The Doors - Legacy: The Absolute Best

Truth be told, most casual Doors fans only need a well-assembled single-disc collection, containing all the hits and radio staples. Since that doesn't exist -- Rhino's 2001 collection The Very Best of the Doors missed too many key songs to suit the bill -- they'll have to settle for the comprehensive 2003 Rhino compilation Legacy: The Absolute Best, a double-disc set that replaces the previous double-disc Doors comp, the 1985 set The Best of the Doors. That collection contained 19 tracks, the number of songs that are on the first disc of this exhaustive 34-track overview. Every one of the tunes from The Best of the Doors is on Legacy, but not in the same order, since the songs on this compilation are put in roughly chronological order. Legacy also tries to give equal weight to each of the Doors albums, pulling anywhere from four to eight tracks from all the studio albums, adding "Gloria" from Alive, She Cried and a previously unissued "Celebration of the Lizard" to the end of the record. This winds up giving a thorough overview of the band's peak, whether it's on the familiar hits or on strong album cuts like "My Eyes Have Seen You" or "The Changeling." There are a couple of omissions -- most notably "Love Street" and "Summer's Almost Gone" from Waiting for the Sun and also "Ship of Fools" and "Land Ho!" from Morrison Hotel -- but overall, this draws as complete a picture as possible. It still may be a little bit much for those who just want the hits (they're all here, plus a whole lot more), but there's little question that Legacy is the best Doors compilation yet assembled. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide

Name Credits Alan Fletcher Project Assistant Becky Wagner Project Assistant Bobby Klein Photography Bruce Botnick Producer, Remastering, Engineer Bryan Lasley Art Direction, Design Cory Frye Editorial Supervision Curtis Amy Soloist, Saxophone Danny Sugerman Executive Producer David McLees Compilation Producer Douglas Lubahn Bass (Electric), Bass Emily Cagan Product Manager Gary Peterson Discographical Annotation George Rodriguez Photography Günter Zint Photography Harvey Brooks Bass Henry Diltz Photography Hugh Brown Art Direction Ingrid K. Olson Project Assistant Jac Holzman Production Supervisor Jerry Scheff Bass Jim Ladd Liner Notes Jim Morrison Vocals Joel Brodsky Photography John Densmore Drums John Sebastian Harp Ken Regan Photography Kerry Magness Bass Leroy Vinnegar Bass (Acoustic) Lonnie Mack Bass Marc Benno Guitar (Rhythm) Marc Salata Project Assistant Michael Montfort Photography Paul Ferrara Cover Photo, Photography Paul Rothchild Producer Ray Manzarek Keyboards Ray Neopolitan Bass Robbie Krieger Guitar Steven Chean Project Assistant T.C. Boyle Liner Notes The Doors Producer, Compilation Producer Tim Scanlin Project Assistant Todd Gray Photo Archivist Wendell Hamick Photography