Roadhouse Blues

Infobox Single
Name = Roadhouse Blues


Artist = The Doors
from Album = Morrison Hotel
B-side =
Released = February 1970
Format =
Recorded = November 4-5, 1969
Genre = Blues-rock
Length = 4:04
Label = Elektra
Writer = Jim Morrison
Robby Krieger
Ray Manzarek
John Densmore
Producer = Paul A. Rothchild
Certification =
Chart position = * #50 (U.S. Hot 100)
Last single = "You Make Me Real"
(1970)
This single = "Roadhouse Blues"
(1970)
Next single = "Love Her Madly"
(1971)
Misc = Audiosample
Upper caption = Audio Sample
Audio file = TheDoors-RoadhouseBlues.ogg

"Roadhouse Blues" is a blues-rock song written and recorded by the American rock band The Doors. The song, which appeared on the B-side of You Make Me Real, [ [http://www3.telus.net/60smusic/doors.html The Doors Discography] . 60s Web Radio.] was first released as a single from the album "Morrison Hotel" in March 1970 and peaked at #50. The song quickly became a concert staple for the group, a live version appearing later on the posthumous album "An American Prayer" and that same version, which has been called "probably one of the best live performances of any song", [ [http://www.jackfeenyreviews.com/doors.htm The Doors] . Jack Feeny Reviews.] again on In Concert and Greatest Hits. During this version, Jim Morrison talks for a short while to a female audience member about his Zodiac sign and, with a sudden, ironic twist that causes the audience to erupt in laughter, denounces his beliefs in it. The song was also featured twice in the movie The Doors; the studio version in the film, and the aforementioned live version over the end credits.

essions

The song took two days to record (November 4th-5th, 1969), producer Paul A. Rothchild striving for perfection. Several takes from these sessions were included on the new 2006 remastered album. Rothchild can be heard instructing the band members on their musicianship, notably when he exclaims to Robbie Krieger about his introductory guitar riff that "we're going to the roadhouse, Robbie, not the bathroom!" Surprisingly, he does not comment on Morrison, who is apparently intoxicated, "going into full blues singer mode" [The Doors, Morrison Hotel Remastered Liner Notes, Page 1, Bruce Botnick, 2006] in the words of engineer Bruce Botnick, improvising and simultaneously flubbing several lyrics and repeating the blues phrase "Money beats soul every time". The sessions only took off on the second day, when resident Elektra guitarist Lonnie Mack joined in on bass and harmonicist John Sebastian (appearing under the pseudonym G. Puglese out of loyalty to his recording contract [The Doors, Morrison Hotel Remastered Liner Notes, Page 7, David Frickle, 2006] or to avoid affiliation with The Doors after the Miami controversy) joined in on the sessions and Ray Manzarek switched from his Wurlitzer electric piano to a tack piano (the same used on The Beach Boys "Good Vibrations") [The Doors, Morrison Hotel Remastered Liner Notes, Page 3, Bruce Botnick, 2006] . One classic moment is when Morrison shouts "Do it, Lonnie! Do it!" when Mack rips off the solo. Mack was playing bass on that song and had borrowed Krieger's guitar to develop some blues guitar lines. Kreiger copied some of Mack's lines in later takes. No one really knows whose take made it on the final cut. [http://www.answers.com/topic/lonnie-mack] [Fresh Air from WHYY, July 31, 2008 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=93120157] An interesting fact about this song is that Morrison has used few Nepalese words in his lyrics.

Cover versions

Blue Öyster Cult performed the song on their Extraterrestrial Live album, with Robbie Krieger joining the band. Status Quo covered the song, and it appears on the album "Piledriver".
Creed played the song at Woodstock '99 and were joined on stage by Doors guitarist Robbie Krieger. The song was also covered by Mahogany Rush on the "What's Next" album. Ministry performed a cover on their final album, "The Last Sucker". The Jeff Healey Band performs the song in the movie "Road House". Frankie Goes To Hollywood cover it on the b-side of their 1986 single Rage Hard.
Elkie Brooks covered the song on her 2005 album Electric Lady.Robby Krieger joined Stone Temple Pilots at the House of Blues in 2000 for a performance of this song. STP frontman Scott Weiland later performed live covers of it with Velvet Revolver.

The jam-bluegrass group Railroad Earth covered the song twice during the summer of 2008, once at High Sierra Music Festival in Quincy, CA and again at Yarmony Grass in Copper Mountain, CO. The latter performance featured over 20 musicians on stage, including most of the members of the jam band The String Cheese Incident.

The metal band Ministry covers this song on their 2007 album The Last Sucker and Cover Up

Remix

Crystal Method did a Remix of Roadhouse Blues. It can be found on their album "Community Service II" album. It was also featured in the popular but short lived TV show Drive.

Audio sample

Listen
filename=TheDoors-RoadhouseBlues.ogg
title=The Doors - "Roadhouse Blues" (1970)
description=Audio sample of the single.
format=Ogg

References