“Tupelo Honey” by Van Morrison

"Tupelo Honey" is the title song of Van Morrison's 1971 album, and it's the sound of the Northern Irish singer at ease, stretching a warm, slow-burning soul ballad out like a lazy afternoon. The title comes from a pricey, mild tupelo honey made in the southeastern United States, and the tune itself was lifted from his own "Crazy Love" of the year before; he'd reuse it again on "Why Must I Always Explain?" and has strung all three together on stage.

Morrison produced it with Ted Templeman, who also plays organ, and the band is a sweet one: Ronnie Montrose on guitar and mandolin, John McFee on steel guitar, Connie Kay on drums, Bill Church on bass, Mark Jordon on piano, and flutes, sax and trumpet drifting through the background alongside backing vocals from Janet Planet.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.