- Morrison Hotel
-
For the former building in Chicago, see Morrison Hotel (Chicago).
Morrison Hotel Studio album by The Doors Released February 1970 Recorded November 1969
"Indian Summer": late August 1966
"Waiting for the Sun" begun in March 1968Genre Blues rock, psychedelic rock Length 37:05 Label Elektra Producer Paul A. Rothchild The Doors chronology The Soft Parade
(1969)Morrison Hotel
(1970)L.A. Woman
(1971)Morrison Hotel (sometimes referred to as Hard Rock Cafe from the title of the first side of the LP, whose second side is titled Morrison Hotel) is The Doors' fifth album. It was released in 1970. After their experimental work The Soft Parade was not as well received as anticipated, the group went back to basics and back to their roots. On this album, there is a slight steer toward blues, which would be fully explored by the band on their next album, L.A. Woman. The strategy worked; even though no major hit singles were drawn from the album, Morrison Hotel reestablished The Doors as favorites of the critics, peaking at #4 on the US album chart, and when they followed with L.A. Woman the next year, they were rewarded with two more US Top 20 hits. The album also became the band's highest charting studio album in the UK, where it peaked at #12.
Additional musicians include G. Puglese (aka John Sebastian) on harmonica and Lonnie Mack on bass.
The cover photo was taken at the actual Morrison Hotel located at 1246 South Hope Street in Los Angeles. The band asked the owners if they could photograph the hotel and they declined, so the band went inside when nobody was looking and took the photograph. The rear cover features a photograph of the Hard Rock Cafe on 300 East 5th Street, Los Angeles.[1] The founders of the later and otherwise unrelated Hard Rock Cafe chain used the name, having seen it on the Doors' album. The original cafe is no longer open for business.
Contents
Track listing
Side one: "Hard Rock Cafe"
- "Roadhouse Blues" (Jim Morrison, The Doors) – 4:03
- "Waiting for the Sun" (Morrison) – 3:58
- Begun during The Doors' sessions for Waiting for the Sun in 1968
- "You Make Me Real" (Morrison) – 2:53
- "Peace Frog" (Morrison, Robby Krieger) – 2:51
- "Blue Sunday" (Morrison) – 2:13
- "Ship of Fools" (Morrison, Krieger) – 3:08
Side two: "Morrison Hotel"
- "Land Ho!" (Morrison, Krieger) – 4:10
- "The Spy" (Morrison) – 4:17
- "Queen of the Highway" (Morrison, Krieger) – 2:47
- "Indian Summer" (Morrison, Krieger) – 2:36
- Outtake from The Doors' debut album sessions (Recorded late August 1966)
- "Maggie M'Gill" (Morrison, The Doors) – 4:23
40th Anniversary CD bonus tracks
- "Talking Blues" - 0:59
- "Roadhouse Blues" (Takes 1–3, recorded November 4, 1969) - 8:47
- "Roadhouse Blues" (Take 6, recorded November 4, 1969) - 9:26
- "Carol" - 0:56
- "Roadhouse Blues" (Take 1, recorded November 5, 1969) - 4:32
- "Money Beats Soul" - 1:04
- "Roadhouse Blues" (Takes 13–15, recorded November 5, 1969) - 6:21
- "Peace Frog" (False Starts & Dialogue) - 2:00
- "The Spy" (Version 2) - 3:48
- "Queen of the Highway" (Jazz Version) - 3:36
The 40th anniversary reissues were completely remixed along with being remastered. This practice extended to incorporating vocal and instrumental components which were not part of the original album. As Ray Manzarek said, "There are background vocals by Jim Morrison, piano parts of mine that weren't used, and guitar stingers and solos by Robby Krieger that never made the original recordings, that can now be heard for the first time."
Reception
Professional ratings Review scores Source Rating Robert Christgau (B+)[2] Allmusic [3] Rolling Stone (mixed)[4] Slant Magazine [5] Morrison Hotel was, upon its release, seen by many as a comeback for the Doors following the critical failure of The Soft Parade and the Miami incident of 1969. Dave Marsh, the editor of Creem magazine, said of the album that it was: "the most horrifying rock and roll I have ever heard. When they're good, they're simply unbeatable. I know this is the best record I've listened to ... so far",[6] while Rock Magazine called it "without any doubt their ballsiest (and best) album to date".[6] Circus Magazine praised it as "possibly the best album yet from the Doors" and "Good hard, evil rock, and one of the best albums released this decade".[6]
Personnel
- The Doors
- Jim Morrison – lead vocals
- Ray Manzarek – tack piano on tracks 1, 3, 8, Gibson G-101 organ on tracks 2, 5, Vox Continental organ on tracks 4, 6, 7, 10, piano on track 8, Wurlitzer electric piano on track 9, Fender Rhodes Piano Bass on track 10, Hammond C-3 organ on track 11
- Robby Krieger – guitar
- John Densmore – drums
- Additional musicians
- Lonnie Mack – bass guitar on tracks 1, 11
- Ray Neapolitan - bass guitar on tracks 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
- John Sebastian (as "G. Puglese") – harmonica on track 1
- Technical staff and artwork
- Bruce Botnick - engineer
- Gary Burden - design
- Henry Diltz - photography
- Paul A. Rothchild - producer
Chart positions
- Billboard Music Charts (North America)
Album
Year Chart Position 1970 Pop Albums 4 Singles
Year Single Chart Position 1970 "You Make Me Real"
B-side: "Roadhouse Blues"Pop Singles 50 In popular culture
- The diatribe "Morrison Hostel" is the closing track to TISM's album Great Truckin' Songs of the Renaissance.
- Floater from Portland, Oregon performs the song "Waiting for the Sun" on their 2001 album Burning Sosobra.
- Soundgarden performed "Waiting For the Sun" on their 1996 West Coast tour and a recording will surface on preordered versions on a bonus disk of the band's 2011 live album Live on I-5.
- Part of "Waiting for the Sun" was used in the soundtrack for Gran Turismo.
- "Peace Frog" was sampled by early 1990s rap group 3rd Bass on their song "The Cactus".
External links
- Morrison Hotel Goes on the Market - Information about the Morrison Hotel/Hard Rock Cafe photo shoot
References
- ^ Feelnumb.com: The Doors Original “Hard Rock Cafe”, November 17th, 2009
- ^ Robert Christgau Review
- ^ Allmusic Review
- ^ "Album Review". Rolling Stone Magazine, Lester Bangs. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/reviews/album/2747/21416. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
- ^ Slant Magazine Review
- ^ a b c J. Hopkins and D. Sugerman: No One Here Gets Out Alive, p. 284
The Doors Studio albums The Doors · Strange Days · Waiting for the Sun · The Soft Parade · Morrison Hotel · L.A. Woman · Other Voices · Full Circle · An American PrayerLive albums Compilations
and soundtracks13 · Weird Scenes Inside the Gold Mine · The Best of The Doors (1973) · Greatest Hits (1980) · The Doors Classics · The Best of The Doors · The Doors: Original Soundtrack Recording · Greatest Hits (1996) · Essential Rarities · The Best of The Doors (2000) · The Very Best of The Doors (2001) · Legacy: The Absolute Best · The Very Best of The Doors (2007) · The Future Starts Here: The Essential Doors Hits · The Platinum Collection · When You're Strange: Music from the Motion PictureBright
Midnight
ArchivesThe Bright Midnight Sampler · Live in Detroit · Bright Midnight: Live in America · Live in Hollywood Highlights from the Aquarius Theatre Performances · Live at the Aquarius Theatre: The First Performance · Live at the Aquarius Theatre: The Second Performance · No One Here Gets Out Alive · The Lost Interview Tapes Featuring Jim Morrison Volume One · The Lost Interview Tapes Featuring Jim Morrison Volume Two · Backstage and Dangerous: The Private Rehearsal · Live in Hollywood · Boot Yer Butt: The Doors Bootlegs · Live in Philadelphia '70 · Live in Boston · Pittsburgh Civic Arena · Live at the Matrix 1967 · Live in New York · Live in Vancouver 1970Box sets The Doors: Box Set · The Complete Studio Recordings · No One Here Gets Out Alive · Boot Yer Butt: The Doors Bootlegs · Love/Death/Travel Box Set • Perception · The Doors: Vinyl Box Set · Live in New York · A CollectionSingles "Break on Through (To the Other Side)"/"End of the Night" · "Light My Fire"/"The Crystal Ship" · "People Are Strange"/"Unhappy Girl" · "Love Me Two Times"/"Moonlight Drive" · "The Unknown Soldier"/"We Could Be So Good Together" · "Hello, I Love You"/"Love Street" · "Touch Me"/"Wild Child" · "Wishful Sinful"/"Who Scared You" · "Tell All the People"/"Easy Ride" · "Runnin' Blue"/"Do It" · "You Make Me Real"/"Roadhouse Blues" · "Love Her Madly"/"(You Need Meat) Don't Go No Further" · "Riders on the Storm"/"The Changeling" · "Tightrope Ride"/"Variety Is the Spice of Life" · "The Mosquito"/"It Slipped My Mind" · "Get Up and Dance"/"Tree Trunk" · "Gloria"/"Moonlight Drive" · "Five to One"Books Video and film Related articles Discography · The Lost Paris Tapes · Rick & the Ravens · Manzarek-Krieger · Bill Siddons · Danny Sugerman · Paul A. Rothchild · Bruce Botnick · London Fog · Stoned Immaculate: The Music of The Doors · "Craigslist"Categories:- The Doors albums
- 1970 albums
- Albums produced by Paul A. Rothchild
- Elektra Records albums
- English-language albums
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.