The Soft Parade The Doors

The Soft Parade Album: The Soft Parade (1969)
by The Doors

"The Soft Parade" the title track to The Doors' fourth album. It sold well, but many critics felt it was a sellout to pop music. Their next album, Morrison Hotel, was a return to their roots and was recorded a lot faster.
Doors frontman Jim Morrison put the lyrics together out of pieces of poetry he had written, which explains why it's rather abstract.

Many of the images are of people walking along Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, where Morrison often hung out.

The Doors played this live only once: on April 28, 1969, for the PBS TV show Critique in a version that ran more than 10 minutes. In the liner notes for Rhino Records' 40th anniversary rerelease of The Soft Parade, keyboardist Ray Manzarek described the performance as "all four Doors in perfect sympatico," with "sympatico" meaning "congenial or like-minded." Richard Goldstein interviewed the group the day after the performance; the music and interview were packaged under the title "A Profile of Jim Morrison and The Doors - On and Off Stage" and broadcast on June 25, 1969.

For that show, the Doors also performed "Tell All The People," "Alabama Song," "Back Door Man," "Wishful Sinful," and "Build Me A Woman."

The melody in this song is something The Doors came up with in 1966 when they did music for a Ford corporate video. That video surfaced in 2002.

Most of the album was recorded following a grueling tour during which the band was left with little time to compose new material. Record producer Paul A. Rothchild recommended a total departure from the Doors' first three albums: develop a fuller sound by incorporating brass and string arrangements provided by Paul Harris. Lead singer Jim Morrison, who was dealing with personal issues and focusing more on his poetry, was less involved in the songwriting process, allowing guitarist Robby Krieger to increase his own creative output.

The album peaked at number six on the Billboard 200, but it failed to retain audiences in the UK and other European countries that their previous album, Waiting for the Sun, had succeeded in engaging. Three preceding singles, "Touch Me", "Wishful Sinful", and "Tell All the People", were included on The Soft Parade, with the former becoming another Top 10 hit for the Doors. Another single, "Runnin' Blue", also followed the album's distribution. Upon release, The Soft Parade was denounced by both music critics and the band's underground music scene followers, who viewed the album as the Doors' trending into popular music. Over time, historians have reassessed the album and its critical standing has slightly improved, but it is still widely considered to be the group's weakest effort with Morrison.

By mid-1968, the Doors had established themselves as one of the most popular groups in the US. The band's third studio album, Waiting for the Sun, released in July of the same year, became the Doors' only number one hit on the Billboard 200 while also spawning "Hello, I Love You", their second number one single. The album was the first commercial breakthrough for the band in the UK, reaching number 16 on the UK Albums Chart. After the release of Waiting for the Sun, the Doors commanded substantial performance fees and played before large crowds in arenas such as the L.A. Forum, the Hollywood Bowl, and Madison Square Garden. Additionally, local Los Angeles Top 40 radio stations, KHJ Radio in particular, which had previously refused to play the band's records, began sponsoring the Doors' live performances. Initial sessions for the album occurred on July 26, 1968 when the band recorded "Wild Child" and "Wishful Sinful" ("Easy Ride" was a Waiting for the Sun leftover, captured on March 3, 1968). In September 1968, the group played dates in Europe, along with Jefferson Airplane, before ending their long, grueling touring schedule with nine concerts back in the US. While the 1968 tours managed to capitalize on the chart success of Waiting for the Sun, it also left little time for the Doors to compose new songs for The Soft Parade, having already exhausted all the material from Morrison's songbooks.

Throughout 1968, Morrison's behavior became increasingly erratic: he began drinking heavily and distanced himself from studio work to focus on his more immediate passions, poetry and film making. At the time, Morrison was also struggling with anxiety, and felt like he was on the brink of a nervous breakdown. He considered quitting the Doors, but was persuaded by keyboardist Ray Manzarek to finish recording The Soft Parade before making such a decision.

In November 1968, the band entered the newly established studio Elektra Sound West on La Cienega Boulevard to continue work on The Soft Parade, a process that was not completed until May 1969. Without any album-ready material to work with, record producer Paul A. Rothchild took control of the recording sessions and insisted on numerous retakes of songs, much to the group's indignation. "It was like pulling teeth to get Jim into it", sound engineer Bruce Botnick recalled. "It was bizarre ... the hardest I ever worked as a producer." Rothchild, who by this time was addicted to cocaine and incredibly strict in his leadership, caused severe strife in the studio, especially with his advisor Jac Holzman, who argued that the drive for perfection was "grinding them [The Doors] into the ground". The album was by far the most expensive by the group, costing US$80,000 to create in contrast to the US$10,000 required for their debut.

Introduced with a mock-fiery sermon by Morrison, "The Soft Parade" displays his Southern roots through his portrayal as a preacher. The song's ambiance is heightened by the striking imagery which outlines a need for sanctuary, escape, and pleasure. Critic Doug Sundling noted that "The Soft Parade", with its display of funk, jazz, acid rock and psychedelic pop influences, is more diverse than any other composition of the group.