L.A. Woman (40th Anniversary)

L.A. Woman was Jim Morrison´s sixth and final studio album with The Doors. It´s an inspired set of blues-based material that transcends the genre with Morrison´s otherworldly intensity. His psychedelic influences are still at work on the tribal "The WASP (Texas Radio and the Big Beat)" and in the wonderfully bizarre "Hyacinth House," where he proclaims, "I see the bathroom is clear." This 40th-anniversary edition features alternate takes of seven album cuts, including two extra rehearsal takes of "L.A. Woman" and John Lee Hooker´s "Crawling King Snake," plus two additional blues jams: "She Smells So Nice" and "Rock Me." The alternate takes offer a looser Morrison still figuring out how to approach songs that have since become FM radio classics. The title track, "Love Her Madly," and "Riders on the Storm" are permanent fixtures in the classic-rock canon, while "The Changeling" may be the group´s most underrated track, spotlighting Ray Manzarek´s defining organ work. This is that rare collection where alternate takes should help old fans enjoy a classic album anew.