Summertime in England

Last updated

"Summertime in England"
Summertime-Cry.VM.jpg
"Cry for Home" single cover
Single by Van Morrison
from the album Common One
A-side "Cry for Home"
B-side "Summertime in England" (Live)
ReleasedFebruary 1983
Genre Jazz, R&B
Length15:39
Label Mercury
Songwriter(s) Van Morrison
Producer(s) Van Morrison

"Summertime in England" is the longest song on Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison's 1980 album, Common One , and is approximately fifteen minutes long. Although the album on which the song appeared was not critically or commercially successful, the song would be performed by Morrison in concert for almost two and one-half decades, taking on new meaning when performed live. A truncated version of the song with an early fade-out was also released as the B-side of the 1983 single "Cry for Home".

Contents

Recording and composition

Morrison started rehearsing "Summertime in England" in November and December 1979 along with "Haunts of Ancient Peace" at club gigs in the San Francisco area. According to Mick Cox, guitarist, "we did 'Haunts' and 'Summertime in England' in 4/4 time...Van brought it right down at the end to nothing, so he's just saying, 'Can you feel the Silence?' but he's still keeping the beat, and then Pee Wee Ellis takes his mouthpiece off and Mark Isham takes his mouthpiece off, and they're both making quiet percussive noises in time to the rhythm." Cox felt like the rehearsal performances were "far better than the final recordings." The song on the album was recorded at Super Bear Studios in the French Alps in February 1980 and according to Mick Cox the second take was the one used on the album. The spoken section is in 3/4 time that begins with John Allair's church organ solo. [1] [2]

Morrison originally wrote the song as a poem about William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge making a literary trip to the Lake District in England where they worked together on the poems that were to become their landmark joint venture, Lyrical Ballads . He also references some Irish writers, noting, as if from a national encyclopedia, "Yeats and Lady Gregory corresponded, corresponded, corresponded/And James Joyce wrote streams of consciousness books." Morrison has been quoted as saying, "['Summertime in England'] was actually part of a poem I was writing, and the poem and the song sorta merged... I'd read several articles about this particular group of poets who were writing about this particular thing, which I couldn't find in the framework I was in." [3]

The lyrics also refer to Jesus walking down by Avalon — an allusion by William Blake with the lines: "And did these feet in ancient time/Walk upon England's mountain green?" The lyrics verge between several layers of consciousness but always return to the central occurrence of a holiday in the country that the singer spent with his sweetheart (the "red-robed" Toni Marcus) [ citation needed ] and/or daughter. [4] The song ends with the lines:

Put your head on my shoulder
and you listen to the silence
Can you feel the silence?

Biographer Brian Hinton believes "The song leaves most classical rock fusions dead in the water." [5]

In an essay in 2000, Allen B. Ruch wrote that "the music is supported by a wonderful string section that completely avoids the treacle that strings can sometimes lend to songs like this. And as usual with Van Morrison's lyrics, passages that seem awkward or even silly on paper take on a soaring and majestical intensity when sung by Van in their proper place." [6]

Personnel

Other releases

A live performance of "Summertime in England" as performed by Morrison with most of the Common One band members is featured on the 2006 released DVD, Live at Montreux 1980/1974 . A live version was recorded during concerts at the Grand Opera House in Belfast and released as the B-side of a 12 inch single released in February 1983 on the Mercury label. [7] It is also one of the songs performed in 1989, on Morrison's second video Van Morrison The Concert , released in 1990.

Notes

  1. ↑ Heylin, Can You Feel the Silence?, p. 358-361
  2. ↑ Heylin, Can You Feel the Silence?, p 523
  3. ↑ Heylin, Can You Feel the Silence? p.359
  4. ↑ Heylin, Can You Feel the Silence? p.359-360
  5. ↑ Hinton, Celtic Crossroads, p.229
  6. ↑ Ruch, Allen B. (1 December 2000). "James Joyce—Van Morrison". The Modern Word. Archived from the original on 28 August 2010. Retrieved 18 August 2010.
  7. ↑ Heylin, (2003), p. 379

Related Research Articles

<i>Into the Music</i> 1979 studio album by Van Morrison

Into the Music is the 11th studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, and was released in August 1979. It includes "Bright Side of the Road", which peaked at number 63 on the UK Singles Chart, and other songs in which Morrison sought to return to his more profound and transcendent style after the pop-oriented Wavelength. The record received favourable reviews from several music critics and was named as one of the year's best albums in the Pazz & Jop critics' poll.

<i>Common One</i> 1980 studio album by Van Morrison

Common One is the twelfth studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, released in 1980. The album was recorded over a nine-day period at Super Bear Studios, near Nice, on the French Riviera. Its title comes from the 3
4 section of the song "Summertime in England", where Morrison sings the lyrics "Oh, my common one with the coat so old and the light in her head".

<i>Inarticulate Speech of the Heart</i> 1983 studio album by Van Morrison

Inarticulate Speech of the Heart is the fourteenth studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, released in 1983. Morrison said he arrived at the title from a Shavian saying: "that idea of communicating with as little articulation as possible, at the same time being emotionally articulate". As his last album for Warner Bros. Records, he decided to do an album which had more than the usual complement of instrumental tracks. As he explained in 1984, "Sometimes when I'm playing something, I'm just sort of humming along with it, and that's got a different vibration than an actual song. So the instrumentals just come from trying to get that form of expression, which is not the same as writing a song." Although not expanded upon, of note is that a special thanks is given to L. Ron Hubbard in the liner notes. The reissued and remastered version of the album contains alternative takes of "Cry for Home" and "Inarticulate Speech of the Heart No. 2".

<i>How Long Has This Been Going On</i> (Van Morrison album) 1995 studio album by Van Morrison

How Long Has This Been Going On is the twenty-fourth studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, "with Georgie Fame and Friends", released in December 1995 in the UK. It charted at No. 1 on Top Jazz Albums.

<i>Back on Top</i> (Van Morrison album) 1999 studio album by Van Morrison

Back on Top is the twenty-seventh studio album by Northern Irish singer/songwriter Van Morrison. It was released in 1999 by Point Blank. This album marks a slight return to the forms of music he is most known for: blues and R&B. Upon the album's release, Rolling Stone reviewed it as "one Monet and nine Norman Rockwells", the "Monet" being "When the Leaves Come Falling Down" which it called a masterpiece.

<i>The Philosophers Stone</i> (album) 1998 compilation album by Van Morrison

The Philosopher's Stone is a compilation album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison released in 1998.

Bright Side of the Road 1979 single by Van Morrison

"Bright Side of the Road" is a song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and included on his 1979 album Into the Music. It was also one of the outtakes that made up the 1998 compilation album, The Philosopher's Stone. As a single "Bright Side of the Road" was released in September 1979 and charted at No. 48 in the Netherlands, No. 63 in the UK and just outside the Billboard Hot 100 in the US at No. 110.

Cleaning Windows 1982 single by Van Morrison

"Cleaning Windows" is a song written by the Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, recorded on his 1982 album Beautiful Vision.

Real Real Gone 1990 single by Van Morrison

"Real Real Gone" is a hit single written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and included on his 1990 album Enlightenment. It has remained a popular live performance tune and Morrison has included it on the set lists at many of his concerts since releasing it.

Days Like This (Van Morrison song) single by Van Morrison

"Days Like This" is a popular song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and the title song of his 1995 album of the same name. Morrison has often performed this song in concert appearances, including at the Austin City Limits Music Festival.

<i>Live at the Grand Opera House Belfast</i> 1984 live album by Van Morrison

Live at the Grand Opera House Belfast is a live album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, released in 1984. It was recorded from four live shows in March 1983 at the Grand Opera House, Belfast, Northern Ireland. The album was composed of songs from Morrison's last four recordings. It is the second live album Morrison released, following 10 years after It's Too Late to Stop Now.

Precious Time (Van Morrison song) 1999 single by Van Morrison

"Precious Time" is a popular song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and recorded on his 1999 album, Back on Top. It was released as a single in the UK and charted at No. 36. Since first recording it, Morrison has played it in concert 574 times from March 1998 until June 2008, making it one of his most frequently performed songs.

Tore Down a la Rimbaud 1985 single by Van Morrison

"Tore Down a la Rimbaud" is a song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and included on his 1985 album, A Sense of Wonder.

"Vanlose Stairway" is a song written by the Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, and included on his 1982 album Beautiful Vision. It has remained a popular concert performance throughout Morrison's career and has become one of his most played songs.

Back on Top (song) 1999 single by Van Morrison

"Back on Top" is a song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and the title track on his 1999 album, Back on Top. It was released as a single in the UK and charted at number sixty-nine.

Dweller on the Threshold (song) 1984 single by Van Morrison

"Dweller on the Threshold" is a song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and first released on his 1982 album, Beautiful Vision. It was released as a single on the B-Side in 1982 with the instrumental "Scandinavia" as the "A" tune. Another release in 1984 had a live version of "Dweller on the Threshold" as the A-Side.

The Healing Game (song) 1997 single by Van Morrison

"The Healing Game" is the title song on Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison's 1997 album. It was released twice as a single in 1997 as an A-side with different B-sides – including "Have I Told You Lately" and "Gloria". The single reached number 46 in the UK.

"And the Healing Has Begun" is a song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and recorded on his 1979 album, Into the Music.

Full Force Gale 1979 single by Van Morrison

"Full Force Gale" is a song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. It was included on his 1979 album Into the Music.

"Burning Ground" is a song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and included on his 1997 album, The Healing Game. For this song, Morrison got his inspiration from a common scene from his childhood when jute was shipped to Belfast from India in the 1950s.

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.