Bootleg Friday: Van Morrison, 1971

If there's someone who embodies the term "blue-eyed soul," it's Van Morrison. So it's fitting that today's edition of "Bootleg Friday" is from a very fine Van Morrison show from September 5, 1971 that was recorded at Pacific High Studios in San Francisco and broadcast on K-SAN.

I got this show about two years ago, and it rekindled my interest in Morrison, who frankly, I was sort of sick of, mainly from overdosing on Moondance in my teens. What really got me excited about the show is the tremendous cover of "Hound Dog," which is both swinging and hilarious, as if it's a combination of Big Mama Thornton's original crossed with Jerry Lee Lewis. Also of note is the version of "I've Been Working"; it's colossal. Once I really started listening to the whole thing, I really got how amazing he is - and I revisited most of his catalog.

Buy Van Morrison at Amazon.

Download: "Into The Mystic" (9/5/71, San Francisco, CA)
Download: "I've Been Working" (9/5/71, San Francisco, CA)
Download: "Hound Dog" (9/5/71, San Francisco, CA)
Download: "Tupelo Honey" (9/5/71, San Francisco, CA)
Download: "Just Like A Woman" (9/5/71, San Francisco, CA)
Download: "Domino" (9/5/71, San Francisco, CA)