Sunset Sound — The Doors, Los Angeles

Sunset Sound Recorders at 6650 Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood is where the Doors recorded several of their albums, including 'Strange Days' (1967) and parts of 'L.A. Woman' (1971) — the studio that served as their primary recording home alongside Elektra's own facilities and later TTG Studios. Sunset Sound had been built by Walt Disney's audio engineer Tutti Camarata in 1958 and had evolved by the mid-1960s into one of Hollywood's most sought-after recording facilities, with a distinctive reverberant room sound that suited the Doors' approach better than more clinical environments. The final Doors album recorded with Morrison, 'L.A. Woman,' was made in a remarkable session at Sunset Sound in which the band essentially set up as a live unit in the studio and recorded the album quickly and with minimal overdubbing.

'L.A. Woman' was recorded in December 1970 and January 1971, just a few months before Morrison's death in Paris in July. The sessions produced some of the band's most celebrated work: the title track, 'Riders on the Storm,' 'Love Her Madly,' and 'The Changeling' — a record that sounded looser and bluesier than its predecessors, Morrison's voice deeper and more weathered, the band playing with the confidence of musicians who had nothing to prove. Morrison flew to Paris shortly after the sessions were complete. He never returned.

Sunset Sound continues to operate as one of Hollywood's most active and historically significant recording studios. The roster of albums recorded there across six decades — including records by the Stones, Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, Prince, and hundreds of others — makes it one of the most important rooms in the history of recorded music. The studio offers tours by appointment and the original acoustic environment, including the distinctive reverb chamber, is preserved.