Title: Maybe Not His Best, But My Personal Favorite
Review: By the time Van recorded Beautiful Vision, his spiritual journey, first tentatively sketched out in Hard Nose, amplified in bits and pieces in subsequent releases, but really filled out in Common One, had reached the tipping point: He finally put the sounds, the words, the atmosphere, the vision -- into a complete package, and Beautiful Vision is the result. To me every song works and flows gently into the next, revealing additional layers of depth and beauty to Van's journey. The production here is warm and inviting, and the musicianship top-notch, punctuated by Mark Knopfler's tasteful guitar and Mark Isham's pipes.Although there are other Van albums for other moods, ones that may have more upbeat songs or more spirited performances, it is Beautiful Vision that to me holds up and warrants repeated listens. If this were the only album Van released it would be enough to secure his name in the pantheon. Fortunately it's not, but it's a must-have.
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