The Doors announce 'Morrison Hotel' 50th anniversary reissue

The Doors have announced a 50th anniversary reissue of Morrison Hotel, containing more than an hour of unreleased outtakes.

On account of its 50th release anniversary, rock legends The Doors have announced a reissue of their 1970 album Morrison Hotel. Released in 1970 as the follow-up to The Soft Parade, the album was named after the iconic hotel in downtown Los Angeles. It was the band’s fifth consecutive gold-certified release.

The Morrison Hotel: 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition contains a remastered version of the original album, helmed by engineer and mixer Bruce Botnick. It also comes with a bonus disc containing 19 previously unreleased outtakes, taken from studio sessions of the album.

Recordings of the sessions provide a deeper look at how the album came into shape during what was a tumultuous time for the band, straight from Jim Morrison, John Densmore, Robby Krieger, and Ray Manzarek themselves.

“There are many takes, different arrangements, false starts, and insightful studio conversations between the band – who were in the studio – and producer Paul Rothchild – who was in the control room,” Botnick provided more information about the recordings in a statement. “It’s like being a fly on the wall.”

On the anniversary edition, fans can get a closer look at how hits like ‘Roadhouse Blues’ went through multiple rounds of deconstruction before making it onto the final album. Earlier versions had included Harvey Brooks on bass, but later ones switched him out with Lonnie Mack, with The Lovin’ Spoonful’s John Sebastian on harmonica.

Aside from rough versions of tracks like ‘Peace Frog’ and ‘Blue Sunday’, the reissue also contains sessions of the band covering the Motown classic ‘Money (That’s What I Want)’ and ‘Rock me’ by B.B. King.