Search - Doors :: Doors Box Set

Two words: HIGHWAY ROBBEREY!

maharishi521 | 12/12/2002

(2 out of 5 stars)

"I guess we all could have expected this from the Doors, after all
they are the masters, OF RELEASING THE SAME STUFF 15 TIMES!
The Doors are the kings of re-release (with the Who coming in a close second). There are about 10 or 15 US "greatest hits" albums and about 5 imported ones. If that says anything to you at all, than it probably says that this set was a rip off.There are some good songs like, "Black Train Song", "Hyacinth House", and "Celebration of the Lizard" but on the whole this set wasn't whole!The first disc starts out with a preformance of "Five to One" that was apparently included solely because it was recorded the night Jim Morrison allegedly exposed himself. The sound quality and even preformance quality are horrible! Disc one has severly edited takes of several no-fi bootleg transfers that have been overdubbed just recently (at least when other bands do that i.e. the Beatle's "Real Love" and "Free As A Bird" they tell you that it's just magnetic tape). The Doors try to pass it off as original. There are four or five annoying 1965 demos that are just that, terrible cheap leftover, demos. Disc 2 however is the master of all the overdub lies. The Doors/Elektra would have you believe that this is a full preformance at Madison Square Garden, but it is actually a collection of tracks from four preformances at the Felt Forum, linked together by ovedubbed (also known as fake) crowd noise.
The worst case of that being "Gloria" which was actually recorded at a sound check in front of an empty auditorium in LA. First, that's not live, and its on the opposite end of the country from New York. "Hello To The Cities" that kicks off the first disc (and effectivly scuttles it) is, get this, a combo of the Ed Sullivan preformance and Jim saying the names of a bunch of cities at a concert in Detroit. Several tracks labled as "Live" actually aren't. I.E. "Mental Floss" was a sound check. "The Soft Parade" is a combo of the studio recording and a recording for an empty studio (save a few video cameras) for TV. "Orange County Suite" was just recently overdubbed (1996), naturally they don't admit it. The real insult to injury was disc 4, the infamous "Band Favorites" disc (read any review on this box, and even the fans of it will question its inclusion). Nothing is wrong with Elektra releasing a "Band Favorites Disc", except that any one with this set already had those tracks (remember, 15 US "hits" albums). Worse still it is just a way to swindle you out of fifteen more dollars/yen/euros, whatever. There is nothing wrong with making, and charging for a three disc set, were they worried that people wouldn't buy it if it was three discs? I mean, that's what the linear notes are for, just tell us your sixteen favorite songs, and well listen to them in that order, or whatever.This was a real dissapointment and after being so excited, driving home from the music store with this set cluched firmly in my hands... putting disc 1 in my discman and then realising I had been, like so many other devoted fans, crapped on. I'm sure Morrison rolled over in his grave the day this was released."

Deceptive. Bloated. Padded. Unremarkable.

Highway 61 Revisited | Dallas, TX USA | 04/15/2001

(2 out of 5 stars)

"I'm a longtime Doors fan, and I eagerly awaited the release of this box. In fact, I picked it up on the day of its release--back in the fall of 1997. 3 and half years later, I'm reviewing it here. Heed my warnings.First, there are a handful of wonderful tracks here, such as the jazz reading of "Queen of the Highway," the beautiful ballad "I Will Never Be Untrue" and the demo of Hyacinth House. The Black Train suite is also interesting, as is the outtake version of Moonlight Drive.Ok, now let's get down to what's wrong with this box.1. The track sequencing does not flow well; out of chronological order, the programming order is truly bizarre.2. There is no complete live performance. Disc 2, "Live in New York", is actually a heavily edited composite of 4 different shows at the Felt Forum in January 1970, plus the deceptive inclusion a soundcheck of Gloria, recorded the previous summer (1969) in an audienceless hall in Los Angeles. This is not noted on the box, as the Doors/Sugarman would have you believe this is one complete live performance in Madison Square Garden.3. Rock is Dead outro is edited and Albinoni's Adagio is inserted between the two pieces. That edit is very indulgent and bizarre.4. Soft Parade. The version on the box is the live performance on Public TV in 1969. However, the intro (You cannot petition the Lord) segment from the TV special is cut out. Instead, Doors/Sugarman/Botnick have spliced on (in mono form) the intro from the studio recording/ blending it with the live performance. Absolutely bizarre. 5. Disc 4. Band favorites. Come on. Anyone purchasing this box already has all of these tracks! This is transparent padding, bloating the box, and beefing up the price. 6. Where are great tracks like Paris Blues? Queen of the Magazines? etc.7. Only two selections from the Matrix performance--dubbed off a low fidelity bootleg, which had been NoNoised. There are other bootleg sources available which sound better.8. Who Scared You is the dubbed, edited version (missing a verse)--not the original master recording. Sloppy tape research.9. Lots of date errors on the packaging. For example, the PBS recordings are listed as 1970, but were in fact recorded in the spring of 1969. "I Will Never Be Untrue" is listed as a 1970 recording, but was in fact recorded in the summer of 1969.10. Whiskey Mystics and Men does not feature the original instrumentation, but rather overdubs which were made years later.11. Overdubs on the live disc 2. There is some unconfirmed speculation that Krieger overdubbed guitar parts in 1996, glossing over the 1970 "New York" disc.Conclusion: a few great moments here. Lots of poor moments. Lots of deception. Poor research. Many historical inaccuracies. Disc 4 is a waste of time and a transparent exploitation of Doors fans. Stay away. Don't encourage the surviving Doors to put out more of this kind of mediocre product."

Flipping off the fans

N. P. Stathoulopoulos | Brooklyn, NY | 08/20/1999

(2 out of 5 stars)

"The Doors have to be one of the worst bands when it comes to giving the (smart) fans something of real value and something they really want. This boxset was the one people were waiting for forever, but it turns out to be disappointing. As usual, we have the same old spliced together tracks claiming to be from one venue. The Black Train song is great, BUT...it's literally cut in half. It should run about 25 minutes, not 12(!) The Isle of Wight track? If this is any indication of how the official Doors Isle of Wight disc sounds, folks, the bootleg of this show is excellent UNTOUCHED, NOT OVERDUBBED AND NOT REMIXED soundboard. The echo effects, the blatant Kreiger overdubs and the overproduction on old tracks is shameless. The Doors are always trying to make themselves sound better in concert than they did. AND in the studio! Listen to the cleaned up Rock is Dead. Why is it only 16 minutes? Isn't the bootleg version of this bit about 22 minutes long? Where is a live version of Touch Me? Why don't they use ONE Felt Forum show instead of butchering the tapes of 4 different ones? Where is Paris Blues? Why is Someday Soon CUT?! Why, in the name of God, do we need a band favorites disc??! That, right there, is one of the most lame things any band has done on a boxset. RIPPING OFF THE FANS! The Doors get no respect when it comes to respecting the fans. I'll be dead and in hell long before they decide to let the dozens of Absolutely Live and Feast of Friends recorded concerts see the light of day!"