Music Arcades: Them: Them featuring Van Morrison

Probably in the wake of the versions of Gloria and Here Comes the Night on Too Late to Stop Now, I saw this CD relatively cheap in the Our Price on The Moor and bought it more out of curiosity than expectation. To say I was pleasantly surprised would be an understatement.

This was (just) before David Lynch reminded the world how good Baby Please Don't Go is, via the Wild and Heart soundtrack. So that's three classics on the album already. But there are few if any fillers on it.

Over the last 20 years or so, I've realised that the good stuff doesn't stop here. I only discovered I'm Gonna Dress in Black, for example, when Eilen Jewell covered it on her Sea of Tears album, and Mark Lamarr played the original as well (he rates Them ahead of Van's solo stuff, but I think that's just part of his schtick).

So I've had the Story of Them compilation on my wishlist for a little over two years. It's been deleted for ages, so the price has got silly, and there are no download versions available at any store I've found. Knowing Van Morrison and his terrible management and recording deals in the early part of his career, the rights for releasing this music are probably tied up in knots, with 23 parties (including Van) having right of veto. But they can't go on refusing to give permission and earn money forever — can they?

Until then, I'll have to listen on We7. Among the 48 tracks on that release, there are some iffy moments, including their version of Baby What You Want Me to Do, though they're in good company there as Neil Young also made a turkey out of that, at considerably greater length.