The Doors Concerts - Bright Midnight Series Album-by-Album Thread

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by masswriter, Feb 16, 2017.

  1. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
    I believe these late concerts are deserving a thread devoted to discussing performances of each. What are the standouts? What was considered sub-par? What were the variables in song delivery etc.? Contemporary reviews and maybe even first-hand knowledge of concerts by our members here.

    Any interest?
     
  2. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
    I guess we may as well start with this:

    The Doors: The Bright Midnight Sampler
    Bright Midnight (September 2000)

    The Doors: Bright Midnight:
    Live in America

    Elektra / Bright Midnight (February 2001)

    Recorded At – The Spectrum, Philadelphia

    1. Light My Fire
    2. Been Down So Long
    3. Back Door Man
    4. Love Hides
    5. Five To One
    6. Touch Me
    7. The Crystal Ship
    8. Break On Through (To The Other Side)
    9. Bellowing
    10. Roadhouse Blues
    11. Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar)
    12. Love Me Two Times/Baby Please Don't Go
    13. St. James Infirmary
    14. The End



    First notice off, having little to no knowledge of what the vaults were holding at that point, it was all a bit mysterious and exciting. I remember buying this disc and being thrilled with the assorted tracks from different concerts, most of which were never heard before. From the drunken debacle of Boston to the bluesy-marathon of Detroit. The sound, to my young ears, was beautiful and Morrison was in full throttle as evident by the fourteen songs spread over eight excerpted concerts.

    Granted, most of these have since come out in few (with the exception of Bakersfield), what were/are your listening experiences?
     
  3. jdlaw

    jdlaw Forum Resident

    Location:
    Michigan
    My personal favorite is the Detroit show. IMO, the main set is as good as the Doors got circa 1970. The only issue with Detroit is that the encores are a let down, especially The End.

    I also quite like both Boston shows. Yeah, Jim is drunk as a skunk, but the band more than make up for it! Without doubt one of the best performances of Robby Krieger's career.

    The 4 Felt Forum sets are also above average. I admit it's been a while since I've heard the remaining shows, but remember them being more or less 'meh'.
     
  4. DrBeatle

    DrBeatle The Rock and Roll Chemist

    Location:
    Midwest via Boston
    Agreed. The NY Felt Forum box is excellent, too, as are the Aquarius shows. There really isn't a BAD one in the bunch other than the poorer-than-it-should-sound Matrix and the fact that the US 1970 tour is WAY overrepresented.
     
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  5. jdlaw

    jdlaw Forum Resident

    Location:
    Michigan
    It's been a while since I've heard the Aquarius Shows (I need to give them a re-listen), but remember the first show being kinda week and the second show a big improvement. However, still not as good as Detroit, New York, Boston, etc.

    I need to get that Aquarius first show on Vinyl before it's impossible to obtain.
     
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  6. DrBeatle

    DrBeatle The Rock and Roll Chemist

    Location:
    Midwest via Boston
    Boston is a riot because the band is hot and Jim is drunk as a skunk but he's in a funny/jokey mood (as opposed to being just JIMBO).
     
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  7. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
    I think that Bright Midnight did what it wanted to d, cater to the hardcore base. Given the b.s. we are being served up with from The Doors management these days, I'll take the 70s shows any day as they were sold to us.
     
  8. t-man 54

    t-man 54 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Michigan
    They need a hardcore fan to do their catalog right, just like The Beatles need it. Yes, i mentioned Beatles
    on this thread.:winkgrin: I too bought the midnight sampler when it first came out.
     
  9. SonicBob

    SonicBob Forum Resident

    Location:
    West Virginia
    Of the archive series, I've heard Pittsburgh, Vancouver and Boston. Out of the 3, Pittsburgh and Vancouver are the better shows, I gave my copy of Boston to a friend; Jimbo's just a "tad" too inebriated to my liking on that gig. What I like about Pittsburgh is that the band, as a whole, is locked in and turns in a magical performance. Vancouver is interesting for the feature of Albert King sitting in with them on a handful of blues/rock standards and the performance is different but still as solid as the show a month previous from Pittsburgh, it's just more blues-oriented. I'd like to hear Detroit, Philly and the Aquarius shows at some point though. On the bucket list....
     
  10. PacificOceanBlue

    PacificOceanBlue Senior Member

    Location:
    The Southwest
    I remember the general excitement surrounding the creation of BMR, and the initial release of the Sampler (ironically the first pressing was mailed out to fans in a plain jewel case with no artwork, subsequently remedied). I loved hearing the two Aquarius performances of Touch Me and Crystal Ship, but overall, I did not think the track-listing included the most interesting or exciting performances of each individual respective song. I thought the mixes for the Pittsburgh performances were very underwhelming (and it shows how mixing can really affect the sonic picture because the subsequent release of the Pittsburgh show was quite good), knew there were better versions of Light My Fire (from the Felt Forum, Aquarius, and even Boston), and would have never included The End from Detroit. Still, it was nice to a sampling of some of the AL tapes. The most frustrating thing was it would ultimately be several years before a lot of these complete shows would finally see the light of day due to BMR mismanagement and Danny's illness.
     
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  11. Piiijiii

    Piiijiii Hundalasiliah

    Location:
    Ruhr Area, Germany
    Yes ... the 2nd Aquarius show is much better.
    I really dig the "Backstage And Dangerous" private rehearsal from the Aquarius recorded the day after the 2 shows ... it has a very loose, rough and unpolished feel which is unique for a Doors live release.
     
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  12. Mike Campbell

    Mike Campbell Forum Resident

    Location:
    Minnesota, USA
    Any more thoughts on the Vancouver show? Just curious...
     
  13. Piiijiii

    Piiijiii Hundalasiliah

    Location:
    Ruhr Area, Germany
    I really can't listen to the complete Vancouver show due to the sound quality of that recording ... it gives me a headache.

    Most people don't seem to mind it though.
    The show itself has a few highlights.
     
  14. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
    What's the story with this event? Was Jim deliberately sabotaging the taping?
     
  15. Piiijiii

    Piiijiii Hundalasiliah

    Location:
    Ruhr Area, Germany
    Hm ... it really was just a rehearsal ... the Aquarius stage was still packed with their equipment so they took the opportunity to rehearse on stage.

    Why "sabotaging"?
     
  16. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
    "Thousands of dollars rest on this day, money Money MONEY!" It seems that Elektra probably recorded these songs so that they could be used for a possible live album should the actual live sets be considered unusable. Jim was exceptionally vulgar for many of the songs. They did end up using Gloria from the session and even tried to make it seem live (with heavy edits if I remember correctly).
     
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  17. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
    I'm a fan of the Boston show too. I especially love when the power is pulled at the end and you can hear Jim say "these c*********s!"
     
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  18. LC4O

    LC4O Forum Resident

    Location:
    LA
    Great thread.. i like very much the Detroit 1970,the felt Forum box is amazing, Aquarius & "Backstage And Dangerous" are very interesting too..next the Boston Shows. Bakersfield its outhere in bootleg form..... don`t have the same sound quality of a multitrack recording ,its a stage recording made by the band's road manager Vince Treanor
     
  19. PacificOceanBlue

    PacificOceanBlue Senior Member

    Location:
    The Southwest
    It is unclear why Morrison derailed the recording. It was definitely intended to be more than a rehearsal; it was a formal recording session meant to produce performances that could be incorporated and edited into the live album that the Aquarius concerts were supposed to create. Interestingly enough, he was generally focused the night before during the actual concerts, so it seems a bit odd that he was so detached from the process the very next day. Perhaps he felt the band had achieved what it needed the night before and that the post-concert session was unnecessary and a waste of his time. In some ways, he did sabotage the post-concert session, incorrectly labeled a "rehearsal" because it broke down and was ultimately aborted due to his behavior.
     
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  20. PacificOceanBlue

    PacificOceanBlue Senior Member

    Location:
    The Southwest
    I never got into the Vancouver show. It seems a bit plodding with too many extended performances taking up most of the concert.
     
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  21. SonicBob

    SonicBob Forum Resident

    Location:
    West Virginia
    Hey Mike. I bought an official copy at one of my local chains for 10 bucks and although this could've been packaged as a single disc,(it literally is the entire show from start to finish), I think it's a cool and different gig captured. The equipment that was used back then and the transfer in the mix and mastering might be about as good as it can get and I agree that it sounds "tinny" and a little muddy, but again considering the tape recorder and mics used in 1970, I've heard worse recordings. Again, the feel of the show is rather subdued from Jim, but the band cooks throughout, I feel and the versions of "When the Music's Over" and "The End" are faithful to their original versions. I pointed those out because they are two examples of their "longer" tracks that allowed for improvisation and experimentation within their composition. But the songs with Albert King are cool and Jim perks up during these versions of "Little Red Rooster", "Money", "Rock Me" and "Who Do You Love". Its the meat of the collection, imo.
     
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  22. DrBeatle

    DrBeatle The Rock and Roll Chemist

    Location:
    Midwest via Boston
    Agreed, the second half of that show reeeaaaalllly drags...
     
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  23. Mike Campbell

    Mike Campbell Forum Resident

    Location:
    Minnesota, USA
    You know, I bought it the month it came out in about 2010, and have never listened to it.....dumb I know....I do that sometimes, and then pull it out when the time is right...don't ask me why.....but I think this weekend is the right time. Love the doors though, have most of their stuff...so need to check this out.
     
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  24. Daniel Plainview

    Daniel Plainview God's Lonely Man

    I love the Detroit Show best.

    Both Aquarius shows are great too. Love that vinyl. Wish they’d produce more.

    “Backstage and Dangerous” has “I’m Your Doctor”, which is worth the price of admission. Hilarious. I also like “Build Me a Woman”. Some of the other stuff isn’t as interesting.

    The Philly disc was the first one in the series I was sorta luke-warm on. Good sound, but the performance wasn’t that exciting.

    Boston show just is good to hear Jim ranting and raving. I don't play it too often.

    I like the Felt Forum shows box but find myself listening to the condensed disc on the Box Set more than anything else. Might be too much of a good thing.

    Pittsburgh is pretty good too. I like to hear that smidgen of “Soft Parade”, my favorite Doors song.

    I only played Vancouver once. Pretty bored by it. I might have reached my quota as far as live Doors go, at least from this particular era of the group.
     
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  25. SonicBob

    SonicBob Forum Resident

    Location:
    West Virginia
    They really could've edited the in-between breaks from the setlist, it's actually a milk job to market it as a double set when it could've easily been paired to one disc. I just happened to get lucky for the low cost.
     
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