Classic Albums 5.14.08: The Doors DVD Review
Posted by Blake Lauderback on 05.14.2008
The guys from the "Classic Albums" series are at it again. This time they take a look at the making of one of the greatest debut albums in rock history, the self-titled album from The Doors. Does the documentary do justice to Jim and the boys, or does it ruin the mystique of one of the most prominent bands ever?
The “Classic Albums” DVD series recently released a brand new disc, this time, covering the amazing self-titled debut album for The Doors. For any of you that are unfamiliar with the series, they take a look at the behind the scenes stories and events behind the creation of some of the greatest albums in rock history while interviewing fans, peers, technicians, and most importantly, the band members themselves. This edition is no different as it peers into the world of The Doors in the mid-60’s, sharing tremendous insight into the music.
The Band
Jim Morrison – Vocals
Ray Manzarek – Organ/Keys
John Densmore – Drums
Robbie Krieger – Guitar
Ray Manzarek
The History
In the mid-1960’s, Jim Morrison and Ray Manzarek both attended the film school at UCLA. It was there that the two first met and became acquainted with one another, spending a great deal of time hanging out at Venice Beach. Morrison made mention to Mazarek one day that he had been writing songs. Ray encouraged him to sing for him, and impressed with his vocals and lyrics, he persuaded Jim to turn his attentions to music full time. Within a short period of time, Densmore and Krieger joined up with the band and the lineup was finalized. In need of a name, Morrison turned to the work of Aldous Huxley and his book The Doors of Perception to take their moniker.
The first thing that marked The Doors as “different” from the rest of the bands on the rock and roll scene at the time was that they did not have a bass player when they performed live. The skillful Manzarek provided all of the bass lines on the organ in the live setting. They did however; use studio bass players when recording to fill out the sound.
In 1966 the guys began playing around at several clubs, starting off at the London Fog club before moving along to Whisky a Go Go. It was at the later that The Doors where discovered by an executive from Elektra records while they were opening up for the bands Them, which was an early vehicle for the legendary Van Morrison, and Love. The signing with Elektra was the beginning of a long and successful partnership with producer Paul A. Rothchild and engineer Bruce Botnick.
Their debut album, The Doors was recorded in August of 1966 and then released in January the following year. The entire recording process was only a few days long as most of the songs were in steady use on their live set, and therefore the band had no issue recording almost all of the tracks live, with minimal overdubbing.
While promoting the album, Morrison and Manzarek, ever the studious film students, filmed a promotional film for the song “Break on Through (To the Other Side),” which was an early advancement on the music video.
After the amazing success of their debut, which is still heralded as one of the greatest introduction albums of all time, the band continued onward by recording the now classic albums Strange Days, Waiting for the Sun, The Soft Parade, Morrison Hotel, Absolutely Live, and L.A. Woman before the untimely passing of lead singer Jim Morrison. Morrison famously passed under mysterious circumstances. He was found in the bathtub of his apartment in France where the coroner ruled his death a heart attack brought on by booze and a hot bath. There are still plenty people out there that believe that Morrison still walks among us after faking his own death to flee the spotlight. I hear that he an Elvis hang out every second Tuesday and order a few pizzas.
Jim Morrison
The Songs
All tracks were written by Morrison, Manzarek, Densmore, and Krieger unless otherwise noted.
1. "Break On Through (To the Other Side)" – 2:30
2. "Soul Kitchen" – 3:35
3. "The Crystal Ship" – 2:34
4. "Twentieth Century Fox" – 2:33
5. "Alabama Song (Whisky Bar)" (Bertolt Brecht, Kurt Weill) – 3:20
6. "Light My Fire" – 7:08
7. "Back Door Man" (Willie Dixon) – 3:34
8. "I Looked at You" – 2:22
9. "End of the Night" – 2:52
10. "Take It as It Comes" – 2:18
11. "The End" – 11:44
The DVD
The DVD is a fascinating look into the inner workings of this legendary band. It covers everything from their first encounters as a band through the release of their first album, and it even skips ahead a little further and discusses the self-destruction of Jim.
The documentary begins by introducing us to the four major players, the band members themselves. Manzarek then begins to recall the circumstances of his first meetings with Morrison, including the first time he witnessed Jim sing one of the songs he had written it. Ray maintains that he knew in that moment that band, soon to become The Doors, was going to be a success.
The earliest incarnation of the band was actually a five piece with Morrison, Manzarek, Densmore, and Ray’s two brothers, one of which played the guitar, and the other the harmonica. Before long the other two Manzareks had decided that nothing would ever become of this band and headed out on their own, a mistake that I am sure must haunt them to this day.
One thing that really impressed me on the DVD was just how involved every member of the band was in the songwriting process. There weren’t Morrison songs or Krieger songs… just Doors songs, ingeniously crafted by these talented musicians. The DVD also allows the chance to see just who’s ideas came to fruition in the music, from organ solos to guitar riffs, the creative process is laid out before you. It is also quite impressive that the entire recording session for The Doors lasted only six days! That is a lot of classic American rock and roll to record in such a short span. Then again, when you have spent over a year and a half toiling away in rehearsal and perfecting thirty plus songs as these guys did, it might be pretty easy to knock out an eleven track album.
The album in question covers everything that is wonderful about this band. It is filled with straightforward rock and roll (“Light My Fire” and “Break on Through [To the Other Side]”), a little bit of sleaziness (“Back Door Man”), a hint of the bizarre ("Alabama Song [Whiskey Bar]"), and a touch of the experimental (“The End”). All of these sounds and emotions are bound together and packaged in the one groundbreaking album. It is often said that had this been the only album ever produced by the band, they still would have had the same permanent, lasting impact on the industry that they did.
Robbie Krieger
The insightful interviews from the surviving members and close friends are fascinating. Some of these include the thoughts of manager Bill Siddons, beat poet Michael McClure, and Jac Holzman, the man that signed them to Elektra Records. These were the men that where there for this monumental recording and for all of The Doors’ early days. Several others offer up their fond memories of the band including Rolling Stone writer Ben Fong Torres, legendary L.A. DJ Jim Ladd, fellow film student Paul Ferrara, Black Flag’s Henry Rollins, and Perry Farrell of Jane’s Addiction.
The documentary digs deep into the role of the band during the cultural changes of the time period, referring to them as the Yang to the Yin of the flower power movement, as Morrison’s lyrics focused on the internal struggle of humanity instead of on humanities relationship with each other and the rest of the world.
One of my biggest fears about diving into this documentary was that the mystique of the band would be ruined for me. In today's world of blogs and MTV News there are hardly any bands that hang on to a little mystery about themselves. To me, that is what keeps many of today's artists from becoming a true "rock star" ala Jim Morrison. Thankfully, the album still left much of that intact, and I am pleasantly surprised to find that I feel much more connected to the band, especially the three surviving members.
On a humorous note, the film spends a little time discussing Jim Morrison’s idolization of the famous crooners like Bing Crosby and Elvis Pressley. In one funny anecdote, Bruce Botnick recalls Jim’s excitement when he saw the vocal microphone that he would be using to record his tracks. Morrison immediately recognized the microphone as the same model that Frank Sinatra used. Jim’s fondness for these old school legends shows up quite frequently in his own work in songs such as “The Crystal Ship” and in parts of “End of the Night”
Conversely, all three surviving band members commented on the tragic fall from grace for Jim. They made mention of the unpredictability of their band mate on stage as well as his constant drive to push the envelope, often only for the sake of doing so. Almost forty years later, some of the band members still seem to be touchy on the subject, as they still seem filled with regret for Jim’s path of destruction, wishing that they could have separated the brilliance from the craziness. In the end however, they all admit solemnly that everything that made “The Lizard King” great is also what drove him to his untimely death.
John Densmore
I will say that I wish that a little more time had been devoted to some of the lesser known songs, but that may only be my personal preference. Quite a bit of time is devoted to the most recognizable songs on the album, but I would have loved to learn more about tracks like "Soul Kitchen" and "Take it as it Comes," though that is a very minor issue for me.
In the end, this is a very insightful film about the stunning debut of one of rock and rolls greatest acts, covering everything from the band’s genesis to it’s leader’s catastrophic end, and filled to the brim with captivating stories and vivid music. This is a wonderful way to look back on the greatness of The Doors and everything that they meant to the evolution of popular music.
The 411: The "Classic Albums" series has struck the right chords again, this time with The Doors. The film is an excellent look at the crafting of one of the most important records in history. It is not quite perfect, as I would have loved just a little more info on some of the lesser known tracks, but it is still an amazing glimpse into the world of The Doors.
