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Back on Top (Van Morrison album)

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Back on Top
Studio album by
Van Morrison
Released8 March 1999[1]
Recorded1998
StudioWool Hall Studios, Beckington, south of bath, England (except for the strings were recorded at Windmill Lane Studios, Dublin, Ireland)
GenreBlues, R&B
Length52:08
LabelPoint Blank/Virgin
ProducerVan Morrison
Van Morrison chronology
The Philosopher's Stone
(1998) 		Back on Top
(1999) 		The Skiffle Sessions – Live in Belfast 1998
(2000)
Singles from Back on Top
  1. "Precious Time"
    Released: February 1999
  2. "Back on Top"
    Released: May 1999
  3. "Philosopher's Stone"
    Released: August 1999

Back on Top is the twenty-seventh studio album by Northern Irish singer/songwriter Van Morrison, released in 1999 by Point Blank. It reached the Top Twenty in seven countries, building on the success of 1997's The Healing Game.

Recording

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Recorded at the Wool Hall Studios, south of Bath, England, except strings, which were recorded at Windmill Lane Studios, Dublin, Ireland. The musicians on the album are understated with Ian Jennings playing double bass, Geraint Watkins playing Hammond organ and Pee Wee Ellis on saxophones.[2]

Composition

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The opening track, "Goin' Down Geneva", has a very bluesy feel. Morrison's harmonica is prominent on "Philosopher's Stone", which features "one of the most limber vocal performances he's put on record in years, even tentatively jumping into the high squawk he seemed to have lost."[3] Harmonica also features on "High Summer", which includes references to "Lucifer" and "God", and also alludes to Morrison's 1960s songs by way of "red sport cars" and "mansions on the hill". "In the Midnight" is "bedroom music, pure and simple",[4] while "Back on Top" is an optimistic statement of the singer's outlook. The ballad, "When the Leaves Come Falling Down", features a string section, while "Golden Autumn Day" is about being mugged.[2]

"Reminds Me of You" dates back to a 1996 break-up of his engagement to Michelle Rocca; they had reunited by the time of the song's release.[5] "New Biography" was prompted by Brian Hinton's Celtic Crossroads, written in 1996.[6] Morrison complains about celebrity and "'so-called friends' who chose to spill inside information and memories to biographers."[4][7] Morrison has often performed "Precious Time" live, which includes the lyrics, "It doesn’t matter to which God you pray/Precious time is slipping away."

Release

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The video for the title track received significant airplay on the Canadian music station, "MuchMoreMusic". Performances of "Back on Top" and "When the Leaves Come Falling Down", along with "Gloria", featured on Later... with Jools Holland on 16 April 1999.[8]

The photograph of Morrison on the inside of the album cover was originally used for the front cover of Peter Handke's book, My Year in the No-Man's-Bay (1994).[9] The album was remastered and reissued on 29 January 2008 with two bonus tracks; an alternative take of "Philosopher's Stone", and a new arrangement of Fats Domino's song, "Valley of Tears".[10] "Golden Autumn Day" was also used as the credits song for the 2001 and 2004 World Series.

Reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[4]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[11]
George Graham(unrated)[2]
Rolling Stone[12]

The album received mixed reviews from critics, but performed well commercially and was his highest charting album in the US since Wavelength. It went gold in both the US[13] and UK.[14] Allmusic welcomed Morrison's "return to the music that suits him so well... blues and R&B", and found that the album finds him "celebrating life and its pleasures to the limit."[4] Rolling Stone summed it up as being "solid, brilliant, silly in sad ways. But it's still one Monet and nine Norman Rockwells."[12] The Irish Independent was critical, suggesting that "[somewhere] in the mid-Eighties the poet/philosopher accolades seem to have seeped into his skull, and he began churning out same-sounding albums on an almost annual basis."[15] Critic George Graham lauded it as "one of his best, most tasteful albums in recent years, and Van Morrison has had some very good albums in this period."[2]

Track listing

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All songs by Van Morrison, unless otherwise noted.

  1. "Goin' Down Geneva" – 4:24
  2. "Philosopher's Stone" – 6:05
  3. "In the Midnight" – 5:07
  4. "Back on Top" – 4:23
  5. "When the Leaves Come Falling Down" – 5:39
  6. "High Summer" – 5:12
  7. "Reminds Me of You" – 5:39
  8. "New Biography" – 5:23
  9. "Precious Time" – 3:45
  10. "Golden Autumn Day" – 6:31
Bonus tracks (2008 CD reissue)
  2. "Philosopher's Stone" – 4:52 (alternate take)
  3. "Valley of Tears" – 5:02 (Fats Domino, arranged Morrison)

Personnel

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Production
  • Walter Samuel – recording, mixing
  • Brian Masterson – recording
  • Sean Doherty – assistant engineer
  • Sam Miller – assistant engineer
  • Ciaran Cahill – assistant engineer
  • Ian Cooper – mastering
  • Brad Wilson – photography
  • Paul Cox – photography
  • John Mintoft – photography
  • Matt Curtis – photography, art direction, design

Charts

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Singles

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UK Singles Chart

Year Single Position
1999 "Precious Time" 36
"Back on Top" 69
"Philosopher's Stone" 171

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[29] Gold 50,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[30] Platinum 15,000^
Norway (IFPI Norway)[31] Gold 25,000*
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[32] Gold 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[33] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[34] Gold 500,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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  • Hage, Erik (2009). The Words and Music of Van Morrison, Praeger Publishers, ISBN 978-0-313-35862-3
  • Handke, Peter (1994). My Year in the No-Man's-Bay, Farrar Straus and Giroux ISBN 0-374-21755-6
  • Heylin, Clinton (2003). Can You Feel the Silence? Van Morrison: A New Biography, Chicago Review Press ISBN 1-55652-542-7
  • Van Morrison Back on Top by George Graham

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ "BPI".
  2. ^ a b c d Graham, George (18 March 1999). "Van Morrison: Back on Top by George Graham". georgegraham.com. Retrieved 3 September 2009.
  3. ^ Hage, The Words and Music of Van Morrison, p.128.
  4. ^ a b c d "Allmusic review: Back on Top". allmusic.com. Retrieved 12 January 2010.
  5. ^ Heylin, Can You Feel the Silence?, p.460
  6. ^ "Dr. Brian Hinton". thewordtravels.com. Archived from the original on 30 September 2010. Retrieved 12 November 2009.
  7. ^ Hage, The Words and Music of Van Morrison, p.127.
  8. ^ "concerts". van.vanomatic.de. Archived from the original on 14 September 2008. Retrieved 29 August 2008.
  9. ^ Handke, My Year in the No-Man's-Bay
  10. ^ Van Morrison Official Website
  11. ^ "Back on Top review". Entertainment Weekly. 12 March 1999. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
  12. ^ a b Hunter, James (1 April 1999). "Rolling Stone review: Back on Top". rollingstone.com. Archived from the original on 23 July 2009. Retrieved 5 December 2008.
  13. ^ "RIAA Gold and Platinum". riaa.com. Archived from the original on 23 July 2013. Retrieved 12 January 2010.
  14. ^ "Album artist 58-Van Morrison". tsort.info. Retrieved 30 December 2012.
  15. ^ Rogan, No Surrender, p.453.
  16. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Van Morrison – Back on Top". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  17. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Van Morrison – Back on Top" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  18. ^ "Ultratop.be – Van Morrison – Back on Top" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  19. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Van Morrison – Back on Top" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  20. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Van Morrison – Back on Top" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  21. ^ "Charts.nz – Van Morrison – Back on Top". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  22. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Van Morrison – Back on Top". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  23. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  24. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Van Morrison – Back on Top". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  25. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Van Morrison – Back on Top". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  26. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  27. ^ "Van Morrison Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  28. ^ "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 1999". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  29. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Van Morrison – Back on Top". Music Canada. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
  30. ^ "New Zealand album certifications – Van Morrison – Back on Top". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  31. ^ "IFPI Norsk platebransje Trofeer 1993–2011" (in Norwegian). IFPI Norway. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
  32. ^ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. p. 948. ISBN 8480486392.
  33. ^ "British album certifications – Van Morrison – Back on Top". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
  34. ^ "American album certifications – Van Morrison – Back on Top". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
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