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TheCellarTapes · 11-27-2009, 05:26 PM

The Doors - The Soft Parade
(1969)

Tracks

1 Tell All the People 3:21
2 Touch Me 3:12
3 Shaman's Blues 4:48
4 Do It 3:09
5 Easy Ride 2:43
6 Wild Child 2:36
7 Runnin' Blue 2:27
8 Wishful Sinful 2:58
9 The Soft Parade 8:36

By 1969, The Doors found themselves as the true veterans of the West Coast music scene as well as being a band renowned in places outside of the US. However after the derelict sales figures behind Waiting For The Sun, The Doors were very much a band trying to rediscover that musical magic of 1967. But their endeavours were suffering from an increasingly erratic Jim Morrison, whose ventures into the world of booze and drugs were beginning to hamper the band both in the studio and on the stage.

With this shaky backdrop in mind, The Doors entered a studio in Los Angeles to begin their fourth studio album. Released in July 1969 on Elektra, The Soft Parade by The Doors didn’t really calm the fears amongst their support, and outsiders alike, that perhaps this band had now become rather self indulgent and far removed, even more than they were with their 1968 release.

Located within on the surface is an already over powering arrangement, with songs incorporating brass and string sections, crisp and high quality production, and a certain sense of being cheated. This was certainly not a Doors album in the traditional sense, but does that mean it’s a disappointing album? Absolutely not Cellar Dwellers!

Of all The Doors albums, I find The Soft Parade to be one of the more interesting. Obviously the stand out track on first look is the US hit from the album; Touch Me with its inclusion of string and joyous brass section, certainly divided people back in the day, in a similar way Hello I Love You did on the preceding album. But I think time has done wonders for Touch Me, a song which has become slightly overplayed for a reason.

Ignoring the hit from the album, as I am sure many of you do nowadays, there are some excellent and shockingly neglected songs to be had here. For starters the opening song entitled Tell All The People is, in my view, bloody marvellous. Yes, over time this song has been pillaged by Oasis with their bloated number All Around The World, but at just over three minutes and with Morrison at the helm, it is much more tolerable.

The third song from The Soft Parade is called Shaman’s Blues, this song feels like it goes on forever, but in a good way, you literally feel yourself being absorbed by it. This is also true of the song Wild Child, which is very Doorsesque.

A song which more than fills the track listing is the Morrison penned Easy Ride, a tune which is often overlooked by many and deserves more attention in my humble view. And finally the avant-garde is also included on The Doors’ fourth studio album, with the emphatic 9 minute title track to round off the album nicely.

For a Doors fan back in 1969, The Soft Parade may have been emotionally troubling, but rest bite was in the offing in the form of their 1970 follow up release. But it is unfair to label The Soft Parade as some kind of stepping stone between Strange Days and Morrison Hotel, and it is certainly incorrect to think of this fourth studio release as a non starter. If the truth be known I love The Soft Parade. Really any album which features the vocals of Jim Morrison, the keys of Ray Manzarek, the guitar playing of Krieger and the drumming of Densmore, is unquestionably an album well worth investigating, and I don’t think this particular Doors’ release disappoints.

11-27-2009, 05:26 PM	#150 (permalink)
TheCellarTapes Music Addict Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 490	The Doors - The Soft Parade *(1969)* Tracks 1 Tell All the People 3:21 2 Touch Me 3:12 3 Shaman's Blues 4:48 4 Do It 3:09 5 Easy Ride 2:43 6 Wild Child 2:36 7 Runnin' Blue 2:27 8 Wishful Sinful 2:58 9 The Soft Parade 8:36 By 1969, The Doors found themselves as the true veterans of the West Coast music scene as well as being a band renowned in places outside of the US. However after the derelict sales figures behind Waiting For The Sun, The Doors were very much a band trying to rediscover that musical magic of 1967. But their endeavours were suffering from an increasingly erratic Jim Morrison, whose ventures into the world of booze and drugs were beginning to hamper the band both in the studio and on the stage. With this shaky backdrop in mind, The Doors entered a studio in Los Angeles to begin their fourth studio album. Released in July 1969 on Elektra, The Soft Parade by The Doors didn’t really calm the fears amongst their support, and outsiders alike, that perhaps this band had now become rather self indulgent and far removed, even more than they were with their 1968 release. Located within on the surface is an already over powering arrangement, with songs incorporating brass and string sections, crisp and high quality production, and a certain sense of being cheated. This was certainly not a Doors album in the traditional sense, but does that mean it’s a disappointing album? Absolutely not Cellar Dwellers! Of all The Doors albums, I find The Soft Parade to be one of the more interesting. Obviously the stand out track on first look is the US hit from the album; Touch Me with its inclusion of string and joyous brass section, certainly divided people back in the day, in a similar way Hello I Love You did on the preceding album. But I think time has done wonders for Touch Me, a song which has become slightly overplayed for a reason. Ignoring the hit from the album, as I am sure many of you do nowadays, there are some excellent and shockingly neglected songs to be had here. For starters the opening song entitled Tell All The People is, in my view, bloody marvellous. Yes, over time this song has been pillaged by Oasis with their bloated number All Around The World, but at just over three minutes and with Morrison at the helm, it is much more tolerable. The third song from The Soft Parade is called Shaman’s Blues, this song feels like it goes on forever, but in a good way, you literally feel yourself being absorbed by it. This is also true of the song Wild Child, which is very Doorsesque. A song which more than fills the track listing is the Morrison penned Easy Ride, a tune which is often overlooked by many and deserves more attention in my humble view. And finally the avant-garde is also included on The Doors’ fourth studio album, with the emphatic 9 minute title track to round off the album nicely. For a Doors fan back in 1969, The Soft Parade may have been emotionally troubling, but rest bite was in the offing in the form of their 1970 follow up release. But it is unfair to label The Soft Parade as some kind of stepping stone between Strange Days and Morrison Hotel, and it is certainly incorrect to think of this fourth studio release as a non starter. If the truth be known I love The Soft Parade. Really any album which features the vocals of Jim Morrison, the keys of Ray Manzarek, the guitar playing of Krieger and the drumming of Densmore, is unquestionably an album well worth investigating, and I don’t think this particular Doors’ release disappoints.