Summertime in England
Encyclopedia
"Summertime in England" is the longest song on Northern Irish
singer-songwriter
Van Morrison
's 1980 album, Common One
and is approximately fifteen minutes long. Although the album this appeared on was not successful critically or commercially, this song would be performed by Morrison in concert for almost two and one-half decades and took on new meaning when live. The song was also released as the B-side of the 1983 single "Cry for Home".
, "we did 'Haunts' and 'Summertime in England' in 4/4 time...Van brought it right down at the end to nothing, so he's just saying, 'Can you feel the Silence?' but he's still keeping the beat, and then Pee Wee Ellis
takes his mouthpiece off and Mark Isham
takes his mouthpiece off, and they're both making quiet percussive noises in time to the rhythm." Cox felt like the rehearsal performances were "far better than the final recordings." The song on the album was recorded at Super Bear Studios in the French Alps
in February 1980 and according to Mick Cox the second take was the one used on the album. The spoken section is in 3/4 time that begins with John Allair's church organ fugue
.
Morrison originally wrote the song as a poem about William Wordsworth
and Samuel Taylor Coleridge
making a literary trip to the Lake District
in England
where they worked together on the poems that were to become their landmark joint venture, Lyrical Ballads
. Morrison has been quoted as saying, "['Summertime in England'] was actually part of a poem I was writing, and the poem and the song sorta merged... I'd read several articles about this particular group of poets who were writing about this particular thing, which I couldn't find in the framework I was in."
The lyrics also refer to Jesus
walking down by Avalon
— an allusion by William Blake
with the lines: "And did these feet in ancient time/Walk upon England's mountain green?" The lyrics verge between several layers of consciousness but always return to the central occurrence of a holiday in the country that the singer spent with his sweetheart (the "red-robed" Toni Marcus) and/or daughter.
The song ends with the lines:
Clinton Heylin
, one of Morrison's biographers, obviously took the title of his best-selling book from this line and is also referring to Morrison's famously uncommunicative nature. (except in his music)
Another biographer, Brian Hinton
believes "The song leaves most classical rock fusions dead in the water."
In an essay in 2000, Allen B. Ruch wrote that "the music is supported by a wonderful string section that completely avoids the treacle that strings can sometimes lend to songs like this. And as usual with Van Morrison's lyrics, passages that seem awkward or even silly on paper take on a soaring and majestical intensity when sung by Van in their proper place."
, Live At Montreux 1980/1974
. It is also one of the songs performed in 1989, on Morrison's second video Van Morrison The Concert
, released in 1990.
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Van Morrison
Van Morrison
Van Morrison, OBE is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician. His live performances at their best are regarded as transcendental and inspired; while some of his recordings, such as the studio albums Astral Weeks and Moondance, and the live album It's Too Late to Stop Now, are widely...
's 1980 album, Common One
Common One
Common One is the twelfth album by Northern Irish singer/songwriter Van Morrison, released in 1980.It has been said to be one of his most ambitious and daring albums since Astral Weeks...
and is approximately fifteen minutes long. Although the album this appeared on was not successful critically or commercially, this song would be performed by Morrison in concert for almost two and one-half decades and took on new meaning when live. The song was also released as the B-side of the 1983 single "Cry for Home".
Recording and composition
Morrison started rehearsing "Summertime in England" in November and December 1979 along with "Haunts of Ancient Peace" at club gigs in the San Francisco area. According to Mick Cox, guitaristGuitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
, "we did 'Haunts' and 'Summertime in England' in 4/4 time...Van brought it right down at the end to nothing, so he's just saying, 'Can you feel the Silence?' but he's still keeping the beat, and then Pee Wee Ellis
Pee Wee Ellis
Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis is an American saxophonist, composer and arranger. He was an important member of James Brown's band in the 1960s and appeared on many of Brown's most notable recordings...
takes his mouthpiece off and Mark Isham
Mark Isham
Mark Isham is an American trumpeter, synthesist, and film composer. He works in a variety of genres, including jazz, electronic, and film.-Life and career:...
takes his mouthpiece off, and they're both making quiet percussive noises in time to the rhythm." Cox felt like the rehearsal performances were "far better than the final recordings." The song on the album was recorded at Super Bear Studios in the French Alps
French Alps
The French Alps are those portions of the Alps mountain range which stand within France, located in the Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions....
in February 1980 and according to Mick Cox the second take was the one used on the album. The spoken section is in 3/4 time that begins with John Allair's church organ fugue
Fugue
In music, a fugue is a compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject that is introduced at the beginning in imitation and recurs frequently in the course of the composition....
.
Morrison originally wrote the song as a poem about William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth was a major English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with the 1798 joint publication Lyrical Ballads....
and Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge was an English poet, Romantic, literary critic and philosopher who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poets. He is probably best known for his poems The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Kubla...
making a literary trip to the Lake District
Lake District
The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
where they worked together on the poems that were to become their landmark joint venture, Lyrical Ballads
Lyrical Ballads
Lyrical Ballads, with a Few Other Poems is a collection of poems by William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, first published in 1798 and generally considered to have marked the beginning of the English Romantic movement in literature...
. Morrison has been quoted as saying, "['Summertime in England'] was actually part of a poem I was writing, and the poem and the song sorta merged... I'd read several articles about this particular group of poets who were writing about this particular thing, which I couldn't find in the framework I was in."
The lyrics also refer to Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
walking down by Avalon
Avalon
Avalon is a legendary island featured in the Arthurian legend. It first appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's 1136 pseudohistorical account Historia Regum Britanniae as the place where King Arthur's sword Excalibur was forged and later where Arthur was...
— an allusion by William Blake
William Blake
William Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of both the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age...
with the lines: "And did these feet in ancient time/Walk upon England's mountain green?" The lyrics verge between several layers of consciousness but always return to the central occurrence of a holiday in the country that the singer spent with his sweetheart (the "red-robed" Toni Marcus) and/or daughter.
The song ends with the lines:
- Put your head on my shoulder
- and you listen to the silence
- Can you feel the silence?
Clinton Heylin
Clinton Heylin
Clinton Heylin is an English author who has written extensively about popular music and the work of Bob Dylan.- Education :...
, one of Morrison's biographers, obviously took the title of his best-selling book from this line and is also referring to Morrison's famously uncommunicative nature. (except in his music)
Another biographer, Brian Hinton
Brian Hinton
Brian Hinton, MBE is an English poet and musicologist. In June 2006 he was honoured in H. M. the Queen’s Birthday Honours List with an MBE for services to the Arts.-Education:...
believes "The song leaves most classical rock fusions dead in the water."
In an essay in 2000, Allen B. Ruch wrote that "the music is supported by a wonderful string section that completely avoids the treacle that strings can sometimes lend to songs like this. And as usual with Van Morrison's lyrics, passages that seem awkward or even silly on paper take on a soaring and majestical intensity when sung by Van in their proper place."
Personnel
- Van Morrison – vocalSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
s - David HayesDavid Hayes (musician)David Hayes is an American bass guitar player.Hayes has worked with Van Morrison, The Rowans, Terry & The Pirates, Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, Country Joe McDonald and others....
– bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Mark IshamMark IshamMark Isham is an American trumpeter, synthesist, and film composer. He works in a variety of genres, including jazz, electronic, and film.-Life and career:...
– trumpetTrumpetThe trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air... - John Allair – organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
- Herbie Armstrong – guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
- Pee Wee EllisPee Wee EllisAlfred "Pee Wee" Ellis is an American saxophonist, composer and arranger. He was an important member of James Brown's band in the 1960s and appeared on many of Brown's most notable recordings...
– tenor saxophoneTenor saxophoneThe tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor, with the alto, are the two most common types of saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B, and written as a transposing instrument in the treble... - Mick Cox – guitar
- Peter Van HookePeter Van HookePeter Van Hooke was drummer in the English band Mike + The Mechanics as well as having drummed for Cliff Richard, Van Morrison's band, Headstone, and Ezio. During the 1980s he successfully co-produced many of Tanita Tikaram's hits.Van Hooke grew up in Stanmore, Middlesex and attended Mill Hill...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
Other releases
A live performance of "Summertime in England" as performed by Morrison with most of the Common One band members is featured on the 2006 released DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
, Live At Montreux 1980/1974
Live at Montreux 1980/1974
Live at Montreux 1980/1974 is the first official DVD by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. It was released on October 16, 2006. The films consist of two separate performances by Van Morrison at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland...
. It is also one of the songs performed in 1989, on Morrison's second video Van Morrison The Concert
Van Morrison The Concert
Van Morrison: The Concert is the second video released by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, first released in 1990. Recorded in New York the previous year, the concert featured two special guests and long-time friends Mose Allison and John Lee Hooker, each of whom performed some of...
, released in 1990.