Magic Time Van Morrison (CD)

Is Van Morrison over the hill? Maybe, say the skeptics, but really it depends on whom you ask. Those still most stuck on early hits like "Brown Eyed Girl" and "Moondance," and who keep Astral Weeks in heavy rotation, might find his more recent material -- a curious collection of duets with Linda Gail Lewis, a tribute to Mose Allison, and a few attempts at straight-up jazz -- indecisive, inconsistent, and on the whole, creatively unstable. OK, there's some truth to that. On the other hand, though, you can't write off everything after Hymns to the Silence, as a handful of his more recent albums show Morrison fully embracing these "grown up" (for lack of a better term) forays into jazz, blues, R&B, and torch songs. And that's exactly where Magic Time fits in. It's not a problem solver, but it is a lovely step in the direction of blending his current interests with the "classic Van" many of us have been missing.

The album dabbles in various genres, from melancholy ballads to stepped-up jazz and fiery blues. Most songs are originals, though he does cover Fats Waller ("Lonely and Blue"). Instrumentally, too, the album shows Van moving deftly between soft-spoken rhythms and more blues-based numbers that are poised to get up and go.

The lead track "Stranded" sounds fairly (surprisingly, even) close to the Van of old, thanks to the unhurried approach Morrison takes to both the rhythm and his vocals. In a few isolated moments (the soft buzz of the saxophones, for instance), it veers a little too close for comfort to "smooth jazz" territory, but luckily it never crosses that line and remains a beautiful showcase for Van's voice -- which is, as it's always been in the best of times, a playful balance of solidly based soul and wild imagination.

Same goes for "Celtic New Year," one of the album's most immediately compelling tracks that again shows that Morrison's voice is aging beautifully. The song begins with nothing more than a strummed acoustic guitar, adding vocals and a few more instruments sparingly, and in the process it creates an arrangement that gently echoes the Indian summer melancholy of the lyrics and melody. Strings and piano do enter the mix partway through, filling the silences, but by that time it's not really a bother, as the song has entirely drawn us in.

From that point, it's a slight jolt into the bluesy world of "Keep Mediocrity at Bay" and "Evening Train." Both songs are driven by a 12-bar beat and the latter punched up with horns and a dirty guitar. "Just Like Greta," though, brings us back down to earth with a familiar (and welcomed) low-key tone. The softly strummed guitar and laid-back rhythm at first echo "Into the Mystic," but then the melody veers into its own corner of the room, the shimmering organ, guitar, and minimal percussion giving Van ground from which to flex his vocal muscle. All this makes "Greta" as understated, and by turn as powerful, as any song he's recorded in years.

Magic Time covers a healthy amount of blues and jazz territory, but it never reaches beyond its range. All this music -- the bluesy bustle of "Carry on Regardless," the Irish folk lilt of "The Lion This Time," the combination of torch and doo-wop on "Lonely and Blue" -- it's all part of Morrison's musical foundation. This is the world in which his head and heart spin, and it's a place he knows well and can navigate with confidence. Magic Time may not stand among Morrison's most classic outings, but it's certainly a solid effort with some touching moments, and it reaffirms his place as one of pop music's most innovative, and revered, vocalists.

By A.P. Delaney