Tuesday 10 April 2012

The Doors

there's an ongoing conversation we have backstage and in vans
about the greatest american band

surely the eagles win
they sold the most albums
they had a long run
they checked us into hotels with them
lots of scandal and infighting to keep us reading
but most of all they wrote songs that made everyone feel like they were in a movie

but aerosmith were the coolest
as far as straight up rock 'n' roll goes
they're the only contenders
get your wings
toys
rocks
draw the line
these are proud moments for america
they were considered the american version of the stones
i never bought that
but steven always looked good in a boa

and the doors
the not so obvious choice
acid fuelled
bourbon soaked
breaking rules and looking like gods in the process
it's not until you step away from the doors
that you realize how amazing they were
while you're listening to them
you're not concerned with lists or technique
instead you're not so gently floating alongside a stream of consciousness

the movie hooked me when it came out
that was point of entry for many of us
it's not cool to admit that
we'd all rather say that we buzzed out to morrison hotel
on the week that it was released
but that's not so
it was the movie
prior to that it was apocalypse now
the movie wouldn't be the same without the doors' music

true confessions
i wore leather pants in the late 80s
we were hipped with a management company
they wanted me to be darker
like jim
darker lyrics
deeper sound
i failed miserably at the task
i left the pants in a dressing room in quebec city
never looked back
i'm too optimistic
i enjoy being around kids
nothing dark there

but i like the doors
i'm drawn to reckless abandonment
crazy artists excite me
pushing the limits of convention is something that appeals to me
i never get to do that in real life
i just like to pretend i do

and that's what the doors did
they let us pretend
they made us go deep
sure sooner or later we'd return before the spin cycle kicked in
but for that flash
we could imagine ourselves as circus performers

we've been performing the la woman album for a few years now
clifton takes the vocal
and coils it around all the seats in the theatre
when we were in melbourne florida
at the king centre
jim's hometown
you could feel an uneasiness before the show
people wondering if this was going to be another bad jim impersonation show
but we dropped oil in the water
the first note from clifton's throat
had them cheering
and grooving
and pretending that they had broken through
and it's been that way ever since

we have the doors show making  a big run in the theatres
i urge the intense fan
to bring the questioning fan
and come celebrate the greatest american band's greatest album
it's an album that demands attention
it's blue
avant garde
sexy
it crawls
and attacks
and bites your soul with dark knowledge

christ
there i go again
trying to be like jim
and failing miserably

craig
april 10, 2011 (the nine year anniversary of CAL)
beer with whiskey chasers

3 comments:

  1. Was it really only nine years ago? It feels like another lifetime...

    Working with CAL made me open my mind to many albums that I didn't always love the way you did (Floyd, the Beatles, and dare I say it, the Stones). But I bet even CAL couldn't make a Doors fan out of me!

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  2. I look forward to seeing the show in Truro, NS on the 23rd...still no venue in Halifax, eh?

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  3. Here is a glimpse into the show from 2008 in Toronto
    http://concertaholics.com/2008/03/20/the-doors-by-classic-albums-live-the-end/

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