Astral Weeks

Van Morrison's Astral Weeks is an iconic rock album shrouded in legend, a masterpiece that has touched generations of listeners and influenced everyone from Bruce Springsteen to Martin Scorsese. In his first book, acclaimed musician and journalist Ryan H. Walsh unearths the album's fascinating backstory—along with the untold secrets of the time and place that birthed it: Boston 1968.

A mesmerizing group of bold-face names pops to life in Astral Weeks: Timothy Leary, James Brown, Howard Zinn, folkie-turned-cult-leader Mel Lyman, and of course Van Morrison himself. From life-changing concerts and chilling crimes, to acid experiments and film shoots, Astral Weeks is the secret, wild history of a unique time and place.