The Doors Check into the Morrison Hotel

Morrison Hotel, released in 1970, is actually two albums in one. The first part of the album is titled Hard Rock Cafe, and consists of six tracks, while the second part is called Morrison Hotel, which has five tracks. The entire album revisits the blues roots of this band, and it also demonstrates the band's continued experimentation with musical form. As usual, the keyboards dominate the album, at times in that uniquely Doors carnivalesque fashion, and and at other times with blues, rock and classical influences.

The players on this album, and their contributions, are as follows:

Jim Morrison, vocals
Robbie Krieger, electric guitar
Ray Manzarek, piano and organ
John Densmore, drums

Lonnie Mack plays bass on Roadhouse Blues and Maggie M'Gill, all other songs feature Ray Neopolitan on bass. G. Puglese plays harp on Roadhouse Blues.

The tracks, and my comments on each, are as follows:

Hard Rock Cafe

1. Roadhouse Blues--This is just some good old down and dirty blues by some California boys who loved the musical form. The harp played by the sessions musician adds that Mississippi delta blues touch to the song, and Morrison's exhortation to Robbie Krieger at the beginning of his solo--"Do it, Robbie, do it!"--inspires him to do just that--lay down a fine piece of blues guitar. The line at the end, "the future's uncertain and the end is always near" was somewhat prescient, considering how Morrison met his death.

2. Waiting For The Sun--A brooding, dark song featuring Manzarek's gloomy organ and some excellent slide guitar work by Krieger. This song defies classification--I think of it as just another Doors effort to blend musical styles. Songs like this one really define this band, I think.

3. You Make Me Real--A bawdy piano is the featured instrument of this song, and Morrison's insinuatingly sexual vocal style dress up this simple song that blends the blues into a rock 'n roll framework. Krieger pinches a couple of licks from Chuck Berry for a brief but electrifying solo.

4. Peace Frog--A funky guitar lick joined by a stuttering bass and a bluesy organ kick this one off, and the hook line of the tune-"There's blood in the street and it's up to my ankles"--makes it clearly a protest song. There's a reference to Chicago (the Democratic convention) and New Haven (the scene of Morrison's famous confrontation with the New Haven police)--there are probably more clues in the song--just listen and see if you can find them. The brief musical reprise where Morrison recites poetry is a total change in the texture of the song--this band understood that rock music could have movements, just like classical music.

5. Blue Sunday--This is a very languid, dolorous song that can best be characterized as another uniquely Doors tune. The organ plays a church-like line, and Krieger's jazzy guitar line is mellow and soothing. Morrison's vocals sort of ramble--this is really not the type of song where he does his best work.

6. Ship Of Fools--Bass guitar and drums set up a loopy, jazzy beat and when the band joins in, the song transforms into a collage of different styles. The Doors manage to meld a little of everything here--jazz, Latin rhythms, rock, blues, and even a touch of good old commercial pop. I'm not crazy about this track, but it does show how this band was willing to experiment with different musical styles.

Morrison Hotel

7. Land Ho!--The electric guitar sets up a nice riff driven by the tom-toms played by John Densmore. Manzarek's organ furnishes a texture that was always a Doors trademark, and Morrison sings this one with a little bit of a "tongue-in-cheek" approach". He bellows "Land Ho!" close to the end, and it's a priceless moment.

8. The Spy--Kriegar's guitar lick sets up a honky-tonk piano riff played by Manzarek in this blues-based tune with that unique Doors spin. Morrison's vocals convince the listener that he's a "spy in the house of love"--he's really telling us how much he knows about human nature, and by implication, each of us. Only the Doors could put this type of message in a blues format.

9. Queen Of The Highway--Here's some of that weird Doors music--a piano with some sort of special effects create a haunting tone, and Krieger contributes some very tasteful guitar licks. This song sounds like it's about to burst into some sort of free-form jazz jam, but it never quite reaches that limit, although the musicians are given plenty of room to improvise in this one.

10. Indian Summer--More eerie Doors music--it sounds almost ominous and sort of drones, like The End. Kriegar's jazz influences are apparent from his guitar work, as well as the classical influences that must have shaped Manzarek.

11. Maggie M'Gill--The album closes with a typical Doors interpretation of the blues--the lyrics are pure blues, but the music is atypical. Krieger's masterful slide guitar licks reek of the blues, but the chord structure is anything but the blues. The organ solo, set against a double-time drum lick, is a different spin on tradition. A great way to close an album as diverse as this one.

This may not be the best album the Doors ever recorded, but it might be the most representative of their style. I fully recommend it, not only to the die-hard Doors fan, but to those who are seeking to become familiar with this wonderful and innovative music.