Very early on in their career, The Doors played at a small, hole-in-the-wall club called The Matrix, which was co-owned by Jefferson Airplane's Marty Balin. The rule at the time was that bands from LA had to play The Matrix when they came to San Francisco as 'tax' and homage to the bands that built the local scene. The Doors happily obliged, and co-owner Peter Abram recorded the band's two shows - March 7 and March 10, 1967. The set features soon-to-be beloved covers by The Doors such as 'Gloria' and blues favorites like 'Alabama Song (Whisky Bar) ' that would define their influence and sound as they worked out originals like 'Break on Through (To the Other Side)'. The complete set from both shows was released once before, but it was discovered after release that they were taken from third-generation tapes of the recordings. Review: Early Live Performances - Absolutely love this CD. They had just released their first album but were still relatively unknown and developing their music and live performances when they did this gig. The power they put into the songs really comes through and there are some great versions of songs from their first 2 albums and a variety of other songs. There are some blues/jazz instrumentals which I can leave, and they eventually did too, but with a long run time there is so much valuable content here. I would suggest that this is mainly for out and out fans of The Doors, more casual fans would benefit more from their mainstream live album however versions of The End and When The Music's Over are great to hear on this CD. Decent notes for context also, top marks for this. Review: An interesting early Doors live set. - This collection starts off with a long- almost 8 ¾ minutes – laid-back long instrumental. You can hear elements of their past, present and future tracks in this over-long meandering keyboard dominated opener. You can’t help wondering what Jim lad was doing with himself during this long introduction. Most of the songs here are ones from their first two albums, that would appear later in many of their live shows, but there are others that are unique to here and hence are of particular interest to any ‘completists’ out there, or in fact to anyone interested to hear the development of the band. Jimmy seems to be more laidback and singing more straight-forwardly than he would later do. Here he doesn’t seem to have the self-assurance and swager that he would later portray and seems grateful for the meagre applause that he receives after each song. Though he appears to be experimenting as to how hoarse he should in parts sound on ‘The End’ for example. At this stage Jim was still working out how best to present each song live. He also sounds quite different on ‘Crawling King Snake’ then he would on later shows after they had become famous. Clearly at that time The Doors were no big deal even in California, given their tepid reception at these shows. Naturally over the three discs certain songs are repeated as these are recordings over several nights. So, for instance on CD 1 tracks 10 & 11 are ‘I Can’t See Your Face In My Mind’ and ‘People Are Strange’ also appear on the exact same numbered tracks on CD 2. Though each differ slightly in length being live recordings. Likewise, there are two versions of ‘Moonlight Drive’, ‘Summers Almost Gone’, ‘Backdoor Man’, ‘When The Music’s Over’, ‘Alabama Whiskey Song’, ‘Break On Through’ and ‘The End’. While some people have drawn attention to the overall sound quality, I can’t say that impaired my overall listening experience – thought as Syd in the USA pointed out you don’t really appreciate the depth, or lack of it when listening to these discs on a computer, as I am. Interestingly, Syd comments about the better sound quality on ‘Strange Day’ (should that be ‘Strange Days’?) and ‘London Fog’, which don’t appear on these CDs. Though looking through the vinyl track lists I can’t see them there either. BTW, the order of the track listing is totally different on the 5 LPs and single as compared to the CDs. If you like The Doors, then I can’t see any reason why this would not be a good buy for you. You get a lot of music for your money as the first CD is 68 ¾ mins, the second is 72 ¾ mins and the third is at 52 mins.
| ASIN | B0BTFPHKGR |
| Best Sellers Rank | 20,129 in CDs & Vinyl ( See Top 100 in CDs & Vinyl ) 507 in Blues Rock 2,134 in Box Sets (CDs & Vinyl) |
| Country of origin | France |
| Customer reviews | 4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars (503) |
| Label | Rhino |
| Manufacturer | Rhino |
| Number of discs | 3 |
| Original Release Date | 2023 |
| Product Dimensions | 0.9 x 12.5 x 14.1 cm; 110 g |
K**M
Early Live Performances
Absolutely love this CD. They had just released their first album but were still relatively unknown and developing their music and live performances when they did this gig. The power they put into the songs really comes through and there are some great versions of songs from their first 2 albums and a variety of other songs. There are some blues/jazz instrumentals which I can leave, and they eventually did too, but with a long run time there is so much valuable content here. I would suggest that this is mainly for out and out fans of The Doors, more casual fans would benefit more from their mainstream live album however versions of The End and When The Music's Over are great to hear on this CD. Decent notes for context also, top marks for this.
S**S
An interesting early Doors live set.
This collection starts off with a long- almost 8 ¾ minutes – laid-back long instrumental. You can hear elements of their past, present and future tracks in this over-long meandering keyboard dominated opener. You can’t help wondering what Jim lad was doing with himself during this long introduction. Most of the songs here are ones from their first two albums, that would appear later in many of their live shows, but there are others that are unique to here and hence are of particular interest to any ‘completists’ out there, or in fact to anyone interested to hear the development of the band. Jimmy seems to be more laidback and singing more straight-forwardly than he would later do. Here he doesn’t seem to have the self-assurance and swager that he would later portray and seems grateful for the meagre applause that he receives after each song. Though he appears to be experimenting as to how hoarse he should in parts sound on ‘The End’ for example. At this stage Jim was still working out how best to present each song live. He also sounds quite different on ‘Crawling King Snake’ then he would on later shows after they had become famous. Clearly at that time The Doors were no big deal even in California, given their tepid reception at these shows. Naturally over the three discs certain songs are repeated as these are recordings over several nights. So, for instance on CD 1 tracks 10 & 11 are ‘I Can’t See Your Face In My Mind’ and ‘People Are Strange’ also appear on the exact same numbered tracks on CD 2. Though each differ slightly in length being live recordings. Likewise, there are two versions of ‘Moonlight Drive’, ‘Summers Almost Gone’, ‘Backdoor Man’, ‘When The Music’s Over’, ‘Alabama Whiskey Song’, ‘Break On Through’ and ‘The End’. While some people have drawn attention to the overall sound quality, I can’t say that impaired my overall listening experience – thought as Syd in the USA pointed out you don’t really appreciate the depth, or lack of it when listening to these discs on a computer, as I am. Interestingly, Syd comments about the better sound quality on ‘Strange Day’ (should that be ‘Strange Days’?) and ‘London Fog’, which don’t appear on these CDs. Though looking through the vinyl track lists I can’t see them there either. BTW, the order of the track listing is totally different on the 5 LPs and single as compared to the CDs. If you like The Doors, then I can’t see any reason why this would not be a good buy for you. You get a lot of music for your money as the first CD is 68 ¾ mins, the second is 72 ¾ mins and the third is at 52 mins.
T**H
Finally RHINO Records get it right with the legendary Matrix Tapes.....
The 2008 release by RHINO Records of the The Doors legendary 1967 gigs at Marty Balin's Matrix club was a travesty with the label mendaciously claiming that the music was remastered from first generation tapes when the truth was it was dubbed from ancient third generation tapes which was immediately obvious from the muffled and distant sound. So it is pleasing to report 15-years later (!) RHINO have finally done the job right with this latest release, allegedly a limited edition, with hugely improved sound that this time genuinely has been remastered from the original master tapes of the Matrix gigs. The sound therefore is perfectly fine, some tape hiss but nothing overbearing and all the instruments and Jim's voice are clearly defined. These gigs are famous because the Doors didn't know it but they were on the cusp of fame as 6-weeks after these gigs Light My Fire was storming up the Hot 100 charts in the USA. This makes these pre-fame gigs invaluable as you hear the Doors performing as a struggling up and coming band with Morrison on his best behaviour, sober and focused, and the band playing most of the tracks off their first two LPs in arrangements pretty close to those of the records bar Light My Fire which is missing the famous intro. There are also a few jazz instrumentals (Bag's Groove, All Blues, and Summertime) and blues (Crawling King Snake, Rock Me Baby, I'm A King Bee) and covers (Gloria, Who Do You Love, Get Out Of My Life Woman) some of which were not to be heard again once the Doors achieved fame. The small club ambience is clear from the recordings with a close almost claustrophobic sound and it is amusing to hear only about five people clapping after each song with Jim mumbling thank you as if he is glad for any encouragement he can get. So a must buy for Doors fans and good to have a decent version of this unique music in the Doors oeuvre after so many year.
A**R
Excellent live album!
Excellent service and excellent sound quality and excellent price! The complete matrix set!
L**N
It is raw and rough, but...
It is a great release. 3 CDS which show how the band grew into greatness. I have all the latest ve recordings I can find and this set s a wonderful addition to what I have. Don't expect the smoothest vocals, but that is part F why Itis worth having.
C**E
Great £63 Bargain
A must have for any Doors fan, its a very mellow listen with tight music and vocals very glad a snapped it up at knockdown price was £105 when first out, got it for £63 what a steal
G**S
"Pinnacle Recording's!"
This is "THE BEST" Live Recording's of the Door's "EVER" Released. Complete and in the correct running order of the song's performed. "Top Notch" first generation soundboard recording. Taken from the master tape's, from the complete show's at a L.A. Club Gig. Jim and the boy's are in great form, from the early day's....before it all went a bit crazy! Excellent Sound Quality, over 3:CD's, in a very nice foldout package. If you like early Acid Rock....BUY...BUY...BUY...
R**D
Great sound quality, tight playing and a bit of a time capsule to hear the Doors before they became well known.
C**O
I loved this 3 CD set of a week of performances at the Matrix, a club whose owners included members of Jefferson Airplane. This features the Doors right after playing the Fillmore at the beginning of their rise to rock and roll stardom. Not a lot of people in the audience (dozens, maybe?), and showcases the early development of some of their most well known songs. The evolution of "The End" is worth the price of admission alone. They cover Gershwin's "Summertime" which Janis was doing around that time (ABB also covers this in a 1970? bootleg). The Alabama Song shows up more than once with Jim still working on the lyrics on what is probably one of the oldest R&R songs in history (early 1900's I think). So this show seems to come from three of the five days, and I wouldn't be surprised if they "find" the remaining two days of shows for a future release. Several of the Doors best known early songs dominate the disc, as well as blues covers which remained in their set lists for years and others which evolved into other Doors tracks. So from a perspective of musical history, this set really captures the Doors at their earliest, Jim still working out how much screaming to alternate with singing, keyboard and guitar intermingling, you are literally hearing the development of one of the best known rock bands in history. So absolutely fascinating for serious Doors fans. Sound quality is really decent bootleg, so if you get bothered by anything other than crystal clear soundboard quality you may find this a little rough. But if you are somebody used to listening to bootlegs of various qualities you will not be bothered by the sometimes "cavernous" sound quality which is in full effect. Maybe 50 ish minutes per disc, even the repeated songs are distinct from each other, and each disc stands up well on its own. Absolutely fantastic audio from a band on the cusp of super stardom and well worth the price for die hard Doors fans. If I was new to the Doors I would purchase one of the more standard double live albums released by their record company, the one with the black cover with Jim on the front is a good starting point.
J**E
llego bien, empacado y con buena calidad
G**T
Le travail de remaster a dû être énorme, le son est top on a là les Doors deux mois après la sortie de leur premier album qui font leurs preuves au Matrix comme c'etait la tradition à L.A. The Doors avaient déjà écrit tous leurs futur hits, ils se livrent ici brut de fonderie, sans concession, quelle giffle !!!
W**A
Os CD chegaram bem
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