Van Morrison现在普遍被视作是爱尔兰音乐的教父，他的这张专辑被认为是60年代最重要的摇滚乐专辑之一。 事实上Morrison并非是搞爱尔兰音乐起家，他最早玩的是布鲁斯和R&B，在当时的乐队THEM中Morrison曾创作了乐一首典型的R&B作品"GLORIA"，后来被包括大门乐队在内的无数乐队翻唱。在THEM乐队解散之后，Morrison回到爱尔兰，此后便开始了个人音乐生涯。在1968年底，Morrison出版了这张《ASTRAL WEEKS》（迷乱时期），音乐容纳了民谣、布鲁斯、R&B和爵士，与他合作的乐手中便有著名爵士乐队“现代爵士四重奏”的成员。专辑中的音乐，在旋律上并没有特别之处，但音乐从头至尾，始终处在一种焦虑、迷惘的状态，叙述着Morrison复杂矛盾的心态，这是当时他对国家现状和个人道路的真实态度。 这张专辑在滚石杂志选出的500张历代最强专辑中排名第19位 Astral Weeks is generally considered one of the best albums in pop music history. For all that renown, Astral Weeks is anything but an archetypal rock & roll album: in fact, it isn't a rock & roll album at all. Employing a mixture of folk, blues, jazz, and classical music, Van Morrison spins out a series of extended ruminations on his Belfast upbringing, including the remarkable character "Madame George" and the climactic epiphany experienced on "Cyprus Avenue." Accompanying himself on acoustic guitar, Morrison sings in his elastic, bluesy voice, accompanied by a jazz rhythm section (Jay Berliner, guitar, Richard Davis, bass, Connie Kay, drums), plus reeds (John Payne) and vibes (Warren Smith, Jr.), with a string quartet overdubbed. An emotional outpouring cast in delicate musical structures, Astral Weeks has a unique musical power. Unlike any record before or since, it nevertheless encompasses the passion and tenderness that have always mixed in the best postwar popular music, easily justifying the critics' raves.