band did covers, they also played some of Morrison’s early songs, such as “Could You Would You”, which he had written in Camden Town while touring with The Manhattan Showband. The debut of Morrison’s “Gloria” took place on stage here. Sometimes, depending on his mood, the song could last up to twenty minutes. Morrison has stated that “Them lived and died on the stage at the Maritime Hotel,” believing that the band did not manage to capture the spontaneity and energy of their live performances on their records.
Dick Rowe of Decca Records became aware of the band’s performances, and signed Them to a standard two-year contract. In that period, they released two albums and ten singles, with two more singles released after Morrison departed the band. They had three chart hits, “Baby, Please Don’t Go” (1964), “Here Comes the Night” (1965), and “Mystic Eyes” (1965), though it was the b-side of “Baby, Please Don’t Go”, the garage band classic, “Gloria”, that went on to become a rock standard covered by Patti Smith, The Doors, Shadows of Knight, Jimi Hendrix and others.
“Gloria”
Morrison’s garage rock classic was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. As described by Paul Williams: “Van Morrison’s voice a fierce beacon in the darkness, the lighthouse at the end of the world. Resulting in one of the most perfect rock anthems known to humankind.”
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Building on the success of their singles in the United States, and riding on the back of the British Invasion, Them undertook a two month tour of America in May and June 1966 that included a three-week residency at the Whisky a Go Go in Los Angeles. The Doors were the supporting act on the last week, and Morrison’s influence on The Doors singer, Jim Morrison,
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