Pay the Devil

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title: "Pay the Devil" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["van-morrison-albums", "2006-albums", "lost-highway-records-albums", "albums-produced-by-van-morrison"] topic_path: "arts/music" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pay_the_Devil" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox album"]

FieldValue
namePay the Devil
typeAlbum
artistVan Morrison
coverPdevil.jpg
released6 March 2006
genreCountry
length45:44
labelLost Highway
producerVan Morrison
prev_titleMagic Time
prev_year2005
next_titleLive at Austin City Limits Festival
next_year2006
misc{{Singles
namePay the Devil
typestudio
single1Playhouse
::

| name = Pay the Devil | type = Album | artist = Van Morrison | cover = Pdevil.jpg | alt = | released = 6 March 2006 | recorded = | venue = | studio = | genre = Country | length = 45:44 | label = Lost Highway | producer = Van Morrison | prev_title = Magic Time | prev_year = 2005 | next_title = Live at Austin City Limits Festival | next_year = 2006 | misc = {{Singles | name = Pay the Devil | type = studio | single1 = Playhouse | single1date = |MC = 75/100 |rev1 = Allmusic |rev1score = |rev2 = earvolution.com |rev2score = (unrated) |rev3 = Entertainment Weekly |rev3Score = B+ |rev4 = The Independent |rev4score = (unrated) |rev5 = livedaily.com |rev5score = (unrated) |rev6 = The Music Box |rev6score = |rev7 = No Depression |rev7score = (unrated) |rev8 = Rolling Stone |rev8score =

Pay the Devil is the thirty-second studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. It was released in 2006 by Lost Highway. The album features twelve cover versions of American country and western tunes and three original compositions. It debuted at No. 26 on The Billboard 200 and peaked at No. 7 on Top Country Albums; it was listed at No. 10 on Amazon Best of 2006 Editor's Picks in Country in December 2006.

A deluxe edition of Pay the Devil featuring a video of five of the tracks taped during the performance at the Ryman was released on 27 June 2006.

Songs

The songs on the album consist of twelve cover songs and three originals. The cover songs are chosen from old-time country songs recorded during the 1950s and 1960s by well-known country artists such as Hank Williams, Webb Pierce, Merle Haggard and George Jones. Morrison's three originals are written and sung to blend with the classic country cover versions.

Erik Hage described Morrison's version of "Till I Gain Control Again" written by Rodney Crowell: "There's a sense of fragility and defeat, and it is moving in a way that a Van Morrison song rarely moves the listener. The singer sounds utterly broken down and shaken: 'hold me now, hold me now' he unsteadily repeats 'until I gain control again'. Even Morrison's most emotional material in the past never projected such pretty frailty."

Promotion

Morrison previewed some of the Pay the Devil material at his live shows in the previous year. He promoted the new album with a seven city tour of the US in March 2006. On 7 March 2006, the day of its release in the United States, Van Morrison Day was declared in Nashville by the mayor, and Morrison appeared at the historic Ryman Auditorium that evening for the first time. He continued to promote the album throughout 2006 and appeared at the Austin City Limits Music Festival on 15 September 2006 where his performance was listed as one of the top ten of the festival by Rolling Stone.

Track listing

  1. "There Stands the Glass" (Alize Gresham, Russ Hull, Mary Jane Shurtz) – 2:16
  2. "Half as Much" (Curley Williams) – 2:36
  3. "Things Have Gone to Pieces" (Leon Payne) – 3:11
  4. "Big Blue Diamonds" (Earl J. Carson) – 2:56
  5. "Playhouse" (Morrison) – 4:14
  6. "Your Cheatin' Heart" (Hank Williams) – 2:32
  7. "Don't You Make Me High" (Daniel Barker, Ken Harris) – 2:47
  8. "My Bucket's Got a Hole in It" (Clarence Williams) – 2:22
  9. "Back Street Affair" (Billy Wallace) – 2:49
  10. "Pay the Devil" (Morrison) – 3:03
  11. "What Am I Living For?" (Art Harris, Fred Jay) – 3:57
  12. "This Has Got to Stop" (Morrison) – 4:44
  13. "Once a Day" (Bill Anderson) – 2:52
  14. "More and More" (Merle Kilgore, Webb Pierce) – 2:46
  15. "'Til I Gain Control Again" (Rodney Crowell) – 5:59

DVD track listing (Deluxe Edition)

Filmed at the Ryman Auditorium on 7 March 2006

  1. "Playhouse" (Morrison)
  2. "'Till I Gain Control Again" (Rodney Crowell)
  3. "Big Blue Diamonds" (Earl J. Carson)
  4. "This Has Got to Stop" (Morrison)
  5. "There Stands the Glass" (Alize Gresham, Russ Hull, Mary Jane Shurtz)

Personnel

Production

  • Van Morrison – Producer
  • Declan Gaffney – Mixing assistant
  • Jerome King – Assistant engineer
  • Alastair McMillan – Mixing
  • Walter Samuel – Engineer, mixing

Charts

Weekly charts

::data[format=table] | Chart (2006) | Peak position | |---|---| ::

Year-end charts

::data[format=table]

Chart (2006)PositionUS Top Country Albums (Billboard)
58
::

Notes

References

  • Hage, Erik (2009). The Words and Music of Van Morrison, Praeger Publishers,

References

  1. "Pay the Devil by van Morrison".
  2. [{{AllMusic
  3. "earvolution.com review".
  4. [https://web.archive.org/web/20070208140100/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,1169374,00.html Entertainment Weekly review]
  5. [https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/album-van-morrison--none-onestar-twostar-threestar-fourstar-fivestar-468205.html The Independent review]
  6. [http://www.livedaily.com/news/9701.html livedaily.com review] {{webarchive. link. (24 July 2008)
  7. [https://www.musicbox-online.com/reviews-2006/vandevil.html The Music Box review]
  8. [http://archives.nodepression.com/2006/03/van-morrison-pay-the-devil/ No Depression review] {{webarchive. link. (8 October 2011)
  9. [https://web.archive.org/web/20071001091937/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/vanmorrison/albums/album/9391412/review/9544347/pay_the_devil Rolling Stone review]
  10. (16 March 2006). "Chart Beat:Pay per Van".
  11. (25 March 2006). "On the charts-Billboard country singles and albums". countrymusic.com.
  12. "Best of 2006: Editors' Pick in Country". amazon.com.
  13. "Van Morrison-Pay the Devil". losthighwayrecords.com.
  14. "Beautiful Day: Van Morrison". corkuniversitypress.typepad.com.
  15. Hage, (2009), p. 142
  16. Mazor, Barry. (7 March 2006). "Van Morrison, Ryman Auditorium".
  17. Calvin Gilbert. (8 March 2006). "Van Morrison offers country songs". [[CMT (American TV channel).
  18. "10 Best Shows at Austin City Limits".
  19. "Top Country Albums – Year-End 2006".

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