#70 Moondance by Van Morrison
The 100 Greatest Albums of All Time
- 2025 Album Rank
- 70
- 2011 Album Rank
- 51
- Total Points
- 871
- Year Released
- 1970
- Billboard 200 Chart Peak
- 29
- Weeks at #1
- N/A/
- RIAA Sales Certification
- 3,000,000 (Multi Platinum)
- Buy Album
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Moondance Album Details
Released in January 1970, Moondance marked Van Morrison's commercial breakthrough, following the more abstract and mystical Astral Weeks. Where that earlier album floated on jazz-infused improvisation and poetic abstraction, Moondance brought Morrison's gift for melody, groove, and tight songwriting into sharper focus. Fusing soul, jazz, folk, and pop, it radiates warmth and confidence, balancing accessible hooks with sophisticated arrangements.
The album opens with the jubilant And It Stoned Me and soon delivers the title track, one of Morrison's most beloved songs, blending swing rhythms with romantic imagery. Tracks like Into the Mystic and Caravan show Morrison at his lyrical peak, uniting spiritual longing with earthy celebration. Moondance endures not just as a collection of songs but as a fully realized musical statement that is warm, fluid, and endlessly replayable.
Interesting Facts About Moondance
- Unlike Astral Weeks, which was recorded largely live in the studio with jazz musicians Morrison barely knew, Moondance was meticulously arranged by Morrison himself, who took on much of the production responsibility.
- Surprisingly, the song Moondance was not released as a single until 1977, seven years after the album came out. Despite that, it became one of his signature songs through radio airplay and live performances.
- Morrison wrote the lyrics to Into the Mystic in a single burst of inspiration, crafting one of his most evocative and spiritual pieces of songwriting.
- Caravan is often cited for its celebration of radio as a mystical experience. Morrison later delivered a legendary performance of it during The Last Waltz concert with The Band in 1976.
- The horn arrangements throughout Moondance reflect Morrison's deep love of jazz, particularly the influence of swing-era musicians like Count Basie and Louis Armstrong.
- Morrison was living in upstate New York at the time of writing and recording the album, far from his native Belfast, but the pastoral imagery in songs like And It Stoned Me is rooted in childhood memories of fishing trips in Ireland.
- The album was recorded at A&R Recording Studios in New York City, with engineer Elliott Scheiner, who would later work with artists like Steely Dan and the Eagles.
- Many of the album's songs were road-tested live before recording, helping refine their arrangements and grooves in front of an audience.
- Though not as commercially explosive as some contemporaneous albums, Moondance has steadily gained critical acclaim over the decades and is now regarded as one of the definitive albums of the singer-songwriter era.
- A deluxe edition of Moondance was released in 2013, featuring multiple alternate takes and early versions of several tracks, offering a rare glimpse into Morrison's creative process.
- The album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999 for its cultural and historical significance.
Moondance Tracklist
- And It Stoned Me
- Moondance
- Crazy Love
- Caravan
- Into the Mystic
- Come Running
- These Dreams of You
- Brand New Day
- Everyone
- Glad Tidings
