The sound and dark mood of this track makes me think of what The Stranglers will do a few years later. It's one of my favorite tracks from The Doors.

Hypnotic

So ahead of its time.. Brilliant.

The underrated John Densmore on drums.

Great analysis! The Doors were MASTERS of that weird vaudeville side-carnival atmosphere. Their whole album Strange Days is like that. The Doors=Uncanny Valley.

This is my favorite Doors album. The song Hyacinth House is awesome.

the poem he wrote wh/ inspired the lyrics of this song: LAmerica Cold treatment of our empress LAmerica The Transient Universe LAmerica Instant communion and communication lamerica emeralds in glass lamerica searchlights at twi-light lamerica stoned streets in the pale dawn lamerica robed in exile lamerica swift beat of a proud heart lamerica eyes like twenty lamerica swift dream lamerica frozen heart lamerica soldiers doom lamerica clouds & struggles lamerica Nighthawk doomed from the start lamerica "That's how I met her, lamerica lonely & frozen lamerica & sullen, yes lamerica right from the start" Then stop. Go. The wilderness between. Go round the march.

Tequila, mescal maybe, pint of gold. We used to go across the border for cheaper booze prices and more selection. This song has moved up and down the scale in favorability but, definitely has a mood to reckon with. Jim loves his shamans… rainman will help you find yourself. Kind of We’re An American Band goes to La’in America. A unique piece to this last Doors puzzle. Stones, Doors… you’re spoiling me. Stop… kidding, nice weekend you got going.

Always made me think of a dense south American jungle, or southern Mexican village. This album best played loud, alone, and at night in an empty house.

Great song!

I'm really enjoying your Doors reactions. Morrison Hotel or Strange Days should be next. I can't believe these videos aren't getting more likes though 🤔

This track is a Huge part of my Psyedelic teenage years! A once only, never to be repeated! Still sounds completely timeless! Could have been recorded last week!!..

Wow❤❤❤❤❤❤

The guitar accents on this one are killer, and awesome call on desolate.

Your comments right on point! This song was written by Jim Morrison , a request from filmmaker Michelangelo Antonioni for his dystopian movie ''Zabriskie Point' ... he rejected it , pity! the song could;ve fit so well with the movie!! , by the way, Antonioni rejected music from Pink Floyd too........oh dear!!! anyway, the movie was a flop because the movie was really weird he he

Other MUST HEAR Tracks By Them,, The Be Good Tanyas "Ship Out On The Sea",, "For The Turnstiles",, "In My Time Of Dying",, "The Littlest Birds" & "Ootischenia" (Draft Daughter's Blues)

'Cars hissing by'... The Cars Hiss By My Window... I see what you did there. ;-)

Listen to my wild love it has a intense rattle sound.

The line about trading beads made me think of Mardi Gras and New Orleans, probably because I just watched an episode of "Criminal Minds" that took place there.

Insightful review… I agree w/ where some of your takes are veering. I’ll add some reflects off it… 1st off the desolate post apocalyptic scape feel is spot on. Sound wise it may be their darkest song. It’s also a stripped down style for them that was a venture into new sound territory. Like the end in ‘66, no one in music was in this zip code in late ‘70 aside, from velvet undrgrd & early a cooper. This is influential and had an impact on dark metal, punk, dark techno & college radio. A song, considering date of inception, thats vastly underrated… thematically, it’s stripped down again lyrically, yet very dense symbolically. Morrison lays out a narrative but uses phrases that have denser parallel meanings wh/ broaden scope of theme and clashing of cultures -> past, present &nforward. Tradin beads for pint of gold is scoring beer in a border town of SW amer & Mexico. But, it means much more then that symbolically. Lamerica is Latin meets central amer. Rome meets Aztec. Gold $ meets native sacrament (beads). That density of scale and meaning widens this song out to the arc of western civl and where it was going & where it was headed. Several of Morrison’s best lyrics do this. I found more evidence of this by recently going back and reading his poem lamerica wh/ indeed mentions this clash of civilizations tracing it from Rome thru colonialism europe to the shores of amer to modern LA. Morrison was very tuned into that arc and passage of time over 2000 thousands years to present. Again it’s hinted in other songs too. The snake being 7 miles, like Joseph Campbell interpretations as a motif for the travel of time, truth, culture, desire & greed over the ages. Cyclical, like the rain, yet moving forward and remolding to something connected yet anew. Notice at the start of the song the hiss sound he uses… unlike riders and the end, this song holds out less option of hope. A shaman who can show enlightenment and enthrall fertility (woman loved their ways) but are shun from town and must move on to try to lay fruition later. Almost as saying the current ethos when he penned this was falling apart (Manson, nam, heroin rise, soon Ted bundy the hitcher) and perhaps with new cycle it may get better…. Again vastly underrated song, but bleak also.

Since gold isn't measured in pints, I assume he's talking about beer.

Every time i hear that first guitar note i think the Troggs are going to start up with Wild Thing 🙄 I’m sure this was recorded way before the rest of the songs on the album, for a movie. You can tell by Jim’s voice which hasn’t the roughness it had by ‘71

Early Americana + Folk + A Dash Of Bluegrass = The Be Good Tanyas "Waiting Around To Die" & "Scattered Leaves"..These Incredibly Talented Women Are True Vocal Contortionists.

I think this was written for a movie amd they never used it. It is very atmospheric and moody, I can hear it being in a soundtrack. Idiosyncratic is the word that comes to my mind. The title always made me think it was French, for some reason. And because Jim Morrison died in Paris near July 4th, I always think of it then. Hard to beat the title track and Riders On The Storm, but I think this is my favorite song on the album.

Like this not a bad song on whole lp, it's dark just, a visit inside Jim's head, true for most of his songs. 🧐🇬🇧✌️

Wasteland... hmmm... After the Steelers pyrrhic victory that is what I am feeling. It's going to be a long season.

I wonder if the Dead Kennedys took inspiration from this song

High time for more 70s Kansas deep cuts. I have suggestions if you're interested. Thanks.

The portal to madness- open any Door in America, To the South and in the North, they do not ride backwards on their horse. Only in 'The Land of the Free", do we worship insanity on bended knee. Maybe going out like Jim is the only real way to be free.Peace &

Love the band, and the album, but maybe not this. All that militaristic drumming I find a bit grating. I actually struggled to remember this at first, I'm guessing my cueing arm came into play. and after a few listens I just skipped it. Well, my fave track's next so understandable. The two uptempo, blusey breaks are good, and help, but don't quite redeem this track for me, they're too short. For me, the only real duffer on an otherwise crackin' album.