Bulbs - Van Morrison (1974)
I'm kicking off from center field
A question of being down for the game
The one shot deal don't matter
And the other one's the same
Oh! My friend I see you
Want you to come through (alright)
And she's standing in the shadows
Where the street lights all turn blue
She leaving for an American (uhuh)
Suitcase in her hand
I said her brothers and her sisters
Are all on Atlantic sand
She's screaming through the alley way
I hear the lonely cry, why can't you?
And her batteries are corroded
And her hundred watt bulb just blew
Lallallal, alright, huhuhhuh
She used to hang out at Miss Lucy's
Every weekend they would get loose
And it was a straight clear case of
Having taken in too much juice
It was outside, and it was outside
Just the nature of the person
Now all you got to remember
After all, it's just show biz
Lallalal, huhuh, lallal
We're just screaming through the alley way
I hear her lonely cry, ah why can't you?
And she's standing in the shadows
Canal street lights all turn blue
And she's standing in the shadows
Where the street lights all turn blue
And she's standing in the shadows
Down where the street lights all turn blue
Hey, hey, yeah
"Bulbs" was released on Van Morrison's eighth studio album, Veedon Fleece, in the fall of 1974. This incredible album is among my favorites by Van Morrison, but then again every single time I listen to one of Van Morrison's records I find new nuances, mysteries and amazement within the tracks and, if I hadn't considered it a favorite before, wonder why I haven't been listening to it more often! Such is the power of this artist. One of the absolute masters....writing and singing on a level few could dream of approaching.
I'd been desiring to make a video for another of my all-time top 10 artists for quite some time, actually since I began making videos over a year ago (also right after The Beatles and ELP, the artist that I've had most requests to make a video for!), but finding Van Morrison songs that will be allowed to play is difficult. At one point several months ago, it seemed that songs from Veedon Fleece would be allowed to play, so I quickly set to make a video for one of my favorite tracks, "Bulbs". After finishing the video a few weeks later, I was disappointed to find that it wouldn't be allowed to play after all......I finally edited that video to fit the version of "Bulbs" from the Live At Montreaux DVD (Video #67 if you're interested....you can also read more about the video in that video's description).
However, I recently became aware that the studio version of "Bulbs" might be once again be allowed so I jumped back into my saved version to prepare it for upload. I made quite extensive edits to the transitions of the video, based on feedback and personal observation of the video I had made for the live version.....comments about it being "dizzying", etc. from the usage of the particular transition...and although this was somewhat the effect I was after, I realized that it moved too quickly and was indeed dizzying.....SO, I altered the original video to use less of that particular transition.....this is the result.
I love this song.....and I love the studio version much more than either of the two widely known live versions.....and I like this video better than the other one......Hope you do too!
Hope I can maybe start on some of the other videos I've wanted to do for Van's songs!?! (Wonder if "Redwood Tree" would go?.....Like to try something with that one next.....nice and short! LOL!) Strangely enough, his biggest hit, "Brown-Eyed Girl" is good to go....I've been wanting to try something with it for a long time....if I can just think of something interesting to do with it?
