"Runnin' Blue" is a song written by guitarist

Robby Krieger Robert Alan Krieger (born January 8, 1946) is an American guitarist and founding member of the rock band the Doors. Krieger wrote or co-wrote many of the Doors' songs, including the hits " Light My Fire", " Love Me Two Times", " Touch Me", and ...

and performed by

the Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential rock acts ...

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the ...

released it in August 1969 as the fourth single from the band's fourth album '' The Soft Parade'', backed with "Do It". The single peaked at No. 64 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and at No. 40 on the ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an onli ...

'' Top 100 chart. Robby Krieger shares vocals with

Jim Morrison James Douglas Morrison (December 8, 1943 – July 3, 1971) was an American singer, poet and songwriter who was the lead vocalist of the rock band the Doors. Due to his wild personality, poetic lyrics, distinctive voice, unpredictable and err ...

for the chorus of the track, the only Doors song on which Krieger had a lead vocal while Morrison was alive.

Lyrics

"Runnin' Blue was inspired by the recent death of

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...

. Morrison sang the introduction to the song, which referenced Redding's death and was based on a

Lead Belly Huddie William Ledbetter (; January 20, 1888 – December 6, 1949), better known by the stage name Lead Belly, was an American folk and blues singer notable for his strong vocals, virtuosity on the twelve-string guitar, and the folk sta ...

song to which Morrison inserted Redding's name: The lyrics also reference Redding's song "

(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" is a song co-written by soul singer Otis Redding and guitarist Steve Cropper. It was recorded by Redding twice in 1967, including once just three days before his death in a plane crash on December 10, 1967. Th ...

." Music critic Bart Testa found it ironic that this Doors song was extolling "The Dock of the Bay", which for Redding was a place of defeat and "where he wasted time having found the struggle for life useless", when earlier Doors songs such as " The End" and " When the Music's Over" call vehemently for revolution. Testa also notes that the line from "Runnin' Blue" stating "Don't fight/Too much to lose" contradicts those earlier songs. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' critic Alec Dubro criticized the poetry of the introduction for being "excessive".

Musical style and reception

The Doors execution with the song, was to feature elements from R&B and contributions by bluegrass musicians; including Jesse McReynolds on the

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of ...

. The song begins with a

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, the ...

played by Jimmy Buchanan and builds to a refrain which Testa compares to " Touch Me", the Doors earlier hit from ''The Soft Parade''. The refrain of the song refers to "runnin' back to L.A.," and from this Testa sees a progression in the song from starting out in the country, represented by the fiddle and running towards the big city. "Runnin' Blue" received varied comments, among those, ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'' described it as a "solid rocker with a clever arrangement from start to finish," and also as one of the best new songs on ''Soft Parade'', while

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

critic

Richie Unterberger Richie Unterberger (born January 19, 1962) is an American author and journalist whose focus is popular music and travel writing. Life and writing Unterberger attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he wrote for the university newspaper '' ...

dismissed it as a "strange bluegrass-

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest att ...

blend" and regarded it as one of the weakest songs on ''Soft Parade''. ''

'' described it as "smooth, adaptable for dance-minded teens, and even more commercially potent than" the Doors' recent singles, and incorporating a touch of

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

. ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of the three main music industry trade magazines in the United States, along with '' Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 under the name ''Music Vendor'', but in 1964 it was changed to ''Record W ...

'' said "features some heavy production touches and a stompin' beat the kids will dig." ''

Ultimate Classic Rock Townsquare Media, Inc. (formerly Regent Communications until 2010) is an American radio network and media company based in Purchase, New York. The company started in radio and expanded into digital media toward the end of the 2000s, starting wi ...

'' included it among the "Top 10 Robby Krieger Doors Songs". Chris Ingalls of ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television ...

'' overviewing the 50th Anniversary edition of ''The Soft Parade'', declared "Runnin' Blue" as one of the "oddities" of the album, and deemed its chorus as "cringe-worthy". The song was also included on the Doors 1972

compilation album A compilation album comprises tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several performers. If by one artist, then generally the tracks were not originally intended for rel ...

'' Weird Scenes Inside the Gold Mine''.

Personnel

The Doors *

– lead vocals *

Ray Manzarek Raymond Daniel Manzarek Jr. (né Manczarek; February 12, 1939 – May 20, 2013) was an American keyboardist. He is best known as a member of the Doors, co-founding the band with singer and lyricist Jim Morrison in 1965. Manzarek was induc ...

– Gibson Kalamazoo organ *

– guitar, chorus lead vocal *

John Densmore John Paul Densmore (born December 1, 1944) is an American musician, songwriter, author and actor. He is best known as the drummer of the rock band the Doors, and as such is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He appeared on every recordi ...

– drums Additional musicians * Harvey Brooks – bass guitar * Paul Harris – orchestral arrangements * Jimmy Buchanan – fiddle * Jesse McReynolds – mandolin

References

{{Authority control The Doors songs 1969 songs Songs written by Robby Krieger Song recordings produced by Paul A. Rothchild Elektra Records singles 1969 singles