Album of the Day

Released on this day in 1967, THE DOORS went on to sell millions of copies and made stars of John Densmore, Robby Krieger, Ray Manzarek and Jim Morrison. The band's eponymous debut on Elektra Records features highlights as great as any album in rock history, along with a variety of moods, textures and tempos. There's desperation and menace in songs like “Soul Kitchen,” “Take It As It Comes” and “The End,” and while that's balanced by the exhilaration of “Break On Through (To the Other Side)” and No. 1 single “Light My Fire,” the thrills, as often as not, come from peering over the edge. The vision of THE DOORS was clear from the day of its release; several decades later, the album's primal power - pulsing with urban electricity, nocturnal visions, blues and Brecht - remains undiminished.