By the time of this 1987 release, the polymath musician Van Morrison had chosen the saxophone as his preferred instrument, which explains the evocative opening five-minute instrumental “Spanish Steps” — a be-bop inspired gesture that wouldn’t have sounded out of place on Wowee Zowee. Typical of Van (and of Pavement) he immediately follows with one of his best and catchiest songs, the perplexing and ingratiating “The Mystery”, which proceeds to reveal both everything and nothing about the author’s intent. In this iteration, the older Morrison is reminiscent of recent Bill Callahan – a man intimate with language, music, and the human experience, but still missing a fundamental connection. “When I forgot that love existed/ I remembered what was truly real”.