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Dec 14, 2012On Born to Sing: No Plan B he's compiled the various elements of his musical oeuvre and assembled them into a seamless, glorious whole.
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Dec 14, 2012Van feels fed up and disgusted, intense and focused, on Born To Sing: No Plan B, but unfortunately, the songs, more often than not, end the conversation there, leaving just a few hard knock lessons and some pretty jazz.
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Dec 14, 2012In the last ten or fifteen years, only 2005's Magic Time has delivered more consistently enjoyable songs than this thoroughly captivating collection of rants, loves, and dreams.
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Dec 14, 2012This is among his most overtly jazz-tinged work, produced by Morrison and recorded in his native Belfast.
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Dec 14, 2012While there are a few gems on Born to Sing, he's riding his name through the album instead of having something to say.
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MojoDec 14, 2012Born To Sing is a return to classic form. [Nov 2012, p.86]
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Dec 14, 2012Like Dylan, Born To Sing will probably be an acquired taste for some (the jazzy backing may put some off, as may Morrison's tendency to incessantly repeat lines and start scatting every so often), but it's yet another example of his sometimes erratic genius.
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Dec 14, 2012Born To Sing is absolutely not all bad, but by the end of the album and rolling tally of excuses, the slack stack measures tall.
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Q MagazineDec 14, 2012The music is fabulous, a sublime pulse of Hammond organ, trombone and piano. [Nov 2012, p.100]
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Dec 14, 2012The greater, constant lift is in the album's earthy-R&B roll--the slow-drag groove in "Born to Sing" suggests Ray Charles leading the band at New Orleans' Preservation Hall – and the disarming, one-of-a-kind warmth of Morrison's gift.
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Dec 14, 2012Fans of the old stuff who long ago wrote Morrison off will find their gripes sadly confirmed on Born to Sing: No Plan B, a recession album that's four years too late.
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Dec 14, 2012The remainder of Born To Sing is salvaged by solid, serviceable, latter-day Morrison material.
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Dec 14, 2012His 35th solo studio album is his jazziest: the warm brass and catchy, sweet melodies recall 1970's Moondance. But the music's velvet glove delivers some of his hardest-hitting lyrics.
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Dec 14, 2012Van Morrison's best album in some while is a set of songs that, despite the relaxed tone of their jazz-blues settings, foam with indignation about the venality of capitalist adventurism.
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Dec 14, 2012A keeper, a goodie.
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Dec 14, 2012These soft shoe shuffles sway up and down the same few notes, with the affectionate embrace of mother of the groom dances.
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Dec 14, 2012It is not the truly transcendent album some may have read in the runes, but it contains several hints that such greatness may, finally, be within his grasp once more.