Spanish Caravan
Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox song
"Spanish Caravan" is a song written by Robby Krieger, and credited to him, Jim Morrison, Ray Manzarek and John Densmore that was released on The Doors' 1968 album Waiting For The Sun.
Background
"Spanish Caravan" was written by Robby Krieger around late 1966.[1] He was inspired by, and took parts from the songs, "Asturias" by Isaac Albéniz, and "Adiós Granada" by Tomas Barrera, and Rafael Calleja.[2] The song was written to showcase Krieger's flamenco guitar skills, which he started learning when he was 17. The song was recorded on January 15, 1968, from 5:00pm-12:00am.[1]
Composition
The song starts with a flamenco intro, played by Krieger, and is joined by Harpsichord, played by keyboardist Ray Manzarek, later in the intro. The first verse mentions places like Portugal, Spain, and Andalusia, the southernmost part of Spain. When the chorus ends, the flamenco guitar stops, leading into an Acid rock instrumental, with use of the fuzz box. The second verse refers to the romanticized, and mythic wealth of the Iberian Peninsula, which attracted many explorers from across Europe.
Release and Reception
"Spanish Caravan" was released on July 3, 1968, along with the rest of the Waiting For The Sun album.[3][1] During an interview with Rainier Moddemann of The Doors Quarterly, Robby Krieger stated that the band was sued for borrowing from "Asturias." The Doors were forced to give up some money, but only a little. Krieger explained, "They didn't get very much, 'cause it's such a widely known thing, but they claimed they owned this little something stupid."[4] The song was later included in the 1972 compilation Weird Scenes Inside The Gold Mine.
Pitchfork stated that "Spanish Caravan", and the previous song on the album, "The Unknown Soldier", felt more meandering than the band's longest pieces. They then called both songs "start/stop multi-sectional three-minute songs".[5]
Live Performances
The first live performance of "Spanish Caravan" was on January 6, 1967, at the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco. The most famous performance was at the Hollywood Bowl, on July 5, 1968.[6] Other performances include one at the Roundhouse in September of 1968, and the final performance at Madison Square Garden on January 24, 1969.[7][8] As of 2026, Robby Krieger still performs the song on tour.[2]
Personnel
The Doors
- Jim MorrisonTemplate:Sndvocals
- Ray ManzarekTemplate:Sndharpsichord and Gibson G-101
- Robby KriegerTemplate:Sndflamenco and electric guitar
- John DensmoreTemplate:Snddrums
Additional musicians
- Douglas Lubahn - electric bass
- Leroy Vinnegar - acoustic bass
Technical
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "The Doors Studio Dates & Info". https://mildequator.com/recordinghistory/studioinfo.html.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Fanelli, Damian (January 8, 2018). "Watch Robby Krieger Play The Doors' "Spanish Caravan" with a String Quartet" (in en). https://www.guitarworld.com/artists/watch-robby-krieger-play-doors-spanish-caravan-la-philharmonic-quartet-flamenco.
- ↑ "Music – The Doors". https://thedoors.com/music.
- ↑ Songfacts. "Spanish Caravan by The Doors - Songfacts" (in en). https://www.songfacts.com/facts/the-doors/spanish-caravan.
- ↑ Berman, Stuart (December 5, 2006). "The Doors: Perception" (in en-US). https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/9691-perception/.
- ↑ "The Doors | Hollywood Bowl 1968". https://mildequator.com/performancehistory/concertinfo/1968/680705.html.
- ↑ "The Doors | Madison Square Garden 1969". https://mildequator.com/performancehistory/concertinfo/1969/690124.html.
- ↑ "The Doors | London - The Roundhouse 1968 Night #1". https://mildequator.com/performancehistory/concertinfo/1968/680906.html.