A unique archive of documents relating to legendary band The Doors is on sale for over £10,000.
The letters, invoices and even a signed copy of their album Morrison Hotel have been unveiled for the first time.
They all relate to the late 1960s and early 1970s as the band – one of the biggest names in the history of rock – tried to break into the European market.
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They are largely written by Leon Barnard, a superfan trying to persuade the band’s manager Bill Siddons to put him in charge of the European arm of their operation.
They shed light on the often chaotic and drug-fueled approach to marketing their music on this side of the Atlantic.
Barnard eventually became The Doors’ publicist from 1969-70 before Siddons fired him.
The fascinating archive of letters details Barnard’s attempts to promote the band in Sweden and Denmark, together with tensions caused by his fears of being sidelined by the US PR company.
Plus problems with money and Siddons’ reservations about Barnard’s anarchic behaviour.
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The archive contains previously unpublished insights into Jim Morrison, the band’s European exposure, Elektra’s marketing strategy, and the short-lived Scandinavian promotional campaign.
Among the earliest documents in the archive are original Elektra Corporation Artist/Writer royalty payment statements issued to band members Robby Krieger and Ray Manzarek in October 1966.
It immediately following The Doors’ signing to Elektra Records and prior to the release of their debut album, as reported by What’s The Jam.
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Expert Denise Kelly said: “These documents likely represent some of the earliest advances or contractual royalty payments made to individual members of the band, predating the group’s commercial breakthrough with recordings such as Light My Fire, Break On Through, and The End.
“As early Elektra financial records tied directly to named members of the group, they offer rare documentary insight into the moment The Doors transitioned from an unsigned Los Angeles club act to a major label recording artist.
At the heart of the archive is an extensive run of original blue TTG Inc studio invoices, together with Sunset Sound and Elektra Records accounting documentation, recording session-by-session activity including tracking, overdubbing, playback, editing, and tape stock usage.
The documents name key figures central to the Elektra story – label founder Jac Holzman, producer Paul Rothchild, engineer Bruce Botnick, and A and R executive Dave Anderle – providing contemporary evidence of how the band, studio, and label interacted on a day-to-day basis during the recording of Waiting for the Sun.
Kelly added: “These documents go beyond routine accounting.
“They record revealing moments from the sessions themselves, including aborted studio time in which ‘client showed but nothing was accomplished’, late night sessions running until 4am, and charges for microphone damage incurred during recording – small but telling details that vividly illustrate the intensity and unpredictability of The Doors’ creative process.
“This archive provides a hugely detailed and fascinating insight into an iconic band whose music and character resonates as strongly today as it did more than 55 years ago when Jim Morrison, then only 27 years old and the most charismatic front man in rock, died tragically in Paris.
“It comes to auction unaltered after nearly 60 years, instantly recapturing the ‘hippie’ spirit of the times, and is a must for serious collectors.”
The collection also includes three 1967-68 original invoices from Sunset Sound Recorders, California, to Elektra Corp, issued for The Doors recording, dubbing and editing sessions from the height of their career, as well as royalty statements for members of the band.
The invoices form a continuous documentary record of the creation of the album Waiting For The Sun.
Hollywood’s Sunset Sound Recorders was the iconic studio where The Doors recorded their first two albums, The Doors and Strange Days both released in 1967.
The studios unique acoustics and custom-built recording equipment enabled the band to capture their ground-breaking signature sound, working with producer, Paul Rothchild and engineer, Bruce Bothnick, especially notable for their hits such as Light My Fire and The End.
The archive is being auctioned by Ewbank’s in London on February 26 with a guide price of £10,500.
