Here’s an example article: The Doors: the story of Strange Days and the madness of Jim Morrison | Louder “Morrison loved Krieger, yet hated him too for having written Light My Fire. Everywhere the singer went, people slapped his back, thanking him for writing a song he’d struggled to learn the lyrics for and to get the metre right when he recorded it, seeing it as almost a throwaway.”
Kreiger had a vocabulary that included "mire" and "pyre"? At llarge venues Jimwould add spoken word poetry during the extended improv section of the song. If Jim was sensitive about who's were played in concert, why do so many covers, even after 3-5 albums worth of material released successfully.
Anyone else pre-order with Amazon. Not familiar with this process. When i pre-ordered in July it was $60, now showing $46. Not complaining, just curious why it is dropping, supply and demand?
Amazon prices fluctuate. When you preorder, the cost of your order is automatically adjusted to the lowest price between the date of your order and the release date. Whatever the lowest price is before release, that is what you pay.
And considering how often amazon prices fluctuate, it's always a good idea to pre-order as soon as possible.
The only overdub appears to be the guitar solo at the end. Neat but I'm still very pleased that the true 1969 Doors Only mix will be available as well. Ideally it'd be the Doors Only mix with the sax solo but that would probably make everyone mad
I never came across that story before. I’m not sure how accurate that portrayal is — there could be some truth to it, but there has never been much or any indication in the historical record that Morrison “hated” Robby in any way. He didn’t like his Tell All The People lyrics, but it is hard to imagine Morrison had much of an ego when it came to recognition of who wrote what. He likely cared more about his poetry and film endeavors than he did about The Doors.
I don’t think he really hated Krieger. I interpreted the author of the article as saying it got under Morrison’s skin that the band’s signature song was mostly penned by Krieger. Jim considered himself the poet of the group, but during every concert there were catcalls from the audience demanding Light My Fire. I recall there are several anecdotes in various books and interviews with Jim’s friends and sister that Jim said he disliked Light My Fire. The lines that Jim garbles during the Light My Fire Boston late show appear to be limited to the two lines Morrison contributed to the song (e.g. the mire and pyre lines). But he appears to sing intelligibly all the lines Krieger wrote. In his boozed haze, perhaps Jim was being bratty and trying to say: “I’ll just sing Krieger’s anthem without my own lyrical contributions.”
It’s a nice remix of the original band tracks, showing the song could have worked without the string and brass overdubs on the master. The tone of Krieger’s modern guitar overdub sounds too contemporary and doesn’t really capture the tone of his guitar solos of the late 60s, such as his solo on the live Aquarius version of Touch Me. So the modern sounding overdub sounds a bit out of place on a 50 year old song. Maybe it will grow on me.
This is from a Sept. 1969 Poppin magazine article about the Doors’ performance at the Seattle Pop Festival that mentions Morrison’s disdain for Light My Fire: “The Doors ran through an obligatory five minutes of "Light My Fire," a song Morrison told an interviewer earlier this year he wouldn't perform again in public. "It stinks. We're beyond that now." He had said. His performance of the song, only a ghost of the recorded version, indicated he probably does think it stinks - and that's the way he sang it. More than anything else, Morrison's attitude dominated the stage throughout the show. Puffing on a cigar borrowed from a stagehand, he continued on his uninterrupted ego trip, all the while abusing, insulting and ridiculing his audience. It was apparent that this wasn't the Morrison the young chicks had come to see.” Source: Doors at Seattle by Ed Jeffords Poppin magazine, September 1969 The Doors | Seattle Pop Festival 1969
The following is a blog post written by Burton Cummings (of The Guess Who) which details his encounter with Jim Morrison at a party during the Soft Parade era. He ends up driving Morrison and two chicks around LA for hours! Cummings notes his meeting with Morrison occurred in 1969 and that the Guess Who were in L.A. appear to on the American Bandstand TV program. I'm guessing this encounter occurred sometime in May 1969, as The Guess Who apparently were showcased on a May 24, 1969 episode of American Bandstand. Cummings notes at the party Morrison wore a suede bomber jacket, black jeans and had a beard. This is consistent with the same outfit Morrison wore on the NET Critique program in late April 1969. Note that Cummings states that he drove Morrison's silver GTO with a black top. This is an interesting tidbit, as it suggests Morrison must have wrecked his blue Shelby Mustang GT500 in April or May of 1969. We can conclude this since the blue Mustang appears in the HWY film which is thought to have been filmed in late March or early April 1969. Morrison reportedly wrecked the Shelby Mustang when he was driving drunk. With this Cummings blog story as a guidepost, we can now surmise the Mustang drunk driving wreck happened within roughly two and a half months following the Miami incident. While there is no excuse for drunk driving, this must have been a turbulent time for Jim as he had to turn himself in at an FBI office in April. Additionally, there were "decency" rallies (spurred by the Miami concert) that were held in Florida, Texas, Maryland and Alabama during the March - May timeframe. In this May 1969 time period, only a few months before The Soft Parade album was released, Jim was getting lots of bad press and his alcohol addiction was getting worse. Note that Burton Cummings typed this in all caps. ----------------------------------------------------------- A NIGHT TO REMEMBER Burton Cummings Aug. 24, 2016 "IT WAS A NIGHT IN 1969…IT WAS THE FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE THAT I HAD EVER SET FOOT ON CALIFORNIA SOIL. THE GW WERE IN LOS ANGELES, I BELIEVE, TO APPEAR ON AMERICAN BANDSTAND. WE HAD ALREADY HAD “THESE EYES” AND I THINK “LAUGHING / UNDUN” HAD BEEN RELEASED, BUT THE DATES ARE A BIT FUZZY. WE CAME INTO TOWN FROM THE AIRPORT AND CHECKED IN TO THE TRAVEL LODGE ON SUNSET, RIGHT NEAR LA BREA, AT ABOUT NINE IN THE EVENING. I HAD NEVER SEEN L.A. BEFORE. I WAS ENTHRALLED… I WANTED TO GO OUT SIGHT SEEING, BUT THE OTHER THREE GUYS WERE JUST NOT INTERESTED. SINCE BEING A SMALL KID IN THE NORTH END OF WINNIPEG, I HAD BEEN A HUGE FAN OF “77 SUNSET STRIP”. SAW EVERY SINGLE EPISODE. ONE OF MY HEROES HAD BEEN EDD “KOOKIE” BYRNES. HE PARKED THE CARS AT DINO’S LOUNGE ON SUNSET. THAT WAS THE FIRST THING I WANTED TO SEE. SO I LEFT THE HOTEL ALONE AND WALKED WEST ON SUNSET, TOWARD THE OCEAN. IT’S A PRETTY FAIR HIKE FROM LA BREA TO WHERE DINO’S USED TO BE, BUT I WALKED BRISKLY AND BEFORE I KNEW IT, THERE I WAS, STANDING ON THE HALLOWED GROUND OF DINO’S PARKING LOT. THAT FANTASY BEING FULFILLED, I CONTINUED WEST ON SUNSET TOWARDS THE WHISKEY A GO GO. I JUST HAD TO SEE THE PLACE THAT HAD HOUSED SUCH BANDS AS THE DOORS, THE BYRDS, BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD AND A HOST OF OTHERS. FINALLY GOT THERE ABOUT HALF PAST MIDNIGHT. WHATEVER BAND HAD PLAYED THAT NIGHT WAS ALREADY FINISHED…MOST OF THE REMAINING CROWD WAS EITHER DRUNK OR PRETTY BUZZED ON SOMETHING. ERIC BURDON WAS THERE OVER IN A CORNER, SLOUCHED BEHIND A TABLE WITH SOME FRIENDS. I DRANK IN THE VIBES FOR ABOUT TEN MINUTES, MILLING OVER IN MY MIND THE COUNTLESS GOLDEN MOMENTS IN POP MUSIC THAT HAD OCCURRED IN THE TINY CLUB. ABOUT ONE IN THE MORNING I DECIDED I’D HAD MY FUN AND LEFT THE WHISKEY TO HAIL A CAB BACK TO MY HOTEL. RIGHT OUTSIDE THE FRONT DOOR ON SUNSET THERE WERE ABOUT THREE OR FOUR CABS, VERY UNUSUAL FOR LOS ANGELES. I JUMPED INTO ONE AND BEFORE I COULD SAY “I’M GOING BACK DOWN SUNSET TO THE TRAVEL LODGE AT LA BREA”, THE CAB DRIVER SAID “SO…I GUESS YOU’RE GOING TO THE BIG PARTY TOO…” WELL, I’M NOT A COMPLETE FOOL, SO I REPLIED…”YEAH”. SO NOW HERE I AM, BEEN IN LOS ANGELES FOR A TOTAL OF ABOUT FOUR HOURS IN MY ENTIRE LIFE, AND I’M ON MY WAY TO THE “BIG PARTY” UP IN THE HILLS. WE STARTED TO WIND UP THE ROADS OF THE HOLLYWOOD HILLS. TEN MINUTES INTO THIS CAB RIDE I DECIDED TO COME CLEAN WITH THE DRIVER. I TOLD HIM THAT I WASN’T REALLY INVITED TO THE “BIG PARTY”, BUT IF HE’D TAKE ME THERE, I’D PAY MY FARE, AND THEN MAYBE HE COULD WAIT AND SEE IF I GOT IN. HE AGREED. WE FINALLY ARRIVED AT A HOUSE THAT LOOKED LIKE THE BEVERLY HILLBILLIES MANSION. I GOT OUT, PAID THE DRIVER AND TOLD HIM TO WAIT FOR ME IF I DIDN’T MANAGE TO GET IN. I RANG THE DOORBELL OF THE HUGE FRONT DOOR AND SOME LOON OPENED IT AND SHOUTED “COME ON IN…” SO MUCH FOR THE CAB DRIVER WAITING…THERE WAS NO NEED FOR THAT NOW. THE SCENE WAS INSANE…NAKED PEOPLE IN THE POOL, PEOPLE SWILLING LIQUOR AND SNORTING COKE EVERYWHERE, AND JUST NOISE, NOISE, NOISE. I HAD BEEN IN CALIFORNIA FOR A TOTAL OF ABOUT FOUR HOURS, AND HERE I WAS AT SOME WING DING UP IN THE HOLLYWOOD HILLS. SOME GUY WITH A BRITISH ACCENT TOLD ME TO FOLLOW HIM TO THE KITCHEN FOR A BEER, WHICH I DID QUITE WILLINGLY. SO…NOW I AT LEAST HAD A BEER. I WALKED AROUND, KIND OF INTIMIDATED, NOT KNOWING A SOUL IN THE HOUSE. THERE WAS A SMALL, CUT OFF UPRIGHT PIANO IN THE CORNER OF THE MAIN LIVING ROOM, SO I SAT DOWN ON THE BENCH, PUT MY BEER DOWN AND STARTED TINKERING SOFTLY, DOWN IN THE RANGE OF MIDDLE C. NO ONE COULD HEAR ME ANYWAY, SO THIS WENT ON FOR ABOUT TEN MINUTES. VERY UNOBTRUSIVELY, SOMEONE SAT DOWN NEXT TO ME ON THE PIANO BENCH, AND STARTED TINKERING SOFTLY ON THE UPPER REGISTER BESIDE ME. I DIDN’T LOOK UP FOR A FEW MINUTES, BUT WHEN I DID, I THOUGHT THIS GUY LOOKED KINDA FAMILIAR…ANOTHER GLANCE, AND SURE ENOUGH, IT WAS JIM MORRISON…BLACK JEANS, DARK BROWN SUEDE BOMBER JACKET, FULL BEARD AND LOTS OF HAIR…CLASSIC JIMBO… NO ONE ELSE IN THE ROOM SEEMED TO KNOW IT WAS HIM…EITHER THAT OR THEY WERE ENTIRELY UNINTERESTED. I SWILLED THE REST OF MY BEER AND ASKED HIM IF HE WANTED ONE…YOU SEE, BY NOW, I KNEW WHERE THE BEERS WERE. JIM FOLLOWED ME TO THE FRIDGE IN THE KITCHEN AND WE GRABBED TWO COLD ONES. NOW…THIS WAS NOT LONG AFTER JIM’S TROUBLE IN MIAMI. THE DOORS HADN’T PERFORMED IN A WHILE, AND I THINK THE TRIAL WAS STILL PENDING. I DIDN’T WANT TO GET IN HIS FACE, BUT I HAD TO ASK HIM “SO, MAN, WHAT ABOUT MIAMI…A LOT OF ****…? WHAT’S HAPPENING…?” HE JUST GRINNED ONE OF THOSE FABULOUS “JIMBO GRINS” AND SAID “OH, IT’LL BE ALL RIGHT…” WE BOTH WENT BACK TO THE PIANO BENCH, BUT THIS TIME WE JUST SAT DOWN AND DRANK OUR BEERS. ABOUT THIS TIME, TWO YOUNG HOLLYWOOD STRUMPET TYPES CAME UP TO JIM AND SAID “IT’S TIME TO GO, JIM…” HE PULLED SOME KEYS OUT OF HIS POCKET AND STARTED TO MAKE HIS WAY TO THE FRONT DOOR. HE’D HAD A FEW AND I THOUGHT HE SHOULDN’T BE DRIVING. OUT OF THE ****ING BLUE I JUST SAID “HEY MAN, DON’T DRIVE…LET ME DRIVE…I’LL TAKE YOU WHERE YOU WANT TO GO, AND YOU CAN DROP ME OFF THERE…I’LL GET BACK HOME LATER…” TO MY AMAZEMENT, HE HANDED ME THE KEYS AND SAID “OKAY, LET’S GO…” THE TWO GIRLS LED JIMBO TO HIS CAR (AT LEAST I ASSUMED IT WAS HIS)…IT WAS A SHINY SILVER GTO WITH A BLACK VINYL ROOF. HE OPENED THE TRUNK TO REVEAL A HUGE ALUMINUM WASHTUB FILLED WITH ICED MILLER HIGH LIFE BEERS. HE AND THE GIRLS GRABBED ONE APIECE AND THE THREE OF THEM CLIMBED INTO THE BACK SEAT. I GOT BEHIND THE WHEEL AND STARTED TO DRIVE. NOW THE LAST THING JIM HAD TO HEAR AT THIS POINT WAS THAT I WAS THE BIGGEST DOORS FREAK IN NORTH AMERICA AND THAT I KNEW EVERYTHING ABOUT HIM. HE HAD NO IDEA WHAT ALL THIS WAS MEANING TO ME, BUT I NEVER EVEN LET ON THAT I WAS A MUSICIAN. SILENCE FOR A WHILE…JIM WOULD OCCASIONALLY SAY “TURN RIGHT HERE” OR “JUST KEEP GOING DOWN THIS STREET”…I HAD NO IDEA IN HELL WHERE I WAS DRIVING, AND I WAS NEW TO L.A. AND THERE WAS LIQUOR IN THE CAR, SO I JUST DROVE CAUTIOUSLY LIKE A LIMO DRIVER. ONCE IN A WHILE JIM WOULD SAY TO ONE OF THE GIRLS “SOME FOR THE DRIVER, SOME FOR THE DRIVER” UPON WHICH ONE OF THE GIRLS WOULD HAND ME ONE OF THE BEERS SO I COULD DOWN A SIP. AFTER A WHILE THE CONVERSATION STARTED. MY GOD HE WAS ARTICULATE…EVEN HALF DRUNK, HE WAS MORE LUCID AND INTELLIGENT THAN NINETY PER CENT OF ALL THE PEOPLE I’VE EVER MET IN THIS LIFETIME. HE WAS SO WELL READ…HE TALKED ABOUT GREAT AUTHORS…MARK TWAIN, RUDYARD KIPLING, LEWIS CARROL AND MANY OTHERS I CAN’T RECALL NOW. HE TALKED ABOUT THE UNIVERSE AND ITS SIZE…HE TALKED ABOUT THE GREAT PAINTERS OF THE RENAISSANCE ERA…HE TALKED ABOUT GREAT POETS, TOUCHING FROM TIME TO TIME ON WILLIAM BLAKE AND MAYBE BEAUDELAIRE…I’M RECALLING WHATEVER I CAN REMEMBER AFTER ALL THESE YEARS… EVERY TIME THEIR BOTTLES WERE EMPTY, I WAS TOLD TO PULL OVER AND STOP, WHEREUPON ONE OF THE GIRLS WOULD GET OUT AND BRING IN ANOTHER FEW MILLER HIGH LIFES FROM THE TRUNK. THIS WENT ON FOR HOURS. THE THREE OF THEM WERE GETTING DRUNKER AND FRIENDLIER IN THE BACK SEAT… IT WAS ALL SO SURREAL…MY FIRST NIGHT EVER IN LOS ANGELES, AND I WAS CHAUFFERING THE LIZARD KING AROUND ON HIS TURF. JUST ABOUT SUNRISE, THE THREE OF THEM SUDDENLY SAID THAT THEY “HAD TO GET BACK TO THEIR PLACE” WHATEVER THAT MEANT. I JUST SAID “OKAY, I’LL GET OUT HERE…JIM, LET ONE OF THE GIRLS DRIVE…” I GOT OUT OF THE GTO ON VENTURA BLVD. IN THE VALLEY, ONE OF THE GIRLS GOT BEHIND THE WHEEL, AND I WATCHED THE GTO PULL AWAY WESTWARD ON VENTURA…AND THAT WAS THAT. I DIDN’T HAVE MUCH MONEY IN MY POCKET, AND I HAD TO TAKE A COMBINATION OF BUSSES AND A CAB TO GET BACK TO OUR TRAVEL LODGE HOTEL. HELL, I’D ENDED UP ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE HILL. I WAS A LONG, LONG WAY FROM BACHMAN, PETERSON, AND KALE… WHEN I FINALLY GOT BACK TO THE TRAVEL LODGE, THE SUN WAS UP…IT WAS THE NEXT MORNING. WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO ME HADN’T REALLY SUNK IN YET…I TOLD THE WHOLE STORY TO THE OTHER THREE THAT MORNING…I DON’T THINK KALE AND PETERSON BELIEVED ME FOR A SECOND…I THINK RANDY BELIEVED ME, BUT HE DIDN’T SAY MUCH…THE DOORS HAD NEVER REALLY MEANT MUCH TO THE OTHER GUYS. I WAS YOUNGER, AND I HAD DONE ACID, SO THE GAP BETWEEN MYSELF AND THE OTHER THREE WAS ENORMOUS AT THAT PARTICULAR POINT IN TIME. JUST OVER A YEAR LATER, JIM MORRISON WAS GONE…FOREVER… YEARS LATER, I BECAME PART OF A WEEKLY BUNCH OF NBA FANATICS WHO WOULD ALL GET TOGETHER ON SUNDAYS TO WATCH MICHAEL JORDAN ON TELEVISION WHENEVER WE GOT THE CHANCE. ONE OF THIS GROUP WAS RAY MANZAREK. WHEN I TOLD HIM ABOUT MY NIGHT WITH JIM, HE TOLD ME “HELL MAN, YOU SPENT MORE TIME WITH JIM THAN ALMOST ANYBODY…” TO THIS DAY, I FEEL IT WAS THE MUSIC GODS GIVING ME A SMALL GIFT TO REWARD MY FASCINATION WITH MUSIC IN GENERAL, IN PARTICULAR THE DOORS AND JIM’S WORK. IT WAS A NIGHT TO REMEMBER…AND I WILL REMEMBER IT ALWAYS… GL & GH… B.C." Source: A NIGHT TO REMEMBER
Max Bell is a hack when it comes to stories about Jim and The Doors. Notice that the whole quote is not attributed to anyone or anything. He just says it, and people say that it is so, because this guy wrote it. I know from personal experience how he has misquoted people and literally made things up, such as with our book "Jim Morrison: Friends Gathered Together." While he gave our book an excellent review, he also made up things and said they were in our book when they were not. One thing I notice is that the Morrison books and articles written by British journalists like Max Bell and Mick Wall are off the chart in terms of sensationalism and unattributed things, such as the quote you cited above. Just something to consider...
I totally agree. Not sure why anyone felt that was necessary or even a good idea. Seriously, can someone explain why on earth that guitar was added??
Just because Robbie felt like it I guess, but don't worry the version without guitar will be released as well.
It's good that they're releasing it without the added solo, which further begs the question...!! Anyway, I can understand if it was an unfinished track that he never had a chance to add his guitar... but even that would be asking a lot. It seems a bit gratuitous and self-rewarding in this fashion.
Could be it sounds empty without the saxophone. Personally I would have removed the orchestra but kept the saxophone. But for that parts of the orchestral overdubs have to be on separate tracks.
Me was just thinking why they didn't ask Patty Sullivan-Hansen to record the new bass lines. I mean, out of all the bass players the Doors had, she was -- perhaps along with Jack Conrad -- the only one who actually was a member.
Even if we discount what Bell wrote as complete BS, there are still contemporary articles, such as the Ed Jeffords 1969 Poppin magazine article, which claim Morrison said in 1969 about Light My Fire: “It stinks. We’re beyond that now.” And according to Jeffords in that same 1969 article, Jim even said in early 1969 that he wasn’t going to perform Light My Fire again. I’d like to read the 1969 interview Jeffords is referencing. I don’t see why Jeffords would fabricate such a claim back in 1969 if Morrison didn’t actually say these things. Would you not agree there is evidence that Jim eventually disliked Light My Fire, and the success and adulation of Robby’s song may have gotten under Jim’s skin? Jim didn’t go around telling the media that his own songs from the same era, like Break on Through, The Crystal Ship or The End, stunk. Jim even defended his own song, Hello I Love You, in the November 1969 Howard Smith interview after Smith derided Hello I Love You. But If Jeffords is correct in his Sept. 1969 Poppin article, it appears Jim was happy to put down Robby’s masterpiece and give Light My Fire a perfunctory, lackluster performance at Seattle Pop.
It's a new solo by Robby Krieger. Enjoy it, he wont be around forever. The original version wont be deleted from history, you can listen to it anytime you want.
I agree, what does it hurt? Fun to hear a new interpretation of the song, always have the original and the 40th mixes to fall back on.
I've long wondered why The Doors rarely performed songs from The Soft Parade album after it was released. This scathing 1969 review of the album in Rolling Stone magazine may be one of the reasons why. Given this was published in Rolling Stone, the band must have certainly been aware of the review at the time. ============================= Album Review: The Soft Parade Rolling Stone By Alec Dubro August 23, 1969 A front page ad in Billboard says it: “Initial orders promise it will attain the instant solid gold status of their first three albums.” It looks like it will, but not because anyone listened to the record. Alternate suggested titles for The Soft Parade would be The Worst of the Doors, Kick Out the Doors, or best, The Soft Touch. The Soft Parade is worse than infuriating, it’s sad. It’s sad because one of the most potentially moving forces in rock has allowed itself to degenerate. A trite word, but true. The Soft Parade represents a clear and present decline in musicianship. This is quite apart from stage showmanship, or even “drama.” The Doors are obviously more potent than ever. But the Doors are a rock group, and at heart a rock group must produce vital, listenable, interesting music, or the rest is just so many limp wicks waving in the Miami breeze. And this gorgeous-looking album is not vital, not very listenable and is certainly not interesting. It sounds for all the world like the stuff they had the good sense to leave off their first albums. The weaknesses cannot be palmed off as experimentation, because, despite the addition of strings and horns, it’s just the same. The same but worse. Ok, there are two un-Doors-like songs, both written by Robbie Krieger. “Touch Me” and “Follow Me Down” are horn-string showpieces for the resonant baritone of Jim Morrison that aren’t the worst of the Doors. They’re the worst of Jerry Vale or the worst of Andy Williams. While the Doors’ reductio-ad-absurdum poetry could usually be disguised by invigorating (if not very convincing) emotion, these damn songs stick that idiocy right up front and surround it with the most cliche-ridden sounds this side of the 101 Strings. The remainder of the songs sound like the Doors alright, but they’re pale shadows of their earlier works. The Doors’ power is also their weakness. They have had from the beginning, and still have, one of the cleanest, most solid and, above all, most recognizable sounds in rock. Part of this is the Morrison power, but the other Doors are equally responsible. There is rarely any doubt that you’re listening to the Doors. It’s a great sound, a successful sound, but it forces a highly directional form of musical invention on the Doors and it is this that they have not been able to maintain. Instead they’ve just gone from excess to excess. “Running Blue” is a superb example. It’s hard to imagine Doors’ poetry getting more excessive than it’s been, but listen to this: Poor Otis dead and gone Left me here to sing his song Pretty little girl with the red dress on Poor Otis dead and gone. Can you dig it? Or, better yet, “Do It.” Please please listen to me children Please please listen to me children Please please listen to me children Please please listen to me children You are the ones who will rule the world. And if, as Morrison himself says, the words don’t count and the mood created is the important facet of the Doors’ rock, then they’ve really bummed out on this one. The mood they’ve created is loud, dull boredom. There are some good images, some good musical licks, but it just isn’t worth shuffling through the rest of this scree to find the few semi-precious stones. What little good there is on the album is mostly in the title cut, “The Soft Parade.” But the thing is so mangled, so jammed together and frequently so silly that it’s kind of hard to listen all through its 8:40 for the good. With individual credit now being given for the songs, it’s plain that Morrison’s songs are better than Krieger’s. But it’s just the lesser of two evils. In any case, with this album, the Doors appear to be in the final stages of musical constipation. Morrison admits that they haven’t done any new material in three years, and unless something drastic happens, the next album ought to be an epitaph. I highly recommend The Soft Parade for these people like Dunbar in Catch-22 who like to be bored to tears in order to make the time pass more slowly. Otherwise, don’t bother. Source: The Soft Parade
