The Doors Ready Huge 60th Anniversary Campaign: Albums, Book & More
by Best Classic Bands Staff
The Doors will kick off their 60th anniversary in 2025 with a new anniversary logo, a series of physical releases, an anthology book, and more.
According to Rhino Records, which is spearheading the anniversary campaign that was announced on October 8, 2024, here’s a rundown of what fans can expect:
* a 6-LP high-fidelity audio set featuring all six of the band’s original studio albums cut from the original analog master tapes by Kevin Gray at Cohearant Audio—The Doors 1967-1971 via Rhino.
*The Doors—Live in Detroit: This will arrive on 4-LP vinyl for the first time ever for 2024’s Record Store Day Black Friday
*The Doors Anthology Book from Jim Morrison, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore, Robby Krieger—Night Divides the Day, will be made available for pre-order and available in early 2025.
*The RIAA will officially certify 12 of The Doors’ singles multi-platinum, platinum and gold
The Doors in 1970 (clockwise from top): Jim Morrison, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore, Robby Krieger
According to the announcement from Rhino: In the Summer of 1965, Ray Manzarek had a chance encounter on Venice Beach with Jim Morrison, a young poet whom he knew when they were both students at UCLA’s film school. Jim told Ray he had been living on a friend’s rooftop writing songs. Though Morrison had never intended to be a singer, he sat down on the beach and sang the new songs to Ray, including ‘Moonlight Drive.’ Manzarek thought they were the best rock and roll lyrics he’d ever heard. At that moment, they both agreed to start a rock band and call it the Doors, taking their name from Aldous Huxley’s psychotropic monograph The Doors of Perception and William Blake’s The Marriage of Heaven and Hell. Guitar player Robby Krieger and drummer John Densmore, who’d played together in the Psychedelic Rangers, were recruited soon thereafter. After months of rehearsals, they landed a gig as the house band at a small Sunset Strip club called the London Fog. By May 1966, they had graduated to their dream gig—house band at the Whisky a Go Go. Soon after, Elektra Records president Jac Holzman and producer Paul A. Rothchild saw the band performing at the Whisky and signed the Doors to the label. Over the course of a week, the Doors recorded their debut album at Sunset Sound Recording Studios in Hollywood, putting on tape the songs they had been playing night after night at the Whisky. With an intoxicating, boundary-pushing sound, provocative and uncompromising lyrics, and mesmerizing stage presence, The Doors would go on to have a transformative impact on both music and culture.”
The Doors 1967-1971 6-LP set will arrive as the latest installment in Rhino’s acclaimed High Fidelity audiophile vinyl series on November 22, featuring all six of the band’s original studio albums cut from the original analog master tapes by Kevin Gray at Cohearant Audio. The vinyl was pressed at Optimal Media and the box includes a heavyweight gatefold jacket featuring rare photos and liner notes by Doors archivist David Dutkowski. Only 3,000 copies of the limited-edition set will be available exclusively at thedoors.com and rhino.com.
In 1993 the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Several years later, the songs “Light My Fire” and “Riders on the Storm” along with the Doors’ self-titled debut album, were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. The Library of Congress also recognized the band, selecting their debut album for inclusion in the National Recording Registry in 2014. The Doors also received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2007.
The announcement continues: “Created to commemorate the upcoming 60th anniversary, The Doors’ first-ever complete anthology book Night Divides the Day will illuminate the band’s archives like never before with rare photography, intimate interviews with Robby Krieger and John Densmore, and meticulously sourced archival text from Jim Morrison and Ray Manzarek. With unlimited access granted by the band, Night Divides the Day includes a unique collection of historical ephemera—including childhood photos, song lyrics, poster artwork, movie stills, and much more—which adds context to the wealth of rare photography that documents the band’s musical odyssey.
Related: Our Album Rewind of Strange Days, the Doors’ 2nd LP
“Joining Robby and John are a host of contributors, with a foreword by Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic, and afterword by maestro Gustavo Dudamel. The anthology is presented in a limited-edition of only 2,000 numbered boxed sets, each hand-signed by Densmore and Krieger. Each set includes the 344-page signed edition, a 7-inch vinyl record with rare demos of ‘Hello, I Love You’ and ‘Moonlight Drive,’ and other assorted historical memorabilia.” It’s available for pre-order here and shipping early 2025.
Listen to “Soul Kitchen” from the Doors’ debut album
1 Comment so far
Jump into a conversationIn September of 1967 I saw the Doors at the Oakdale Theater in Wallingford, Connecticut with the Wild Weeds as the opening act. I then saw the Doors in December of 1967 at the New Haven Arena when Jim was arrested on stage. They are my favorite band to this day.