Moondance with Van Morrison
Well folks, I had a glorious musical journey recently as Van ‘The Man’ Morrison performed in concert at The Gibson Universal Ampitheatre in a one-night only, SRO performance. In Los Angeles to promote his just released album on Manhattan/EMI records ‘Van Morrison At The Movies’ the Irish legend delivered some of his most signature tunes. His daughter, up coming singer Shauna Morrison opened the show with a heartfelt rendition of Van’s ‘Into The Mystic,’ backed by her father’s band which included John Allair, George ‘Crawford’ Bell, Sarah Jory, John ‘Ned’ Edwards, Tony Fitzgibbons, Paul Moore, John Platonia, Neal Wilkinson, Karen Hamill, and Janeen Daly. Shauna is a recording artist on her own.
Then Van hit the stage to thunderous applause and launched into familiar territory such as ‘Real Real Gone,’ a jump-jazzy rendition of his classic ‘Moon Dance,’ ‘Bright Side Of The Road,’ and the haunting ‘St. James Infirmary.’ Other stand-outs included Sonny Boy Williamson’s ‘Help Me,’ and ‘Playhouse.’ At the end of the 95 minute concert, Morrison sang three of his rock’n’roll hits ‘Gloria,’ ‘Wild Night,’ and ‘Brown-Eyed Girl’ to an enthusiastic crowd. Morrison was in fine form, and his self-produced CD features some of his best known hits that have been featured in movies. Among those ‘Domino,’ ‘Have I Told You Lately,’ and a live version of the Pink Floyd classic ‘Comfortably Numb’ which Martin Scorsese featured on his academy-award winning blockbuster film The Departed. Also ‘Irish Heartbeat’ featuring The Chieftains appears on the new disc of favorites.
Kat’s Calendar A Look Ahead’
March 10 & 11 ‘By Side By Side By Side By Side’ by Stephen Sondheim is coming up at The Wilshire Theatre in Beverly Hills. Broadway’s Len Cariou, Wilson Cruz, Nancy Dussault, Rip Taylor, Sean McDermott, and event chair Betty Garrett will appear in the show, and it’s hosted by Marc Cherry the creator of Desparate Housewives. It’s the 23rd Annual Southland Theatre Artists Goodwill Event (S.T.A.G.E.), the longest running AIDS benefit in the world. Performances are Saturday, March 10 at 8 PM and Sunday, March 11 at 3 PM. Not to be missed!
March 15 ‘The Celebrity Vault’ opens in Beverly Hills at 345 N. Canon Drive.
It will be a star-studded VIP launch of ‘the art of the Grammy’s’ to benefit the Grammy Foundation and MusiCares. Stars expected to attend? Natalie Cole, Bob Dylan, Hillary Duff, and many surprises! The most iconic rock photographers and painters of all time will come to support the Grammy charities, artists such as Malcolm Farley, Lynn Goldsmith, Danny Clinch, Elliott Landy, Bob Freeman, Richard Aaron, and Gered Mankowitz, to name a few! Check it out! I’m especially enthralled with Danny Clinch’s backstage shots at The Grammy’s, Beatles, and Rolling Stones album cover art work.
Do you want to see famous photographs and backstage pictures at past Grammy Awards of The Beatles and The Rolling Stones and also support a great cause? You can do that on Thursday, March 15, at the grand opening of The Celebrity Vault in Beverly Hills.
The most iconic rock photographers and artists will come together to support The Grammy Foundation and Musicares, the two very important non-profit foundations of the Recording Academy. Some of the participating artists include Danny Clinch, Bob Freeman, Robert Knight, Elliott Landy, Gered Mankowitz, Richard Aaron, Lynn Goldsmith, and Malcolm Farley. In fact, Farley’s piece featured at the event will be his live painting of ‘The Police’ reunion at the Grammy’s and his tribute to the Musicares person of the year (including Sting, Bono, Elton John, etc). Some of the celebrities expected at the ‘Celebrity Vault’ opening include Stevie Nicks, Bob Dylan, Carlos Santana, Raquel Welch, and Val Kilmer, to name a few.
For more info check out www.grammyfoundation.com or www.musicares.com. Not to be missed! The Celebrity Vault 345 N. Canon Drive, Beverly Hills, CA
Live Your Dreams’
Kat
