Waiting for the Sun
With the massive success of the single "Light My Fire" and their initial two albums, L.A.'s the Doors quickly built a sizable reputation for edgy, often over-the-top musical drama. Perhaps wary of stereotyping, or simply worn out from their grueling early success, the band took a decided left turn into softer sounds here, from the pop-drenched "Hello, I Love You" to the flamenco guitar wash of "Spanish Caravan." Even gentle ballads (by the band's standards, anyway) were a part of the Doors' new sensibility, as witnessed by "Love Street" and "Summer's Almost Gone." But lest one think the band had gone a little too soft, the antiwar diatribe "The Unknown Soldier," the edgy "Five to One," and the deliciously strange "Not to Touch the Earth" were there to remind listeners that even if the band had mellowed a bit, they were still a long way fromJay and the Americans.--Jerry McCulley