New album delivers Van Morrison's cheeky take on societal issues

Van Morrison has announced a new double album, simply titled Latest Record Project Vol. 1. The 28-song project, slated to be released on May 7, 2021 via Exile/BMG, was written and recorded during quarantine.

Rolling Stone says the title track from the record, "Latest Record Project" is a cheeky bit of classic yet self-aware soul. It finds Morrison pairing vintage sonics — Hammond organ, shuffling drums, backing vocalists cooing "sha-la-la" — with the musings of an artist who has a back catalog packed with hits but hasn't ceased making new music: "Have you got my latest songs I'm singing?/You got my latest songs I'm singing?/Not something from so long ago/Not something that you might want to know/But something I can relate to in the present."

In a statement, Morrison said: "I'm getting away from the perceived same songs, same albums all the time. This guy's done 500 songs, maybe more, so hello? Why do you keep promoting the same 10? I'm trying to get out of the box."

Latest Record Project: Volume 1 boasts a whopping 28 songs, which Morrison wrote and recorded while in quarantine — not something the musician has been particularly fond of. Per a release, the album will feature at least one song about life in lockdown, "Dead Beat Saturday Night," although the tracklist does not include any of the anti-lockdown songs Morrison released last year.

Morrison mainly wrote the songs on Latest Record Project on piano, guitar, or saxophone. Two tracks — "Love Should Come With a Warning" and "Mistaken Identity" — feature lyrics co-written with Don Black.