The Doors - The Soft Parade (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) - Amazon.com Music

Forget what some of the other reviewers have written here. Decide for yourself. That's what Jim would want you to do. I've got AT LEAST three copies of every Doors studio album with Morrison as well as seven Bright Midnight live releases -- Aquarius Theatre, Felt Forum, Boston Arena, The Spectrum, Pittsburgh Civic Arena, Cobo Hall, and the Pacific Coliseum. I also have the 2003 2-CD compilation, Legacy, that ends with Gloria NOT the studio version of The Celebration of the Lizard. In addition, I own In Concert, a 2-CD live compilation from the 1970 Morrison Hotel tour, and the 1999 box set, The Complete Studio Recordings. Finally, I recommend and own the brilliant documentary and documentary soundtrack, When You're Strange, with narration by Johnny Depp.I have a question for a lot of other Doors fans: Why is it that other bands can experiment with other sounds but The Doors can't?! Every Doors studio album with Morrison was brilliant and different. The first two studio albums, The Doors and Strange Days, were the band at the peak of their psychedelic phase. I also think those were their two best albums, along with their sixth and final studio album, L.A. Woman. The third studio album, Waiting For The Sun, was a mix of songs that were left over from the first two brilliant studio albums plus new material. In my opinion, it still ranks as the fourth greatest Doors studio album with Morrison. I'm not really a fan of Morrison's writings or poetry, so I'm glad that the studio version of The Celebration of the Lizard was NOT included on this album. I am, however, happy that the lyrics were. The best rendition of this poem is performed live and can be found on either Absolutely Live or, better yet, In Concert, which has every song that is on Absolutely Live as well as a whole bunch of other great live cuts. Just like the first two studio albums, Morrison Hotel and L.A. Woman are both very similar because that is The Doors at the height of their blues phase. (L.A. Woman is a bit darker and more fully realized, however.)So, that leaves The Soft Parade somewhere in the middle of the aforementioned albums. This period was The Doors in transition after Jim's meltdown in Miami in 1969. One of the best lines and truest things Morrison has ever bellowed while drunk was at that abbreviated Miami concert when he shouted to the audience after somebody threw paint on him, "You're all a bunch of slaves!" Most people, sadly, are a bunch of slaves or sheep. Anyway, I digress. The Doors were a restless band at this point. What do you want them to do? Keep releasing the same type of albums as their first two over and over? They were artists and NOT "suits" who probably would have wanted them to do just that.The band decided to experiment with horns. This was also the period when Morrison and Robby Krieger were not writing songs together like they did on the band's first three studio albums. Obviously, there were some exceptions but that's an accurate statement. There was a lot of tension among the band members as well as with their long-time producer, Paul Rothchild. Morrison was also popping LSD like it was candy and, after that, took an even harder turn to booze. To be fair, he was already an alcoholic and drug addict. Addiction is a disease, however, that is progressive. I'm amazed that Morrison was able to leave the musical legacy that he did because of his addictions, but people's brains work differently. Nobody said that being drug-free or sober means that that is the best or most creative way that your mind is going to work. That's particularly true of artists. That's also one of the reasons why Morrison named the band The Doors. It refers to Aldous Huxley's book, The Doors of Perception, because you notice or appreciate things more in some states than you do in others.I think The Soft Parade has some of the best cinematic imagery in the songs' lyrics since The Doors and Strange Days. For those fellow lovers of words, that SHOULD mean something. You know things aren't the same right from the beginning of the first track on The Soft Parade -- Tell All The People -- with the horns greeting you and images of milky babies. This is followed by the hit song Touch Me, and then by the even more brilliant Shaman's Blues. Was Morrison referring to himself when he sang "There will never be another one like you" in Shaman's Blues? I think Do It, the next song, is a very underrated song that implores that we make this a better world for our children and our children's children. I have to admit that Easy Ride is the weakest song on the album after that, but it still flows with the rest of the songs. Then, the band returns to form with Wild Child. After that, Running Blue, which is, as far as I know, the only song where you hear Robby Krieger singing (excluding the underrated post-Morrison studio albums, Other Voices and Full Circle). My favorite Doors song on this album, Wishful Sinful, follows that. It is simply one of the most gorgeous songs that The Doors ever recorded! Finally, the original album wraps up with the epic title track and more cinematic images of people carrying babies to the river.Now, however, I'm reviewing the 2007 remastered version of this album. That said, there are brilliant and rare bonus tracks on this release that make an already classic album even better! There's the gem, Who Scared You, and two versions of Whiskey, Mystics and Men. That is followed by Push, Push (mainly an instrumental with background vocals), and then some brief dialogue before an alternate version of Touch Me, which is the fifteenth and final track on this release.ADDITIONAL NOTES: Buy this 2007 remastered release of The Soft Parade while you still can. Any REAL fan of The Doors knows how the prices of some of their out-of-print albums have skyrocketed! You cannot buy the 2007 remastered version of L.A. Woman with the two bonus tracks, (You Need Meat) Don't Go No Further and Orange County Suite, at Amazon or through any of its resellers. However, you can still purchase this at eBay! The Doors' self-titled debut album as well as The Soft Parade are the two 2007 remasters that are absolutely essential, along with the 2012 2-CD 40th anniversary release of L.A. Woman. Regarding the band's debut album, it's nice to finally hear Light My Fire at the correct speed! I also highly recommend buying the other four 2007 remasters: Strange Days (my favorite Doors album), Waiting For The Sun, Morrison Hotel, and L.A. Woman. Other than that, I would have one or more copies of all six studio albums with Morrison pre-2006. That's because the studio album mixes in the Perception box set and 2007 remastered individual CDs with the bonus tracks are not the original mixes. One of the easiest ways to solve this problem (and get some great rare bonus tracks, too) is to buy the 1999 box set, The Complete Studio Recordings. Thanks for reading my review.

This review refers mostly to the 50th Anniversary release.I have been sadly reading comments over many years stating, or implying, that "The Soft Parade" is The Doors' worst album. I feel that the time has come for me to submit comments to the contrary on this, my favorite Doors album.But first, some technical info. Over the last ten years or so, I have noticed an increasing tendency for reviewers of music to discuss -- even to include brief audio/video clips of -- their sound systems. I think this is good because it gives the reader a very specific orientation for the reviewers' evaluations.My own system's component makeup is as follows:Amplifier: TEAC AI 2000DAC: TEAC UD-501CD Player (for non-hi-def cd's): TEAC PD-D2410CD Player (for hi-def cd's): Pioneer UDP-LX500Turntable: Music Hall mmf-5.1 (This turntable was originally fitted with a Goldring 1012GX Cartridge [no longer available, I have been told], but is now fitted with an Ortofon red [eliptical]).Phono Stage Unit for turntable: Music HallSpeakers: Boston VR 965's (no longer manufactured) These totally cool speakers fire the bass frequency drivers to the side (!), have individual, small, manually adjustable (!!) sub-woofers built into them, and embody the strong but mellow sound of my old, long-gone AR 2AX's and AR 6's.Headphones: Grado Labs SR 125After the tragic loss of my beloved Quadrophonic System -- in a home burglary in 1996 -- I built this system up, almost piece-by-piece, since 2000, for under $10G. It is a very high-fidelity, low-distortion system that is completely satisfactory for my listening needs. Even way more hard-core audiophiles than myself have admitted that it sounds exceptionally good ...Now, to the 50th Anniversary edition of The Doors' "The Soft Parade ..."To say that an album which contains no fewer than three radio-play hits is that group's worst album does not make any sense, period. I am not going to sit here and try to convince you that it is The Doors' best album, either. It is my favorite Doors album, yes. But, when speaking about a group with the musical stature of The Doors, if we're being totally honest with ourselves, I think it's time we admit that, in a very real sense, each of their albums is their best album.It only remains, then, to list some of my own (admittedly subjective) reasons for liking this album so much ...Liner notes for this album usually emphasize the obsessive perfectionism of its producer(s) -- the huge number of takes, etc. I get it. It must have been a total drag putting it together -- for the notoriously edgy singer, it must have been a genuine hell. Some people, however, seem to function better in hell ... He sure did.Whatever they went through making the blessed thing, I think it was well worth it. They ended up with a truly exquisite product -- one of those rare albums characterized by what I like to call a "mirror finish" on the music (another is Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of The Moon").I could go on all night about all the things I love about the wonderful music and wonderfully mad lyrics (the "He's sweatin,' look at 'im," etc. rap as Shaman's Blues slows masterfully to its finish is a standout example -- though by no means the only one) everywhere on this album. For the sake of readability, however, I'll just mention a couple of them.I have particularly high praise for the decision to put the bass and drums well up in the mix and smack-dab in the center of the sound stage, and -- ladies and gentlemen, I'm gonna come right out and shout it from the housetops -- what ultra-fabulous drumming from beginning to end!!! There is no doubt in my mind that The Doors had one of the best percussionists in the business -- ever.The foremost reason utilized to dis this album is the use of orchestral instruments. But in my own opinion, it is one of the album's strongest features. Why? First, because it strongly suggests that this is what The Doors would sound like if they had played Classical Music. And, by George, it works -- in exactly the same manner in which it works on The Beatles' most underrated album, Magical Mystery Tour (the USA LP version). And second, because of the appropriateness of the musical contributions -- at times, like with the woodwinds on Wishful Sinful, bordering deliciously on dissonance.The only criticism I have of the use of "classical instruments" on this album is that the strings are a little too high up in the mix and sometimes tend to overpower the pitch-perfect uses of the woodwinds, horns, and keyboards.Anyway, the compilers of this version have given us all the ability to decide for ourselves by including mixes of the five tracks that utilize the sounds of Classical/Baroque instruments. Listen to them yourselves, back-to-back if you wish, and decide. For the record, if I'm being honest, I think that the takes without them sound somehow incomplete, which proves -- to me, at least -- that they were an integral part of the musical conceptions of those tracks to begin with.Time to wrap up, but two more quick things: kudos to the compilers for including the "missing" track from the second side, "Who Scared You," and for using the same mix that was used for the 06/07 Remix.This marvellous album has never before sounded better. My sincere thanks to everyone -- living or not -- who was involved in its creation and subsequent editions.