era which many fans consider to be Morrison's most consistently rewarding years.

Considering that Van has, on average, released an album every year, Collis' focus on this early era comes at the expense of adequately covering the middle and later periods of Van's career. Indeed, the overall feel of Collis' book is that it was rushed into to print to capitalize on the fact that no Van biographies were available when it was published in 1996.

Fortunately, with the publication of Brian Hinton's CELTIC CROSSROADS, this is no longer the case. Collis does offer some insightful comments on Van's albums, but I would recommend Patrick Humphries' THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO THE MUSIC OF VAN MORRISON to fulfill this task. Overall assessment: inconsistent and incomplete. Not recommended.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A quick look at Van Morrison, March 20, 2009

By 

Bradley F. Smith (Miami Beach, FL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Van Morrison : Inarticulate Speech of the Heart (Paperback)

This bio is best on the early years, including Them, and is also insightful on the Bang period, giving these interesting early works a worthy analysis. Then, the book begins a march through Van's big catalogue and there are fewer insights. Of course, Morrison wasn't interviewed, so we get quotes from magazine articles over the years. Like most authors, this one professes not to understand why Morrison is so 'difficult.' But obviously, the man probably suffers from a mild form of bipolar disorder, which affects his moods. No matter. The music is still the most important thing about Morrison, not his nasty personality.