Van Morrison, OBE (born 31 August 1945) is a Northern Irish singer, songwriter and musician. Known as "Van the Man" to his fans, Morrison started his professional career when, as a teenager in the late 1950s, he played a variety of instruments including guitar, harmonica, keyboards and saxophone for various Irish showbands covering the popular hits of the day. He rose to prominence in the mid-1960s as the lead singer of the Northern Irish R&B band 'Them', with whom he recorded the garage band classic "Gloria". His solo career began under the pop-hit oriented guidance of Bert Berns with the release of the hit single "Brown Eyed Girl" in 1967.
Much of Morrison's music is structured around the conventions of soul music and R&B, such as the popular singles "Brown Eyed Girl", "Jackie Wilson Said (I'm in Heaven When You Smile)", "Domino" and "Wild Night". An equal part of his catalogue consists of lengthy, loosely connected, spiritually-inspired musical journeys that show the influence of Celtic tradition, jazz and stream-of-consciousness narrative, such as the album Astral Weeks and lesser-known ones such as Veedon Fleece and Common One. The two strains together are sometimes referred to as "Celtic soul"
Morrison has received six Grammy Awards, the 1994 Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music, and has been inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 2016 he was knighted for his musical achievements and his services to tourism and charitable causes in Northern Ireland.
Stunning photograph of Morrissey by Mary McCartney taken at the Royal Festival Hall, London in 2004
Iconic image of David Gilmour playing his ‘The Black Strat’ with Pink Floyd live at The Rainbow Theatre, London on 4 November 1973.
David Bowie, Lou Reed & Iggy Pop during a press conference at the Dorchester Hotel, London in July 1972
Mick Jagger & Keith Richards from The Rolling Stones performing live at the legendary Madison Square Gardens, New York in July 1972
Paul Weller is an English singer, songwriter and musician. Weller achieved fame with the punk rock/new wave/mod revival band The Jam.
Sir Cliff Richard is a British pop singer, musician, performer, actor & philanthropist, he has sold more than 250 million records worldwide.
Madness are an English band from Camden Town, London & one of the most prominent bands of the late 70s & early 80s 2 Tone ska revival.
Liam Gallagher is best known as the charismatic, self-assured front man of Manchester Britpop band Oasis.
The Beatles were one of the most popular & influential bands of all time. Here we showcase our collection of their iconic fine art prints
The USA has given us many of the world's greatest music artists - we celebrate the best of the best
A fantastic curated collection of museum quality fine art prints by leading music photographer Barry Schultz
For eight years photographer Brian Duffy worked with David Bowie and shot his most iconic and enduring images. View his fantastic collection
