30 years ago this week: Van Morrison released Days Like This
In Ireland, one of our greatest ever artists offered a stunning reminder of his enduring brilliance. Van Morrison's place in the rock pantheon had long been assured thanks to the Them classic 'Gloria' and his '60s opus Astral Weeks, the lyrical depth of which drew comparisons to Bob Dylan. With the title track of his 1995 LP Days Like This, Van hit another creative high point: a sublime soul effort underpinned by a moving sense of hard-earned celebration.
Adopted as an anthem of the peace movement in Northern Ireland, in a symbolic moment Van would perform the track before a massive Belfast audience during Bill Clinton's Presidential visit in November '95.
– Paul Nolan
Praying to his higher self, mentioning Belfast and the town called Paradise. Another meditation in the line that stretches from as far back as 'T.B. Sheets' up through Astral Weeks, 'Listen To The Lion', side one of Veedon Fleece, 'In The Garden', and all his other hymns to enlightenment.
Morrison Moment: When Van goes beyond language for the last minute, growling, then singing at the top of his range, then blowing into the harmonica, then stabbing at the Hammond organ, all at the same time. Probably.
– Pat Carthy
Back in 2020, Hot Press celebrated Van Morrison's 75th birthday with a special YouTube series 'Rave On, Van Morrison' – featuring some of Ireland's most acclaimed artists performing songs from across Van's career.
Watch Eleanor McEvoy perform 'Songwriter' from Days Like This:
And watch Brian Kennedy, who contributed backing vocals to the original recording, performing 'Days Like This':
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'Scammers know how much people want to see popular bands or festivals and they're using that to trick people into handing over their money.' 'If something sounds too good to be true, it's probably fraud.' Sadlier urged anyone who thinks they've been targeted to contact their bank immediately. 'The sooner we know, the better the chance of recovering your money.' Callum Christie agreed with Sadlier. 'Technology makes it way too easy to fake things now,' he said. 'Unless you're buying from family or someone you absolutely trust, just do it face-to-face or go through Ticketmaster.' * Name changed for privacy reasons Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
