portrait of this blog's author - by Stephen Blackman 2008

Friday, February 02, 2018

I still recall the excitement of hearing the opening track of this fine fine album and it is up there in the top ten and possibly top three dependant upon my mood . . . . "Keep your eyes on the road and your hand upon the wheel . . . . . . . "

On this day in music history: February 1, 1970 - “Morrison Hotel”, the fifth studio album by The Doors is released. Produced by Paul A. Rothchild, it is recorded at Sunset Sound in Hollywood, CA in November 1969. Following the tepid critical and commercial response to their previous release “The Soft Parade”, the band returns to their bluesier roots on the follow up. The album features guest appearances by Lonnie Mack and John Sebastian (credited as G. Puglese). The LP’s iconic cover photo taken by photographer Henry Diltz features the band posed in the front window of the Morrison Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. The hotel owners actually decline when The Doors ask permission to take the photo. So they wait until no one is looking and quickly take the picture. Though no singles are released from the album, it is a success, with tracks such as “Roadhouse Blues” and “Peace Frog” becoming radio airplay favorites, re-establishing the bands reputation and commercial prowess. The album is remastered and reissued on CD for its fortieth anniversary in 2010 with ten additional bonus tracks, including previously unreleased outtakes and alternate versions of several songs. Reissued on vinyl in 1993, it is remastered and reissued as a double vinyl 180 gram LP mastered at 45 RPM by Analogue Productions in 2012. AP also releases the title as a hybrid SACD also in 2013. “Morrison Hotel” peaks at number four on the Billboard Top 200, and is certified Platinum in the US by the RIAA.


Well, I woke up this morning, I got myself a beer
Well, I woke up this morning, and I got myself a beer
The future's uncertain, and the end is always near


check it out there isn't a bad track on it . . . . . . . 

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