Too Long in Exile
| Van Morrison
Too Long in Exile
Too Long in Exile is the twenty-second studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. The album was produced by Morrison and draws on urban blues and soul jazz sounds, including collaborations with John Lee Hooker and Georgie Fame. Released in 1993 by Polydor Records, Too Long in Exile received positive reviews from most critics and reached number four on the UK Albums Chart.-Wikipedia
Critic Reviews
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Rolling Stone
1993. Too Long in Exile, his 22nd studio release, effortlessly continues this pattern. It swings, it ponders, but it never surprises. And the paranoia that has been creeping steadily into his music is dead center. Whatever his faults, Van Morrison’s music is always intensely personal.
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All Music
Throughout, Morrison's raw vocal cords are sufficiently dramatic to bring these rhythmic stories to life. This is an earthy departure from his two previous pop efforts.
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Plugged In
Soulful, energetic tunes mix godly themes with raging hormones, resulting in tainted truth.
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Randy Krbechek's Metronews Music Reviews
1993. Exile is a fine album, with tight arrangements and crystal clear production work. Highlights include the title track, the blues-inspired "Ball & Chain", and "Gloria" (a duet with John Lee Hooker), which is a remake of Van's hit from the '60s.
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Entertainment
1993. If all 15 cuts were as lithe and wry as the title track, we’d have a winner here, maybe even a masterpiece.
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OoCities
Morrison's ongoing and heartfelt desire to recapture his lost youth is the prime motivation behind 1993's Too Long in Exile, but this time he does it by covering songs like Ray Charles's "Lonely Avenue," Bobby "Blue" Bland's "I'll Take Care of You," and Sonny Boy Williamson's "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl" that he would have performed with the Monarchs and Them.
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Robert Christgau
Now getting on to grizzled, he seeks guidance from the kas of Doc Pomus and King Pleasure and "The Lonesome Road," an unutterably sad spiritual recast as an upbeat vibraphone feature. . . . I don't know about Hook, but Van's just jiving--when he wanders "In the Forest," it's never a safe bet that he'll get out.
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People
1993. Unfortunately, Morrison’s reputation for consistency takes a pounding with this sloppy offering. It’s not just the material: rambling jams and tossed-off lyrics. He also makes some odd vocal choices, occasionally adding to his repertoire a bleating vibrato that sounds like Elmer Fudd.
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Kamer Tunes Blog
Perhaps there’s significance to the “Too Long” in the album title. Don’t get me wrong, though; this is a very good album, just not essential.
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