The Doors’ final studio album, L.A. Woman, turned 50 earlier this year, and that golden anniversary is now being celebrated with a new deluxe reissue.
Arriving on December 3rd from Rhino, the L.A. Woman (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) is spread out across three CDs and one LP. The vinyl includes the original stereo mix remaster of the classic record, while the first CD boasts that same mix plus two bonus tracks: a 1969 demo of “Hyacinth House” captured in Robby Krieger’s home studio, and an early demo of “Riders on the Storm” recorded at Sunset Sound studios.
That latter track was only recently uncovered, found on an unmarked tape reel in The Doors’ vault long after it was considered a lost relic. This version of “Riders on the Storm” was recorded with producer Paul A. Rothchild, who infamously called it “cocktail music” before departing the project. The band went on to co-produce L.A. Woman with their longtime engineer and mixer, Bruce Botnick (who also remastered this deluxe edition), while the “Riders on the Storm” demo lay dormant — until now. Stream the newly unearthed cut below.
The two other discs offer up plenty of more goodies for Doors diehards. Notably, they’ll find over two hours of never-before-heard recordings featuring rhythm guitarist Marc Benno (Leon Russell’s The Asylum Choir) and bassist Jerry Schaff (Elvis Presley’s TCB Band).
“The previously unreleased reels here – serial takes of ‘The Changeling,’ ‘Love Her Madly,’ ‘Riders On The Storm,’ and ‘L.A. Woman’ – depict a band obsessed with groove while executing turns and flourishes with the precision of a well-drilled soul combo,” Botnick explained in a press statement. “The idea was to go from song to song, to let it flow.”
In addition to outtakes like “The Changeling,” “Love Her Madly,” and, of course, “L.A. Woman,” the bonus material includes covers Junior Parker’s “Mystery Train,” John Lee Hooker’s “Crawling King Snake,” Big Joe Williams’ “Baby Please Don’t Go,” and Lee Dorsey’s Allen Toussaint-penned classic “Get Out of My Life Woman.”
Pre-orders for L.A. Woman (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) are available now via Rhino. Find the complete tracklist below the “Riders on the Storm” demo visual ahead.
The Doors’ L.A. Woman (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) Tracklist:
Disc One: Original Stereo Mix Remastered
01. The Changeling
02. Love Her Madly
03. Been Down So Long
04. Cars Hiss By My Window
05. L.A. Woman
06. L’America
07. Hyacinth House
08. Crawling King Snake
09. The WASP (Texas Radio And The Big Beat)
10. Riders On The Storm
Bonus Tracks
11. Hyacinth House – Demo
12. Riders On The Storm – Sunset Sound Version – Original Demo*
Disc Two: L.A. Woman Sessions, Part 1
01. The Changeling *
02. Love Her Madly *
03. Riders On The Storm *
04. L.A. Woman (Part 1) *
Disc Three: L.A. Woman Sessions, Part 2
01. L.A. Woman (Part 2) *
02. She Smells So Nice *
03. Rock Me Baby *
04. Mr. Mojo Risin’ *
05. Baby Please Don’t Go *
06. L.A. Woman (Part 3) *
07. Been Down So Long *
08. Get Out Of My Life Woman *
09. Crawling King Snake *
10. The Bastard Son Of Jimmy & Mama Reed (Cars Hiss By My Window) *
11. Been Down So Long *
12. Mystery Train *
13. The WASP (Texas Radio And The Big Beat) *
LP Track Listing
Side A
01. The Changeling
02. Love Her Madly
03. Been Down So Long
04. Cars Hiss By My Window
05. L.A. Woman
Side B
01. L’America
02. Hyacinth House
03. Crawling King Snake
04. The WASP (Texas Radio And The Big Beat)
05. Riders On The Storm
* = Previously unreleased
