THE DOORS

I'm not particularly keen on making these kinds of statements but here goes: the Doors are Jim Morrison. Don't get me wrong, I have the utmost respect for the other three members, but really the Doors' legacy rests mainly on one man, and, I have to say, rightly so. Jim Morrison was one of the greatest frontmen ever, if not the greatest. Think about it, who actually was better as a pure frontman? Although, obviously some singers were more talented in other respects, as the complete package I think no-one rivals Morrison. He was, in my humble (though strictly heterosexual) opinion, the most good looking rock star ever; peerlessly charismatic, off-stage and on; dangerously wild - the true epitome of rock'n'roll (indeed, he is statistically the most arrested rock star) and also pretty talented. Clearly he was hardly the best song-writer ever and although not technically the greatest ever singer he had a marvellously unique singing voice, half Sinatra-esque croon, half unleashed Iggy Pop style scream. He was also one of the first true poets of rock (behind Dylan of course) influencing the whole pretentious literacy of subsequent rock-poets like Patti Smith or Morrissey. Obviously this a rather rudimentary rule of thumb but I often find the sign of a good lyricist is how many one-liners are competing for quotation in my review summaries and for most albums on this page it was usually at least two or three. And despite being in a somewhat psychedelic band Morrison rarely strayed into Jefferson Airplane-style silliness. Many of his lyrics concerned the likes of "people going down slow" or "really liking to get it on" and even if it was LSD inspired psychedelia it was mainly "screaming butterflies" and Oedipian fantasies.

Despite all my gushing I hope you don't think I'm obsessed with him or anything (as some people seem to be). He was also, infamously, a truly nasty piece of work, unremittingly disgracefully horrible to anyone he ever met. Indeed this seems a good link for the rest of the band to come in. I really feel sorry for them to have to put up with such a bastard, constantly pissing them off and hogging the limelight. Still that is the price you pay for supporting the greatest frontman rock'n'roll's ever seen. Still the rest of the band are all deserving of a fair bit of praise for producing (mostly) consistently excellent music and as an influential force in rock music being somewhat underrated. In fact, the Doors are sometimes labelled as overrated because of Morrison's early death. Indeed, I have a friend who holds that view which he uses to back up his "catchphrase" that "the Doors are just a pub singer with muzak backing" which he never fails to bore us with if someone is unfortunate to bring up the Doors' name within a fifteen mile radius of him. Now I admit Manzarek's hammond organ does sound a little "casio" like at times but when the Doors want to rock, with their trademark pounding blues, then, by God, don't you try and stop them. I also think Krieger is a slightly underrated guitarist. He has a unique style, unusually reliant on finger-picking, and he can really let rip with the effects for devastating effect - just listen to his (if not the band's) defining moment, the epic "When the Music's Over" for evidence of this.

The Doors did six albums from 1967 to 1971 before Morrison died of heart failure in Paris (the others are still alive). The rest carried on as a trio with Manzarek singing and released two albums (I think) but apparently they are phenomenally poor (unsurprisingly, I guess) and I don't think they are even available on CD. So for the purposes of this site, consider this a complete collection. I also have the subsequent cash-in An American Prayer released late in the seventies. Oliver Stone also made a film about the Doors (called The Doors) with Val Kilmer portraying Morrison, surprisingly convincingly (well, more so than Batman anyway), but, like most of Stone's films (apart from Midnight Express) it is pretty crap. But then I'm not an arbitrator of taste on films (just music) so you might as well ignore that last sentence. Anyway, that about wraps up the introduction except to mention that they never had a bassist, although they usually used a session player. Given most studio songs featured a bassist I really don't know why they didn't just recruit one permanently but then I guess it is not up to me. Unfortunately.

This was actually one of the first "old" CDs I purchased after tiring of contemporary music (the Verve made sure of that) many moons ago. Of course, as is the wont of record companies, all the albums have been subsequently remastered and re-released so half my Doors' collection is brand spanking new and the other is distinctly tatty. Still, at least they didn't put bonus tracks on, so this review, itself, can be as remastered as you want. Whatever that means. Clearly this album was the Doors' debut and, as such, contains three of their most famous songs, "Break on Through", "The End" and, of course, "Light My Fire". Despite later forays into hard blues most of the material on here is fairly poppy. There is one blues cover ("Back Door Man"), a rather bizarre musical medley ("Alabama Song") and a couple of darker, psychedelic numbers (the short and mediocre "End of the Night" and the haunting epic, "The End"). Still, for the most part, the Doors started life as a pop group, albeit with drug-induced nods to psychedelia and a distinctive hard rock edge. Now I'm going to presume you are all familiar, dear readers, with "Light My Fire". Probably the poppiest of songs the Doors did and presumably their most famous song. Poppy, that is, until the middle-section which is an extended instrumental with Manzarek and Krieger swopping solos sandwiched in between the cod-Sinatra croon of the actual "song". I can't say it is the most sensible approach to a pop song, and it won't surprise you to learn that it was released as a single with the instrumental section hacked off, but overall it works fairly well. Clearly a stand-out track on what is, all things considered, a very strong album. The other big single was the more rockier "Break on Through" which opens the album and features no such self-indulgent tricks. Just a straight-up rocker with Jim acting more Iggy than Sinatra. (Obviously I'm not suggesting Morrison copied Iggy as he quite obviously predates him as a singer.) The other "biggie" (in every sense of the word) on the album is the aptly-titled "The End" which closes the album on a long, drawn-out, confusing, sometimes disturbing and utterly psychedelic note. I don't think it is the Door's best epic as it is mostly structureless as opposed to the brilliant strictness of "When the Music's Over" or "The Soft Parade" but it still stands out as a memorable composition. The guitar has a sort of eastern feel to it, occasionally building up into climatic sections to match Morrison's insane ramblings about "weird scenes inside the goldmine" and "riding the snake". The lyrical centre-piece is probably his unnerving description of an Oedipian fantasy. I actually used to do quite a good impression of it but I made sure I gave it up when the joke became lame. Anyway you can certainly see elements of An American Prayer in this number. It is probably most memorable, though, as the theme to the opening credits of Apocalypse Now with the napalm and the helicopters and stuff. Seeing that scene in the cinema really brings a new element to the song. Anyway, overall I'd say the song is mostly pretty impressive but I doubt it marks the high-point of the Doors' album-closing epics. The cover of "Back Door Man" is also a highpoint on the album which perfectly counter-balances the light-weight pop of "Light My Fire". Again Morrison is on form with his exaggerated growling and yelping and the pounding, almost heavy, blues is something that they would mostly concentrate on for their last couple of albums. "Soul Kitchen" is an organ driven rock song while "The Crystal Ship" is a restrained, gentle ballad. "Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar)", on the other hand, is an amalgamation of two musical-hall classics: "Whiskey Bar" from a German musical and the traditional American "Moon of Alabama". It is certainly an interesting blend but, you can't help but feeling, maybe a little out of place on the album. As for weak-spots, "End of the Night" is not fantastic and "Twentieth Century Fox" and "I Looked at You" are both slightly generic pop songs; certainly nothing special. Still, as is often the ways with debut albums, the band have yet to find their forte. Certainly this album is bursting with good ideas, most of which, to some extent, are successfully pulled off.

Along with The Doors and L.A. Woman my copy of this album is pre-remastering. To be honest, though, I doubt any plush engineering is needed for this album. It is simply great, regardless. Apart from the silly piece of poetry, "Horse Latitudes" every song, bar one, on here could be a considered a greatest hit and the song that couldn't is perhaps the Doors' greatest ever song. Howsaboutthatthen? Surprisingly, this is rarely regarded as the Doors' best album (except on other review sites) but I cannae see how the other albums could be superior. Where are there faults with this album? Answer: there are none. Well, apart from "Horse Latitudes" which is a sort of pre-cursor for An American Prayer with Morrison narrating pretentious poetry about horses drowning over unnerving sound effects. Really something so avant-garde is utterly out of place here as basically every other song is simply a fantastically commercial song. Some sway towards pop ("People are Strange", "Unhappy Girl") whilst others are more hard rockin' ("My Eyes Have Seen You") but none are even remotely poor. On the popular 2CD Doors Greatest Hits I believe "Strange Days", "Love Me Two Times", "People are Strange" and "When the Music's Over" are included from this album but, and I can't stress this enough, it really could be any of them. Indeed, the inclusion of "When the Music's Over" on the Greatest Hits is certainly a brave one. You see, continuing on from the trend set on the first album it acts as the epic album closer. And it is even more magnificent than "The End". Without losing any of its psychedelia it has a much stricter, although (if anything) more expansive, structure than "The End". I tell you, it is the shortest eleven minutes I've ever experienced such is the way the song sucks you in. As I intimated in the introduction, Krieger's guitar playing is phenomenal throughout the song with all manner of diving effects to easily rival the emerging Jimi Hendrix. It is a shame he doesn't attempt such similar tricks on the rest of the Doors' repertoire. The rest of the band are also on top form, though, especially (need I say it?) Jim Morrison with his powerful vocals and imaginative, but never silly, psychedelic lyrics. I guess it helps that he is a proper poet rather than the lyricists for the likes of Cream or King Crimson. Incredibly this album was actually released the same year that their debut came out. How on earth they managed to write such a fantastic album coming so soon after an almost equally as good one is beyond me. Certainly you can't imagine that sort of thing happening outside the sixties. The pop songs on the album are difficult to clearly distinguish between in terms of quality. The single "Love Me Two Times" is perhaps, at a push, the best number on here. I once saw TV footage of the band performing it live and for the duration of the entire song the cameras were fixed upon Morrison's face and he still gave an utterly mesmerising performance; although I guess his good looks help such matters. "People are Strange" was also a single, I think, which is also a great song. The opening title track leans strongly towards psychedelia with Morrison's vocals distorted. "You're Lost Little Girl", on the other hand, is a straight-up piano ballad but, phew, still an absolute corker. I particularly like the more pounding numbers "Moonlight Drive" and "My Eyes Have Seen You". The latter is probably the better as it is certainly more climatic. And an honourable mention for "I Can't See Your Face in My Mind" which, it won't shock you to learn, is another out-right classic with a slower tempo and an unsettling melody. People are always coming up to me in the street and saying: "Jack, tell me, which is the best Doors' album. Is it their debut, or perhaps L.A. Woman?" To which I reply: "'tis neither, my child, the answer you seek is their second album Strange Days." Upon which they either thank me or just run off without saying anything, leaving me shaking my fist at them in anger. Part, or perhaps all, of that little anecdote I just made up. Can you tell? Anyway, you should probably buy this album post haste. And that's my piece of advice to you.

Listening to this album you can't help but feel the Doors are at a bit of a loose end. Most of this sounds much like the material on Strange Days, whilst the tracks that do aim at diversity don't actually sound much like Doors' songs. Obviously none of this entails that this is a bad album but it definitely suggests the Doors were running out of ideas and looking for some new ones. Still, if you are going to carry on in the vein of Strange Days you are still coming to come up with the goods and this album certainly does, just not to such stunning effect as on the previous album. "Hello, I Love You" (good title, by the way) could easily have slotted into the running order on Strange Days. It if did, though, I would no doubt have listed it as a best track as it is another of the Doors' greatest hits. One of two, really, on this album - the other being the album closer "Five to One". "Hello, I Love You", though, is unquestionably a great pop song. "Five to One", on the other hand, aims more at what the band will go on to achieve on their last two albums, namely a great pounding rock song. For a band that refused to have a bassist it seems rather cheeky to rely so much on a bass riff but all that is swiftly forgiven when the song kicks in. Morrison's at his most Iggy-ish with loose, almost deranged, vocals (I think about war, but who's counting?) set against a pulsating, dramatic riff. The only real surprise is that, as the last song on the album, it is less than ten minutes long (a mere four). Anyway, first track = a great pop song and last track = a great rock song, what of the rest? Well, you might consider them a somewhat patchy, and at times bizarre, collection. "Love Street", "Summer's Almost Gone" and "Yes, the River Knows" are all piano-driven which, at least, avoids the "casio" effect. All three are amongst the best of the rest on the album. At a push "Summer's Almost Gone" is the best with a nice melody and, lyrically, a clever metaphor about the loss of childhood. "Love Street", on the other hand, is a fairly perky love song, not without a certain goofish charm. The piano line on the verse of "Yes, the River Knows" is a rather odd one. I presume it is jazz-influenced as it is all over the place (although presumably never out of key) which rather unfortunately obscures the actual melody of the song. I'm not sure if the vocal melody for the verse is that great regardless. The real power and appeal of the song lies in the chorus with a nice vocal melody and an entrancing, descending piano line. What about the odd diversity then? Well I'd say two songs are particularly odd, "Spanish Caravan" and "My Wild Love". "Spanish Caravan" is even included on the Greatest Hits but it seems a rather unusual choice both on account of its odd structure and the fact that it isn't all that great. It begins with some accomplished flamenco picking from Kreiger with Morrison singing silly lyrics soon after. Half way through, though, it changes to an electric riff and tries to turn itself into an electric latin-style rocker without really succeeding. It doesn't really sound much like a Doors' song at all, more like their LA neighbours' Love but it certainly ain't up to the quality of Forever Changes. "My Wild Love", on the other hand, is sung basically a cappella by Morrison with the band singing funny rhythmic noises. There are definitely no instruments involved although it certainly ain't barber-shop. The anti-war tale "The Unknown Soldier" is also a bit funny, with military sound effects taking the place of the song for a section in the middle. It is better than the previous two oddities but it isn't really long enough to make its point and I doubt the song-writing is good enough for an epic length anyway. Damned if you do, damned if you don't, it would seem. A final word of commendation for "We Could Be so Good Together" which is a lot like the Strange Days material again. In some kind of summary: this is a strong and competent album with plenty of fine compositions. You can't help but feel the band aren't really going anywhere and the attempts to break free are a little weak. Still, I'm sure they'll get it right. If not on the next album definitely the one after. On that I'm certain.

It is fair to say the spirit of Strange Days has been soundly exorcised for this album. In its place we find the spirit of Big Band arrangements, a quasi-ethnic feel and a slight envy of the Beatles. Yessireebob, this is a mixed bag. Strangely this is the only album to feature individual writing credits showing us, effectively, that Morrison and Krieger pretty much equally shared the song-writing duties. This often leads to people giving Krieger a bit of stick for this album but I hardly think he is any more culpable than Morrison. I know for a fact he wrote "Light My Fire" and no-one complains about that, so leave off will you? To be fair, though, Morrison does get him out of jail somewhat with the closing title track which is reason alone why this album is not as bad as many critics make out. Ah yes, that title track. Returning to the spirit of the first two albums it is by far the longest track on here (although less than nine minutes) but it takes on a less continuous feel, seemingly made up of three separate songs. That's not to say it sounds disjointed, although you might argue it doesn't flow as seamlessly as "When the Music's Over". I actually think the first two parts of it sound a bit like Gabriel-era Genesis. It starts, though, with Morrison imitating an evangelist preacher sermoning about "petitioning the Lord with prayer" before beginning for real as a wonderfully eerie, harpsichord driven number. You may like to compare it to the opening of "Dancing with the Moonlit Knight" if you are still scoffing at my Genesis-related claim. It unexpectedly switches to a bizarre, jaunty, almost child-like, tune which, all told, is probably the weakest moment of the song. It ends with the line "the... monk... bought... lunch..." before Morrison cackles "he bought it alright" and the song drops seamlessly into a fantastic, grooving bass-line to which Morrison tells us "this is the best part of the trip" and then overdubs several vocals giving the effect of numerous Jim Morrisons having a confused conversation with each other. That final section builds into a memorable chant before Morrison finally rants about "when all else fails we can rip the horses eyes..." and the song finally disappears into the drug-induced void from whence it came. Apart from perhaps that goofy second section, that song is everything that makes Jim Morrison so great. Unfortunately, friends, we have to sit through the preceding twenty-five minutes of a rather patchy motley crue of songs, before the aforementioned mesmerising epic is upon us. Three songs are given the full big-band orchestral treatment: "Tell All the People", "Touch Me" and "Wishful Sinful". The opening "Tell All the People", to me, sounds a little like a Sgt. Pepper rip-off and certainly it doesn't sound like the sort of song the Doors should be doing. It ain't particularly bad but it is not the type of song that made the Doors great. For "Touch Me", apart from the whoop at the beginning, Morrison delights in affecting his most Sinatra-esque croon. Not that you would expect Frank to ever sing something so blatantly erotic. The climatic sax solo at the end is a rather odd conclusion to what is basically a Big Band pop song. That said, if you are a fan of the Stones' "Can't You Hear Me Knocking?" then you have to give this song its due. Well, the end of it, at least. I know most Doors fan hate "Touch Me" but I really like it, if only because it pisses off other Doors fans. "Wishful Sinful" is also a big-band style song with an unsubtle string arrangement. Again, I like it, although it is hardly going to make their top 10 songs or anything. It does, however, make the top 3 in terms of this album. I also mentioned a bit of ethnicity at the start, did I not? Well, both "Shaman's Blues" and "Wild Child", lyrically at least, hint of Africa. The most ethnic number, though, is probably the American rockabilly of "Runnin' Blue". It begins with Morrison singing a funny blues song and the chorus features Krieger's only ever lead vocal with him singing some hicky number. It ain't great. And neither is this album. But it is still better than most critics give credit for. There isn't much greatest hits material on here but at least the title track is among the coolest songs the Doors ever did. To conclude: YOU CANNOT PETITION THE LORD WITH PRAYER! You heard the man.

Picture, if you will, the band turning up for the recording sessions for this album. One of them (say, Krieger) says "hmm, that Soft Parade was a bit of a flop why don't we make an album of some pounding rock songs, mixed in with our own distinctive brand of psychedelic pop?" Manzarek: "Why that's great idea!" Jim Morrison: "Yeah, and let's do some sea-shanties as well." Rest of band: "erm...." Exit J Morrison stage left clutching large bottle of Jack Daniels and accompanied by a naked indian. Well, that's how I would have made the film anyway. Anyhow, this album is my favourite Doors album and almost worthy of 10* status if it weren't for two rock interpretations of the traditional sea-shanty inexplicably placed bang in the middle. Although they do spoil the flow of the album I'm not sure that is exactly a bad thing as this album is very definitely a tale of two halves. Indeed, the two sides actually have separate names, the first side going by the name of "Hard Rock Cafe" and the second, "Morrison Hotel". My real complaint is that "Ship of Fools" and "Land Ho!" just aren't very good. Presumably whoever wrote them (I guess either Krieger or Morrison) had just been enjoying Stevenson's Treasure Island. Or perhaps the Hornblower series. Either way, I'm not impressed. What I am impressed with, though, is the rest of the album (give or take) and especially the first and final song, "Roadhouse Blues" and "Maggie M'Gill" respectively. Both are those wonderfully pounding blues songs that I have been waxing lyrical over at various moments further up the page. If you are looking for the definitive version of "Roadhouse Blues" you should actually be after the live version which is easily available elsewhere (on a Greatest Hits [the single CD], An American Prayer and, I presume, on another live album). However the version on here is still pretty great, with a harmonica dominating (not present at all on the live version) but without quite the same groove as the live performance. It still includes, thankfully, the lyrical couplet "I woke up this morning and got myself a beer/The future's uncertain, the end is always near" which is probably the coolest rock'n'roll lyric ever. Up there with MC5's "I'm a born hell-raiser and I don't give a damn" anyway. Indeed "Roadhouse Blues" is probably the Doors' coolest song and, if we're talking the live version, perhaps their best. "Maggie M'Gill", on the other hand, needs no live flourishes to enhance it. Another great pounding rock song with the horny chorus of "people out there... really like to get it on." Actually if we're talking horny lyrics I shouldn't let "Roadhouse Blues'" "at the back of the roadhouse they got some bungalows, just for the people who like to go down slow" go unmentioned. "The Spy" is also an ingenious rock song with Krieger's lazy guitar line brilliantly echoing Morrison's shady vocals before the piano enters for the pounding chorus for which Morrison ominously intones: "I know your deepest darkest fears". I can't help but think the references to the "house of love" in the verse are a dark retort to their earlier, chirpy "Love Street" (from Waiting for the Sun). Regardless, another great song. Speaking of Waiting for the Sun, the would-be title track is actually on here, inexplicably two albums late. It is perhaps a shame it isn't on the original album as it easily would have been a best track. But then it is a best track on here as well so I guess there is no need. It does sound like a Waiting for the Sun style song (ie. in the shadow of Strange Days) but, on here, it makes the album sound more diverse. The double bill of "Peace Frog" and "Blue Sunday" I am actually more familiar with from An American Prayer (more of that later) so I find it hard to isolate them individually. "Peace Frog" is a good, if slight, rocker, with a good riff from Krieger, whilst "Blue Sunday" is an entrancing ballad with some lovely, whimsical vocals from Morrison. The segue from the end of "Peace Frog" to the start of "Blue Sunday" is one of the key moments on the album. "Queen of the Highway" is another really good song and I was itching to put it on the best tracks list but, then, I don't want to over-egg the pudding. Whereas The Soft Parade was an album that didn't sound a whole lot like the Doors this album most certainly does. Maybe the song-writing isn't as consistently good as Strange Days (thanks mainly to those darned sea-shanties) but there's no doubting this is the Doors' coolest album. Its best songs are pounding rock classics and Morrison hasn't even turned into a fat, bearded bear yet. Ergo their coolest, if not quite best, album.

Hey, where's Jim Morrison gone? Instead of the coolest rock'n'roll frontman ever the band seem to have replaced him with some lardy, bearded bear of a man who just growls his way through all the songs. Well, clearly Morrison is still in the band but, unfortunately, he looks and sounds like he's aged ten years in the space of a year. I really don't know why rock stars grow beards as it just makes them look ten years older than they actually are (c.f. Pete Townsend, Jimmy Page and every Beatle bar Paul) and on top of which Morrison has clearly been tucking into a few pies. To complement his new "mature" look he has also dropped his exuberant whooping and even his big band croon for a growling blues voice meaning he sounds as old as he now looks. Obviously the end was nigh for him but I don't know whether he realised it. I imagine the rest of the band probably did, though. Anyhow, he quite clearly can't be arsed singing silly little pop songs (with one bizarre exception) so most of the album is straightforward blues mixed in with more distinctive rock songs. There are three out and out blues songs on here which is round about the first time they've recorded one since "Back Door Man" on their debut. Despite this apparent conservatism this still stands up as one of the Doors' best albums. I guess the so-laid-back-its-horizontal "Cars Hiss by my Window" brings little to the album (although Morrison's imitation guitar solo at the end is intriguing; like a role reversal of the end of Hendrix's "Rainy Day") and the cover of "Crawling King Snake" hardly matches Morrison Hotel for pounding blues but there are some serious classics on this album. The most classic is probably the finale, "Riders on the Storm", which would have made a pertinent-sounding last-word from Morrison if it weren't for An American Prayer. Personally I find the whispered double-tracked vocals a little too unnerving although I'm sure the band would argue that that's the point. Either way it is an unsettling and atmospheric end to the album. One of the Doors' best songs. The other two greatest hits are the pop song "Love Her Madly" and the rollicking epic "L.A. Woman". "Love Her Madly" could almost sound like one of the piano-based pop songs from early in their career if it weren't for Morrison's earthly vocals. "L.A. Woman", on the other hand, basically continues where "Roadhouse Blues" left off but without quite the same panache. Regardless it seems a natural choice as one of the best songs from the album. Also a natural choice but surprisingly not on Greatest Hits compilations is the album opener "The Changeling". A great rock song with brilliant wah-wah lead guitar from Krieger and one of the few tracks on here that could be considered cool. Certainly, despite the gruff vocals, the spirit of Morrison Hotel has been continued. The more observant among you may have noticed that I referred to a "bizarre exception" above. That is the silly pop song "Hyacinth House" which still features Morrison's old man voice but with banal lyrics about a "brand new friend". Despite being perhaps a little banal it still has some charm. It certainly represents an odd change of mood on the album. Like I said in my Morrison Hotel review I have actually owned An American Prayer longer than any other Doors' album so it might not surprise you to learn that I was already familiar with "The Wasp" long before buying this. In any case it is another excellent song with Morrison's sublime poetry imitating a radio announcer. The section in the middle where Morrison cries "no eternal reward will forgive us now for wasting the dawn" and Krieger lets rip with an almighty guitar solo is a truly magical moment. I think Morrison might have died before this album was even released but either way this represents the closing chapter of the original Doors. (I guess you might count An American Prayer and the Doors-sans-Morrison albums as appendixes.) And it's a great chapter to boot.

"Ah, here we go", you're thinking, "he's bottled it." The one album out of all my collection that I could justifiably give a ridiculously low mark to and thereby somewhat dispel the accusations of me being too generous. If you weren't aware, this is a shameless cash-in with recordings of Morrison reciting his poetry set to music by the Doors years after he died. In fact they couldn't even be bothered properly soundtracking it so a lot of material on here is just snatches of songs from the Doors' back catalogue.1* surely? No. No, I just won't have it. As you may have realised by now I have a soft-spot for this album. For me, it was the soundtrack to many a hot summer night in the company of my friends. The final days before, to quote the Doors themselves, "Summer's almost gone", both literally and metaphorically. To be honest, I practically know this album off by heart and still enjoy listening to it now and again. Of course, I can't say I listen to it more than two or three times a year, but then I could say the same about Sgt. Pepper so that fact alone doesn't establish anything. So why not give it a high mark then? Well, I'll admit it isn't the greatest work of art ever. Its originality and artist ambition is overshadowed somewhat by the wholly capitalist motives for releasing it in the first place. To be honest, I've no idea if Morrison intended to release these ramblings while still alive although it is likely he probably did (otherwise why record them in the first place?). In any case it is really hard to properly evaluate this album, certainly in strict relation to normal albums. In the end I've opted for a (more or less) positive mark but I thought it a little unfair to give it the same rating as The Soft Parade. The one thing that really saves this album is the listenability. A full-length album of basically narration might seem a little daunting but Morrison's reciting voice is so easy on the ear yet compelling at the same time it represents no problem. All in all, the perfect voice for such a project and, like I said, this is probably what led to the whole thing being lodged in my mind for so long. Just when you might be getting a little tired of all this pretentious ramblings the band throw in that infamous live version of "Roadhouse Blues" I was lauding earlier, slap-bang in the middle, to re-engage the wandering mind. The version itself is just simply blistering and is probably one of the best live performances of any song I've ever heard. The crowning glory, though, is a bit of banter left on the end between Jim and an adoring fan. "Yeah, that's right baby I am a sagittarius, the most philosophical of all the signs... anyway, I don't believe in it, I think it's a bunch of bull-shit myself..." I'm not going to type out the whole thing but it certainly reinforces the impression that Jim Morrison was one the coolest men who ever lived. The only problem with the inclusion of "Roadhouse Blues" is that it might make you somewhat annoyed that you're not listening to proper music. It reminds you how great the Doors' were without actually delivering anything more. Still, I don't find it a great problem myself as it is soon followed by Jim's lament for his cock which is, at a push, the most unintentionally hilarious moment (of many) on the album. As long as you don't take the album too seriously I think there is plenty of enjoyment to be had. The use of the likes of "Peace Frog", "The Wasp" and "Riders on the Storm" as backing music adds immensely and surprisingly doesn't sound too out of place. That said, most of the new backing music is pretty good, particularly the opening "Ghost Song" and the closing "An American Prayer". In preparing for this review I listened to the whole thing again (the second time this year and it's only May) and I definitely still enjoy it. Maybe it is the memories but surely I'm not alone in enjoying this? During a long hot summer night why don't you unbelievers dig it out and give it a listen? You might be pleasantly surprised. That said, the odd mood of the album doesn't make it a good early morning listen. This record must be played at night. By the way, there are a few bonus tracks included. The a cappella "Bird of Prey" was actually sampled by Fatboy Slim (giving the record executives a new marketing spin) but the best bonus track is "The Ghost Song" which is assembled as a composite whole - a sort of psychedelic proto-rap song. Anyhow, to repeat: I'm not bottling out, I actually like this album and, even objectively, I think it has some artistic value. Listen to it now or else, before you know it, summer will have gone. Then where will we be?