Eric Clapton and Van Morrison have released their new song collaboration, “Stand and Deliver.” The track, to protest the British government’s latest decision to lockdown the country, officially arrived on December 18.
Morrison posted an announcement on his social media platforms on Dec. 2 that the song, though originally planned for a Dec. 4 release, was being delayed until Dec. 18. (On Dec. 4, it had been mistakenly uploaded to Clapton’s YouTube channel. By 3 p.m. ET that same day, it had been removed.)
Listen to it below. (It’s also available for purchase via the Amazon links.)
On Dec. 2, Morrison’s announced that the release date was moving to Dec. 18
A brief clip of the song, written by Morrison and sung by Clapton, was first teased on Nov. 27. The pair of classic rock legends have taken heat for their stance.
The track is the latest in a series of anti-lockdown songs that Morrison has written and recorded as part of his “Save Live Music” campaign. In September and October, he released three songs to protest the ongoing restrictions.
“Take a look in the mirror,” Clapton sings. “Do you wanna be a free man? Do you wanna be a slave? Do you want to be a king, or just remain a knave?
“Magna Carta, Bill of Rights. Constitution, what’s it worth?
You know they gonna grind us down ’til it really hurts,
“Is this a sovereign nation or just a fascist state? You better look out, people, before it gets too late.
“Do you want to make it better? Or do you want to make it worse?”
Listen to “Stand and Deliver”
Variety quotes Clapton as saying, “There are many of us who support Van and his endeavors to save live music; he is an inspiration. We must stand up and be counted because we need to find a way out of this mess. The alternative is not worth thinking about. Live music might never recover.”
Remember, those who are shutting down our economy haven’t missed a paycheck since lockdown began. We are not in this together.
— Van Morrison (@vanmorrison) December 21, 2020
“Eric’s recording is fantastic and will clearly resonate with the many who share our frustrations,” said Morrison. “It is heart-breaking to see so many talented musicians lack any meaningful support from the government, but we want to reassure them that we are working hard every day to lobby for the return of live music, and to save our industry.”
Listen to the brief clip of “Stand and Deliver,” first released on Nov. 27
💥 NEW TRACK RELEASE 💥
In a bid to save live venues and support musicians, @vanmorrison and @EricClapton are releasing a new single, ‘Stand and Deliver’
Download the exclusive track on December 4th to #SaveLiveMusic
Available on @AppleMusic @AmazonMusicUK @Deezer @Spotify pic.twitter.com/ehDdKGhoL0
— Save Live Music (@Save_LiveMusic) November 27, 2020
Morrison performed the first of several socially distanced concerts for 2020 on Sept. 3 in Newcastle, U.K., and then two more in the London borough of Camden, on Sept. 5-6. The dates followed his Aug. 25 statement in which he railed upon the “pseudo-science” associated with the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I call on my fellow singers, musicians, writers, producers, promoters and others in the industry to fight with me on this,” he wrote. “Come forward, stand up, fight the pseudo-science and speak up.” He turned 75 on August 31. Tickets for Morrison’s 2021 concerts are available here and here.
Clapton is a few months older than Morrison, having turned 75 last March 30. Tickets for his 2021 concerts are available here and here.
On March 3, 2020, just prior to the closing down of much of the concert industry for the year, the classic rock legends performed together at a charity event.
At that Music For the Marsden concert, Clapton joined Morrison on the latter’s recent, “Three Chords and the Truth.”
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19 Comments so far
Jump into a conversationGentlemen, you can’t be questioning authority! This is rock & roll!
Where are the rebel rockers that we had in the 70’s? No sign of a clash or a Jam. Nope, we have Bon Jovi with ‘Do what we can’ Pathetic
This is propaganda
There’s a possibility no industry that’s been harder hit than the live music industry, which has been in its death throes at a local level for over ten years. While I am deeply sympathetic to those in the industry who are suffering serious financial problems as a result of this pandemic, those who are dying from it, and their families, suffer even more. With that in mind, I question Van’s claims of pseudo-science, as being concerned only with self. It’s the inability of politicians and people en masse to follow the recommendations of medical professionals and scientists that’s keeping us in this state of a pandemic rollercoaster, and I think that mocking the recommendations that are meant to keep us safe, for ones own gain, is pathetic, no matter how much we love live music.
Unless you can actually hear what the song lyrics are which I cannot, for the clip is way too short, it is impossible to know that the song is actually protesting the recommendations, other than the government’s decision to have another lockdown, which clearly Morrison, Clapton and others are against. I cannot speak for Britain for I don’t live there, but here in British Columbia, Canada, we have no lockdown. There are about 900 cases a day and 11 deaths announced on Friday, which actually is less than 1% of actual population. Personally, I support the social restrictions imposed, but don’t support a lockdown where I live for the numbers are way too small to justify that and hurt too many people and her in Canada, Trudeau has already dished out millions in support that our economy may never recover. Better to keep people working and following the social guidelines. As for the song, it sounds pretty good, but don’t recognize Clapton’s voice, but been years since I have heard him sing anything new, for don’t follow him.
Absolutely agree, and as Van and Eric are elder statesmen they are at most risk, fighting what must be done to keep people safe is selfish idiocy.
True. Excellent post
Tu ci stai ripetendo la narrativa che ascoltiamo da un anno con un martellamento pneumatico alienante e non abbiamo certo bisogno di un’altra voce-pappagallo.
Purtroppo sarai tra gli ultimi a capire. Auguri
When the government tells you to jump off a bridge, you going to be first in line? If you can’t smell the rat in this lockdown BS and covid BS, I suggest you turn off the TV and do some research! Thank you Eric Clapton and Van Morrison for having what it takes to stand up to these criminals!
Maybe people would like to listen to this from their hospital room suffering from COVID. I always thought Van M was a flake and Eric has lost a fan.
There is nothing pseudo about the science – study after study and anecdotal evidence (e.g., the Mayo Clinic yesterday) has confirmed that mask wearing and distancing lowers transmission rates. Nothing is 100% and the maths of transmission and immunity is centuries old. The only pseudo thing is how politicians interpret (or, more accurately, do not understand or read) the science. Exhibit A is Trump but he has many acolytes.
As for me, cannot wait for the new song. I get it…release the shutdown Tyranny so we can live our lives. Let the Bands play live music in Concert. We are adults and we know how to take care of ourselves better than any Government….Thanks for the effort …hope it works…
I agree with you Dee. My husband is very high risk, he had a liver transplant in March and he is 65. Even still, I support pushing back against these unproductive shutdowns. Especially when used against children!!!
“Pseudo-science”? Really? What makes either of them any kind of authority on this awful disease that has ravaged the world? I have lost much of my respect for these 2 musicians whose music & careers I have followed for over half my life.
Great musicians but complete idiots about everything else. Stick to performing you morons and forget about social commentary. We’re sorry that good decisions are in the way of your fun but that’s life!
Fighting back from aggressive oppression such as we are finding here in the states (as in the UK) is a difficult undertaking to say the least. Music is a strong & direct manner to move the needle in a positive direction. Mankind’s health & well-being needs to be wisely considered and not tossed off to the side due to the virus. Thank you Van & Eric for your creative message and musical talents! Don’t give up the ship!
Onward and Upward!!!
Morrison, while a great singer, is a fat, spoiled old Irish drunk whose concerts long ago turned into money grabs. Clapton, who owes his entire career to Black music, has never been among rock’s brighter ‘bulbs’ but further diminishes his already dimmed legacy with this right wing drivel. I am sure the nurses & drs who put their lives on the line each day to actually SAVE lives might disagree with these ‘MAGA’t has beens…
The problem is Covid-19 is overwhelming the health system. Here in the states are fears we are going to run out of hospital beds. This stuff is bad news. I am 65 and already have a compromised immune system. I haven’t set foot in my church the whole year.