It's no surprise that Irish songwriter Van Morrison has released an album inspired by skiffle. The album 'Moving on Skiffle' represents the artist's love for the genre, which dates back to his childhood.
He frequented the famous Atlantic Records store in Belfast, where he would hear early 20th-century folk, blues, and jazz from artists like Lead Belly and Jelly Roll Morton. So, when he heard Lonnie Donegan's cover of 'Rock Island Line,' he instinctively understood the music he was creating. Soon after, Van Morrison was playing with a skiffle band at school.
Skiffle is a form of folk music featuring simple acoustic instruments. It was popularized in the UK in the 1950s, particularly after the success of Lonnie Donegan's 1954 version of Lead Belly's 'Rock Island Line.'