"Summer's Almost Gone" | |
---|---|
Song by the Doors | |
from the album Waiting for the Sun | |
Released | July 3, 1968 |
Recorded | 1968 |
Length | 3:20 |
Label | Elektra |
Songwriter(s) | The Doors |
Producer(s) | Paul A. Rothchild |
"Summer's Almost Gone" is a song originally written by Jim Morrison and credited to Morrison, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore and Robby Krieger that was released on the Doors' 1968 album Waiting for the Sun .
"Summer's Almost Gone" was one of the first songs Morrison wrote. It was one of the songs that he played for Manzarek when they met at Venice Beach in July 1965, a meeting that ultimately led to the formation of the Doors. [1] [2] On September 2, 1965, an early version the Doors, before Kreiger joined, recorded the song for a demo at World Pacific Studios in Los Angeles. [1] [2] This version was later released on the 1997 album The Doors: Box Set . [1]
The Doors originally intended to include a lengthy song "Celebration of the Lizard" on Waiting for the Sun, but eventually decided against it. [1] As a result, they needed additional songs to fill out the album, and included two songs from the 1965 demo, "Summer's Almost Gone" and "Hello, I Love You" to help fill the gap. [1] [2]
Classic Rock contributor Rob Hughes described the song as "ephemeral", and as a "woozy folk blues with a balmy seasonal air. [3] The song has a 12-bar blues structure. [4] Hughes described the intrumentation as being "happily lopsided, as if time's axis has slipped into a fanciful psychedelic dream" and said that "Morrison sings like he's immersed in a vision." [3] Pop culture writer Tony Thompson felt that the song sounded like "a pyschedelic version" of Brian Hyland's 1962 song "Sealed With a Kiss". [5] He described Kreiger's slide guitar as "eerie" and Manzarek's piano chords as "plaintive". [5] Doug Sundling described the playing in the introduction as having a "gentle , grinning guitar", "soft and slightly inebriated piano" and "softly stroked cymbals." [6]
According to Hughes, lyrics such as Where will we be when the summer's gone" generate a "bittersweet note" reflecting the waning of youthful optimism by 1968 and suggesting that the future will not be as good. [3] According to Thompson, the line "Morning found us calmly unaware" "captures the lazy mood of summer." [5] Thompson also found the image of the "laughing sea" to be appealing and felt that the lyrics overall evoke "the poetic idea of summer as youth." [5]
Manzarek referred to "Summer's Almost Gone" as "a cool Latino-Bolero kind of thing with a Bach-like bridge. It's about the ephemeral nature of life. A season of joy and light and laughter is coming to an end." [7]
Hughes considered "Summer's Almost Gone" to be one of the Doors' most underrated songs. [3] Music journalist Harvey Kubernik described "Summer's Almost Gone" as being "beautifully melancholy". [1] Rolling Stone critic Jim Miller felt that the song was "evocative" despite "lame" lyrics. [5] Thompson called it a "trippy little sleeper that will grow on the listener with repeated listens." [5] Classic Rock critic Max Bell described it as "wistful". [8] Allmusic critic Richie Unterberger described it as "fine melodic ballad rock." [9] The Doors FAQ author Rich Weidman described "Summer's Almost Gone" and the song that follows it on Waiting for the Sun, Kreiger's "Wintertime Love", as being perfect compliments. [10]
"Summer's Almost Gone" was part of the Doors' early live repertiore. [2] After Morrison's death, Manzarek and Kreiger played "Summer's Almost Gone", with Ian Astbury as the lead singer and Stewart Copeland replacing an injured Densmore on drums, at a September 6, 2002 concert at the California Speedway in Fontana, California. [1] This concert was the genesis of the group The Doors of the 21st Century, later renamed Manzarek–Krieger. [1]