Somebody Tried to Sell Me a Bridge

Somebody Tried to Sell Me a Bridge
Studio album by Van Morrison
Released	23 January 2026
Studio	Studio D (Sausalito)
Genre	Blues [1]
Length	79:38
Label	Orangefield
Producer	Van Morrison
Van Morrison chronology
Remembering Now (2025) Somebody Tried to Sell Me a Bridge (2026)

Somebody Tried to Sell Me a Bridge is the 48th studio album by Northern Irish musician Van Morrison. It was released on 23 January 2026 through Orangefield Records. Produced by Morrison, the album consists primarily of blues music and contains both covers and original material. ^[1] The record also features multiple guests including Elvin Bishop, Taj Mahal and Buddy Guy. ^[2]

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Americana UK	7/10 [2]
Financial Times	[1]
The Irish Times	[3]
MusicOMH	[4]
So It Goes	[5]

Somebody Tried to Sell Me a Bridge has received generally positive reviews from critics. Americana UK rated the album 7/10, praising its pacing, variety, and musicianship. ^[2] Ludovic Hunter-Tilney of the Financial Times lamented that the overall tempo "hardly changes", but called the musicianship "first-rate". ^[1]

Track listing

Somebody Tried to Sell Me a Bridge track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Kidney Stew Blues"	Eddie Vinson	3:45
2.	"King for a Day Blues"	Vinson	3:46
3.	"Snatch It Back and Hold It"	Junior Wells Buddy Guy	3:58
4.	"Deep Blue Sea" (featuring Elvin Bishop)	John Lee Hooker	4:18
5.	"Ain't That a Shame"	Fats Domino Dave Bartholomew	3:27
6.	"Madame Butterfly Blues" (featuring Elvin Bishop)	Dave Lewis	5:46
7.	"Can't Help Myself" (featuring Taj Mahal)	Brownie McGhee Sonny Terry	3:42
8.	"Betty and Dupree" (featuring Taj Mahal)	Chuck Willis	4:59
9.	"Delia's Gone"	Blind Blake	3:20
10.	"On a Monday"	Huddie Ledbetter	3:21
11.	"Monte Carlo Blues"	Van Morrison	2:54
12.	"When It's Love Time" (featuring Elvin Bishop)	McGhee Terry	2:58
13.	"Loving Memories" (featuring Elvin Bishop)	Morrison	4:31
14.	"Play the Honky Tonks" (featuring Elvin Bishop)	Marie Adams	3:50
15.	"(Go to the) High Place in Your Mind" (featuring John Allair)	Allair	3:53
16.	"Social Climbing Scene"	Morrison	3:43
17.	"Somebody Tried to Sell Me a Bridge"	Morrison	4:01
18.	"You're the One" (featuring Elvin Bishop)	Deadric Malone	4:25
19.	"I'm Ready" (featuring Buddy Guy)	Willie Dixon	3:29
20.	"Rock Me Baby" (featuring Buddy Guy)	B. B. King Joe Josea	5:32
Total length:			79:38

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal. ^[6]

• Van Morrison – vocals, production (all tracks); saxophone (tracks 1, 2, 14, 15), harmonica (3, 4, 11, 19), guitar (8, 13, 15), arrangement (8), acoustic guitar (16)
• Jim Stern – engineering
• Ben McAuley – engineering (1–17, 19, 20), tambourine (18)
• Jimmy Mahoney – engineering assistance
• Tony Cousins – mastering
• David Hayes – bass guitar
• Anthony Paule – guitars
• John Allair – Hammond organ (1–6, 8, 10, 13, 16–20), piano (7, 9, 12–15, 17, 18), vocals (15)
• Bobby Ruggiero – percussion (1, 3, 6–18), drums (2)
• Mitch Woods – piano (1–6, 8, 10, 11, 14, 19, 20)
• Larry Vann – drums (1, 3–18)
• Jolene O'Hara – background vocals (1, 3, 9, 11, 13, 14)
• Dana Masters – background vocals (1, 3)
• Larry Batiste – background vocals (4–6, 13, 14, 16–18)
• Nona Brown – background vocals (4–6, 13, 14, 16–18)
• Elvin Bishop – guitar (4, 6, 12–14, 18)
• Omega Rae Brooks – vocals (4, 6, 16–18)
• Taj Mahal – harmonica (7–10), vocals (7, 8, 10), banjo (10)
• Crawford Bell – background vocals (9, 11)
• Buddy Guy – guitar, vocals (19, 20)
• Tom Hambridge – drums (19, 20)

Charts

Chart performance for Somebody Tried to Sell Me a Bridge

Chart (2026)	Peak position
UK Album Downloads (OCC) [7]	13

References

1. Hunter-Tilney, Ludovic (24 January 2026). "Van Morrison turns his attention to the blues in Somebody Tried to Sell Me a Bridge". Financial Times. Retrieved 28 January 2026.
2. Arnold, Fred (21 January 2026). "Van Morrison "Somebody Tried to Sell Me a Bridge"". Americana UK. Retrieved 28 January 2026.
3. Clayton-Lea, Tony (13 January 2026). "New Irish albums reviewed and rated: John Blek, Dani Larkin, Van Morrison, Noelle O'Sullivan, Ailbhe Reddy". The Irish Times . Retrieved 1 February 2026.
4. Murphy, John (23 January 2026). "Van Morrison – Somebody Tried to Sell Me a Bridge". MusicOMH . Retrieved 1 February 2026.
5. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (23 January 2026). "Quick Reviews: The Power Station, Van Morrison, Megadeth, The Damned". Substack. Retrieved 28 January 2026.
6. "Somebody Tried To Sell Me A Bridge / Van Morrison / Credits". Tidal . Retrieved 1 February 2026.
7. "Official Album Downloads Chart on 30/1/2026 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 31, 2026.