The rise and fall of The Doors is quite the captivating story, emerging from UCLA and becoming a nationwide phenomenon before Jim Morrison’s untimely death at the age of 27. The Doors captured a sound like no other, as Morrison’s poetry was brought to life by the musicianship of Ray Manzarek, Robby Krieger, and John Densmore.
In the band’s earliest days, they found success in the emerging music scene of Los Angeles. They wouldn’t really hit bigger clubs like the famed Whisky a Go Go until 1967, but they did play on the Sunset Strip before then, playing as the house band at a nearby dive bar called London Fog. Newly unearthed recordings from that venue will be released on December 9th as London Fog 1966.
Interesting, these recordings weren’t known to exist until recently, capturing the band in their truly formative era. The box set release includes memorabilia from the shows as well, including: “a poster, the set list handwritten by John Densmore, a program for the Royce Hall UCLA student film screening, plus a London Fog coaster. There are also liner notes included from Sunset Strip legend Ronnie Haran-Mellen, who was the talent booker at the Whisky a Go Go.” The Doors also mention that this will be the first of many exciting releases to celebrate the band’s 50th anniversary in 2017.
Check out the London Fog 1966 artwork and tracklisting below.
London Fog 1966 Track Listing:
1. Rock Me
2. Baby, Please Don’t Go
3. You Make Me Real
4. Don’t Fight It
5. I’m Your Hoochie Coochie Man
6. Strange Days
7. Lucille