The Doors discography

In 1969 and 1970, The Doors recorded a number of live shows for consideration for alive album, that would eventually be released as 'Absolutely Live' in 1970. Originally Jim Morrison felt that they should record a few shows and just pick one show and release it, but was overruled by the band and producer Paul Rothchild, which created a live album of different concerts and some cases a song made up of two different live performances splices together.

In 1969 the band had to perform two live performances at the Aquarius Theatre and Rothchild wanted the band to perform their set in live, in an empty hall, then later overdub the crowd noises in.

All four Doors were against this, but against their better judgement agreed to give it a go, at the insistence of Paul Rothchild, which is where this album comes in.

The band gives it a college try and things start out well, with the band performing, the first three tunes pretty straight forward, ' I Will Never Be Untrue' a song they had written but would never record a studio version of, an instrumental version of 'Peace Frog' and 'Blue Sunday' both being road tested before they went into the studio the following year. Another tune 'Maggie McGill' is tired out but soon the band loses interest.

The band begin to screw around, play songs such as blues tune, 'You Need Meat' and stop one minute into the tune. They discuss tunes, Jim Morrison sings obscenities into the microphone, even sarcastically telling producer Paul Rothchild to hurry his up, thousand of dollars at stake.

This is all recorded live and I am sure Paul Rothchild regretted suggestion this, since the band vamp, screw around, and interest in playing live without an audience is minus zero.

The only track deemed useable was 'Gloria' which would show up in edited form in 'Alive She Cried' 12 years after Jim Morrison's death in 1983.

This album is kind of interesting, like you are ease dropping, you can hear the band discuss set list, Morrison feeling that this recording is a bit of a cheat on fans, and really the only appeal of this album is for die hard fans, The causal fan need not to seek this out.

I rarely listen to this album, glad I own it, but something that could have safely stayed in the vaults, something I am sure the ghost of Jim Morrison wishes these recordings had remained.

Nothing in here shames the band's reputation but it does nothing to add to it, expect to maybe prove that Jim Morrison was truly human after all.

While the Bright Midnight albums could only be bought at the Doors website ( and now adays Amazon) the band released a comp discs of the existing live discs that had already been released and those that were to be released down the pipeline.

Released in 2001, it is a nice sampler of the previous released live recordings and producer Bruce Botnick made it seem like one seamless show then various comps of different performances.



Also in 2001 the band released 'Live in Hollywood' which was a comp of the two different performances the band performed at the Aquarius Theatre, and like the comp before it, this one was sold in stores and not just thru their website. Again, a nice way to sample both concerts or if you simply just wanted a live Doors album, both of these make great purchases.

While interest in this thread is next to zero, I am continuing.

This next live release 'Live In Philadelphia '70' which was one of the most bootlegged shows of their career, til the band released this live disc on the Bright Midnight Label. The band released not just thru their website, but thru regular outlets.

This concert starts out with an announcer begging for them to clear the aisles, that the band won't play til its done. You can hear the audience shout "BULLSHIT" and other insults at the hapless announcer and the Doors manager Bill Sidons. While it was true the fire marshal did not want them to start the show til the aisles where clear, it seems the band seemed a bit nervous that venue was oversold.

On this live performance, Jim Morrison must have had a few days off between performances, his voice sounds strong, and he is engaged with the audience. The set list on this disc is not much different then the previous live recordings, not surprisingly since these are for the 1970 tour to promote 'Morrison Hotel'

Recorded May 1, 1970 just 10 days before my birth, the band knew it was being recorded live, so on a few songs they stuck to the arrangements pretty closely.

The band opens with "Roadhouse Blues' already a favorite opening number for both the band and audience. The band barely takes a breathe before launching into 'Break On Through' with John Densmore and Ray Manzarek vamping a bit before, Manzarek's singles Morrison and Krieger with his bass organ.

You can tell the audience is into the show, and while Morrison does not engage in as much amusing stage banter, as he usually did, the Lizard King wisely let the music do the talking.

From the liner notes it seems Jim Morrison let the spotlight shine on his band members, even losing himself listening to the band play, and like many concerts seemed to forget he was in the band. Krieger once stated Morrison just liked to listen to them play.

The band do improv, and again their favorite jam song of the tour 'Mystery Train' is in the set, and "Light My Fire' is used as another excuse to solo, but soloing in great taste. Disc two, has the encores where the band play a song 'Been Down So Long" that seq ways to "Rock Me Baby' but seems to run out of the steam before its conclusion and then follow up with a cover of Chuck Berry's 'Carol' which sounds great, now if only Jim had bothered to learn the lyrics.

If you are only going to buy one live Doors album to see what the fuss was about, then this would be the one.

Since the previous live album sold so well, The Doors released 'Live In Boston 1970' as a general release, like the previous album this would be available at regular outlets and would not need to be special ordered.

Playing two shows back to back, in April, 1970, both shows are included in this 3 disc set.

Thou history for years has said that The Doors last tour with Jim Morrison was a disaster due to Morrison's drinking and unprofessional behavior, as the previous live albums demonstrate that is a bunch of bullshit.

This album features something the previous live albums do not, a very drunk Jim Morrison. Jim Morrison is absolutely blotto but as the liner notes point out, he was able to hit all his cues, if not hit all the right notes.

Jim Morrison seems to be enjoying his beer buzz and the band seems to go along for the ride. At times Jim keeps the band seems to be endlessly vamping while they await for him to come on 'Break on Through", starts singing/chatting up a groupie during 'When the Music's Over' and during 'Light My Fire' he sings so close into the microphone it sounds like a garbled mess.

But maybe because of this, it gives the concert a different feel, show one, the band is good and Jim Morrison voice is strong and singing in key (for the most part). By the time you get to disc two during the encores, Jim Morrison is even attempting to sing in key, but he does manage hit the cues and has the audience eating from his hand,

Listening to this concert, it gives you a greater appreciation for the skills of Ray Manzarek, Robby Krieger and John Densmore. Not only do they put in a flawless performance, but seem to be able to read their unpredictable vocalist mood and know when to come back in, even when it seems Morrison is off on his own trip.

The set list on this album is not much different then the other live albums from this tour, but no two Doors concerts are the same.

Done for this tour, they do a slow blues cover of B.B. King's "Rock Me Baby" which runs into 'Away to India' and Robert Johnson's Crossroads, which they do very different then Cream did.

Their are two versions of "Light My Fire', the first one is good, and the second one is more interesting because Morrison is so out of it, but somehow makes it good enough and the audience explodes when Morrison does his famous leap to the mic and screams the chorus.

Not the best live album in the series, and I am sure not the best show of the band's career, but it is a fun listen to, and really if the liner notes did not mention Morrison is drunk, you probably would just think he is having off night. Despite its many flaws and enjoy able concert and disc.

If this thread was a television show, it would have been cancelled, but damn the torpedoes I moving forward to the next live album!

I know I have said to pick up one of the other live albums to get an idea what the Doors sounded like live, forget what I had said before, because if you are only going to get one, and I repeat one live album by The Doors, than damn it, this is it!!!!!

Released for wide distribution in 2008, the concert was recorded in Pittsburgh Civic Center on May 2, 1970. By this time the band had gelled into a well oiled rock n roll machine.

Jim Morrison, contrary to what some yellow journalist have written and so called friends, his final tour, as the series of live albums demonstrates was in strong form for most of these shows. This one being no exception, except his voice sounds a bit stronger then on some of the other shows.

Also Morrison lays back on this concert, and lets the music do the talking. Handing over the spotlight generously to his bandmates on such tunes as their cover of Elvis's Mystery Train that segways into their own 'Away in India'

Jim Morrison did not really speak to the audience, instead allowing the audience and the band follow the band on a musical journey. The set list features the usual suspects, at least for this tour.

The only hiccup is when Ray Manzarek takes over the vocals for their blues cover of "Close to Me', while Morrison's intro is amusing, the performance of this tune is not.

But all is well, when they end the set with "Light My Fire' with the multiple solos, and at the end of this song, no encore, for both the band and audience is spent.

Also Jim Morrison left them with the first lesson of show business, always leave them wanting more.

I'm listening to the track you posted on Facebook from this album and it sounds awesome. The interplay between Manzarek and Krieger is always fascinating, these live albums prove that it was a magic combination.

For people curious about The Doors live recordings there are a bunch of them available on Spotify.

These recording of The Doors played at the Matrix in March 7 and 10 1967 have been the most bootlegged recordings of the band ever released.

This was not due to being the best show the band ever played, but because club owner Pete Abram recorded all 4 shows, and over the years these tapes had made their way into a dozen or so bootlegs. These are the earliest known live recordings of the band, and its an interesting listen to a band that was literally just weeks away from superstardom.

The Matrix in San Francisco barely held a 100 people and the place was nowhere near capacity. The band treated the shows as a paid rehearsal.

The set list contains most of what was on their debut album along with a few covers sprinkled into the set. " Money' which would be revived for a shows on their final tour was one of the covers, as few blues numbers 'I'm a King Bee', 'Get Out of my Life Woman' 'Who do You Love' and they encore with a version of 'Gloria' but Jim Morrison keeps the lyrics relatively clean for this version.

The hysteria of later shows in this concert is missing, and is replaced with a cool professionalism. The band do stretch out the arrangements but not incredible lengths like they would do in the future. Manzarek and Krieger play well against each other, and John Densmore sounds amazing.

Jim Morrison is no longer turning his back to his audience and his confidence is evident. His voice sounds strong and even plays it straight. Not once does he address the audience, but the few people that are there seemes engaged.

The second disc contains songs that had at the point in the time of these recordings, had been recorded yet but would be. " Moonlight Drive' which now contained Robby Krieger's famous slide guitar arrangement, 'People are Strange' 'My Eyes Have Seen You' and the epic 'When the Music's Over'. The band road testing their new material.

Also it in the set is the Ray Manzarek showcase of 'Close to You' a blues song, that would appear and reappear in their set for the rest of their career and has Ray singing lead, while Morrison goes backstage for a few brews.

Not the best performance by the band, but still a damn good one. A live set that takes place just a few weeks before the band explode on a national and eventually international scene.

Surfing around the web today and this caught my eye...



This is supposedly the last known photo of Jim Morrison (w/Pamela) taken at a sidewalk cafe in France right before his death.

MetalGuy71 wrote:

Surfing around the web today and this caught my eye...



This is supposedly the last known photo of Jim Morrison (w/Pamela) taken at a sidewalk cafe in France right before his death.

That was taken a week before his death

The first Doors bootleg I ever bought, was a bootleg of this 1970 performance. I still have that bootleg and I was very happy when the band released an official version of this concert, recorded on June 6, 1970.

This concert, part of the ongoing Bright Midnight label is another excellent edition to the huge staple of Doors live material that has already been released.

Surprisingly the official release does not sound much better then the bootleg CD version. This concert was recorded on a reel to reel by the stage and was not recorded as part of the live recordings that were planned for and eventually released as 'Absoutley Live'

Like all the previous live recordings in the series, no overdubs, what you get is a show as it was on that night.

Like all Doors live albums the first minute is dedicated to the band tuning their instruments, then they kick into what was their favorite opening number for this tour 'Roadhouse Blues'

The band especially Jim Morrison sound especially energized, that could be because one of the band's heroes Albert King was their opening act. In this concert, the band did something they rarely did, have a non member of the band jam with them, In this case blues great Albert King plays slide guitar on a few blues numbers , 'Little Red Rooster' "Money' "Who Do You Love' and 'Rock Me'. The band plays a laid book groove, letting Albert King lead the way and they happily following.

While the set list on this show features a set list not very different then others in the series.

'When The Music's Over' is epic as always, with what once an improvised line by Jim Morrison about something being wrong, not quite right, is now part of the song.

'Love Me Two Times' gets taken out for a rare live appearance and 'Light My Fire' which at this point has become this epic track live, where bits and pieces of other tunes are interwoven into the arrangement. 'St James Infirmary' 'Fever" Gershwin's 'Summertime' and is the intro is the beginning 'The Soft Parade'

An excellent double album, like the others in the series demonstrate what the big deal was about and why Jim Morrison is so missed

A soundtrack to the documentary of the same name. Released in 2010, this album features a few unreleased live tracks such as 'Break on Through' from the Isle of Wight, their live performance of 'Light My Fire' on the Ed Sullivan Show, along with the original studio recordings of various Doors classic.

Johnny Depp who narrated the film, is included in the soundtrack reading exerts from various unpublished poems written by Jim Morrison.

An entertaining well put together album, that is a great listen but hardly an essential purchase, unless you are a completist, like yours truly

With Ray Manzarek's passing this past week, it seems fitting to end this thread on their latest live album, which he, along with the other Doors oversaw.

Recorded and filmed at the Hollywood Bowl on July 5, 1968, this concert would remain unseen and even unheard, with the exception of performance of 'The End' which would be included in Jim Morrison's seldom seen short film ' Feast of Friends'.

In 1987 Ray Manzarek assembled an hour long cut of the concert ( thus he gets director's credit in the original) and the band released an EP, due to the fact that full length albums were not a height of their popularity in 1987.

The VHS and EP proved to be very popular, so it was surprising when in 2012 the band announced they were reissuing the concert in DVD/Blu- Ray with additional footage of the concert and a full length live album.

Thanks to modern technology, footage that appeared unusable in 1987, was able to be restored. Also the two songs lost from the original concert, were able to be used thanks to audio recordings from another source recording that concert that evening.

This concert is legendary, not because its the band's best show, but because its the only concert that was filmed in its entirety. In 1968 Jim Morrison and some of his own film crew, filmed hours of live performances, but due to their careless editing and handling of the footage, some of that footage appeared to be lost or destroyed, that which survived, was used to create various promo videos in the 1980's.

The concert itself sounds better then ever and by the time this show had been recorded, the band had many concerts under their belt. Only a year after releasing their debut album, the band was already on album number 3.

The concert recorded on the July 4th weekend is good concert, where the band plays its ass off, but also seem to be in a more relaxed mood. Jim Morrison does not address the audience til the end of the set and the band does vamp on some of the numbers but not as often as they usually did.

The concert opens with 'When the Music is Over' a bit of unusual choice, and go straight to melody of 'Back Door Man/Alabama Song/Five to One' which they had already had combined these tunes.

The band vamp lightly, while Jim Morrison recites one of his poems 'Wasp ( Texas Radio and the Big Beat) and goes straight to 'Hello I Love You' a song that band rarely performed. The song sounds great live, which surprised me, considering how the band felt the track never worked live.

Overall the concert is pretty damn good, and listening to it now better then I remember it. According to the liner notes, Jim Morrison took a tab of acid, maybe that is why he seems to be in mellow mood. Bumming cigarettes from the audience, even does a shaman's dance, but he does not really address the audience once, except briefly right before 'Light My Fire'

'Light My Fire' sounds fantastic and of course the song is extended for the excellent soloing and interplay between Krieger and Manzarek,.

'The End' ends the concert and the disc, with an improvised bit about a grasshopper, til Morrison checks and sees its a moth.

Overall a great concert, and worth owning, even if you are only a causal fan. I am glad it got reissued with a better sound and that they released the entire concert not just a portion of the concert.

While this proved to be an unpopular posting, I enjoyed going thru their history and listening to the albums.

With this posting, ends my Doors thread.

I saw a clip on VH1 classics "Rock Fest" for "Light My Fire" and it had places in it where the live footage was imposed with still photography here and there. It said it was Hollywwod Bowl, so I am assuming it is from this ?

I used to listen to The Doors alot as a pup, but not very much anymore.

Good job on the thread, Manny ! I read every word but didn't always reply. Yeah after "The Big Great Stupendous Cleansing Dump" with the old content in this section, things look grim.
But I am still gonna plug away.

Thanks you for the time and work put into this thread.

Great overview of all the live stuff! Still need to pick-up that Hollywood Bowl set on blu-ray. I'm not a "live" album kind of guy but The Doors bring so much more to the table with their live stuff. And just like with all L.A. Doors "locations" I never drive around that loop in front of the Hollywood Bowl and not think of their performance. To have only been there.

Thank you James B and jstate for reading thru this thread.

Pleasure was all mine. By the way, this weekend I'm hitting up a flee market which usually has a ton of live boots, what show would you absolutely recommend I seek out?

I would recommend the Philadelphia , Pittsburgh, and New York show all from 1970. Avoid the 1969 Miami show unless you are curious to hear the band at their worst

Thanks. I'll be on the look-out for those.

very good therad, glad to read it.
there are tons of bootlegs out there, i got 13Gb of complete all released and unreleased albums, song, hits, live since beginning to the last... etc idk.
i red books, always watch all docus on YT, listen RK, RM, JD interviews,...

but in the winter for me is as always in winter AAP, really love to go to bed in winter nights with headphones and listen AAP, it makes me feel so comfortable and calm, to hear JM talking voice. its so perfect to fall asleep with that. it begans in 2008 and still repeatly every year.

manny wrote:

MetalGuy71 wrote:

Surfing around the web today and this caught my eye...



This is supposedly the last known photo of Jim Morrison (w/Pamela) taken at a sidewalk cafe in France right before his death.

That was taken a week before his death

He looks bloated

Ive been listening to the Doors alot the last few days no sure why but its been a doors concert in my head lately

This overpriced collector's item was released at the tail end of 2016. The recordings are from May 1966 on the eve of being signed to Elektra records and their short lived residency at the Whiskey A Go-Go.

These are the earliest live recordings of the legendary band, recorded on a reel to reel by a gal Nettie Peña, a girl who had a crush on Jim Morrison. Borrowing a reel to reel tape recorder from her high school where her father worked, she recorded this show and held on to it for 50 years.

The tape was cleaned up and bounced for sound by the band and their longtime producer Bruce Botnik.

So what you have a band who was playing blues covers, still finding their sound. Interesting that the two originals on here, 'Strange Days' and 'You Make Real' would not find their way to their debut album.

Jim Morrison sounds strong, his interaction with the audience seems none existent, the band also sounds great. The London Fog was small enough and audience disinterested who ever seemed to be playing, the band was able to experiment, throw the occasional original and do their own thing. This allowed them to find their sound, thou covers are played, the usual suspects 'Baby Please Don't Go' etc.

Its a nice time capsule and cool glimpse of a band who unknowingly would be on the top of the rock pyramid less than a year later. Their significance in rock history, the cultural revolution they would help weave and of course Jim Morrison iconic status, is not even glimmer in the band's eyes. Just another working band, playing to indifferent crowd, with a few devotee like Nettie Peña. The bow has been pulled and so it begins...

Reading your description, it sounds like some of the bootleg recordings of the Beatles back in their Cavern days in Hamburg. It's neat to hear their humble beginnings, but not something I'd listen to often.

Love love the Doors I have that boxset that was recorded from 1966. Yesterday I found an original of The Doors - L.A. Woman with the rounded corners a cellophane middle and the yellow inner sleeve with Jim on the cross.

Wargod

This live recording of the Doors at the Isle of Wight has been finally officially released. For years the recordings have been available on various bootlegs for decades. Technology finally allowed the band to clean up the recordings and the film, where before, it was not deemed fit for commercial release due to sound issues with the master recording.

This was the last hurrah of the major festivals, that only began a year earlier with Woodstock. The television coverage and finally the film ( that would was released a few months prior to the film). This concert featured the who's who of 60's rock, more so than Woodstock. The festival featured Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan, Jethro Tull, Taste, Free, Leonard Cohen, and of course The Doors, among many many others.

The band agreed to do the show, a one off, not because of the event, or because they had never been invited to a major festival, but because of Jim's legal issues due to his Miami shenanigans the year before. The band had many shows cancelled and the band felt this would be good to play a show, mainly to keep Morrison busy.

At 2 a.m. the band bound on the stage and its an excellent but subdued performance. Hard to believe not only did the Doors go on stage at such a late (or early hour) but The Who would follow right behind them and also do a full set.

The set was not much different then what other live sets from other live albums, what is different that this concert was filmed and Jim's performance. Jim does not engage the audience, does not even say hello, does not say word, what he does do is concentrate on his singing. His voice sounds strong, and its really one of his best vocal performances from other live recordings.

The rest of the band sounds strong, backing their legendary vocalist. The band weaves instrumental improvisational passages on longer cuts 'Light My Fire', 'The End' and 'When the Music is Over'

The film is the main attraction, Jim sounds great but he does not move an inch. Despite this, its a great concert and worth repeated watching.

This is a concert recording that is simply not just for die hard fans but one that can be enjoyed by causal Doors fan.

The band had only two shows left with Jim Morrison. Less than a year later Morrison would be gone, becoming a charter member of the 27 club, so any footage and live recordings are gold because he left us so soon.

Interesting. I didn't realize so many people played at that festival. I have the Hendrix CD and might have to pick this one up as well. I'm just a casual Doors fan. I have the first 3 albums and Greatest Hits and that does me just fine. Need a good live show by them.