“Croon” Dance: Van Morrison releasing album of jazz standards next month

Legacy RecordingHow’s this for prolific?: Van Morrison has announced plans to release a new studio album called Versatile on December 1, just over two months after his most recent record, Roll with the Punches, arrived in stores. The upcoming album features 16 tracks, including a selection of Morrison’s favorite vocal jazz standards alongside six new original compositions.

Among the cover songs on the album are tunes popularized by Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, The Righteous Brothers and Chet Baker, including “They Can’t Take That Away from Me,” “I Get a Kick Out of You,” “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” “Unchained Melody,” and “Let’s Get Lost.” Morrison’s originals on versatile includes a tune named “Affirmation” that features a guest appearance by acclaimed flute player Sir James Galway.

Morrison recorded Versatile in a variety of locations in his native Northern Ireland. You can pre-order it now, while Van’s renditions of “I Get a Kick Out of You” and “Makin’ Whoopee” are available for purchase as a digital single and via streaming services.

In contrast with Versatile, Roll with the Punches — which was released in September — includes a variety of covers by blues, R&B and early rock ‘n’ roll artists who have influenced Morrison.

Here’s the full track list of Versatile, along with the songwriting credits:

“Broken Record” (Van Morrison)
“A Foggy Day” (George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin)
“Let’s Get Lost” (Frank Loesser and Jimmy McHugh)
“Bye Bye Blackbird” (Ray Henderson and Mort Dixon)
“Skye Boat Song” (Traditional, arranged by Van Morrison)
“Take It Easy Baby” (Van Morrison)
“Makin’ Whoopee” (Walter Donaldson and Gus Kahn)
“I Get a Kick Out of You” (Cole Porter)
“I Forgot That Love Existed” (Van Morrison)
“Unchained Melody” (Alex North and Hy Zaret)
“Start All Over Again” (Van Morrison)
“Only a Dream” (Van Morrison)
“Affirmation” — featuring Sir James Galway (Van Morrison)
“The Party’s Over” (Betty Comden, Adolph Green and Jule Styne)
“I Left My Heart in San Francisco” (George Cory and Douglass Cross)
“They Can’t Take That Away from Me” (George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin)