Warner Brothers release remastered versions of Van Morrison’s 1968 mastepiece Astral Weeks and 1970's His Band and The Street Choir on October 30 and TEN has an exclusive stream of an unreleased version of Beside You for you to listen to.
These new editions of Astral Weeks and His Band and The Street Choir feature remastered audio and previously unreleased versions of several album tracks. These single-disc expanded and remastered versions will be available digitally as well.
Astral Weeks failed to make the charts when it was released in the fall of 1968. But 47 years later, the album has achieved a near-mythic status across generations of listeners who have “ventured in the slipstream” and fallen under the music’s spell. “Any best-of list is unthinkable - and worthless - without it,” writes Cory Frye in the album’s liner notes.
The four unreleased recordings of that album on this deluxe edition highlight the interplay between Morrison and the quartet that joined him in the studio - bassist Richard Davis, guitarist Jay Berliner, percussionist Warren Smith, Jr., and Modern Jazz Quartet drummer Connie Kay. These bonus tracks include the first take of Beside You, the full version of Slim Slow Slider, and a stripped back version of Madame George that emphasizes the vibraphone.
Listen to the remastered Beside You here. You may well be beside yourself afterwards.
