The Doors

The following is the discography of the American rock band The Doors. Formed in Los Angeles in 1965, the group consisted of Jim Morrison (vocals), Ray Manzarek (keyboards), John Densmore (drums), and Robby Krieger (guitar). The Doors became one of the most popular rock bands of their era. Their debut album, The Doors (1967), released by Elektra Records, charted at No. 2 on the USBillboard 200 and produced the group's most successful single, "Light My Fire." The album received several sales certificationsincluding a 4 times multi-platinum from both the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and from the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA). The Doors' second studio album, Strange Days (1967), often recognized as their most creative output, failed to produce a hit single as popular as "Light My Fire," though the album sold well commercially but did not reach the same level of success as the debut. It reached No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and was certified platinum in the United States and Canada. The Doors' third studio album Waiting for the Sun (1968), was regarded as an artistic disappointment when compared to their earlier material. However, commercially it was very successful and reached No. 1 in the US and France, and produced their second No. 1 single, "Hello, I Love You." Waiting for the Sun was the first Doors album to chart in the United Kingdom, where it peaked inside the Top 20. The album was certified gold in that country by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), as well as being certified gold and platinum in several other countries.

For the fourth studio album The Soft Parade (1969), The Doors chose to incorporate string and brass instruments into a number of their songs. The band was criticized by many for this, and referred to as "pop sellouts" and having "gone soft".^[1] Despite this, The Soft Parade became the band's fourth straight Top 10 album and it produced their third most successful single, "Touch Me." The album was certified platinum in both the US and Canada. To counter the artistic criticism of its last two albums The Doors next released Morrison Hotel (1970). The blues heavy LP was a critical and commercial success. Although only having produced one single that did not perform well on the charts, Morrison Hotel became another Top 10 album for the band and was certified platinum in the US, Canada, and in France, by the Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique (SNEP). The group next released Absolutely Live (1970), which was a live album containing snippets of performances edited together from fourteen different concerts recorded in nine different cities from 1969– 70. These recordings make up a portion of what is known as the Bright Midnight Archives (BMA). Absolutely Live was very well received, it charted in the Top 10 in the US and Canada and was certified gold in both countries.L.A. Woman (1971), was the final Doors album with frontman Jim Morrison, who died of undetermined causes in Paris shortly after the album's release. The album was a triumph, praised by critics and a commercial success, it landed inside the Top 10 in the US and Canada and produced two very well performing singles, "Love Her Madly" and "Riders on the Storm." Like Morrison Hotel before it, L.A. Woman relied very heavily on the blues, which was a genre of music The Doors would often incorporate into their early live sets while they were the house band at the London Fog, a nightclub on the Sunset Strip, in Los Angeles. L.A. Woman was certified gold and platinum in several different countries.

After the death of Morrison, the three remaining Doors members released two more studio albums before they eventually disbanded, Other Voices (1971), and Full Circle (1972). Both albums appeared on the US and Canadian albums charts, and likewise both produced charting singles, but the success was limited and the three sought solo ventures. Five years later, Manzarek, Krieger, and Densmore reunited to record backing tracks over Morrison's spoken word poetry, and released The Doors' ninth and final studio album titled,An American Prayer (1978). Morrison had recorded the poetry in separate sessions in 1969– 70. Upon release, the album received mixed reviews, but was commercially successful and was awarded platinum status in the US by the RIAA.

The use of the highly controversial Doors song "The End", from their debut album, in the popular Vietnam War film, Apocalypse Now in 1979 and the release of the first compilation album in seven years, Greatest Hits, released in the fall of 1980, created a resurgence in The Doors. Due to those two events, an entirely new audience, too young to have known of the band earlier, began listening and purchasing the band's music. The group's popularity continued to increase. In the 80's, the band released concert films, and live and compilation albums to much commercial success. In 1991, The Doors, a feature film about the band, directed by Academy Award winning director Oliver Stone, that starred Val Kilmer as Morrison was released, which helped to expand The Doors' popularity even more, and a new audience had been born. When You're Strange (2009), is a documentary about The Doors written and directed by Tom DiCillo and narrated by Johnny Depp. It was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Nonfiction Series and won a Grammy Award for Best Long Form Video. The band continues to release compilations through Rhino Records and new live material through both Rhino and their Bright Midnight Archives label.