THE DOORS AND THEM: A MUSICAL ENCOUNTER FROM 1966 TO '70

 

Before recording their debut LP in August 1966, The Doors built their setlist around a series of blues and rhythm and blues covers.

Gradually, they added a few original songs, and by the time they arrived at the Whisky A Go Go in the summer of 1966, most of their material was original.

At the famous Los Angeles venue, where they were hired as the house band, the group finalized the dazzling rock tunes that would appear on their first album. During this time, the four young musicians had the opportunity to collaborate with a number of more famous and established ensembles (such as Love), who performed the main show each night.

“Them” were a prominent group among these. From 1964 to the mid-1960s, they gained recognition in the UK and US for a series of convincing hits and albums rooted in rhythm and blues with occasional garage rock overtones.

The musical relationship between The Doors and Them culminated in the two bands playing a pair of songs together on stage at the Whisky A Go Go in August 1966, including an extended version of Them's own "Gloria".

Several great photos also capture Jim Morrison and Van Morrison singing together, immortalizing this moving moment.

Even before this incredible night of music, The Doors had been captivated by Them’s distinctive and energetic style and had already performed a couple of their covers.

This is confirmed by the fact that The Doors' only concerts available from this period — the one at the London Fog in May 1966 and the one at the Matrix in March 1967 — include two of Them's most famous and interesting songs: "Baby Please Don't Go" and "Gloria".

These two tunes were released by Them simultaneously in November 1964 as a single (not included on any album): 'Baby Please Don't Go' was the A-side, while 'Gloria' was the B-side. It reached number 10 in the UK charts and number 102 in the US charts and was one of Them's biggest commercial successes.

In the spring of 1966, The Doors performed a rendition of "Baby Please Don't Go" at the London Fog (link here) that closely resembled the version by Them (which, in turn, was borrowed by the 1935 country blues original by Big Joe Williams).

At the start of the song, Jim Morrison's voice, which was not yet fully mature, urged the audience to dance, yelling "Come on and dance somebody! Let's go!". Meanwhile, the opening guitar riff of the song is played in the background, imitating the vocal line sung by Big Joe Williams in his 1935 original.

The most notable element of The Doors' performance is Krieger's short solos, interspersed between the various verse-chorus sequences.

Here the guitar moves beyond the rhythm and blues canon, adopting a vaguely psychedelic vibe. Krieger's sinuous phrasing is inspired by The Beatles' and the Byrds' recent experiments with Indian music, as displayed in "Norwegian Wood" (October 1965) and "Eight Miles High" (January 1966), respectively featuring the sitar and the twelve-string electric guitar.

Fast forward to March 1967 and we find the first available version of 'Gloria' as performed by The Doors, which was played at The Matrix in San Francisco. By this time, The Doors had released their debut single and LP but had not yet achieved any substantial commercial success.

The version we can hear (link here) mirrors the original by Them pretty closely, except for one noteworthy detail.

Jim Morrison's voice, deeper and more expressive than a year before, delivers some improvised verses, accompanied by the underlying rhythm of the song (listen from min. 2:03 to min. 2:50).

This is the first live recording to showcase the singer's nonconformist creativity, where poetry penetrates rock and becomes both lyrical and transgressive. This was a combination that was both unprecedented and revolutionary in the history of music.

The Doors kept these two songs in their setlists for almost the entirety of their musical journey, with a significant hiatus beginning in the summer of 1967 and ending in 1969.

This was due to the many outstanding songs written by the band that audiences wanted to hear live. The hiatus ended with a return to a less elaborate sound in the second half of 1969 with the band playing both 'Gloria' and 'Baby Please Don't Go' again, primarily as segments of extended medleys.

The July 1969 concert in Los Angeles, for example, features a lengthy rendition of "Gloria" (link here) which represents the evolution of the song played at The Doors' gigs in 1966 and early 1967.

Although we cannot hear the August 1966 duet between the two Morrisons, there are several recordings that demonstrate The Doors' appreciation for the energetic rhythm and blues of Van Morrison and Them.

P.S.: My book "The Doors Through Strange Days"- The most comprehensive journey ever made through The Doors' second LP, is out and available on Amazon.com, uk, mx, ca, it, etc.

Here’s a link:

Amazon – “The Doors Through Strange Days”