A return to greatness

For me, 'Morrison Hotel' is a really solid album and a return to the rock/blues/jazz grounding that made the Doors great. The reason they sound so confident on this album is because they returned to making the music that sounded right to them.



And now, an overall rundown of the album itself.



Roadhouse Blues: a straightahead blues number with some fine harp. (10/10)



Waiting for the Sun: the liberal use of slide guitar, synthesisers and ominous lyrics creates an overall pleasing sound. (10/10)



You Make Me Real: almost a nod to the rock and roll of the 1950s. A bit cliched. (7/10)



Peace Frog: a downright funky number with some cool lyrics from Morrison. (10/10)



Blue Sunday: decent song but can be a bit boring. (6/10)



Ship of Fools: an upbeat song with some great musicianship and interesting lyrics. (10/10)



Land Ho!: sounds like it could easily be a sea shanty. Lots of fun. (9/10)



The Spy: a creepy-sounding song with a slow tempo. (8/10)



Queen of the Highway: musically, this song just keeps on building. (9/10)



Indian Summer: kind of boring. (5/10)



Maggie M'Gill: good old-fashioned blues with some great slide guitar. Foot-stomping fun! (10/10)



Even though this album has some forgettable songs, there are some fantastic songs that more than make up for it. A great album!

I woke up this morning and I got myself a great Doors album

After a couple of albums that were more noted for hit singles that smacked too much of pop music for their fans, namely 1968's "Waiting for the Sun" with "Hello, I Love You" and 1969's "The Soft Parade" with "Touch Me," the Doors got back to their roots with "Morrison Hotel." This is clear from the opening track on this 1970 album, the rock 'n' booze anthem "Roadhouse Blues," which blasts this album into the stratosphere. Robbie Krieger's opening riff sets the tone and Ray Manzarek pounds away on the piano to establish the mood, with the whole thing capped off by Jim Morrison's vocalized howls. You can hear live versions of "Roadhouse Blues," but unfortunately none of them were ever performed in the perfect locale, which would have been a bar. But you can imagine how great it would sound to hear this one blasting the top off of some juke joint.



There are not any hit singles on the group's fifth studio album, which is undoubtedly why it went over better with the fans of the Doors, even if it only made it to #4 on the Billboard album charts. To help validate the blues the Doors brought in the great sessions jazz guitarist Ray Neopolitan, albeit as a bass player (the Doors never really bothered with one). The requisite touch of the exotic can be found in songs like "Waiting for the Sun," "Queen of the Highway," and "Indian Summer." Morrison, who was noticeably disengaged in terms of both his lyrics and his singing on previous albums, is back to waxing poetic big time, as evidenced by "Ship of Fools," which mixes nihilistic imagery with prospects for hope. Again, Morrison is found commenting on the counterculture, singing about how "Everyone was hanging out/Hanging up and hanging down/Hanging in and holding fast." Musically the instrumental break is where the group gets to indulge in some showmanship where the emphasis is decidedly on jazz and no longer on pop.



The other great track is "Peace Frog," which comments on the "Blood in the streets," but is more notable for Morrison's musings on an episode from his childhood in some of his most searing imagery (e.g., "Indians scattered on dawn's highway, bleeding to death") and poetic (e.g., "Blood is the rose of mysterious union"). Again, Krieger and Manzarek provide the appropriate musical accompaniment to the verbal images of cultural unrest as the end of the turbulent Sixties being thrown out by Morrison. The Doors often commented on what was happening in the streets without ever offering a solution, and this song is one of their best efforts in that regard. One final track of note remains, and that would be the slow blues tune "The Spy," simply because its music, if not its lyrics (e.g., "I know the word that you long to hear/I know your deepest, secret fear"), anticipates the last great Doors song to come on their final album, "L.A. Woman."

Morrison Hotel

What immediately grabs your attention on this album is the crunching opener, Roadhouse Blues. The Doors were back, Rock 'n' Roll style. It is the best rocker on the album, but others are just as good like You Make Me Real, Peace Frog, Ship of Fools and Maggie McGill. What also hits you (but not as hard) is the gentle, haunting blues like Waiting for the Sun, Blue Sunday and Indian Summer. Still can't decide which is the best: their first, their last or this one. It's best if you enjoy all three of them as a whole.

the doors can rock

the doors put it all together. great lyrics,great sound, alot of messages in their songs. but they were best at playing good ole rock and roll. a great album to listen to while going down the road. on a blue Sunday, okay sing along, leave your cares far behind, just keep your eyes on the road, still sounds fresh even after thirty years.

Why do I need to title? You KNOW what I'm writing about...

I discovered "Peace Frog" while running around my hometown between my junior and senior years of high school with an ex-girlfriend (although decidedly not at the time)when it came on the ONLY decent radio station in NE Wyoming. "That was the Doors? It sounded like Jim Morrison, definately weird enough", "They got all funk'dified" (Had been listening to Parliament earlier). Fortunately that particular station is good for actually telling you what you had or were about to listen to... and I got the name of the song. I don't normally buy an album based on a song, which probably puts me in a minority for the under 25 crowd, but I'd been a fan of the Doors anyhow. This is a very good album... it has quite a bit of diversity if you know what to look for, although some songs definately stand out above the rest.



There are some EXCELLENT reviews below for this album if you'd like more specifics... just bear in mind there are three types of Doors "fans". Those that appreciate inventive and thought provoking music, those that like some of the more overplayed songs (think "touch me") - and claim to be Led Zeppelin fans because they like "Stairway to Heaven", and vapid stoner losers who think substance abuse justifies debasing a remarkable band's musical contributions by assimilation by habits.



If you are either of the two groups, you're either insulted, or confused... but you are more than entitled to your own opinion and the recording industry will proudly support your buying habits.