Weird Scenes Inside the Gold Mine

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by masswriter, Sep 30, 2006.

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  1. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
    Does anybody why The Doors refuse to rerelease this seminal collection? It was the first set that I came across as a novice listener and it has since been seminal to my feel and vibe of The Doors. I mean the choice of songs, all dark and mysterious, no fluff, the inside photography, the hot essay, the unforgettable album cover . . . man oh man what a great set. Yet for some reason, I think it was Ray, The Doors said they would never reissue it. It is so much more original than the ten-millionth "Best of the Doors" set they keep shilling out . . . .

    tracklist and info here:

    http://tralfaz-archives.com/coverart/D/doors_goldmine.html
     

    Attached Files:

  2. Batigol

    Batigol Active Member

    Location:
    New Haven CT. USA
    Thats intresting, im not familiar with this at all. Whats the track listings if you dont mind me asking?
     
  3. Chris M

    Chris M Senior Member In Memoriam

    It's still the only place to get You Need Meat, Don't Go No Further, at least until the new box comes out in November.
     
  4. MikeP5877

    MikeP5877 V/VIII/MCMLXXVII

    Location:
    OH
    Weird Scenes Inside the Gold Mine is a fantastic collection and a fine companion to The Doors 13 - notice that there was no overlap between those two compilations (what a concept!).

    Not sure why these didn't come out on CD but there were so many Doors comps released over the years that I doubt we'll ever get these. I simply made my own CD-R versions, using the four DCC CD's, the remasters for MH and SP, and the vinyl for Who Scared You and You Need Meat.
     
  5. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
    The Doors stated it would never be reissued, I feel its because Jim Morrison is emphasized on the cover art moreso than the other Doors . . .
     
  6. JeffN727

    JeffN727 Forum Resident

    I remember hearing years ago that this one will never be reissued on CD. My vinyl copy that I bought in 1980 had a sticker that said "contains The End, as featured in the movie "Apocolypse Now". Wish it would come out on CD though.
     
  7. Larry L

    Larry L Senior Member

    Location:
    Allen, Texas
    Then why don't they change the cover art, like Absolutely Live. That's a flimsy excuse. I need to search out this LP.
     
  8. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
    imagine a hot gatefold sleeve! One of the many grudges I hold against the remaining Doors . . iI think it was the way the songs flowed so well together, better than the jarring clash of Best of or Legacy . . . . then there is the GREAT artwork and photograph, such a murky and spooky rendering of Jimbo . . . .

    That's the great thing about the LP cover so why change that? I wouldnt want it altered to suit the egos of the remaining Doors . . .
     
  9. John Carsell

    John Carsell Forum Resident

    Location:
    Northwest Illinois
    I think Weird Scenes would make a good release on the Rhino Handmade label.
     
  10. John Carsell

    John Carsell Forum Resident

    Location:
    Northwest Illinois
    I saw a German reissue vinyl of this not too long ago.

    Was wondering about the sound quality though. Good? Bad?
     
  11. MikeP5877

    MikeP5877 V/VIII/MCMLXXVII

    Location:
    OH
    I have the US vinyl and I don't think it sounds all that good, probably due to the really long album sides.
     
  12. WPLJ

    WPLJ Forum Resident

    I used to be into the Doors when I was a kid (junior high - early high school; this would have been around 1988 - 1992). My best friend dug them first and it took me a while to get into them. I made a dub of the first album from his cassette (this was still when CD players and CD's were considered a great luxury and vinyl was thought to be - at least in my view - dead ... ha!) and then I was hooked. I remember he had all the albums on cassette, even Wierd Scenes ... I should ask if he still has it ... Actually, now that I remember correctly, my dub of his Absolutely Live cassette is what sealed the deal for me on the Doors ... I'm gonna have to pick that one up again!

    Anyway ... back on topic ... I would love to get this comp on vinyl. Is it particularly rare/pricey?
     
  13. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
    Here is a review of it from www.answers.com:

    A very interesting double LP retrospective two years after Jim Morrison's version of the Doors had officially closed. Weird Scenes Inside the Goldmine contained the first album release of two B-sides, Willie Dixon's "(You Need Meat) Don't Go No Further," sung by Ray Manzarek, originally on the flip side of the 1971 45 "Love Her Madly," and the beautiful "Who Scared You," "Wishful Sinful"'s flip with Jim Morrison on vocals from a session in 1969. Both are worthwhile additions not found on their first "greatest hits" collection, 13. This compilation is a strange amalgam of their music, the LP title taken from a line in the song "The End," which concludes side two. Five of the 22 songs are from the L.A. Woman sessions, including the title track of that album and the full length "Riders on the Storm," both clocking in at seven-plus minutes. With "The End" and "When the Music's Over" at 11:35 and 11:00 respectively, that's 38 minutes and 38 seconds between four titles, more than a third of the 99-plus minutes of music on this collection. Nothing from Absolutely Live is included, and surprisingly, the classic "Waiting for the Sun" is not here, though that Morrison Hotel number would fit the mood perfectly. "Love Street," the flip of "Hello I Love You," is here, but pertinent singles like "Wishful Sinful" or "Do It" and its flip, "Runnin' Blue," from The Soft Parade, are all missing in action. The cover art pastiche by Bill Hoffman is worth the price of admission if you already have all this material, while the inside gatefold picture looks like an outtake from the first album. Bruce Harris' liner notes are truly the '60s merging with the '70s; he calls Jim Morrison "merely the index of our possibilities" and states that Morrison didn't want to be an idol "because he believed all idols were hollow." The essay is all the more silly when you realize it isn't tongue-in-cheek in the way Lou Reed's incoherent ramblings inside Metal Machine Music are more enjoyable than the disc. Harris seems to actually believe what he pontificates. But the music is awesome, so put it on and read the Metal Machine Music scribblings instead. Weird Scenes Inside the Goldmine is a work of art in the first order, the way the Beatles #1 album is wonderfully redundant, and it should see the light of day again. This time they could add "Tree Trunk," the flip of the "Get Up and Dance" 45 RPM from 1972's Full Circle album. ~ Joe Viglione, All Music Guide

    I agree about the essay, but as a high schooler entranced by Morrison's persona and words, it was kind of cool and I bought into it hook, line, and sinker . . . .
     
  14. reb

    reb Money Beats Soul

    Location:
    Long Island
    This record sounds very poor.
     
  15. Steve E.

    Steve E. Doc Wurly and Chief Lathe Troll

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY, USA
    Not true. It is there!
     
  16. sotet

    sotet New Member

    Location:
    SE
    I bought this new on vinyl back in the mid-1980s and then sold it later. I wish I had kept it, great collection of songs and cover art.
     
  17. Drifter

    Drifter AAD survivor

    Location:
    Vancouver, BC, CA
    :confused: Odd, it's one of the best sounding records I own! Does that mean that most of my other 1000 records or so are all REALLY bad sounding? :laugh:

    I have to go to work so I don't have time right now, but later I'll try to post the matrix numbers of my pressing.
     
  18. ubsman

    ubsman Active Member

    Location:
    Utah
    Who represents Jim Morrison when these bad decisions are made?
     
  19. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
    is it because the songs are all Morrison's? I'm not sure . . Love Her Madly is Krieger's, right? Or maybe it is the majority of the songs . . .

    Funny Morrison-related anecdote . . I was flipping through one of the thirteen volumes of The Golden Bough I bought off of Amazon. This specific book was BALDER THE BEAUTIFUL about fertility rites and fire rituals when I noticed the names of the first two chapters: "Chapter One: Not To Touch the Earth" & "Chapter Two: Not To See the Sun." Great taste in literature Jim!
     
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  20. Drifter

    Drifter AAD survivor

    Location:
    Vancouver, BC, CA
    Well, without Jim Morrison, there really is no Doors. :hide:
     
  21. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
  22. MikeP5877

    MikeP5877 V/VIII/MCMLXXVII

    Location:
    OH
    I'm not sure I buy in to that reasoning. Otherwise how would you explain the covers of those Bright Midnight vault releases? Not to mention cover photo of The Doors Box Set and the 2-disc Best of The Doors. Morrison is emphasized on those covers so I doubt that's the reason why 13 and Weird Scenes haven't been re-released.

    Heck, just look at the covers of Ray's and John's books. :laugh:
     
  23. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
    being a writer, I know that publishers dont give a ****, they will do whatever it takes to sell a book. But you're right, mine was just conjecture . . .
     
  24. pig whisperer

    pig whisperer CD Member

    Location:
    Tokyo, Japan
    I wouldn't buy into this. Ray knows where his bread is buttered. He is building Jim up to be more than just a singer for a rock band. Anyway, if you have seen the covers for any of the Doors comps you know that Jim is the main focus (like the debut).

    I have Who Scared You on the "Essential Rarities" disc. I think it was also on a double comp (the one with only Morrison on the cover) a few years ago.
     
  25. masswriter

    masswriter Minister At Large Thread Starter

    Location:
    New England
    i have Who Scared You as well... it wasnt just the songs, it was superb conceptual packaging that happened to work for their particular image . . WEIRD SCENES. . . . we take that linefor granted, it is really a vivid line.
     
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