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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on May 3, 2006 9:45:47 GMT
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on May 3, 2006 10:19:17 GMT
 The Doors - Morrison Hotel/Hard Rock Cafe Strip away all the criticism of The Soft Parade being an excess of songs from Robby Krieger, Morrison's drinking or the G'n'T poolside jazz that flooded the album, what The Doors' fourth album lacked was passion. Whether the band conceded defeat to a weak set of songs - unlikely, since The Soft Parade has, at heart, a more solid set of songs than Waiting For The Sun - or Morrison, Krieger and Manzarek lazily put their efforts to tape, allowing John Densmore to sound far more on-form than the rest of the band, The Soft Parade was a soft-bellied effort by The Doors, reflecting Morrison turning to fat as the Lizard King struggled to fit within his custom-made calfskin leather suit.
As Morrison busted out all over, so too did The Doors' pretensions but their efforts to cop a Sgt. Pepper or a Pet Sounds left them exposed. Whilst The Soft Parade is still a fairly enjoyable mish-mash of songs, with Wild Child and the title track being highlights, the experience spurred The Doors into delivering passion to their performances once again.
The result of this rethink was the single LP/double concept of Morrison Hotel/Hard Rock Cafe, which saw the not-so-dazzling arrangements of Waiting For The Sun and The Soft Parade bumped back to Paul Rothchild in favour of straightforward rock and, recognising the quality of Summer's Almost Gone and Yes, The River Knows, bleak, summer's day ballads. With Morrison once again on form, Krieger songs like Touch Me were eclipsed by the singer's fondness for blues and in delivering his best set of lyrics since Strange Days, Morrison Hotel/Hard Rock Cafe began the return to form that would produce LA Woman a year later.
With a cover shot on the run - the owner of the Morrison Hotel refused permission for the band to take an official shot - the Hard Rock Cafe side of the album opens with the boozy Roadhouse Blues. As our Top 10 Status Quo Moments mentions, it was hearing this shuffling, hard rock that gave Francis Rossi the idea for the second part of his band's career and little wonder - it's a great song from the opening seconds, when Robbie Krieger's guitar distills southern rock into a single riff and Jim Morrison, unlike later years, stays on the right side of downing beer into the small hours.
With the best opening track on a Doors' album since Strange Days, the album goes on to mix the mysticism of Waiting For The Sun, complete with a great, humming analogue synth, alongside the euphorick rock of You Make Me Real, which would get an improved, live recording years later on Alive, She Cried! This clutch of opening rock songs ends with Peace Frog in which The Doors sang of the bloodshed in the streets America during the late-sixties race riots and is the funkiest the band ever got. With Krieger doing little but getting together with this Jim Dunlop Cry Baby, Morrison sings of the riots hitting Venice Beach and, as the song ends, The Doors segue into the the beautiful Blue Sunday, which is one of the best moments across any of the band's six studio albums wherein Morrison, despite the affairs, pagan marriage and groupies, declares his love, once again, for Pamela Courson.
With Ship Of Fools bringing Hard Rock Cafe to an end, Morrison Hotel would have opened as the needle on side two hit the vinyl. The actual split between the two sides is as arbitrary as the turning over of the LP and little else. Certainly, there's nothing to clearly differentiate one side from the other as both Queen Of The Highway and Maggie M'Gill are cut from the same cloth as Roadhouse Blues, Indian Summer offers a reprise of Blue Sunday and Land Ho! carries on the travelling blues of Ship Of Fools,
The album's best track and the one that shows where The Doors were headed with LA Woman is The Spy, which sits between the sea shanty Land Ho! and another telling of the Courson/Morrison story in Queen Of The Highway. Over a slow-burning blues, The Spy has Morrison reaching far into Pamela Courson's heart to declare his knowledge of everyone she knew, everything she did and everywhere she went. Without ever overstating itself, The Spy - a truncated version of the song's opening line, "I'm a spy...in the house of love" - rejects the hard rock of much of the rest of Morrison Hotel/Hard Rock Cafe and allows a glimpse of what would spill over into LA Woman.
Amongst the six studio albums, Morrison Hotel/Hard Rock Cafe is typically ranked alongside the best the band recorded, ahead of both Waiting For The Sun and The Soft Parade and behind The Doors or LA Woman, depending on whatever is being argued for as being the band's greatest. This opinion is probably overstating Morrison Hotel/Hard Rock Cafe somewhat and says more about the feeling that persists around The Soft Parade than the actual quality of songs on this album. Certainly, Morrison Hotel/Hard Rock Cafe is far behind The Doors, Strange Days and LA Woman but, whilst better than Waiting For The Sun, is not so much better that it often scores twice what the third album does. Instead, Morrison Hotel/Hard Rock Cafe was the band bringing some passion back to their sound but it wouldn't be until LA Woman that the same genius that sparked across their first two albums would return and when it did, The Doors delivered what is arguably their greatest.
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on May 4, 2006 13:27:14 GMT
  The Doors: Morrison HotelMorrison Hotel opens with a powerful blast of raw funk called "Roadhouse Blues." It features jagged barrelhouse piano, fierce guitar, and one of the most convincing raunchy vocals Jim Morrison has ever recorded. This angry hard rock is that at which the Doors have always excelled, and given us so seldom, and this track is one of their very best ever, with brooding lyrics that ring chillingly, true: "I woke up this morning and I got myself a beer/The future's uncertain and the end is always near." From there on out, though, the road runs mainly downhill. It's really a shame, too, because somehow one held high expectations for this album and wanted so badly to believe it would be good that one was afraid to listen to it when it was finally released. The music bogs down in the kind of love mush and mechanical, stereotyped rock arrangements that have marred so much of the Doors' past music. "Blue Sunday" and "Indian Summer" are two more insipidly "lyrical" pieces crooned in Morrison's most saccharine Hoagy Carmichael style. "Maggie M'Gill" is a monotonous progression in the vein of (but not nearly as interesting as) "Not to Touch the Earth," and "You Make Me Real" is a thyroid burst of manufactured energy worthy of a thousand mediocre groups. Admittedly, these are the worst tracks, and the rest ranges from the merely listenable to the harsh brilliance of "Roadhouse Blues" or the buoyant catchiness of "Land Ho!", a chanty that sets you rocking and swaying on first listen and never fails to bring a smile every time it's repeated. This could have been a fine album; but the unavoidable truth—and this seems to be an insurmountable problem for the Doors—is that so much of it is out of the same extremely worn cloth as the songs on all their other albums. It's impossible to judge it outside the context of the rest of their work. Robbie Kreiger's slithery guitar, and Manzarek's carnival-calliope organ work and whorehouse piano are the perfect complement to Morrison's rococo visions. But we've all been there before, not a few times, and their well of resources has proven a standing lake which is slowly drying up. Perhaps if they recombined into a different group the brilliant promise of the Doors' first album and sporadic songs since might begin to be fulfilled, but for now they can only be truly recommended to those with a personal interest. (RS 57) LESTER BANGS from Rolling Stone 1970  Morrison Hotel ( 1969 ) 8Roadhouse Blues / Waiting For The Sun / You Make Me Real / Peace Frog / Blue Sunday / Ship Of Fools / Land Ho! / The Spy / Queen Of The Highway / Indian Summer / Maggie M'Gill After the production effort of 'The Soft Parade' this record saw a return to basics. A bluesy, rocking sound. An effective sound. The material doesn't always support it, but its a return to something, though i'm not quite sure what that is. In any case, 'Roadhouse Blues' is simply stupendous! A fantastic sound, no question. You can drink to it, dance to it, sing along with it. It thumps and pounds along its groove. Its good, I like it! Jim gives a fantastic performance, as does everybody actually. 'Waiting For The Sun' follows, left over from the album of the same name. Its absolute classic Doors and by this stage you are getting quite excited! A classic album beckons, surely? Well. 'You Make Me Real' is little more than a thrash. 'Big Sunday' is doomy and miserable and lacking in atmosphere. 'Ship Of Fools' is good, supported by a happy melody and interesting lyrics. 'Peace Frog' has such a funky guitar line, its hard to believe its The Doors! The keyboard comes in and you smile. A wonderful song, no question. The second half of the record contines with a basic rock sound but the playful nature of the melodies also continues. 'Land Ho!' is a fine, fine song! Its entertainment! Its groovy and funky! This is a fine album. 'The Spy' is a failed 'Crystal Ship' but more bluesy in tone. The piano here is pretty good though and provides the main hook in the song. 'Queen Of The Highway' isn't a highlight but 'Indian Summer' is classic Doors. A Morrison vocal that sends a chill up your spine and a lovely guitar figure. The closing 'Maggie M'Gill' is more blues influenced rock and perfectly fine. As you may have gathered, I consider this a fairly inconsistent album. The thing is, the good songs are so hugely enjoyable, on a basic level. And, that's all they need to be. This is a return to basics, past and before even the ideas and ambitions for their debut. The playing is great throughout the album and holds even the weaker songs together. Their best for a while. Yes! Even though half the actual songs are no good! Adrian's Album Reviews  |
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on May 5, 2006 13:06:28 GMT
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on May 5, 2006 22:45:40 GMT
The Doors: Morrison Hotel
Year Of Release: 1970
Record rating = 9
Overall rating = 13
More blues, less pop. More darkness, more beauty. And ferocious guitarwork.
Best song: ROADHOUSE BLUES
Track listing: 1) Roadhouse Blues; 2) Waiting For The Sun; 3) You Make Me Real; 4) Peace Frog; 5) Blue Sunday; 6) Ship Of Fools; 7) Land Ho!; 8) The Spy; 9) Queen Of The Highway; 10) Indian Summer; 11) Maggie M'gill.
Groovy - for me, this is easily the second best Doors album ever. Others may disagree, claiming that Morrison Hotel has lost a lot of what we call the traditional 'Doors spirit'. That may be true - this and the following record are among the band's most 'lightweight' material - in that they're definitely not as dark, 'gory', apocalyptic and shiver-sending as most of the previous stuff. For the most part, the Doors decide to switch gears - and, while pretty few of this stuff can be called cheerful, Morrison Hotel is a far more listener-friendly record if the listener likes his music smooth and not very offensive, but with an edge nevertheless. But many fans are disappointed - after all, who needs a Doors record when there's no 'Soft Parade' or 'When The Music's Over' on it?
Well, I certainly do. While I find it easy to get into the band's 'creepy' masterpieces and am perfectly able to identify with their atmosphere at any given moment, the main thing I respect about my Doors is the immaculate quality of songwriting, arranging and performing. And if you judge Morrison Hotel from that aspect (and you should), you'll find that the songwriting has actually improved since the last two albums: in fact, since the band had slowed it down a bit after Morrison's self-exposion bust, the drug excesses and self-killing craze were slowly on their way out, and the band took the time to rethink their musical philosophy. The result was - back to the roots. This and the next record are quite in the roots rock vein - actually, blues-rock, with elements of country, folk and funk thrown in for good measure. But that's all right by me, as long as most of these songs are still distinctive, and, whatever one might say, they still reek of the Doors. Not as gloomy, no, and nowhere near as hard-hitting as Strange Days, but every bit as melodic and with a more well-rounded, full-fledged production. Most important, the Doors showed the world they weren't stagnating - on the contrary, Morrison Hotel diversifies their formula as much as possible.
Many of the numbers sport a bluesy atmosphere, but only two are really 'blues' at its most straightforward. 'Roadhouse Blues' is my favourite - a fascinating, gripping song with possibly the most powerful intro on a Doors record. The gruff, heavy riff that ushers in the song is unforgettable, plodding along like a mastodont, and after it's been consecutively augmented by drums, pianos and harmonicas, the groove is in: every bit as fascinating of an approach to blues as was demonstrated a year and a half before by Led Zeppelin. The song also features a terrific lead workout by Robbie; 'boring blues jam', some might say, but I find the atmosphere enthralling. This is, without a doubt, best proof to the fact that the Doors could rip out a hard rock tune better than just about any American band at that point.
The rip-roar of 'Roadhouse Blues' is counterpointed by a slow, quiet blues - 'The Spy', which has always held a very distinct place in my heart. Blues, yes, but dark, captivating blues, with an outro that's gonna send you into heavy nightmares. How can one be left without any reaction after that terrifically slow pace with huge pauses, during which Jim is quietly chanting: 'I'm a spy........ I can see....... what you do....... and I know'. Know what? Spooky...
There's some pure disposable rock'n'roll, too: 'You Make Me Real' shows The Doors were no slouches and could handle a good fast rocker if necessary. The song may not evoke a particularly interesting atmosphere, but I've always been a fan of the opening piano/guitar riff - gee, say what you will, it's catchy as hell. And then again, maybe I've always wished for the Doors to pen a simplistic dance-style number. Well, here you are. Sure, the song never fits their style (after all, the Doors never used to back up Elvis, now did they?), but they make everything to make it work, and for me, it works, if I'm not in the mood for 'When The Music's Over'. Another bouncy, upbeat song is 'Peace Frog' - the one that sounds like a cross between a funk and a country tune, with a great wah-wah guitarline sounding exactly like a frog croaking: CROAAAAAK-CROAK-croak-croak-croak-croak-croak croak-croak-CROAAAAAK-CROAK-croak... Oh, I know a wah-wah is normally expected to sound like a frog, but this here wah-wah is practically unidstinguishable from a real toad... I'm serious. What's most fascinating about it, though, is the way the gory, chaotic lyrics about blood in the streets of the town of New Haven, etc., contrast with the cheerful jazz/funk/country melody of the song. Definitely, this is one more highlight of the record, with Robbie displaying some magnificent guitar chops disclosing his jazz roots.
I don't really know what people tend to have against 'Maggie M'gill'. I find the main riff to the song and its interaction with the other instruments a great melodic invention. The song's got a pounding, destructive beat; a menacing, throbbing bassline; and that riff. It's not just catchy - it's... it's kinda unique. It's short and minimalistic, but the way Robbie manages to diversify it along the way, constantly changing the chords and sometimes playing tiny variations on it, is something I have very rarely experienced on a rock record, unless you're talking Pete Townshend of course. The song itself starts like an old grim folk tale - 'There's Maggie M'gill, she lived on a hill, her daddy got drunk and left her no will...', but after a while we suddenly turn to different matters and hear: 'I've been singing the blues ever since the world began...' (now that I can believe!) While the melody is quite memorable, it's the mood that the song induces makes me a total fan: tired, gray and completely lifeless. In another situation, this would have been a defect, but I suppose that's exactly the thing the band wanted to express: their tiredness, loss of interest in the world and seclusion in the old traditions. The fading out of the tune, together with Jim's lazy chanting of 'Maggie Maggie... Maggie Magill... roll oh roll on... Maggie Magill... Maggie... Maggie... roll oh roll... roll oh roll on... Maggie Magill...' counts as my second favourite ending of a Doors' album, right after the powerful climax of 'When The Music's Over' on Strange Days. Don't laugh, just listen.
Finally, one more highlight on the album is 'Waiting For The Sun' (strange enough, this song never made it to the Waiting For The Sun album) with alternating heavy riffage and gentle synthesizer-driven lyrics. It's the closest thing to a 'standard Doors tune' on the album - fair enough, as it's an outtake - so people like this one most of all. Deservedly so; the contrast between Jim's quiet, melancholic singing, and the grungy distorted riff that introduces the chorus is striking.
A lot of people seem to like 'Queen Of The Highway', too, but I think its kinda boring - a rather strange and out-of-place anthem to... to... bikers, it seems? Could be, as well as to the American public in general - 'American boys/American girls/Most beautiful people/In the world'. People of the US of A, aren't you flattered? Well, congratulations, but the song's never been a favourite of mine. It's good though, and definitely nowhere near as boring as the real stinker of this record - 'Indian Summer'; it reminds me of all these low-grade pop ballads on Waiting For The Sun, but it's actually worse, as the melody is so diluted and deadly sleepy you'd think you were listening to a bad ambient tune.
I haven't listed all the songs on here ('Land Ho!' is one more minor highlight, and 'Ship Of Fools' is a throwaway - but I'm too tired to discuss these), but in any case, I think I have stated my point: I understand that the change of direction from 'terror-pop' to blues-rock could be, and still can be, a shock to hardcore fans, but anyone whose musical horizons extend far beyond 'goth' will be able to appreciate the stylings of Morrison Hotel. Blues-rock is great when it has an edge; and the Doors always had an edge. Of course, while old Lizard King was still alive.
George Starostin from Only Solitaire.com
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on May 7, 2006 10:48:43 GMT
Morrison Hotel
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. 9/10
Jack Feeny Review Pages.
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on May 10, 2006 18:14:01 GMT
 Mexican Edition |
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on May 18, 2006 10:56:34 GMT
 Gold award from the UK for Morrison Hotel which was surprisingly The Doors most successful album here in the UK whilst Jim was alive even doing better chartwise than Waiting For The Sun which benefited from a Doors London show and a hit single. Considering Doors singles before and after Hello I Love You disappeared without trace here its a remarkable feat that this album nearly breached the UK Top 10 making #12. |
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on Jul 24, 2008 12:18:25 GMT
The Doors: Album Guide - Morrison Hotel (1970)
Again, it was a very different Doors waiting to be rediscovered on their first album of the 1970s. This time, though, they were giving the people exactly what they wanted: a straightforward rock album par excellence. Divided into separately subtitled sides – ‘Hard Rock Café’ for side one; ‘Morrison Hotel’ for side two – the cover photo was taken at the actual Morrison Hotel located at 1246 South Hope Street, in LA. While the restaurant chain, Hard Rock Café, was reportedly named after the first side of the album. As for the music, despite yielding no major hit singles – incredible, given so many contenders – Morrison Hotel returned the band to favour with both critics and fans alike. Indeed, in storming, instantly memorable tracks like ‘Roadhouse Blues’, ‘Waiting For the Sun’, ‘Peace Frog’, ‘Ship of Fools’ and ‘Indian Summer’, no Doors album since their first had featured so many soon-to-be-considered rock classics. The lyrical pretensions were still heavily in evidence on the dramatic ‘Land Ho!’ and ‘Queen Of The Highway’, the politics still upfront on the finger-pointing ‘Peace Frog’ (documenting the civil unrest of late-60s America before unexpectedly segueing into the gorgeously languid ‘Blue Sunday’) but the music was built solidly on the blues; the rhythms hammerhead sharp; the guitars allowed free reign to wail and moan and force you to move in time to the big beat. While ‘The Spy’, a woozy, slow-burning blues, pointed unambiguously down the road they were now on. One from which there would, fatefully, be no turning back…
Tracklist: Roadhouse Blues / Waiting For The Sun / You Make Me Real / Peace Frog / Blue Sunday / Ship Of Fools / Land Ho! / The Spy / Queen Of The Highway / Indian Summer / Maggie M'gill
Mick Wall 2008
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on Jan 23, 2011 22:18:48 GMT
 LA Woman/Morrison Hotel cassette |
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on May 8, 2011 15:54:29 GMT
After the production effort of 'The Soft Parade' this record saw a return to basics. A bluesy, rocking sound. An effective sound. The material doesn't always support it, but its a return to something, though i'm not quite sure what that is. In any case, 'Roadhouse Blues' is simply stupendous! A fantastic sound, no question. You can drink to it, dance to it, sing along with it. It thumps and pounds along its groove. Its good, I like it! Jim gives a fantastic performance, as does everybody actually. 'Waiting For The Sun' follows, left over from the album of the same name. Its absolute classic Doors and by this stage you are getting quite excited! A classic album beckons, surely? Well. 'You Make Me Real' is little more than a thrash. 'Big Sunday' is doomy and miserable and lacking in atmosphere. 'Ship Of Fools' is good, supported by a happy melody and interesting lyrics. 'Peace Frog' has such a funky guitar line, its hard to believe its The Doors! The keyboard comes in and you smile. A wonderful song, no question. The second half of the record contines with a basic rock sound but the playful nature of the melodies also continues. 'Land Ho!' is a fine, fine song! Its entertainment! Its groovy and funky! This is a fine album. 'The Spy' is a failed 'Crystal Ship' but more bluesy in tone. The piano here is pretty good though and provides the main hook in the song. 'Queen Of The Highway' isn't a highlight but 'Indian Summer' is classic Doors. A Morrison vocal that sends a chill up your spine and a lovely guitar figure. The closing 'Maggie M'Gill' is more blues influenced rock and perfectly fine. As you may have gathered, I consider this a fairly inconsistent album. The thing is, the good songs are so hugely enjoyable, on a basic level. And, that's all they need to be. This is a return to basics, past and before even the ideas and ambitions for their debut. The playing is great throughout the album and holds even the weaker songs together. Their best for a while. Yes! Even though half the actual songs are no good! Morrison Hotel 8/10 ( 1969 ) Roadhouse Blues / Waiting For The Sun / You Make Me Real / Peace Frog / Blue Sunday / Ship Of Fools / Land Ho! / The Spy / Queen Of The Highway / Indian Summer / Maggie M'Gill Adrian Denning Morrison Hotel Newspaper Advert. |
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on Aug 30, 2011 12:32:45 GMT
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on Sept 29, 2011 9:05:08 GMT
 Billboard magazine February 28th 1970 |
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on Oct 5, 2011 8:49:40 GMT
MORRISON HOTEL Released March 1970 “Roadhouse Blues” and a couple of other songs on Morrison Hotel hinted at the changes to come on L.A. Woman—heading in a bluesier, more bare-bones direction. I think it was a reaction to the overproduction of The Soft Parade. We wanted to get back to basics. “Roadhouse Blues” is one of my personal favorites. I was always proud of that song because, as simple as it is, it’s not just another blues. That one little lick makes it a song, and I think that sums up the genius of the Doors. I think that song stands up really well as an example of what made us a great band. And the session was really cool — one of my fondest memories of the band. We cut the tune live, with John Sebastian playing harp and Lonnie Mack playing bass—he came up with that fantastic bass line. How did Mack end up on there? He just happened to be hanging around. I think he had a contract with Elektra and wasn’t recording so they gave him a job at the studio. We just said, “Hey, why don’t you play bass?” You co-wrote “Peace Frog” with Jim. Yes. I had written the music, we rehearsed it up, and it was really happening, but we didn’t have any lyrics and Jim wasn’t around. We just said, “Fuck it, let’s record it. He’ll come up with something.” And he did. He took out his poetry book and found a poem that fit. But it always seemed kind of forced to me, to tell you the truth. The legend has Ray and Jim being very tight, but you’re the one who wrote with him a lot. In the very early days Ray was very close with Jim; Jim actually lived with Ray and his wife. He was almost like their son, and he was great for a while—he wasn’t drinking or anything. The problem was that Ray became a father figure, so Jim rebelled. He fucked their house up—trashed it on more than one occasion — and took advantage of them in many ways. Then I joined the band and sort of latched on to Jim, and we hung out a lot. Ray worked up all the early songs with Jim — everything on the first album. Then I wrote a lot with Jim — before I started really writing on my own—and those songs went mostly on the second and third albums. Did you ever talk about lyrics with Jim? Not much. He didn’t like to explain lyrics because he wanted people to interpret them themselves. But he thought about that stuff a lot. He was also somewhat into pure impressionism — which I think is what he liked about my songs. I always tried to write something that just fit the music, even if it didn’t especially mean anything. Robby Krieger Guitar World June 2011Read more: newdoorstalk.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=rki&thread=2098&page=1#ixzz1ZtZxTcdM |
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on Nov 20, 2012 16:13:30 GMT
The Doors: Morrison Hotel
After the excess of ‘Soft Parade’ the band came bouncing back with a vengeance and one of the best rock albums ever produced. Every track is a gem with Jim’s lyrics once again sharp, witty and biting and complimented by the bluesy tight rocking combination of drums, guitar and organ.
Split into two sections ‘Hard Rock Café’ opens up with ‘Roadhouse Blues’ which sets the standard for the rest of the album.
An out and out rocker with Jim showing everybody how he can really sing. What a voice! This is a real toe curler with Jim’s booming vocals backed brilliantly by Robby’s rampant guitar. The second cut ‘Waiting For The Sun’ changes the mood initially then surprises halfway through with blues riffs and howls from Jim before continuing in a mellow vein. Then it’s fire and brimstone time again with ‘You Make Me Real’ an absolute barnstormer of a song which is basically a declaration of lust towards a girl friend on the outside but includes some amazing allusions…’so let me slide into your tender sunken sea’….typical Morrison enigma.
‘Peace Frog’ is actually two different songs cleverly combined by Paul Rothchild into a complex allegory of violent American life and including Jim's now famous version of his early childhood trauma involving the Indian strewn highway. A great Morrison vocal. The end of the song continues effortlessly into ‘Blue Sunday’ which is a straightforward love ballad to his girl which would have blended well with the ‘Waiting For The Sun’ album. It includes a lovely mellow solo from Robby and nice restrained skins from John. Side One is completed with one of the best tracks ‘Ship Of Fools’ which sees Jim in sombre mood lyrically commenting on the forlorn state of Los Angeles and advising people to climb on board the good ship before they all get wiped out by the smog. (Welcome to LA) Nothing sombre about Jim’s vocals which combine effectively with Rob’s guitar on the opening riff and continue in a toe tapping beat throughout the song. A great track.
‘Morrison Hotel’ which makes up side two opens up with ‘Land Ho’ one of the best Doors songs ever. From the stomach lurching opening guitar riff to the knee trembling vocal conclusion it is one of the most powerful tracks the band has ever done. Jim is in brilliant vocal form (as he is throughout the entire album) and the boys provide him with a sensational rocking backing leaving you breathless. It is a simple sea shanty (we aren’t in a Freudian analysis here) with a simple guitar riff and simple instrumental back up which just knocks your socks off. This is what The Doors were all about...knockout vocals and shattering instrumentals...an irresistible combination.
Bringing us back to reality is ‘The Spy’...a bluesy rendition with Jim treating us to his best balladeering in a song telling us of his mystic capabilities, backed up by a superb jazzy drum lick. ‘Queen Of The Highway’ is generally thought to be a tribute to Pam and is the one song on which John reckons the backing didn’t do justice to Jim’s lyrics but to be fair the tune is nothing to shout about either, leaving an impression of a bad time had by all. However it finishes on a high with an easy instrumental to perk us up. ‘Indian Summer’ is a sumptuous love song with no pretensions to be anything else.
Jim’s vocals are gorgeous backed by a beautifully simple guitar and restrained organ. This track was cut early on in the bands career yet slots in perfectly with the more sophisticated offerings. ‘Maggie McGill’ is the final cut. A bluesy lament about goodness knows what accompanied by a complex guitar which dominates the entire song blending in with John’s aggressive drumming. On this album Jim was at his best both lyrically and vocally and the whole band was tighter than they have ever been. A combination that produced one of the best rock albums of all time.
Altogether an extremely satisfying experience.
Sue Jeffries from Walsall.
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on Nov 1, 2022 21:43:13 GMT
 Hungarian cassette  |
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on Nov 9, 2022 18:25:05 GMT
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on Nov 14, 2022 20:55:37 GMT
  Uncut July 2021 |
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on Feb 9, 2023 10:25:51 GMT
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Post by TheWallsScreamedPoetry on Feb 22, 2023 6:55:28 GMT
 Goldmine December 2020  13-7-1971 Phoenix Arizona Republic AZ 27-2-1970 The Vidette, State University IL  3-3-1970 The Observer, Case Western Reserve University Cleveland OH 17-3-1970 The Wesleyan Decree, Methodist university, Rocky Mount NC |
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