Orchestra

The Caledonia Soul Orchestra

Van Morrison’s backup orchestra

Active: 1973–1974
Releases: 1

About

The Caledonia Soul Orchestra was the band created by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison in 1973. The band was named after an eighteen-minute instrumental outtake from the His Band and the Street Choir album sessions.

From The Caledonia Soul Orchestra on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Members

Terry Adams now cello
Nancy Ellis now viola
Tom Halpin now violin
Tim Kovatch now violin
Nathan Rubin now violin
Dahaud Shaar now background vocals, membranophone
Jeff Labes 1973–1974 · former organ, piano
Bill Atwood 1973–1974 · former background vocals, flugelhorn, flumpet
David Hayes 1973–1974 · former background vocals, bass
Van Morrison 1973–1974 · former alto saxophone, lead vocals, acoustic guitar
John Platania 1973–1974 · former background vocals, guitar
Jack Schroer 1973–1974 · former background vocals, baritone saxophone, soprano saxophone, tambourine, tenor saxophone

Discography

Singles 1

Caldonia (What Makes Your Big Head Hard?) 1974

Links

Reference

Also known as

The Caledonia Soul Express

Identifiers

MusicBrainz: 9fa9aa2f-9908-44ce-88b6-1ce0e52fe608

Data from MusicBrainz, saved 10 Nov 2026. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, covers from the Cover Art Archive and Apple Music.