Van Morrison 48: Three Chords And The Truth

The seemingly relentless progression of Van Morrison albums could be tough to follow, especially when they weren’t always worth hearing. And when he names an album after a phrase many people associate with Bono—even though he didn’t coin it—we deserve to be wary. But Three Chords And The Truth did offer more than three chords, and presented mostly original compositions as well as a similar typographical approach to his most recent collection that wasn’t all covers.

His weather-related titles usually mean a profound meditation, and “March Winds In February” is a lovely start. Of course “Fame Will Eat Your Soul” retreads other familiar territory, this time abetted by Bill Medley, who shows his age. While not the smartest display of sequencing, “Dark Night Of The Soul” is more like it, a good song as well as performance. “In Search Of Grace” seems tossed off, and “Nobody In Charge” is more complaining, but at least he plays a fine sax solo on that one. He continues to brood on “You Don’t Understand” for six annoyed minutes, and we get it already, making the more succinct “Read Between The Lines” easier to digest.

“Does Love Conquer All?” isn’t the only question he asks in that song, but they’re good questions. “Early Days” celebrates the music of his youth lyrically and instrumentally, but he still finds time to whine about today’s music. “If We Wait For Mountains” is another collaboration with occasional lyricist Don Black, and he’s usually a good influence. The good feeling pervades into “Up On Broadway”, an almost gentle wish. While it doesn’t say much, the title track sparkles, and even “Bags Under My Eyes” provides a more wry take on weariness complete with a yodel at the end. And he actually has the decency to credit “Days Gone By”—a lengthy rewrite of “Auld Lang Syne”—as a traditional composition.

When Three Chords And The Truth is good, it’s very good. But he wasn’t likely to start editing himself now.

Van Morrison Three Chords And The Truth (2019)—3