Morrison Hotel – The Doors

The MARK’S VINTAGE VINYL page features something from Mark’s collection of recordings from over the years. Most of it is on vinyl – hence the name – though there will be a few entries from his CDs (remember those?).

Morrison Hotel, by The Doors

  • Released in 1970, the fifth studio album by The Doors.
  • No major hits, though Roadhouse Blues and Peace Frog get significant play time on classic rock stations. It charted as high as #4 on the Billboard Top Album list. The album received 5 stars from Rolling Stone, and 4.5 stars from AllMusic.
  • The photo on the cover was taken at the actual Morrison Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. The building has been vacant since 2008 – before that, it was used for low income housing. There are plans to restore the building, with 80 hotel rooms, ground level retail space, fitness center and lounge.
  • The Doors were a great example of the evolution of Rock & Roll that occurred in the 60s. Their career was cut short by the death of Jim Morrison, frontman for the band, at the age of 27. Morrison is one of the most iconic rock stars in history.
  • This album is one of 8 albums from The Doors that are in my collection. It is typical of their work – Morrison’s sexy, whiskey tinged vocals, keyboardist Ray Manzarek’s eclectic organ, Robby Krieger’s driving guitars (the opening riff to Peace Frog sounds just like the opening riff to Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit), and John Densmore’s snappy drumming. Listen to Roadhouse Blues from the album, and experience the choas of a Doors concert in this video.

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