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Review Summary: Returning to the blues, The Doors create their best album since Strange Days. By late December ’68, The Doors are being hailed as America’s Rolling Stones. And just at that moment, Jim announces he’s quitting. The band is stunned. Without Jim, there is no Doors. His girlfriend, Pam Courson, encourages him to focus on his poetry. It frees him from the requirements of rock stardom. But getting out is not as easy as it seems. Ray convinces him to give it six more months. But as his drinking increases, Rays sees it give birth to Jim’s alter ego, who he names Jimbo. Everyone dreads his appearance. Out of concern for his health, and the future of the band, they finally confront him directly. Jim listens politely. He stays sober, for about a week. Then Jimbo returns. The band hires a group of professional drinkers to keep tabs on Morrison. They can’t keep up with him. At a party in L.A., he ends up with his face in Janis Joplin’s lap. She breaks down in tears, and then cracks a whiskey bottle over his head. Pam gets tired of Jim’s drunken infidelities. She convinces him to see a psychiatrist. Jim goes to one session. He’s moving further away from his family. When his mother comes to watch The Doors in Washington D.C., Jim does not see her. He hasn’t spoken to his father since 1966, when he got a letter from him to ‘give up any idea of singing, or any connection with a musical group, because of what I consider a complete lack of talent in this direction’.
In September 1968, The Doors tour Europe. They’re a big hit, even after Jim swallows a chunk of hash in Amsterdam, and collapses on stage. The band plays the gig without him, with Ray doing all the singing. The alcohol takes a personal toll. When Ray first puts the band together, he and Jim are very close. Jim had always welcomed Robbie, offering advice, like giving each lyric a double meaning. His drinking drives a wedge between them. John and Jim used to drive around dreaming about being in a famous rock ‘n’ roll band. The alcohol pushes them apart as well. They all see Jim’s struggle, but have no idea how to help him. And now, The Doors start playing larger arenas. The first is the Hollywood Bowl. They sell out Madison Square Garden and the L.A. Forum. In early 1969, their manager books their first extensive U.S. tour. They’ll hit 19 cities.
Their first gig is in Miami. The band arrives early, minus Morrison. He’s had a fight with Pam, and missed his plane. He misses another flight hanging out in the airport bar, and shows up 20 minutes late. The mood inside the converted airplane hangar is already tense. The promoter has pulled out all the seats, so he could sell another 2000 tickets. As the band takes the stage, Jim seems preoccupied. He proceeds by preaching to his audience about love and revolution. Someone throws a gallon of orange paint at the band. There’s a rush at the stage. A friend of Jim walks out and hands him a lamb. A woman pours a bottle of champagne over Morrison. He takes off his wet shirt, urging everyone to join him. Shirts, pants, bras and underwear sail through the air. But there’s only one song they want to hear: Light My Fire. Morrison gets angry: ‘You came to see something else, didn’t you? Alright, here’s my cock.’ Ray yells out for someone to stop him. The stage starts to collapse. Robbie and John jump off. Manzarek keeps playing. Jim is thrown into the audience by a security guard. Less than an hour after it started, the concert is over. The Doors play fragments of only four songs.
The next day, the band flies to Jamaica for a vacation. Unknown to them, something strange is happening back in Miami. Jim’s hit with one felony charge and three misdemeanours. But it’s the felony charge that is the most disturbing. It states that ‘Mr. Morrison did lewdly and lasciviously expose his penis, place his own hands upon his penis and shake it, and did simulate the acts of masturbation on himself and oral copulation upon another.’ The charges take The Doors by surprise. Over a hundred cops had been at the concert. None had attempted to stop Morrison. To John, the only thing that they were guilty of was a lousy show. But a wave of conservancy is sweeping the country. Decency rallies are held, specifically against The Doors. Even the rock ‘n’ roll press turns against them. Radio stations stop playing The Doors’ music. And one by one, every major city on the band’s first big tour gets cancelled. Finally, on April 4th 1969, Jim Morrison surrenders to the FBI. During the trial, Ray, Robbie and John testify in Jim’s defence. All deny seeing Jim expose himself. The prosecution pursues, and in October 1969, Morrison is found guilty on indecent exposure and profanity. He is sentenced to four months of hard labour. The Doors’ attorney quickly files an appeal, but the uncertainty of its outcome throws them into an uneasy state of limbo. Morrison takes it the hardest. It’s more than just fear of spending time in a deep southern jail. It’s as if he’s suddenly realized – he’s not invincible.
Meanwhile, the flower power movement of the sixties is fading. Two of its leading stars pass away: Jimi Hendrix dies of a sleeping pill overdose in September 1970. Janis Joplin follows by overdosing on heroin less than a month later. Morrison is affected deeply by their deaths. He jokes to friends: ‘you’re looking at number three’. Morrison is able to publish his first collection of poetry, which becomes one of his proudest achievements. ‘Nothing’, he says, ‘is as eternal as poetry and song’. As the country enters the new decade, The Doors start over. Morrison Hotel had been another step away from the mainstream. It took them back to their roots: the blues. It went Gold in two days.
Going back to their roots was the best thing The Doors could have done at this point, seeing as Waiting for the Sun and especially The Soft Parade weren’t nearly as good as their first two records. Their fifth album revitalizes the band, and is their best since Strange Days. The raging Roadhouse Blues sets the new atmosphere immediately, with its traditional bluesy piano and harmonica arrangement, as well as some of Morrison’s most passionate, raw singing. It’s easily the record’s highlight, but what follows doesn’t let down in the slightest. The old-fashioned blues stomp continues to appear throughout, particularly in You Make Me Real, Peace Frog and Maggie M’gill.
Nevertheless, the early Doors sound is still well-presented. Blue Sunday and Queen of the Highway are the best examples of this, while Land Ho! manages to fuse old and new nicely. Also notable is that two outtakes from previous albums were used after all for Morrison Hotel: Indian Summer and Waiting for the Sun were recorded for the band’s first and third albums, respectively, and especially considering the latter, it is a surprise they were left off in the first place. Those familiar with the particular Doors albums they should have appeared on will certainly identify the sound of those records within the songs, with a bit of careful listening. Although the two tracks ended up in a different place, both are great contributions to this album as things are.
Fact is, Morrison Hotel is surprisingly great, considering Morrison went through what was arguably the climax of his self-destructive persona. And not only is it one of The Doors’ most rocking albums, it is also their most consistent, whereas their first two, ultimately superior efforts both have a song or two that felt redundant. If anything, Morrison Hotel was a true comeback, a record that altered the group’s sound in the precise direction they needed it to go. As we all know, the success wouldn’t last, because the band would only record one final album, which would conclude their short but legendary career.
Doors Classics:
Roadhouse Blues
Waiting for the Sun
Peace Frog
Ship of Fools
Indian Summer
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Album Rating: 4.0
The history might be a bit long here but I didn't want to leave too much out. Skip it if you're not interested.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Good job Nag. I havent heard this whole album but Roadhouse Blues is one of the greatest rock songs ever written.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
yup Roadhouse Blues rocks hard. Also, which Doors albums have you heard in full except for the debut?
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
I took a shortcut through Google Traduction. Wow man, very, very good/funny read. I laughed a good shot!...Big pos, big.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Only other one Ive heard in full I think is Waiting For the Sun. I grew up with the 2 disc greatest hits.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Roadhouse Blues is one of the greatest rock songs ever written
Probably, but I played that song like 500 times in gigs, so I listen to it much less.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Well I guess you've pretty much covered all the classics then.
Thanks Jethro, though the history is not intended to be a laughing matter.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
English should be a more serious language than French, then haha
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Also, it's crazy how Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison all died within the same two years and were all aged 27.
And their first names all begin with a J.
It can't be a coincidence.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Well I guess you've pretty much covered all the classics then.
Unfortunately not, 'RoadHouse blues' is the only Doors song that I played with a band.
I practiced some others songs for the sake of practicing, e.g. L.A. Woman, 'Love Her Madly', 'Backdoor Man' etc
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Actually that comment was directed at Hans.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
yeah Google the age 27 thing, it goes even deeper than those 3.
And LA Woman is probably my fave Doors song.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Also, it's crazy how Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison all died within the same two years and were all aged 27.
And their first names all begin with a J.
It can't be a coincidence.
gosh, sounds like a pact yeah.
A great deal of my 70's Rock 'n Roll idols have fallen like flies. Co relation with drug/alcohol abuse...? No question mark needed.
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I really enjoy the history segments of your reviews, good job man.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
It's also how they became legends. Who knows, if Jimi were still alive we might be describing his latest release as 'doing the same stuff over and over again'.
edit: thanks Buccaneer
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
most definitely. Death is the greatest thing that can happen to a musician
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Death is the greatest thing that can happen to a musician
Provided musician in question was doing some really awesome shit before that.
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
Another excellent review, this is indeed a really great album
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
But you like it a bit better than I do!
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
Naturally ;')
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