Your 10 favourite....Van the Man songs

This is for all non-EC or peripheral-EC topics. We all know how much we love talking about 'The Man' but sometimes we have other interests.
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Otis Westinghouse
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Your 10 favourite....Van the Man songs

Post by Otis Westinghouse »

It was only a matter of time:

Astral Weeks
And It Stoned Me
Caravan
Crazy Love
Into The Mystic
Listen To The Lion
St Dominic's Preview
Full Force Gale
Spirit
Carrickfergus

(I don't generally approve of covers in these, but the latter just stands out for me as one of Van's finest moments.)

Another absurdly impossible one.
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Mr. Average
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Post by Mr. Average »

Spanish Steps
Someone Like You
When the Leaves Come Falling Down
Natalia
Wavelength
So Quiet In Here
Philosphers Stone (Derek Zoolanders cover is "Philosophizers Stone")
Enlightenment
Kingdom Hall
Hungry for Your Love
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Mike Boom
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Post by Mike Boom »

Madame George
Tupelo Honey
Stepping Out Queen
Cyprus Avenue
Listen to the Lion
Caravan
Its All In The Game
Summertime In England
Bright Side of the Road
Gloria
echos myron like a siren
with endurance like the liberty bell
and he tells you of the dreamers
but he's cracked up like the road
and he'd like to lift us up, but we're a very heavy load
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Post by lostdog »

Impossible, but......

Joe Harper, Sarurday Morning
Astral Weeks
Madame George
Glad Tidings
I'll Be Your Lover, Too
Who Was That Masked Man?
It's All In The Game/You Know What They're Writing About
Summertime In England (preferably live, around the late 80s)
In The Garden
A Town Called Paradise
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Post by BlueChair »

What a huge body of work to go through!

1. T.B. Sheets
2. The Way Young Lovers Do
3. Sweet Thing
4. Into The Mystic
5. Blue Money
6. (Straight to Your Heart) Like a Cannonball
7. Gypsy
8. I've Been Working
9. Bright Side Of The Road
10. Fast Train
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wardo68
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Post by wardo68 »

Astral Weeks
Slim Slow Slider
Straight To Your Heart (Like A Cannonball)
Saint Dominic's Preview
Fair Play
The Street Only Knew Your Name (Philosopher's Stone version)
Foreign Window
Coney Island
Spanish Steps
Angeliou
Richard
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Post by Richard »

This was so difficult I felt guilty of how little attention I have paid Van in recent times.

Ballerina
These Dreams Of You
Cleaning Windows
Rave On, John Donne
Haunts Of Ancient Peace
Youth Of 1000 Summers
Let The Slave (Incorporating The Price Of Experience)
Almost Independence Day
Coney Island
Tore Down (A La Rimbaud)
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Post by Boy With A Problem »

I Can Only Give You Everything
Glad Tidings
Cyprus Avenue
Jacki Wilson Said
Domino
And It Stoned Me
Brown Eyed Girl (overplayed - but a nearly perfect pop song)
Madam George
Cleaning Windows
Gloria
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Otis Westinghouse
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Post by Otis Westinghouse »

Is it because I nicked the gems off side 1 and you want to be original with These Dreams of You and Glad Tidings? Side 1 for me is streets ahead of side 2, so I was interested.

Been enjoying your flurry of top 10s, Richard. Lots of interesting choices!
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Post by King Hoarse »

Madam George
Jackie Wilson Said (I'm In Heaven When You Smile)
Ain't Nothing You Can Do
Caravan (Last Waltz version)
And The Healing Has Begun ("I can't stand myself!" favourite ad lib)
Cleaning Windows
Foreign Window (by the Acropolis with Dylan on harmonica from that documentary)
Raglan Road (Van on drums!)
I'm Tired Joey Boy
Real Real Gone

(Really hard, obviously. Lots of runners-up: Astral Weeks, Glad Tidings, Domino from It's Too Late, Snow In San Anselmo, Not Supposed To Break Down, Bright Side Of The Road, Scandinavia, Carrickfergus, Did Ye Get Healed? from Frisco, Going Down Geneva, When The Leaves Come Falling Down, Meet Me In The Indian Summer - my most hummed Van song of recent years, and Send In The Clowns from the Chet Baker at Ronnie Scott's dvd. Yeah. Hard.)
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Post by Richard »

Otis, You certainly did select some greats from side one of Moondance. It would be hard to argue that Into The Mystic is not one of the all-time greats. Same as Listen To The Lion off St Dominic's Preview.

Still I stand by These Dreams Of You. I certainly wasn't trying to be willfully obscure, but picked what I loved the day I made the list.
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Post by Otis Westinghouse »

I like it and other side two songs well enough, but have always viewed that first side as one of the strongest sides ever. It's a mark of its quality that the only song missing is the title track, which is great, of course, but overly familiar. Listen to the Lion on It's Too Late To Stop Now is a strong rival to the studio version.
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Jackson Monk
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Post by Jackson Monk »

Almost as hard as an EC top ten.

Into the Mystic
Coney Island
Fair Play
Enlightenment
Why Must I Always Explain?
You're My Woman
The Way Young Lovers Do
Madame George
Here Comes the Night
See Me Through
Glad Tidings
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Fishfinger king
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Re: Your 10 favourite....Van the Man songs

Post by Fishfinger king »

Otis Westinghouse wrote:Carrickfergus

(I don't generally approve of covers in these, but the latter just stands out for me as one of Van's finest moments.)

Another absurdly impossible one.
Otis speaks the truth (for once). When Van sings the bit about being "drunk today and I'm rarely sober", it gets me every time.

So...
1. Brown eyed girl (occasionally the most popular songs are so for a reason; no matter how many times I hear this, it still brings a smile and I know I'll never tire of it, which is very rare)
2. Carrickfergus
3. Fair play
4. Bein' green (not many other Muppet covers work as well as this)
5. Someone like you
6. You make me feel so free
7. Goin' down Geneva
8. Domino
9. Have I told you lately that I love you?
10. Joyous sound

Not forgetting: I forgot that love existed, Warm love, Wild night, Back Street Affair, Queen of the Slipstream, Snow in San Anselmo, And it stoned me, Dweller on the threshold, Cleaning windows etc etc
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Masterpiece?
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Post by Masterpiece? »

The Way Young Lovers Do
Wild Night
When Will I Ever Learn to Live in God
Piper At The Gates Of Dawn
Sweet Thing
Into the Mystic
Coney Island
Jackie Wilson Said
In the Garden
Fire in My Belly (I dunno why, it just sticks to me)


Ask me tomorrow, and it will include at least 5 different songs...
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Post by alexv »

1. Moondance
2. Full Force Gale
3. Bright Side of the Road
4. Crazy Love
5. The Lion This Time
6. Carrifergus
7. Tupelo Honey
8. Raincheck
9. St. James Infirmary
10. Brown Eyed Girl
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Otis Westinghouse
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Re: Your 10 favourite....Van the Man songs

Post by Otis Westinghouse »

Fishfinger king wrote:Otis speaks the truth (for once).
Is this a ref to my dislike of Jeff Tweedy (on certain songs, anyway, listen to his opening line on YHF and tell me that isn't truly dire, and I will roll over laughing? Or just a sore Gooner?
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Fishfinger king
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Post by Fishfinger king »

It's mainly being a sore Gooner.
I'm certainly more defensive about Thierry Henry than Jeff Tweedy.

Ho,hum.

Time wounds all heels.
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Re: Your 10 favourite....Van the Man songs

Post by Jack of All Parades »

Have been trolling the 'back pages' of the annex and came upon this one amongst many such '10 Best' threads. Thought I would have a go at it but I do find it very daunting- it being such an extensive catalog. Fortunately the last couple of decades have been spotty as to real excellence. Here goes:


1 Brown Eyed Girl
2 And It Stoned Me
3 Moondance
4 Crazy Love
5 Caravan
6 Into the Mystic
7 Jackie Wilson Said
8 St Dominic's Preview
9 Autumn Song
10 Linden Arden Stole the Highlights
11 Full Force Gale
12 These Are the Days
13 Cleaning Windows
14 Real, Real Gone
15 Rain Check
16 What's Wrong With This Picture?
17 Once in a Blue Moon
18 Carrickfergus

Now I know this is not 10 but I just cannot leave out the entire first side of Moondance which has always seemed to my ears to be one of the perfect album sides. If that is removed I have a good baker's dozen but that would not allow for any of the Moondance songs. As said earlier, just too many top notch to keep to only 10 choices.
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wardo68
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Re: Your 10 favourite....Van the Man songs

Post by wardo68 »

CS -- for the record, I don't hate any of those songs. Nice picks.
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Otis Westinghouse
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Re: Your 10 favourite....Van the Man songs

Post by Otis Westinghouse »

Too much of the dull later stuff for my tastes. With you all the way re side 1 of Moondance (I almost never used to turn the vinyl over), so I'd stick with all 5 of those and cull the likes of 'What's Wrong With This Picture?' (there's a much better Lloyd Cole song with the same name!).

Nice to see a revival of one of the many 10 favourites threads. Used to enjoy all that silly listomania.
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Re: Your 10 favourite....Van the Man songs

Post by Jack of All Parades »

Otis- as previously stated a lot of vapid material in the Man's later material- in particular over the last two plus decades- but I have a special place in my listening heart for the "What's Wrong With This Picture" album. I think he caught the old spirit on that one despite the usual plethora of hateful 'industry' rags. It is the one record over that time span I play with regularity and truly enjoy.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
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Otis Westinghouse
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Re: Your 10 favourite....Van the Man songs

Post by Otis Westinghouse »

Fair enough. Yes, it was the 'grumpy and wealthy old man biting the hand that's fed him for decades' aspect that turned me off on my one and only listening (at someone else's house, fortunately!).
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Jackson Monk
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Re: Your 10 favourite....Van the Man songs

Post by Jackson Monk »

Hymns to the Silence was the last album I really loved but Enlightenment ran it close.
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Re: Your 10 favourite....Van the Man songs

Post by Jack of All Parades »

I recall your liking Enlightenment from a perusal of back pages and your personal 20 favorites list. The single from that album has stayed with me as evidenced by my list[not so oddly it was intended originally for the Common One album and never really did seem to fit the mood of the rest of the record you find it on]. Have a deep respect for the song "Start All Over Again" from that record.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
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