The Doors have announced a 50th anniversary deluxe edition of their sixth and final studio album, L.A. Woman. Set for release on December 3 via Rhino, the 3-CD/1-LP collection will feature the original album newly remastered by the Doors’ longtime engineer and mixer Bruce Botnick, two bonus discs of unreleased studio outtakes, and the stereo mix of the original album on vinyl. Also included is the previously unheard original demo of ‘Riders on the Storm’, which has now been unveiled. Give it a listen below.
The demo of ‘Riders on the Storm’ was recorded at Sunset Sound studios with producer Paul A. Rothchild, who infamously called it “cocktail music” before departing the project. This led to the band working with Botnick, who explained in a press release: “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… The idea was to go from song to song, to let it flow.”
In addition to these outtakes, the collection also includes covers of Junior Parker’s ‘Mystery Train’, John Lee Hooker’s ‘Crawling King Snake’, Big Joe Williams’ ‘Baby Please Don’t Go’, and Lee Dorsey’s ‘Get Out of My Life Woman’.
The Doors’ L.A. Woman (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) Tracklist:
Disc One: Original Stereo Mix Remastered
1. The Changeling
2. Love Her Madly
3. Been Down So Long
4. Cars Hiss By My Window
5. L.A. Woman
6. L’America
7. Hyacinth House
8. Crawling King Snake
9. 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
1. The Changeling *
2. Love Her Madly *
3. Riders On The Storm *
4. L.A. Woman (Part 1) *
Disc Three: L.A. Woman Sessions, Part 2
1. L.A. Woman (Part 2) *
2. She Smells So Nice *
3. Rock Me Baby *
4. Mr. Mojo Risin’ *
5. Baby Please Don’t Go *
6. L.A. Woman (Part 3) *
7. Been Down So Long *
8. Get Out Of My Life Woman *
9. 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) *
* = Previously unreleased
