Sony's Legacy Recordings Acquire Van Morrison Catalog

Legacy Recordings

SONY MUSIC's catalog division, LEGACY RECORDINGS, has acquired the rights to the most complete discography of ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME inductee VAN MORRISON ever assembled under one label imprint.
 
The musical acquisition spans more than 50 years of music, including some 50 album, video and compilation titles from 1964 to the present. The new LEGACY VAN MORRISON archive includes all of his solo works from 1971 to the present as well as the recordings made with the groundbreaking rock band THEM from 1964 through 1966.  Arguably his two most famous albums -- "Astral Weeks" and "Moondance" -- remain with WARNER BROS.
 
A total of 33 MORRISON album titles will be made available as digital releases and through all streaming services beginning FRIDAY, AUGUST 28th.  On that same day, LEGACY will release the "Essential VAN MORRISON," a 37-track career-spanning anthology, available digitally and as a two-CD physical album.
 
Later this year, MORRISON's early recordings as the singer, frontman and principal songwriter for the seminal band THEM will be available as well.
 
In the upcoming months, LEGACY will launch the label's ongoing VAN MORRISON library release project with new compilations, deluxe LEGACY Editions of classic album titles and a digital rollout of the full catalog.
 
Most of the VAN MORRISON catalog has never been available for streaming and many titles have long been unavailable online through iTUNES or other DSPs. Much of the catalog has been out-of-print in any format, with some titles being unavailable for as long as 15 years.
 
Forthcoming new releases on the LEGACY label will include a new career-spanning single CD compilation and deluxe LEGACY Editions of classic MORRISON solo albums: "Saint Dominic's Preview," "It's Too Late To Stop Now," "Hard Nose The Highway" and "Enlightenment."

"VAN MORRISON is one of the great singers, performers and musical artists in the history of recorded music," said LEGACY RECORDINGS President ADAM BLOCK. "He continues to touch the hearts and souls of millions with the emotional power and spiritual truths of his songs. LEGACY RECORFDINGS is proud to partner with VAN to help him protect and curate his astounding catalog and to be given the opportunity to bring his music to whole new generations of fans around the world."

VAN boldly crossed numerous musical genres in the decades that followed, investigating country music ("Pay The Devil," 2006), jazz ("What's Wrong With This Picture?," 2003), NEW ORLEANS R&B ("Into The Music," 1979), traditional CELTIC folk ("Irish Heartbeat, with THE CHIEFTAINS," 1988) and straight-ahead rock ("Days Like This," 1995), among many others.
 
MORRISONS's first recording for RCA Records, 2015's "Duets: Re-Working The Catalogue," which came out earlier this year, featured collaborations with STEVE WINWOOD, MARK KNOPFLER, MAVIS STAPLES, TAJ MAHAL, MICHAEL BUBLE and others.

LEGACY RECORDING' new deal covers studio and live recordings released from 1971 to the present, as well as all his recordings with THEM. Combined with his solo debut, "Blowin' Your Mind," which features "Brown Eyed Girl," LEGACY's holdings encompass the largest VAN MORRISON musical archive ever assembled.
 
On JUNE 18th, MORRISON received the JOHNNY MERCER AWARD at the SONGWRITERS HALL OF FAME GALA in NEW YORK CITY.
 
MORRISON will celebrate his 70th birthday on AUGUST 31st with "VAN MORRISON: Live on Cyprus Avenue," two concert performances serving as part of the closing event of the BELFAST EASTSIDE ARTS FESTIVAL 2015.

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