Is it true that Van Morrison once did an entire concert from behind the curtain never once revealing his face?
No, that was the Professor from The Wizard of Oz.
Sorry. I don’t know–I’ve done a little research on it and I can’t find anything. I just felt bad for this little post–it looked lonely. And now it’s bumped so maybe I can find out the answer!
I hadn’t heard THAT story, but I CAN tell you from experience that Morrison is a TERRIBLE concert performer.
I LOVE many of his records, but by all accounts, he HATES performing live (some say it’s severe stage fright). The one concert of his I SAW was at New York’s Pier 84 back in the 80s. The guy stood at the mike with his eyes closed and his hands behind his back, standing like a statue, and NEVER changed positions for the entire concert. His band was first-rate, but he raced through the lyrics, mumbling as fast as he could, as if all he wanted to do was get off the stage and go home.
So, while I don’t know that he’s ever performed an entire show from behind a curtain, he is just the type who WOULD do a thing like that.
Think long and hard before you pay good money to see this guy. Better you should stay home and listen to your old Them albums.
He was much better back in the day. Listen to Too Late to Stop Now, from about '74 I think. Awesome stuff. But he doesn’t like performing as much as he used to (remember, he was already a serious performer by the age most of us graduate from high school). Lately (ok, longer than lately), he does seem to race through lyrics, and he renders every song with the same kind of ligh, jazz feel.
I would tend to doubt the curtain story, only because the guy’s been performing since he was 15. But he’s so eccentric, anything’s possible, I guess.
One reviewer I read said that with Van Morrison you never know what you’ll get. He’ll either do a compulsory set of his hits or he’ll completely surprise with a wonderful set of daring music.
Looks like astorian got the former.