Known as "Van the Man" by his fans, Morrison first rose to prominence as the lead singer of the Northern Irish band Them, writing their 1964 hit "Gloria". A few years later, Morrison left the band for a successful solo career, starting with the album Astral Weeks.
Morrison has pursued an idiosyncratic musical path. Much of his music is tightly structured around the conventions of American soul and R&B, such as the popular singles "Brown Eyed Girl", "Moondance", "Domino", and "Wild Night". An equal part of his catalogue consists of lengthy, loosely connected, spiritually inspired musical journeys that show the influence of Celtic tradition, jazz, and stream-of-consciousness narrative, such as his classic album Astral Weeks and lesser known works such as Veedon Fleece and Common One. The two strains together are sometimes referred to as "Celtic Soul," and Morrison rejects the characterization of his genre of music as Rock, citing Elvis Presley as a non-influence.
He continues to perform regularly and achieved his highest U.S. chart position (number ten on the Billboard 200) with his 2008 album, Keep It Simple.
It's All in the Game / Make It Real One More Time
Van Morrison Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But it's all in the game-ame
All in the wonderful game
Baby, that we know as love
Love love, love, love, love, love
You-you, you-you-you-you
You had words with him
Ooh, but these things your heart
Must rise above-a
(Once in a while he won't call)
Ooh, but it's all in the game
Soon he will be standing by your side
Ooh, with a small bouquet
A small bouquet, yeah
And he will, and he will, and he will
Kiss your lips and
Ooh, caress your waiting fingertips-a
And a-you will feel like
You will feel like
You will feel like
You're gonna fly away
Fly away, fly away, fly away, fly away
(Fly-by-by, fly-by-fly-by-by
Do-do-do, do-do-do-dit
Do-do-do-dit, do-do-do-dit
Do-do-do, do-do-do
Da-da-da, da-da-da
Do-do, do-dit-da
Da-da-da-da
Da-da-do-dit-da
Do-do-do
Do-do-do
Do-do-do
Do-do-do
Do-da-da
'That's Georgie Fame'
The midnight hour is warmin' up
And comin' down, yeah
If ya need me why don't ya call me?
Then a rainbow's in my soul
There's a rainbow, there's a rainbow
There's a rainbow, there's a rainbow
(There's a rainbow)
There's a rainbow, inside my soul
(In his soul, in his soul)
And I can't stop this rainbow
(In his soul, in his soul)
Can't stop this rainbow
Billy Stewart said this:
(Sitting in the park
Waiting for you-ooo-ooo-ooo-ooo-woo)
Jonn Savannah
(applause)
He'll be down by the pylon at one
(Make it real one more time)
Anytime by the pylon at one
(Make it real one more time)
He'll be down by the pylons, baby
(Make it real one more time)
When I fall in love
(Make it real one more time)
It will be forever
(Make it real one more time)
I'm never, never, never, never, never
Gonna fall in love
(Make it real one more time)
When I give, when I give my heart
(Make it real one more time)
It will be completely
(Make it real one more time)
Oh, I'm never gonna give my heart
(Make it real one more time)
In a restless world, like this is
(Make it real one more time)
It'll be ended before it's begun
(Make it real one more time)
Too many, too many, too many
Too many, won't like to save it
(Make it real one more time)
See their failed miracle in the sunlight
(Make real one more time)
When I fall in love
(Make it real one more time)
When I fall
When I fall in love
Keep it real, it'll be forever
(Make it real one more time)
Or I'll never gonna fall in love-a
(Make it real one more time)
Never! Never! Never!
(Make it real one more time)
Never! Never! Never!
Never! Never! Never!
(Make it real one more time)
Never! Never! Never!
Never! Never! Never!
(Make it real one more time)
Never! Never! Never!
Never! Never!
(Make it real one more time)
Never gonna fall in love
(Make it real one more time)
Keep it real one more time
(Make it real one more time)
Keep it real one more time
(Make it real one more time)
Oh, make it real one more time
(Make it real one more time)
And he will kiss your lips
And caress your waiting fingertips an'
You will feel like you're gonna fly
Fly away
Make it real
Make it real
One more time, again.
V.M. spoken: 'Thankyou, thankyou'
The song It's All in the Game / Make It Real One More Time by Van Morrison is a meditation on the twists and turns of love. The opening line, "Many a tear has to fall, but it's all in the game," sets the tone for the song. Morrison is commenting on the fact that love can feel like a game, with its ups and downs, but ultimately it's worth it. The chorus, with its repetition of "love, love, love," reinforces this idea that love is the one thing that makes life worth living, even with all its complications. In the second verse, Morrison addresses a woman who has been hurt by a man. He tells her that "these things your heart must rise above," suggesting that even in the face of heartbreak, it's important to keep going and not give up hope.
The song takes a turn in the middle when Morrison introduces a spoken excerpt from Billy Stewart's Sitting in the Park. This section seems to be about waiting for a lover and the anxiety and anticipation that comes with that experience. The song then returns to its theme of love and concludes with a plea to "keep it real" and to never stop believing in the power of love.
Line by Line Meaning
Many a tear has to fall
There will be many difficult and emotional moments in a romantic relationship
But it's all in the game-ame
These difficult moments are part of the game of love
All in the wonderful game
Love is a wonderful game despite its challenges
Baby, that we know as love
This game is what we call love
You-you, you-you-you-you
Addressing the subject of the song
You had words with him
You had a disagreement with your significant other
Yeah, your future was lookin' dim-a
The outlook for your future together was bleak
Ooh, but these things your heart
However, these difficult times are things that the heart can handle
Must rise above-a
It's necessary to rise above and overcome these hardships
Ooh, but it's all in the game
Again, these difficulties are part of the game of love
Soon he will be standing by your side
Things will get better soon and your significant other will be there for support
Ooh, with a small bouquet
Your significant other will surprise you with a small gift
And he will, and he will, and he will
Your significant other will do the following things
Kiss your lips and
Your significant other will give you a kiss
Ooh, caress your waiting fingertips-a
Your significant other will touch and caress your fingers
And a-you will feel like
As a result of these gestures, you will feel like
You're gonna fly away
You will feel like you are flying away with happiness
Fly away, fly away, fly away, fly away
You will experience pure bliss and happiness
The midnight hour is warmin' up
The night is young and full of possibilities
And comin' down, yeah
The good times are here and happening now
If ya need me why don't ya call me?
If you need someone, why not call me?
Then a rainbow's in my soul
If you do, I will be so happy that it will feel like a rainbow is inside of me
Sitting in the park
Referencing a quote from Billy Stewart's song 'Sitting in the Park'
Waiting for you-ooo-ooo-ooo-ooo-woo
Waiting for the significant other to come and spend time together in the park
He'll be down by the pylon at one
Referring to meeting in a specific location at a certain time
(Make it real one more time)
A call to make the love between them real one more time
When I fall in love
Referring to a classic love song by Nat King Cole
It will be forever
Love should be forever
I'm never, never, never, never, never
A strong statement of commitment and dedication to love
Gonna fall in love
A refusal to love someone out of fear of getting hurt
When I give, when I give my heart
If and when I do decide to love, I will give my heart completely
It will be completely
Love should be all-consuming and complete
In a restless world, like this is
Referring to the tumultuous, ever-changing nature of the world we live in
It'll be ended before it's begun
Love is fragile and can end before it even really begins
Too many, too many, too many
Too many people don't believe in love or want to keep it alive
Won't like to save it
They don't want to save it
See their failed miracle in the sunlight
Seeing the failed relationships of others is discouraging
Keep it real, it'll be forever
Stressing the importance of keeping love real and true in order to make it last forever
Never gonna fall in love-a
A refusal to let oneself fall in love
Keep it real one more time
Reiterating the importance of keeping love real
Oh, make it real one more time
Asking for one more dose of reality in love
And he will kiss your lips
Returning to the description of the romantic gestures from earlier
And caress your waiting fingertips an'
Describing the physical affection that will occur in the romantic relationship
You will feel like you're gonna fly
Resulting in an indescribable feeling of happiness
Make it real one more time
Another call for reality and true love
Keep it real one more time
Again, stressing the importance of keeping love real
Make it real one more time
One last plea for true love
Thankyou, thankyou
Expressing gratitude and appreciation to the audience
Contributed by Alexis L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.