The Doors – Live At The Aquarius Theatre – The First Performance

The Doors — Live At The Aquarius Theatre: The First Performance

Numbered edition limited to 2,000 copies

180-gram 3LP set

2016 mix by The Doors engineer Bruce Botnick

Features private sound check recorded at the Aquarius the day after the concert

Pressed at Quality Record Pressings on 180-gram vinyl

Housed in a 3-Pocket M-Pack Tip-On Jacket from Stoughton Printing

This 3LP set features The Doors’ first set at the Aquarius Theatre on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, California on July 21, 1969.

At the intimate Aquarius Theatre, The Doors took the stage for what would become one of their most captivating — and underrated — live recordings. Live at the Aquarius Theatre: The First Performance captures Morrison and company in rare form: loose, loud, and locked in, delivering a set that was equal parts dark poetry and rock ‘n’ roll exorcism.

The setlist is a fiery blend of hits, deep cuts, and blues workouts, from a swaggering “Back Door Man” to a hypnotic “The End” that slithers like a fever dream through your speakers. Jim Morrison teeters between mystic shaman and cheeky frontman, while Robby Krieger’s guitar cuts through the psychedelic fog with razor-sharp precision. Ray Manzarek’s keyboards are their usual haunted carnival ride, and John Densmore’s drumming is the glue holding together the madness.

“The Doors’ first show at the Aquarius that you have on vinyl is an entirely new mix. When it came time to make the lacquer masters … the only option was to remix the show, which turned out to be beneficial in the long run as it gave us an opportunity to do a new High-Resolution archive of the 8-track analogue masters to 192/24. Also, using new tools available to us that we didn’t have in 2001, we were able to remove most, it not all, of the hum and buzz which permeated the show. The new mix, which was done on an Avid Icon digital console, is a revelation, as it is so clear that it’s almost like hearing the show for the first time. … the resulting complete show was broken up into the five sides that comprise the show for the lacquer mastering.

“In the interest of giving something new that you may never have heard before, side six is from the soundcheck. It isn’t all that long, but it has some good moments for you to enjoy.” — Bruce Botnick, Jan. 7, 2016, from the liner notes

The Doors — Live at the Aquarius Theatre: The First Performance isn’t just a concert recording — it’s a time machine.