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{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2012}}
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{{Use British English|date=November 2012}}
{{For|the book|Hymns to the Silence (book)}}
{{For|the book|Hymns to the Silence (book)}}
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{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}
{{Infobox album | <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Albums -->
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{{Use British English|date=November 2012}}
⚫
Name = Hymns to the Silence |
{{Infobox album
Type = [[Album]] |
Artist = [[Van Morrison]] |
| name = Hymns to the Silence
Cover = Hymns to the Silence.jpg |
| type = [[Album]]
Released = 1991 |
| artist = [[Van Morrison]]
⚫
| cover = Hymns to the Silence.jpg
Recorded = 1990 |
⚫
| alt =
Studio = Wool Hall Studios [[Beckington]], Townhouse, [[London]], Westside Studios, London, Pavilion Studios, London |
| released = 1991
⚫
Genre = [[Rhythm and blues]], [[folk music|folk]], [[pop music|pop]], [[Celtic music|Celtic]], [[rock music|rock]], [[gospel music|gospel]]<ref name="allmusic"/> |
Length = 94:53 |
| recorded = 1990
Label = [[Polydor]] |
| venue =
| studio = *[[The Wool Hall]], [[Beckington]]
⚫
Producer = Van Morrison |
*[[Townhouse Studios|Townhouse]] and Westside, London
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Last album = ''[[Enlightenment (Van Morrison album)|Enlightenment]]''<br />(1990) |
⚫
| genre = [[Rhythm and blues]], [[folk music|folk]], [[pop music|pop]], [[Celtic music|Celtic]], [[rock music|rock]], [[gospel music|gospel]]<ref name="allmusic"/>
This album = '''''Hymns to the Silence'''''<br />(1991) |
| length = 94:53
⚫
Next album = ''[[The Best of Van Morrison Volume Two]]'' <br />(1993) |
|Misc = {{Singles
| label = [[Polydor]]
⚫
| producer = Van Morrison
| Name =Hymns to the Silence
⚫
| prev_title = [[Enlightenment (Van Morrison album)|Enlightenment]]
| Type =studio
| prev_year = 1990
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| Single 1 =[[I Can't Stop Loving You]]" b/w "All Saints Day
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| next_title = [[The Best of Van Morrison Volume Two]]
| Single 1 date =May 1991
| next_year = 1993
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| Single 2 =[[Why Must I Always Explain?]]" b/w "So Complicated
| misc = {{Singles
⚫
| Single 2 date =September 1991
| Single 3 =
| name = Hymns to the Silence
| Single 3 date =
| type = studio
⚫
| single1 = [[I Can't Stop Loving You]]" b/w "All Saints Day
⚫
| Single 4 =
| single1date = May 1991
| Single 4 date =
⚫
| single2 = [[Why Must I Always Explain?]]" b/w "So Complicated
⚫
}}
⚫
| single2date = September 1991
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}}'''''Hymns to the Silence''''' is the twenty-first [[studio album]] by [[Northern Ireland|Northern Irish]] [[singer-songwriter]] [[Van Morrison]], released in [[1991 in music|1991]]. It peaked at No. 5 in the [[UK]]. It was his first ever studio double album.
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}}
⚫
}}'''''Hymns to the Silence''''' is the twenty-first [[studio album]] by Northern Irish singer-songwriter [[Van Morrison]]. It was his first studio [[double album]]. Morrison recorded the album in 1990 in [[Beckington]] at [[The Wool Hall]] Studios and in London at Townhouse and Westside Studios.

When ''Hymns to the Silence'' was released in 1991, it reached number five on the [[UK Albums Chart]] and received positive reviews from critics. Morrison's use of various musical styles was well received, as were the more worldly-themed songs on an otherwise spiritual album.


==Recording and composition==
==Recording and composition==
The album of songs was recorded during sessions at Wool Hall Studios, [[Beckington]], Townhouse, [[London]] and Westside Studios, London with [[Mick Glossop]] as engineer, except for the song "Take Me Back". It was recorded in 1990 at Pavilion Studios in London with Martin Hayles and Mick Glossop as engineers.<ref>Heylin, Can You Feel the Silence?, p. 526</ref>
The album of songs was recorded during sessions at Wool Hall Studios in [[Beckington]], Townhouse, [[London]] and Westside Studios, London with [[Mick Glossop]] as engineer, except for the song "Take Me Back". It was recorded in 1990 at Pavilion Studios in London with Martin Hayles and Mick Glossop as engineers.<ref>Heylin, Can You Feel the Silence?, p. 526</ref>


The songs on the album were primarily concerning two themes, the singer's uneasy relationship with the music business and a nostalgic yearning for his youth in [[Belfast]]. "Why Must I Always Explain?" was set to the same melody as 1970s "[[Tupelo Honey (Van Morrison song)|Tupelo Honey]]".<ref>Hinton, Celtic Crossroads, p 302</ref> There were two [[hymns]]. "[[Be Thou My Vision]]" and "[[Just a Closer Walk With Thee (song)|Just a Closer Walk With Thee]]". "Take Me Back", "On Hyndford Street" and "See Me Through Part II" were remembrances of his seemingly carefree childhood but "Hyndford Street" also referred more specifically to spiritual feelings in the words, "Feeling wondrous and lit up inside/With a sense of everlasting life". The song, "Carrying a Torch" was also included on [[Tom Jones (singer)|Tom Jones]]'s album by the same name, along with three other Morrison compositions from "Hymns to the Silence".<ref>Turner, It's Too Late to Stop Now, p.170</ref>
"Why Must I Always Explain?" was set to the same melody as 1970s "[[Tupelo Honey (Van Morrison song)|Tupelo Honey]]".<ref>Hinton, Celtic Crossroads, p 302</ref> There were two [[hymns]]. "[[Be Thou My Vision]]" and "[[Just a Closer Walk With Thee (song)|Just a Closer Walk With Thee]]". The song, "Carrying a Torch" was also included on [[Tom Jones (singer)|Tom Jones]]'s album by the same name, along with three other Morrison compositions from "Hymns to the Silence".<ref>Turner, It's Too Late to Stop Now, p.170</ref>


==Critical reception==
==Critical reception==
{{Album ratings
{{Album ratings
|rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
|rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
|rev1score = {{Rating|3.5|5}}<ref name="allmusic">[{{Allmusic|class=album|id=r13450|pure_url=yes}} Allmusic review]</ref>
|rev1score = {{Rating|3.5|5}}<ref name="allmusic">[{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r13450|pure_url=yes}} Allmusic review]</ref>
|rev2 = ''[[Chicago Tribune]]''
|rev2 = ''[[Chicago Tribune]]''
|rev2Score = {{Rating|3|4}}<ref>{{cite news|last=Kot|first=Greg|authorlink=Greg Kot|date=3 October 1991|url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1991-10-03/features/9103300321_1_star-van-morrison-jump-jazz|title=Hymns to the Silence|newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]]|accessdate=4 August 2015}}</ref>
|rev2Score = {{Rating|3|4}}<ref>{{cite news|last=Kot|first=Greg|author-link=Greg Kot|date=3 October 1991|url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1991-10-03/features/9103300321_1_star-van-morrison-jump-jazz|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151025063721/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1991-10-03/features/9103300321_1_star-van-morrison-jump-jazz|url-status=dead|archive-date=25 October 2015|title=Hymns to the Silence|newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]]|access-date=4 August 2015}}</ref>
|rev2 = ''[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]''
|rev3 = ''[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]''
|rev2Score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref>{{cite book|last=Larkin|first=Colin|authorlink=Colin Larkin (writer)|page=12|title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|isbn=0195313739|edition=4th}}</ref>
|rev3Score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref>{{cite book|last=Larkin|first=Colin|author-link=Colin Larkin (writer)|page=12|title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|isbn=0195313739|edition=4th}}</ref>
|rev3 = ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''
|rev4 = ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''
|rev3score = A<ref>[http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,315675,00.html Entertainment Weekly review]</ref>
|rev4score = A<ref>[https://ew.com/article/1991/09/27/hymns-silence/ Entertainment Weekly review]</ref>
| rev4 = ''[[Q (magazine)|Q]]''
|rev5 = ''[[Q (magazine)|Q]]''
| rev4Score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref>{{cite news|title=New LPs: Van Morrison ''Hymns to the Silence''|last=Sutcliffe|first=Phil|date=October 1991|work=[[Q (magazine)|Q]]|page=98}}</ref>
|rev5Score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref>{{cite news|title=New LPs: Van Morrison ''Hymns to the Silence''|last=Sutcliffe|first=Phil|date=October 1991|work=[[Q (magazine)|Q]]|page=98}}</ref>
|rev5 = ''[[Rolling Stone]]''
|rev6 = ''[[Rolling Stone]]''
|rev5score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="Gardner"/>
|rev6score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="Gardner"/>
|rev6 = ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]''
|rev7 = ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]''
|rev6Score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref name="rsguide"/>
|rev7Score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref name="rsguide"/>
|rev6 = ''[[The Village Voice]]''
|rev8 = ''[[The Village Voice]]''
|rev6Score = B+<ref name="Christgau"/>
|rev8Score = B+<ref name="Christgau"/>
}}
⚫
In a review for ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'', [[Jay Cocks]] said "''Hymns'' focuses and redefines Morrison's themes over his long career, rather like a museum retrospective already in progress. It dips deep into autobiography, spiritual speculation and blues mythology for its themes."<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,974140-1,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628235837/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,974140-1,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=28 June 2011|author=Jay Cocks|title=Listen to the Lion|date=1991-10-28|magazine=Time|access-date=2008-08-18}}</ref> ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' magazine's Elysa Gardner said despite overblown hymns such as "Take Me Back" and "Pagan Streams", Morrison appropriates a variety of musical styles into both joyful and poignant songs on an album that "brims with the consistent passion that continues to make Morrison fascinating".<ref name="Gardner">{{cite magazine|last=Gardner|first=Elysa|date=17 October 1993|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/hymns-to-the-silence-19911017|title=Hymns to the Silence|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|access-date=4 August 2015}}</ref> [[Alec Foege]] from ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]'' argued that its music is more eclectic than the entirety of Morrison's 1980s albums, while the lyrics prove he can reconcile his [[Christian faith]] with more worldly themes, allowing for "a refreshingly individualistic soul-searching".<ref>{{cite journal|last=Foege|first=Alec|author-link=Alec Foege|page=106|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BBDgkXRdUXYC&pg=PT107|title=Hymns to the Silence|journal=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]|access-date=4 August 2015|date=November 1991}}</ref> In ''[[The Village Voice]]'', [[Robert Christgau]] lamented the amount of [[filler (music)|filler]] throughout the two discs in the form of several hymns and love songs, but complimented the secular songs about true love, ordinary life, and "the days before rock and roll", finding the album "more affecting than you'd figure" overall.<ref name="Christgau">{{cite news|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|date=5 November 1991|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv1091-91.php|title=Consumer Guide|newspaper=[[The Village Voice]]|access-date=4 August 2015}}</ref> It was voted the 21st best album of 1991 in ''The Village Voice''{{'}}s annual [[Pazz & Jop]] critics poll.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/pjres91.php |title=The 1991 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll |newspaper=The Village Voice |access-date=4 August 2015 |date=3 March 1992 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060507034515/http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/pjres91.php |archive-date=7 May 2006 }}</ref>


⚫
In a retrospective review, [[AllMusic]]'s Michael Gallucci felt ''Hymns to the Silence'' was Morrison's best album during the 1990s, although he also found it too long and essentially a "spirited rewrite" of his previous record ''[[Enlightenment (Van Morrison album)|Enlightenment]]''.<ref name="allmusic"/> [[Rob Sheffield]] was more critical in ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]'' (2004), deeming it a "complex and self-involved" imitation of ''[[Avalon Sunset]]'' with a few exceptional songs.<ref name="rsguide">{{cite book|last=Sheffield|first=Rob|author-link=Rob Sheffield|editor1-first=Nathan|editor1-last=Brackett|editor2-first=Christian|editor2-last=Hoard|title=[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|location=New York|edition=4th|year=2004|isbn=0-7432-0169-8|chapter=Van Morrison|pages=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/559 559–561]}}</ref>
}}<!-- Automatically generated by DASHBot-->
⚫
In a review for ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'', [[Jay Cocks]] said "''Hymns'' focuses and redefines Morrison's themes over his long career, rather like a museum retrospective already in progress. It dips deep into autobiography, spiritual speculation and blues mythology for its themes."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,974140-1,00.html|author=Jay Cocks|title=Listen to the Lion|date=1991-10-28|publisher=time.com|accessdate=2008-08-18}}</ref> ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' magazine's Elysa Gardner said despite overblown hymns such as "Take Me Back" and "Pagan Streams", Morrison appropriates a variety of musical styles into both joyful and poignant songs on an album that "brims with the consistent passion that continues to make Morrison fascinating".<ref name="Gardner">{{cite journal|last=Gardner|first=Elysa|date=17 October 1993|url=http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/hymns-to-the-silence-19911017|title=Hymns to the Silence|journal=[[Rolling Stone]]|accessdate=4 August 2015}}</ref> [[Alec Foege]] from ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]'' argued that its music is more eclectic than the entirety of Morrison's 1980s albums, while the lyrics prove he can reconcile his Christian faith with more worldly themes, allowing for "a refreshingly individualistic soul-searching".<ref>{{cite journal|last=Foege|first=Alec|authorlink=Alec Foege|page=106|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BBDgkXRdUXYC&pg=PT107#v=onepage&q&f=false|title=Hymns to the Silence|journal=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]|accessdate=4 August 2015|date=November 1991}}</ref> In ''[[The Village Voice]]'', [[Robert Christgau]] lamented the amount of [[filler (music)|filler]] throughout the two discs and many of the hymns, but complimented the secular songs about true love, ordinary life, and "the days before rock and roll", finding the album "more affecting than you'd figure" overall.<ref name="Christgau">{{cite news|last=Christgau|first=Robert|authorlink=Robert Christgau|date=5 November 1991|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv1091-91.php|title=Consumer Guide|newspaper=[[The Village Voice]]|accessdate=4 August 2015}}</ref> It was voted the 21st best album of 1991 in ''The Village Voice''{{'}}s annual [[Pazz & Jop]] critics poll.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/pjres91.php|title=The 1991 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll|newspaper=The Village Voice|accessdate=4 August 2015|date=3 March 1992}}</ref>

⚫
In a retrospective review, [[AllMusic]]'s Michael Gallucci felt ''Hymns to the Silence'' was Morrison's best album during the 1990s, although he also found it too long and essentially a "spirited rewrite" of his previous record ''[[Enlightenment (Van Morrison album)|Enlightenment]]''.<ref name="allmusic"/> [[Rob Sheffield]] was more critical in ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]'' (2004), deeming it a "complex and self-involved" imitation of ''[[Avalon Sunset]]'' with a few exceptional songs.<ref name="rsguide">{{cite book|last=Sheffield|first=Rob|authorlink=Rob Sheffield|editor1-first=Nathan|editor1-last=Brackett|editor2-first=Christian|editor2-last=Hoard|title=[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|location=New York|edition=4th|year=2004|isbn=0-7432-0169-8|chapter=Van Morrison|pages=559-561}}</ref>


==Track listing==
==Track listing==
Line 69: Line 70:
#"Some Peace of Mind" – 6:24
#"Some Peace of Mind" – 6:24
#"So Complicated" – 3:18
#"So Complicated" – 3:18
#"[[I Can't Stop Loving You]]" - ([[Don Gibson|Gibson]]) – 3:54 (With [[The Chieftains]])
#"[[I Can't Stop Loving You]]" – ([[Don Gibson|Gibson]]) – 3:54 (With [[The Chieftains]])
#"[[Why Must I Always Explain?]]" – 3:50
#"[[Why Must I Always Explain?]]" – 3:50
#"Village Idiot" – 3:13
#"Village Idiot" – 3:13
#"See Me Through, Pt. 2 ([[Just a Closer Walk with Thee (song)|Just a Closer Walk with Thee]])" - (Traditional) – 3:10
#"See Me Through, Pt. 2 ([[Just a Closer Walk with Thee (song)|Just a Closer Walk with Thee]])" – (Traditional) – 3:10
#"Take Me Back" – 9:11
#"Take Me Back" – 9:11


Line 79: Line 80:
#"All Saints Day" – 2:28
#"All Saints Day" – 2:28
#"Hymns to the Silence" – 9:42
#"Hymns to the Silence" – 9:42
#"On Hyndford Street" – 5:17
#"[[On Hyndford Street]]" – 5:17
#"[[Be Thou My Vision]]" - (Traditional) – 3:49 (With The Chieftains)
#"[[Be Thou My Vision]]" – (Traditional) – 3:49 (With The Chieftains)
#"[[Carrying a Torch]]" – 4:26
#"[[Carrying a Torch]]" – 4:26
#"Green Mansions" – 3:38
#"Green Mansions" – 3:38
#"Pagan Streams" – 3:38
#"Pagan Streams" – 3:38
#"Quality Street" - (Morrison, [[Mac Rebennack|Rebennack]]) – 3:57
#"Quality Street" – (Morrison, [[Mac Rebennack|Rebennack]]) – 3:57
#"It Must Be You" – 4:08
#"It Must Be You" – 4:08
#"I Need Your Kind of Loving" – 4:31
#"I Need Your Kind of Loving" – 4:31
Line 92: Line 93:
*Haji Ahkba - [[flugelhorn]]
*Haji Ahkba - [[flugelhorn]]
*[[Derek Bell (musician)|Derek Bell]] - [[synthesizer]]
*[[Derek Bell (musician)|Derek Bell]] - [[synthesizer]]
*[[The Chieftains]]
*[[The Chieftains]] - instrumentation
*[[Terry Disley]] - [[piano]]
*[[Terry Disley]] - [[piano]]
*Neil Drinkwater - [[accordion]], piano, synthesizer
*Neil Drinkwater - [[accordion]], piano, synthesizer
Line 98: Line 99:
*[[Dave Early]] - [[drum kit|drums]], [[percussion instrument|percussion]]
*[[Dave Early]] - [[drum kit|drums]], [[percussion instrument|percussion]]
*[[Georgie Fame]] - piano, [[Hammond organ]], [[backing vocalist|backing vocals]]
*[[Georgie Fame]] - piano, [[Hammond organ]], [[backing vocalist|backing vocals]]
*Eddie Friel - piano, Hammond organ, synthesizer
*[[Eddie Friel]] - piano, Hammond organ, synthesizer
*[[Steve Gregory]] - [[flute]], [[baritone saxophone]]
*[[Steve Gregory]] - [[flute]], [[baritone saxophone]]
*[[Carol Kenyon]] - [[backing vocals]]
*[[Carol Kenyon]] - [[backing vocals]]
Line 133: Line 134:


==Notes==
==Notes==
{{Reflist|2}}
{{reflist}}


==References==
==References==
*[[Clinton Heylin|Heylin, Clinton]] (2003). ''Can You Feel the Silence? Van Morrison: A New Biography'', Chicago Review Press ISBN 1-55652-542-7
*[[Clinton Heylin|Heylin, Clinton]] (2003). ''Can You Feel the Silence? Van Morrison: A New Biography'', Chicago Review Press {{ISBN|1-55652-542-7}}
*[[Brian Hinton|Hinton, Brian]] (1997). ''Celtic Crossroads: The Art of Van Morrison'', Sanctuary, ISBN 1-86074-169-X
*[[Brian Hinton|Hinton, Brian]] (1997). ''Celtic Crossroads: The Art of Van Morrison'', Sanctuary, {{ISBN|1-86074-169-X}}
*[[Steve Turner (writer)|Turner, Steve]] (1993). ''[[Van Morrison: Too Late to Stop Now]]'', Viking Penguin, ISBN 0-670-85147-7
*[[Steve Turner (writer)|Turner, Steve]] (1993). ''[[Van Morrison: Too Late to Stop Now]]'', Viking Penguin, {{ISBN|0-670-85147-7}}


==External links==
==External links==
*[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,974140-1,00.html Time Review] Hymns to the Silence
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110628235837/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,974140-1,00.html Time Review] Hymns to the Silence


{{Van Morrison}}
{{Van Morrison}}

{{Authority control}}


[[Category:Van Morrison albums]]
[[Category:Van Morrison albums]]

Latest revision as of 12:08, 9 October 2024

For the book, see Hymns to the Silence (book).

Hymns to the Silence
Studio album by
Van Morrison
Released1991
Recorded1990
Studio
GenreRhythm and blues, folk, pop, Celtic, rock, gospel[1]
Length94:53
LabelPolydor
ProducerVan Morrison
Van Morrison chronology
Enlightenment
(1990) 		Hymns to the Silence
(1991) 		The Best of Van Morrison Volume Two
(1993)
Singles from Hymns to the Silence
  1. "I Can't Stop Loving You" b/w "All Saints Day"
    Released: May 1991
  2. "Why Must I Always Explain?" b/w "So Complicated"
    Released: September 1991

Hymns to the Silence is the twenty-first studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. It was his first studio double album. Morrison recorded the album in 1990 in Beckington at The Wool Hall Studios and in London at Townhouse and Westside Studios.

When Hymns to the Silence was released in 1991, it reached number five on the UK Albums Chart and received positive reviews from critics. Morrison's use of various musical styles was well received, as were the more worldly-themed songs on an otherwise spiritual album.

Recording and composition

[edit]

The album of songs was recorded during sessions at Wool Hall Studios in Beckington, Townhouse, London and Westside Studios, London with Mick Glossop as engineer, except for the song "Take Me Back". It was recorded in 1990 at Pavilion Studios in London with Martin Hayles and Mick Glossop as engineers.[2]

"Why Must I Always Explain?" was set to the same melody as 1970s "Tupelo Honey".[3] There were two hymns. "Be Thou My Vision" and "Just a Closer Walk With Thee". The song, "Carrying a Torch" was also included on Tom Jones's album by the same name, along with three other Morrison compositions from "Hymns to the Silence".[4]

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Chicago Tribune[5]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[6]
Entertainment WeeklyA[7]
Q[8]
Rolling Stone[9]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[10]
The Village VoiceB+[11]

In a review for Time, Jay Cocks said "Hymns focuses and redefines Morrison's themes over his long career, rather like a museum retrospective already in progress. It dips deep into autobiography, spiritual speculation and blues mythology for its themes."[12] Rolling Stone magazine's Elysa Gardner said despite overblown hymns such as "Take Me Back" and "Pagan Streams", Morrison appropriates a variety of musical styles into both joyful and poignant songs on an album that "brims with the consistent passion that continues to make Morrison fascinating".[9] Alec Foege from Spin argued that its music is more eclectic than the entirety of Morrison's 1980s albums, while the lyrics prove he can reconcile his Christian faith with more worldly themes, allowing for "a refreshingly individualistic soul-searching".[13] In The Village Voice, Robert Christgau lamented the amount of filler throughout the two discs in the form of several hymns and love songs, but complimented the secular songs about true love, ordinary life, and "the days before rock and roll", finding the album "more affecting than you'd figure" overall.[11] It was voted the 21st best album of 1991 in The Village Voice's annual Pazz & Jop critics poll.[14]

In a retrospective review, AllMusic's Michael Gallucci felt Hymns to the Silence was Morrison's best album during the 1990s, although he also found it too long and essentially a "spirited rewrite" of his previous record Enlightenment.[1] Rob Sheffield was more critical in The Rolling Stone Album Guide (2004), deeming it a "complex and self-involved" imitation of Avalon Sunset with a few exceptional songs.[10]

Track listing

[edit]

All songs written by Van Morrison unless noted.

Disc one

[edit]
  1. "Professional Jealousy" – 3:42
  2. "I'm Not Feeling It Anymore" – 6:34
  3. "Ordinary Life" – 3:29
  4. "Some Peace of Mind" – 6:24
  5. "So Complicated" – 3:18
  6. "I Can't Stop Loving You" – (Gibson) – 3:54 (With The Chieftains)
  7. "Why Must I Always Explain?" – 3:50
  8. "Village Idiot" – 3:13
  9. "See Me Through, Pt. 2 (Just a Closer Walk with Thee)" – (Traditional) – 3:10
  10. "Take Me Back" – 9:11

Disc two

[edit]
  1. "By His Grace" – 2:34
  2. "All Saints Day" – 2:28
  3. "Hymns to the Silence" – 9:42
  4. "On Hyndford Street" – 5:17
  5. "Be Thou My Vision" – (Traditional) – 3:49 (With The Chieftains)
  6. "Carrying a Torch" – 4:26
  7. "Green Mansions" – 3:38
  8. "Pagan Streams" – 3:38
  9. "Quality Street" – (Morrison, Rebennack) – 3:57
  10. "It Must Be You" – 4:08
  11. "I Need Your Kind of Loving" – 4:31

Personnel

[edit]

Charts

[edit]

Album - Billboard (North America)

Year Chart Position
1991 The Billboard 200 99

Album - UK Album Chart

Year Chart Position
1991 UK Album Chart 5

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c Allmusic review
  2. ^ Heylin, Can You Feel the Silence?, p. 526
  3. ^ Hinton, Celtic Crossroads, p 302
  4. ^ Turner, It's Too Late to Stop Now, p.170
  5. ^ Kot, Greg (3 October 1991). "Hymns to the Silence". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 25 October 2015. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
  6. ^ Larkin, Colin. Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 12. ISBN 0195313739.
  7. ^ Entertainment Weekly review
  8. ^ Sutcliffe, Phil (October 1991). "New LPs: Van Morrison Hymns to the Silence". Q. p. 98.
  9. ^ a b Gardner, Elysa (17 October 1993). "Hymns to the Silence". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
  10. ^ a b Sheffield, Rob (2004). "Van Morrison". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). New York: Simon & Schuster. pp. 559–561. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  11. ^ a b Christgau, Robert (5 November 1991). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
  12. ^ Jay Cocks (28 October 1991). "Listen to the Lion". Time. Archived from the original on 28 June 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2008.
  13. ^ Foege, Alec (November 1991). "Hymns to the Silence". Spin: 106. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
  14. ^ "The 1991 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. 3 March 1992. Archived from the original on 7 May 2006. Retrieved 4 August 2015.

References

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