The Unknown Soldier (song)
"The Unknown Soldier" is the first single from the Doors' 1968 album Waiting for the Sun and released in March of that year by Elektra Records. An accompanying 16mm publicity film for the song featuring the band was directed and produced by Edward Dephoure and Mark Abramson. The song became the band's fourth Top 40 hit in the US, peaking at number 39 on the Billboard Hot 100, and enjoying an eight-week appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 list overall. However, due to the song's controversial lyrics many radio stations refused to play it.[1]
| "The Unknown Soldier" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by the Doors | ||||
| from the album Waiting for the Sun | ||||
| B-side | "We Could Be So Good Together" | |||
| Released | March 1968 | |||
| Recorded | February 1968 | |||
| Studio | TTG Studios, Hollywood, California | |||
| Genre | Psychedelic rock | |||
| Length | 3:22 | |||
| Label | Elektra | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Paul A. Rothchild | |||
| The Doors singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Lyrics
The song was Jim Morrison's reaction to the Vietnam War and the way that conflict was portrayed in American media at the time. Lines such as "Breakfast where the news is read/ Television children fed/ Unborn living, living dead/ Bullets strike the helmet's head" concerned the way news of the war was being presented in the living rooms of ordinary people.[2]
Release and reception
The released single was edited in which a different gunshot sound was used and does not include the cheering crowds nor the tolling bells at the end. Reportedly, producer Paul Rothchild was so particular about how the song came out that it ultimately took over 130 takes to finish.[3] Upon completion, the song became the band's fourth Top 40 hit in the US, peaking at number 39 on the Billboard Hot 100, and enjoying an 8-week appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 list overall.[4] "We Could Be So Good Together" served as the B-side.
Charts
| Chart (1968) | Peak position |
Date |
|---|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100[5] | 39 | May 1968 |
See also
References
- Simpson, Dave (June 17, 2015). "The Doors: 10 of the Best". The Guardian. Retrieved August 5, 2020.
- "The Doors, 'Unknown Soldier' – Songs About Soldiers". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
- Hopkins, Jerry; Sugerman, Danny (1980). No One Here Gets Out Alive. p. 179. ISBN 978-0-446-60228-0.
- "The Hot 100 - May 18, 1968". Billboard. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
- "The Doors Chart History: Hot 100". Billboard.com. 2019. Archived from the original on May 7, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
