Van Morrison and Linda Gail Lewis
You Win Again
(Pointblank/Virgin)
Linda Gail Lewis is Jerry Lee’s sister, a pianist and singer whom Van met while she was performing at a Jerry Lee convention and when their paths crossed again years later, they sang together, which pleased Morrison so much that he decided they should cut an LP together. The result is this lighthearted but engaging collection of country, rock and R&B chestnuts, which continues the Van’s roots exploration, making a nice bookend to his disc with Lonnie Donegan and Chris Barber from earlier this year.
Van dominates record, but to be fair to Linda Gail (whose voice has a weathered toughness to it, perhaps the result of her seven marriages and divorces---talk about a scary family to marry into: “My brother is a little high-strung...”) dueting with Van is about as easy as painting with Picasso: no matter how good you are, you’re gonna seem kinda lame next to the master.
You Win Again’s standouts are undoubtedly a trio of Hank Williams compositions: the bittersweet title track, Lewis’ boogie-woogie piano lead on “Jambalaya” and a lilting “Why Don’t You Love Me”. Linda Gail sings best while trading lines with Van on “Real Gone Lover”, Bo Diddley’s “Cadillac” gets a sprightly whacking, “Crazy Arms” acknowledges Jerry Lee and Van devours John Lee Hooker’s “Boogie Chillen” like a “Survivor” castoff digging into their first post-island McDonalds meal.
Backing band The Red Hot Pokers (especially Paul Gooden’s crying steel guitar) are delightfully off the cuff. As Linda Gail relates in the press notes “We played the songs once before we recorded. That’s Van’s idea of a rehearsal.” Later she confesses she was moved to tears during the playback. Well, it ain't all that, but it’s a good Van record and the old man sounds happy and loose, just digging on Bo and Hank. At this late date, you can’t ask for much more.
Time Out New York, 2000
