The Doors, The #67 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Two

 (Continued from Part One...)

The Doors released the album Waiting for the Sun later in the year, a #1 album in the United States and France and #3 in Canada.  It too has gone over one million in sales.

 "Hello, I Love You" became one of the group's biggest career hits--#1 for two weeks in the U.S. and Canada and #10 in Switzerland.  It has also sold over one million singles. 

 

"Not To Touch The Earth" is a prime cut.

  Morrison's uncompromising lyrics knew no bounds.  When he broached a subject, he pulled no punches and held nothing back, evidenced by this anti-war song:  "Unknown Soldier".

The group continued to make headlines for the wrong reasons, as fans rioted at the Singer Bowl in New York City.  While performing in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Morrison collapsed after a drug binge before the concert.

The Doors played nine more shows in the United States before starting work on their fourth album.  

In 1969, the Doors performed before a sold-out crowd at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan, New York.  On March 1, the group had a date at the Dinner Key Auditorium in Miami, Florida.  What happened on that night severely damaged the Doors' reputation.  Morrison, who had been drinking all day, would abruptly quit singing during his vocal parts and start taunting the crowd.  When the Doors began their second selection, "Touch Me", Morrison began shouting in protest, forcing the rest of the band to quit playing.

On March 5, the Dade County Sheriff's office issued a warrant for the arrest of Morrison, who exposed himself on stage in a desperate plea for attention, shouted obscenities at the crowd and committed other lewd acts.  Morrison was convicted and sentenced to six months in jail with hard labor.

Morrison was free on bail, but would die before a final decision was reached.  

 

The Doors released the album The Soft Parade in July, another million-seller.  "Touch Me" climbed to #1 in Canada, #3 in the U.S., 6 in New Zealand and #10 in Switzerland and has sold over one million copies.  

The Soft Parade became the band's fourth consecutive Top 10 album in the U.S. and also hit #4 in Canada and the Netherlands and #8 in France.

 

The title song represented some of the group's best experimental work on a piece that encompasses several movements and musical styles rolled into one Top Track*.

 

We also want to feature another blues number from the group--"Shaman's Blues".

While the group was recording their next album, Morrison and a friend boarded a flight to Phoenix, Arizona to see a concert by the Rolling Stones.  Morrison and his friend Tom Baker were charged with "interfering with the flight of an intercontinental aircraft and public drunkenness", and faced a ten-year federal prison sentence if convicted.  The charges against Morrison were dropped four months later when an airline stewardess said that she had mistaken Morrison as Baker.

 

The Doors completed their album and released it in 1970 as Morrison Hotel, which rose to #3 in Canada, #4 in the United States and Australia and #6 in Italy.  It also reached Platinum status.   "Peace Frog" is regarded as one of the group's best songs.

 

The Topanga Canyon nightclub known as Topanga Corral is thought to be the inspiration for "Roadhouse Blues".  To navigate the many twists and turns to the club, one really did have to "keep their eyes on the road and their hand upon the wheel".  Among the guest musicians featured are John Sebastian of Lovin' Spoonful on harmonica and Lonnie Mack on bass.

In 1970, the Doors released the album Absolutely Live, which was certified Gold.  Their compilation album 13 went Platinum.  As Morrison was set to face trial in Miami in August, the Doors performed throughout the summer, including at the Isle of Wight Festival. 

 

The group released the album L.A. Woman, with the "Love Her Madly" smash jumping to #3 in Canada, #6 in Australia, #9 in the Netherlands and #10 in France.  But, with a peak of #11 in the U.S., it is another of The Top Underrated Songs*.  "L.A. Woman" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

 

You can add "Riders On The Storm" to that category with a peak of #14 in the United States, although it did achieve #1 in France, #7 in Canada and the Netherlands and #10 in Australia.

And the title song has become a classic.

 Morrison's other-worldly lyrics and vocal interpretations of his poetry were certainly the foundation for much of the Doors' music.  What made them legends is the uncanny ability of the other immensely talented members to mesh with a strange dude like Morrison.  Manzarek's great keyboard work is once again featured on "The Changeling".

The Doors began a tour to promote it the album.  They performed in Dallas, Texas on December 11 before going to New Orleans, Louisiana the next night.  During the latter show, Morrison slammed his microphone several times onto the stage floor until the platform was destroyed.  He then sat down and refused to perform for the rest of the show.  

After the show, Densmore, Manzarek and Krieger met and decided to end live shows, agreeing that Morrison should retire from performing.

The album went to #1 in the Netherlands, #4 in Canada and #9 in the U.S. and Australia.  It has gone over two million in sales.

During the recording of L.A. Woman, Rothchild quit as producer of the group, leaving those duties to Brute Botnick and the Doors.  The group was able to finish the album and released it early in the year.

On March 13, Morrison took a leave of absence from the group and moved to Paris, France.  Morrison died on July 3 at the age of 27 after being found in an apartment bathtub by his girlfriend Pamela Courson.  He was buried at the Pere Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, where his grave has been vandalized numerous times as shown above.

The three surviving members continued as a trio until breaking up in 1973.  Krieger and Manzarek took over lead vocals for live performances.  They released the album Other Voices in 1971 and Full Circle in 1972.  The Doors brought in bassist Jack Conrad and Bobby Ray Henson on rhythm guitar for a European tour, but the Doors officially broke up in 1973.

There have been several reunions of the group, the first in 1978 when they recorded the album An American Prayer, putting music to spoken word recordings of Morrison reciting his poetry.  The album sold over one million copies.

In 1980, the group released The Doors Greatest Hits, a three-million seller.  In 1983, the surviving members released another live album, Alive She Cried, which was certified Gold.  Their live 1991 album In Concert sold over one million copies.

In 1985, the band released the compilation The Very Best of the Doors, which has now sold over 10 million copies in the U.S.

In 1993, the Doors were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and reunited for the ceremony.  The compilation The Doors Greatest Hits, released in 1996, has sold over two million units, while the group's box set (the one to buy) has sold over one million.  The surviving members once again got together in 1997 to finish another Morrison composition, "Orange County Suite" for the Doors' box set.  They also reunited in 2000 for a performance on VH1's Storytellers.

In 2002, Manzarek and Krieger joined together on tour and billed themselves as the Doors of the 21st Century, with Ian Astbury performing as lead singer.  After Densmore won a lawsuit, the pair performed as Riders On the Storm and Manzarek-Krieger until Manzarek's death in 2013.

On February 12, 2016, on what would have been Ray's 76th birthday, Densmore and Krieger reunited for the first time in 15 years to perform a tribute to Manzarek and benefit Stand Up to Cancer at the Fonda Theatre in Hollywood.

In 1991, director Oliver Stone completed the movie The Doors.  In 2007, the Doors received a Grammy Award for lifetime achievement and also received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.  The documentary When You're Strange, which tells the story of the group through archived footage, was released in 2009.  The Doors earned the Grammy for Best Long Form Music Video for that film.


In 2009, "Riders On The Storm" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

In 2015, the United States Library of Congress included the Doors' debut album in the National Recording Registry for its "cultural, artistic or historical significance."

The Doors scored 15 career hits with three Top 10's, although as pointed out above, several were underrated because of methodology flaws in the charts that organizations published.  The group managed to get to #1 twice.

The Doors have sold over 33 million albums in the U.S. and over 100 million worldwide.