Customer Reviews

Soft Parade

5 star:		(49)
4 star:		(33)
3 star:		(21)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

THE SOFT PARADE, The Doors' fourth album, struggles to be musically inventive. What made the first two albums so wonderfully successful is their very unique sound, and that sound encapsulated the growing, revolutionary thought processes that were spreading throughout America's youth at the time of the 1960s. The Doors were both original and very much of their time, although those first two records never feel dated. Then The Doors released WAITING FOR THE SUN, which has several good songs, but only approaches the quality of the first two records in isolated moments. After the wake of SGT PEPPER and all the psychedelic music that was coming out at the time, The Doors decided to do their own version of SGT PEPPER. By this, I mean they decided to totally reinvent their sound and style and popular music in general, giving the world a radical look how high rock and roll can really climb on the artistic ladder. Unfortunately, The Doors were never as consistently good as The Beatles, and instead of turning in an amazing LP, we end up with the weakest set of songs The Doors ever put to tape.

To understand the state of THE SOFT PARADE, it helps to look at the album before that, WAITING OF THE SUN. The Doors seem to operate in twos, with their first two records brilliant, their middle two rather mediocre, their last two good blues albums, and then there's the two (out of print) records The Doors made after Morrison's death (OTHER VOICES and FULL CIRCLE). WAITING FOR THE SUN was little more than a holding action, product put out because they had to, although there are some great songs on it. At least on THE SOFT PARADE they were trying to do something different, even though it ends up being just as mediocre an album as its predecessor.

The Doors talk about the `third album syndrome' effecting WAITING FOR THE SUN. They had handpicked their best material for their debut, then the rest went onto STRANGE DAYS. At the third album, they were in a quandry, because all their best material had already been issued. The Doors found it difficult to write compelling, commercial songs, and so turned in their rather lackluster third album. What really hurt WAITING FOR THE SUN was the decision to cut "Celebration of the Lizard," which would have been a very long opus taking up the majority of the second side of the song. So when it came time to record THE SOFT PARADE, The Doors wanted to strike out in a different direction.

While not wholly a failure, THE SOFT PARADE turns out to be, along with WAITING FOR THE SUN, The Doors' weakest album. By this time, Morrison was so out of control Kreiger wrote half the tracks on the album, and it shows. (Also, Morrison didn't want to be credited with calling people to get their guns on the first track). Because the third album didn't have a real tangible identity as far as sound goes, The Doors wisely decided to reinvent themselves and broaden their musical horizons.
While we must admire them for this ambition, the end results are very mixed. Taking over eight months to record, the album proved a difficult record to make. In the end, Morrison described the album the band trying to do something new but that it got bogged down. How true.

Trading in their psychedelic sound they so successfully displayed on their first two records, we get a big band sound instead. The reason they turned from this sound was by the third album the well was clearly running dry. On several of the songs this new sound works, especially the first three tracks. If the rest of the songwriting had been as strong as it was on the first three, then THE SOFT PARADE would stand proudly among The Doors' best work. Unfortunately, this is not the case. THE SOFT PARADE, quite simply, boasts the weakest set of the original six albums. "Do It," "Easy Ride," and "Running Blue," simply don't gel, though "Running Blue" is a very funny song. The title track I really like for about the first four minutes. I find the last (and longest) musical section gets rather monotonous as the song [goes on for over eight minutes] [ploughs onward,] lurches toward its closing eight minute running time. And where is "Who Scared You?" Had "Do It" been deleted and that included in the running order, the album would be much stronger. "Shaman's Blues" is a masterpiece, and "Wild Child" harkens back to that dark, careening undercurrent of their first two albums. Very good song. "Wishful Sinful" is nice as well.

By this point in their career, The Doors were rather falling apart artistically, no thanks to Morrison's increasingly difficult behaviour. After turning in two rather lackluster LPs after two great albums, The Doors seemed headed on a downward spiral. Fortunately, The Doors went into the blues after this album, producing two good albums (even though they couldn't touch the first two's quality) before Morrison died.

Overall, I admire The Doors for their ambition in trying to come up with a highly artistic, progressive record. I just wish they had done a better job at it.

This fourth album by The Doors, "The Soft Parade," is probably their most ambitious album (though not necessarily their best). For this one they brought in a full orchestra to add strings and horns to their already definitive sound. The highlight of this one is the title cut, "The Soft Parade," a four-part offering that begins with an almost wistful feeling and escalates into blood-pumping, straight out rousing rock, played over Jim Morrison's cryptic and enigmatic lyrics (Catacombs/ nursery bones/ winter women growing stones/ carrying babies to the river). Also included is the poetic "Wishful Sinful," a song somehow benignly disturbing when you consider the darkness of the message that emerges from such a lilting melody: "Wishful, sinful/ wicked blue/ water covers you/ wishful, sinful/ wicked you/ can't escape the blue." There's a promise of freedom (but at a cost) in the anthem-like "Tell All The People (Can't you see me growing/ get your guns/ the time has come/ to follow me down)." The most well known cut from this album is "Touch Me," with lyrics by Robby Krieger and an interpretation by Morrison that is open to speculation. More equivocal lyrics accentuate "Shaman's Blues (Did you stop to consider/ how it will feel/ cold grinding grizzly bear jaws/ hot on your heels), during which another Morrison persona emerges, one apparently close to his heart and in being with his connection to the earth. A call to the youth of the world to step forward and take charge of their destiny is the subtle message of "Do It," while the eternal quest for freedom of mind and soul come to the fore in "Wild Child," which ends with the cryptic "You remember when we were in Africa?" which helps to fuel the myth that Morrison "pulled a Rimbaud" and actually disappeared into the Dark Continent in 1971. Rounding out "The Soft Parade" are "Easy Ride," and "Runnin' Blue." Listening now to this album from the distance of years, Morrison's insights and attitudes seem every bit as powerful now as they did then. When all is said and done, this was a guy who had a lot to say, and he is much more than the voice of a generation gone by; the songs here are further proof that The Doors were, and are, a force to be reckoned with, and their impact on society and a world diminishing in size and resources daily is still being felt. There are those who would dismiss rock n' roll out-of-hand, and it's time, perhaps, for them to listen to The Doors; for the words and music here can put a whole new spin on things. After all, it's all a matter of perspective. And great music, which is what this album provides.

I don't care if it sounds "pop." I don't care if it has strings. I don't care who thinks the album is a "sell out." I've even heard the mighty Jim Morrison didn't much like it, but I don't care, I just don't care.

I love it.

Sure, "Morrison Hotel" and "LA Woman" ARE funkier. "The Doors" is the record that set THE standard for this kind of music (the boys didn't make "Strange Days" for me, so I won't comment about it).

Regardless, this is a solid, meaty record that I have enjoyed on a regular basis since the day it dropped, and I'm as serious a Doors fan as anyone who will read this. What really matters is that the record is fun (yes, it is, and it's okay to be fun), it's cool, and it is the Doors, for pity's sake. What more do you want?

When I hear people quibble about this album, I'm always reminded of the people who claim that there are too many songs on the Beatles' "White album." No there weren't, and there's nothing at all wrong with this record either.

The song, "Soft Parade" has always been a favorite of mine, and I can dance to "Touch Me" without beer. What else do you need?

No qualifications. This is a great record. Try it out.

The mission of this album was to show that The Doors listened to revolution not sound. Creating a call to arms from "Tell All the People" flows through to the dirty romantic world destruction that The Doors portrayed in "Shaman's Blues", "Do It", "Easy Ride" and "Wild Child". "Runnin' Blue" is my 3rd favorite Doors song the combination of hard rock and fast jazz result in a odd bliss. "Wishful Sinful" if not a harmonic masterpiece should be considered a well done symphony of chords. Finally "The Soft Parade" is a beautiful song applauding the reevaluation of the 1960's while mocking its useless pop culture. All in all this album should be considered "one of The Doors".

This album has receive in the past and still to this day a lot of negative feedback. I realize that everyone has the right to voice their own opinion but I actually like this album.The Doors were experimenting with a lot of new and different sounds on THE SOFT PARADE and is clear that they were trying to perhaps confuse their listeners and they succeeded I believe but this album has a strong dosage of blues, rock and even a little funk but overall is a very well crafted album and the songs are very original and they are all very different. This album is perhaps the strangest that band had recorded up to that point but that doesn't diminish the great quality of the music contained herein. TELL ALL THE PEOPLE, is perhaps my favorite track on the album and I really like Jim Morrison's voice on this one, it is very clear and direct. TOUCH ME, was ofcourse the album's big hit and a great song to listen to this one is definately a Doors classic. WISHFUL SINFUL is another great song in which Jim's voice is really good as is the rest of the band. EASY RIDE, I think is really funny, I laugh sometimes when I listen to it and it is not out of disrepect to The Doors by any means but that is my take on the song, it is fast and has a strong country feel to it. RUNNIN BLUE, is another good one and a bit funny as well but still a good song. The album title song THE SOFT PARADE, is a real trip to listen to like Jim says in the beginning "this is the best part of the trip, the part I really like, proud to be a part of this number". Is a cool and long song to listen to. Finally I would just like to add that this may not have been The Doors best selling album or their greatest masterpiece but with all the negative reviews that it has receive in the past, THE SOFT PARADE still stands as one of The Doors most original and eloquentely conceived recordings. A must for any Doors fan.

Yeah, so this is the album where the Doors went into the studio and a dozen musicians followed them. Horns, strings, sax. Let's face it, folks, every band ends up doing it at one point or another. Even Zeppelin got strings involved.

I can understand the reaction some people had to this album. To put this on for the first time and hear the horns and strings of Tell All the People (which Morrison hated) and lyrics like "where milky babies seem to be" must have been horrifying for some fans who loved it when the band was "underground". Nevertheless, now it's great to hear a band try something different and make it work. And for the detractors, well, at least this album would lead to 2 great comeback records: Morrison Hotel and LA Woman, both rock classics.

With this album Morrison does only half the songwriting. Krieger provides the lighter fare, including the classic hit Touch Me. Though never performed live, Shaman's Blues is an excellent tune, a jazzy, skipping song with enigmatic lyrics. Definitely has a strong Manzarek influence. Wild Child is a solid rocker, and The Soft Parade is the albums epic fare. Wishful Sinful is a plain beautiful song, period. It's also the one piece where the strings and winds are essential.

There was a point when this was my favorite Doors album. It's the most different, but I think it showed that they could do other things and that they had a lot of imagination. Sure, they had problems recording the album, it was delayed, it came in the wake of the disastrous and tide-changing Miami affair...but remove it from the time for a moment and appreciate it as a playful, fun album that uses some trendy arrangements. It was only a matter before the band broke out the string section. It's called paying rock dues.

This album is the most ravishing and inspired of that band. Wild child for instance is filled with ooriginal accents; Teel all the people is a classic and touch me is the most emblematic theme of this band one step behind of vourse his mythical song Light my fire; manzarek was never best ; and the rapture in the voice inflexions of Jim Morrison are first rate; Wishful sinful is simply fabulous; but for me The soft parade is a song that you may well compare with the advenced ideas exposed without restrictions with The low spark of high heeled boys from Traffic. Both of these themes are one thousand years light from the standard in that moment. The lyrics and the twists of rhytm are filled of originality and frehness.
A superb work and one of these albums simply magical due that shows once more why The doors is a legend band.
When I was back in the seminary school...
Don't miss one.

Though loathed by some, "The Soft Parade" finds the Doors exploring new sounds, new arrangements, etc. Many fans were put off by the brass and strings which dominated many of the cuts. I just consider it an experiment. Personally, I like it. I also like the Doors enough that, in hindsight, I will give the album five stars.

God, how I miss the '60's! Experimental albums such as "The Soft Parade," the Stones' "Satanic Majesties," the Airplane's "After Bathing at Baxter's," the Beatles' "Sgt. Pepper," would be tossed aside by major labels in today's music industry. No wonder bands like the Doors, the Stones, the Beatles, still sell amazing numbers of CDs thirty-odd years after either disbanding or producing their best work. The albums by these bands stand the test of time. Bands that experiment and follow their muse, wherever it takes them, will always remain relevant because that constant search for perfection, enlightenment, call it what you will, is what brings meaning to life and art.

"The Soft Parade" sounds just as exciting and vital today as it was when it was released thirty-five years ago. How many of today's albums will human beings long to hear in 2039?

The Soft Parade by the Doors is an album that boldly and cooly demonstrated that this group's musical directions were not limited to the raw, amped, hard sound that they had honed and perfected in their pre-Electra days. The album is well-orchestrated, contains excellent material, and while not necessarily a "concept" album in the mold of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, it is a collection of songs, in my critical opinion, that are superior to any of the Beatles "wall of sound" offerings.

The Doors were very unique and accomplished musically. The basic guitar-organ interaction has never quite been completed as nicely than by this group and a similar arguement, perhaps, can be stated about their integration of horns and string into hard rock. The music (specifically The Soft Parade) is tonal and refined yet the lyrics can be somewhat dim to the non-cognitive thinker. The overall feeling generated is very much less commercially appealing than any other Doors album and for that reason the beginning Doors listener should probably pass on this album unless he/she wants their trademark blues-based rock presented under the lights on stage at Carnegie Hall.

While the Soft Parade was not this group's greatest commercial success and certainly not their most critically acclaimed album, it was important for many respects, not the least of which was the idea of simply providing music listeners with a different Doors sound. A more orchestrated and complex music that still captured the bluesy, psychedelic feel of the more recognizable Doors material. In my opinion, the Doors were at their best in a more simple, live setting with only Ray, Robby, and John providing a musical avenue for Jim to energetically explore. But The Soft Parade provides great music and that is its only intended purpose.

Here's a brief song-by-song alaytical review of The Soft Parade:

"Tell All The People"---A song that really jumps at the listener and quickly sets the unique tone of this album. The basic premise of the lyrics fit very well within this group aside from the line "get your guns, follow me down", which Jim Morrison objected to, and as a result, song-writing credits were distributed individually instead of by "the Doors". The music is catchy and, as is common with over-looked Doors material, gets better as the song progresses. Very appropriate in length.
B

"Touch Me"---The biggest commercial success of this album was also the least divergent, at least in terms of arrangement. This song is nearly always included in "greatest hits" packages and rightly so. Morrison performs exceptionally well with his voice and the band is tight. One only wonders if the extended Curtis Amy sax solo near the end in some way inspired the Stones for their sax inclusion with "Brown Sugar". Many people feel that "Love Her Madly" was a re-write of this song. I don't know but they are both great songs.
A

"Shaman's Blues"---A mystical, mysterious piece that highlights the interplay between Robby and Ray. It has a driving sound that is reminicent (or at the time, revealing) of some of the material included on their next album, "Morrison Hotel". One of the better songs on this album.
B plus

"Do It"---A jazzy concoction that certainly wasn't produced with radio airplay in mind. Optimistic but limited lyrics combine with great drumming to...well....perhaps a soaring interlude would have really set this song apart. This is definitely the egg of the album but can be jammed to with some intent. Not a bad song.
C

"Easy Ride"---This is a fun song to listen to. It has hints of sexuality, the organ is carnivalistic and there are some good lyrics here and there. This is a bright song that in Ray Manzarek's words was, "a country-rocker--by way of Muddy Waters 'Got My Mojo Working'". The ending verses are classic Doors and the highlight of this track.
B

"Wild Child"---This is a Doors song that, along with "Moonlight Drive" and "Hyacinth House", are not largely known to the general populace but very, very good. The song opens with a hard guitar riff and quickly builds up to the full-band sound and, later, to a fully raucus organ-based rocker. All hands are excellent in this track. The lyrics are autobiographical for Jim and highly poetic. Maybe if this one had an easier-to-understand lyrical body it would have gone to a high chart position --(this can probably be said about a good many of the Doors songs, but the depth and purpose of their lyrics are one of their hallmarks and greatest strengths as a band)-- Like "Touch Me", this song has an interesting ending.
A-

"Running Blues"---A lot can be said about this song. It has elements of jazz, rock, bluegrass, and a big-band feel but it is not to be taken seriously. It uniquely bounces around musically and in short, sounds good. I think that a person can listen to this song more than once in a row. Creatively, what did the Beatles or Stones have on this band?
B plus

"Wishful Sinful"---A more serious song that is magnificently put together with its classical elements. This song provides the best representation of the band's success with this album. Jim's voice is deeply involved and emotionally tragic to perfectly fit the overall theme. A song like this really sets apart the Doors from 60's psychedelic standards Jimi Henrix, The Grateful Dead, or the Jefferson Airplane. Listen to this one.
A

"The Soft Parade"---The album's title track was envisioned by the Doors to be a grand sonic spectacle that would be another culmination of their musical vision like "The End" and "When The Music's Over". It is interesting and unique. It was done well and has great moments but the transgression of this four-part suite didn't quite elevate this song into the upper-strata of Doors material. It is a song that is clearly the Doors and they do a good job. I think the version on "Essential Rarities" may be a little better than the original album production.
B plus

Overall album rating---B plus

Let me just say that it cracks me up when people claim the Doors we're turning into a teen band by the time this album came out.. IT's CALLED TRYING SOMETHING NEW PEOPLE! This Album was an album the Doors wanted to do to try something different... it contains some of the greatest poet-rock lyrics out there and anyone that bashes the album clearly Isn't a TRUE fan... Runnin Blue is possibly one of the great good time songs ever recorded and a great tribute to otis redding... Also The Soft Parade song is MAYBE the most innovative songs of the 60's and it paved the way for alot of the electronic music out there today... Of Course for the fans who only have like pure top 10 hits, this ISN'T THE ALBUM for you... But For True Doors Fans who want to hear the Doors at there Artistic peak, this is the album for you! THE SOFT PARADE HAS NOW BEGUN!and once you pop it in you're stereo, YOU'LL NEVER WANT IT TO END!