When That Rough God Goes Riding: Listening to Van Morrison

Van Morrison, says Greil Marcus, remains a singer who can be compared to no other in the history of modern popular music. When Astral Weeks was released in 1968, it was largely ignored. When it was rereleased as a live album in 2009 it reached the top of the Billboard charts, a first for any Van Morrison recording. The wild swings in the music, mirroring the swings in Morrisons success and in peoples appreciation or lack of it of his music, make Van Morrison one of the most perplexing and mysterious figures in popular modern music, and a perfect subject for the wise and insightful scrutiny of Greil Marcus, one of Americas most dedicated cultural critics.This book is Marcuss quest to understand Van Morrisons particular genius through the extraordinary and unclassifiable moments in his long career, beginning in 1965 and continuing in full force to this day.