BOOK REVIEW: NIGHT DIVIDES THE DAY – The Doors Anthology by The Doors

BOOK REVIEW: NIGHT DIVIDES THE DAY – The Doors Anthology by The Doors
Genesis Publications via New South Books, May 2025
Hard cover, rrp AUD$115
Reviewed by Shane Pinnegar
83%

The story of The Doors as told through quotes from the band members, producers, record label people and many more is a fascinating trip through one of the most storied careers of the modern era, especially since it is accompanied by a veritable panoply of photographs (many rare), memorabilia and artefacts.

It’s a visual treasure trove, lavishly presented in coffee table book format with considerable heft: this is not a book to doze off and drop on your face – it weighs almost 2 ¼ kilos.

Their fascinating story is told linearly, but this oral history does have one unavoidable flaw. New interviews, especially those with band members John Densmore and Robbie Krieger, sit alongside historical quotes from frontman and poet Jim Morrison, producer Paul Rothchild and more, but each quote is not attributed with any contextual dates or circumstances. In short, there’s no way of knowing if the quote is from 1968 or 2020, so thoughts taken in situ are placed next to those told with the benefit of twenty or thirty or however many years of hindsight. It leaves things open to a potential certain amount of misinterpretation, to my mind.

That aside, there’s no denying the power of the story. The band were groundbreaking, remain relevant and important over fifty years after Morrison’s untimely death by misadventure, and Night Divides The Day doesn’t shy away from their singer’s problems with substance abuse and the chaos that caused them as artists, making this an intriguing and requisite resource for anyone interested in taking a deep dive into the history of The Doors.

 

Category: Book Reviews