of the song, “Astral Weeks” recorded at the two Hollywood Bowl concerts. Influence
Morrison’s influence can readily be heard in the music of a diverse array of major artists and according to The Rolling Stone’s Encyclopedia of Rock and Roll (Simon & Shuster, 2001), “his influence among rock singers/song writers is unrivaled by any living artist outside of that other prickly legend, Bob Dylan. Echoes of Morrison’s rugged literateness and his gruff, feverish emotive vocals can be heard in latter day icons ranging from Bruce Springsteen to Elvis Costello”. His influence includes U2 (much of The Unforgettable Fire); Bono (“I am in awe of a musician like Van Morrison. I had to stop listening to Van Morrison records about six months before we made The Unforgettable Fire because I didn’t want his very original soul voice to overpower my own.”); John Mellencamp (“Wild Night”);