Van Morrison: Common One (1980)

For some reason lost to me, many critics hated this record. On the other hand, Van Morrison called it one of his favorite Van Morrison records. To be honest, the first time I heard it, I was ambivalent. But, the record grew on me, especially when I accepted its jazzy and laid-back sound. Wikipedia's summary of critical reception upon release is illuminating:

The album was generally not well-received upon release and some of the reviews were scathing and merciless. Graham Locke reviewed it in NME calling it "colossally smug and cosmically dull; an interminable, vacuous and drearily egotistical stab at spirituality". Dave McCullough wrote in Sounds: "For the fan, as I am myself, it's not even possible to romanticize and say that Morrison has lost his way temporarily, so stern and so acute is his departure." Rolling Stone critic Tom Carson named "Satisfied" as the record's only "masterpiece", in which "the simplicity that Morrison is striving for arrive as something natural and effortless, as a gift of grace". Clinton Heylin contends that Morrison was bruised by the reaction and "would not attempt anything quite so ambitious again." In 1982, Lester Bangs argued for a reassessment, saying, "Van was making holy music even though he thought he was, and us rock critics had made our usual mistake of paying too much attention to the lyrics."

American critics voted it the 27th best album of 1980 in The Village Voice's annual Pazz & Jop poll. In an accompanying essay, poll supervisor Robert Christgau wrote, "As somebody who considers Moondance an apotheosis and has never gotten Astral Weeks, I think this is his worst since Hard Nose the Highway – sententious, torpid, abandoned by God. I know lots of Astral Weeks fans who agree. But Morrison has a direct line to certain souls, and they still hear him talkin'." In retrospect, he deemed "Satisfied" and "Summer in England" to be the record's highlights. AllMusic later wrote, "No wonder the rock critics of the time didn't get it; this is music outside the pop mainstream, and even Morrison's own earlier musical territory. But it retains its trancelike power to this day." In 2009, Erik Hage said "the dominant critical reaction represented it as prohibitive, sententious, and inaccessible, when in fact it is filled with much melody and beauty." [source]

It's not my favourite Van record by any means, but I still enjoy it very much, especially in certain moods. It's far better than most critics would suggest. I even bought a copy on CD years ago.