LIVE AT THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL

This video was so good it made me write my first review. The intro to "Live at the Hollywood Bowl" claims it to be the only full concert recording of The Doors. If this is true then this video is essential for anyone interested in The Doors. I was already a big Doors fan before watching this, and already thoroughly enjoyed many of the songs appearing on this dvd, but had never seen them live before. Seeing the songs live puts a whole new perspective on them. It's a much more intense trip.

Jim Morrison puts on a fantastic performance that is as poetic as it is musical. It really shows you why he was so notorious.That's the main difference between Doors songs in the studio and live. In the studio it's much more about the sound, and I believe that's what most people notice, but, live, Jim lives his lyrics so passionately in the performance that you can't help but notice how the poetry of the words meshes with the music. It's like seeing the way he interacts with the music shows you how the music is meant to be heard, always improving the effect. A good example of this is Jim dancing around the microphone like an Indian around a campfire during the intense climax of The End. This brings me to my second point: The rest of the band performs fantastically as well. They really capture the mood of the words and create some incredible suspense and explosions of energetic mind melting music using great contrasts of key and timing between instruments. The moods caught are nuts, ranging from the hellish "Horse Latitudes" to the carnival-like joy of "Light my Fire" to the spaced out majesty of "The End".

I will definitely be watching this again.

P.S. Psychedelic accompaniment encouraged. Enjoy the music the way it was meant to be enjoyed.