THE DOORS

Live In Philadelphia

This title is no longer available from Rhino Handmade.

However, numbered copies from the original edition may be available at select retailers.

The infamous Miami incident of March 1969 created sufficient controversy to cut short the remainder of that tour. The Doors played a date or two to round out the year, but it wasn't until 1970 that they recovered their momentum. The outstanding Morrison Hotel album was in stores, and the band was riding high on a wave of potent synergy. They kicked off the new tour in Boston on April 10th.

May 1st found them at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, a venue that had a reputation for unruliness. Ray Manzarek recalls the atmosphere that night in the liner notes to this release:

We couldn't even begin to play until all the people were in their seats. They were all jammed up at the front -- anticipating Morrison, Densmore, Krieger and Manzarek -- but we couldn't take the stage until they went back to their seats and listened in an orderly fashion. Only then would the Fire Marshal allow the show to continue. His whole trip was: You have to clear the aisles. What if there's a fire? Well, the place was made of metal and concrete; what was going to burn, except for The Doors' music? So we waited until the Fire Marshal gave the OK to the MC, who said, 'Ladies and gentlemen, from Los Angeles, California, The Doors.' Immediately, everyone who'd been made to sit down stood right back up. But by then it was too late. We just burned and jammed and played our music with the whole place rushing up to the stage.

Several shows on the 1970 tour were recorded on multi-track for the Absolutely Live album, and the attention to detail exhibited by engineer Bruce Botnick and his team resulted in superior sound quality both in the arena and on tape. Bruce also mixed and mastered this release, a true monument to the live Doors experience.

Selection # 7912

Bright Midnight Archives

This is the real thing, as The Doors played it, without intrusive overdubs or fixes. While technical glitches sometimes remain, the performance quality and historical significance make Bright Midnight Archives releases essential in any Doors collection. The three surviving Doors personally oversee all Bright Midnight Archives releases, and their original co-producer/engineer Bruce Botnick personally mixes and masters every single release. Most Bright Midnight Archives releases are neither individually numbered nor limited editions.

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