Star Collection

The Doors Star Collection LP (MIDI MID 22 001 M), a 1972 German stereo pressing with no French price or label codes.

The Doors Star Collection on MIDI, catalog number MID 22 001 M, is a stereo compilation LP pressed in Germany in 1972. This specific variant carries the MIDI imprint under the WEA Musik GmbH umbrella (the sleeve credits it as a product of Kinney Music GmbH, while the label itself reads WEA Musik GmbH), and it is distinct from the French-priced German pressings and other regional variants issued across the Netherlands, France, Yugoslavia, the UK, and Portugal. This particular copy carries no French price code, no label code on either the cover or the sleeve, and no WEA reference anywhere, including the runout groove. A cassette version was also issued.

The front cover design is immediately recognizable within the MIDI Star Collection series: a silver-grey simulated frame border surrounds the main artwork, giving it a picture-frame appearance that was consistent across the label's roster releases of this period. Inside that border, Jim Morrison dominates the upper two-thirds of the cover in a color photograph, his long dark hair loose, wearing a light denim jacket, gazing directly at the camera with a composed but slightly distant expression. Below him, occupying the lower third, are three smaller black-and-white photographic portraits of the remaining Doors, Ray Manzarek, Robbie Krieger, and John Densmore, arranged side by side. The contrast between the full-color Morrison image and the monochrome band portraits below it gives the layout a deliberate visual hierarchy that leaves no doubt about who MIDI's marketing team considered the commercial draw. The red Doors logo appears in the upper left, and the MIDI logo sits in the lower right corner. The title Star-Collection runs in black text along the top edge of the silver border.

The rear sleeve is printed on a black background. At the top, the MIDI logo appears again at the upper left, with Star-Collection in white text centered at the top. The catalog number MID 22 001 is printed at the upper right alongside a French price code field, which on this specific variant is present on the sleeve rear but without a printed French price, a detail that distinguishes it from other known German pressings. A brief English-language biographical essay runs across two columns, covering the band's formation, Morrison's biography, and a note that all recordings on the album predate his death. Below the text, the tracklisting is printed in two columns with composer credits and timings. Production is credited to Paul A. Rothschild with Jac Holzman as production supervisor, and the sleeve confirms these are original Elektra recordings. Along the bottom of the rear sleeve, five small thumbnail images advertise other Doors titles available on the Elektra/MIDI imprint: Full Circle, Weird Scenes Inside The Gold Mine, The Doors 13, L.A. Woman, and Other Voices, each listed with their respective catalog numbers. The disc labels themselves are a warm orange, with the MIDI logo in brown and white at center left, STAR COLLECTION / THE DOORS printed in black at the top, and LC 2991 in a small oval at the right. Side 1 carries catalog number MID 22001 (22001 A) and the copyright line reads 1972 WEA Musik GmbH. The GEMA box appears at the top left, confirming German manufacture and licensing. The label lists all five Side 1 tracks with Morrison and Doors writing credits and timings, printed cleanly in black on the orange field.

All ten tracks here are standard Elektra studio recordings, sourced from the original album sessions rather than live or alternate takes. The selection pulls from across the catalog: Waiting for the Sun from the 1968 LP of the same name (see the original release here), Roadhouse Blues and Maggie M'Gill from Morrison Hotel, Peace Frog and Land Ho! from Morrison Hotel as well, My Wild Love and Unhappy Girl from Strange Days, Backdoor Man from the debut, Wishful Sinful from The Soft Parade, and Light My Fire in its full album-length version. None of these are edits or alternate mixes; they are the same masters available on the individual studio LPs, all of which are consolidated in The Doors Complete Studio Recordings box set if you want the definitive source. The track selection skews toward deeper album cuts alongside the obvious Light My Fire, making it slightly more interesting than a pure hits package, but not significantly so. The Discogs community data reflects this release's ubiquity: 3,076 collectors mark it as owned against only 95 wanting it, a ratio that tells you everything about current demand. The absence of any WEA reference in the runout groove is a documented identifier for this pressing variant. A Volume 2 followed in 1974 under the identical title and format. Collectors interested in how Light My Fire circulated across European markets in various configurations may also find this German single release and The Best Of The Doors compilation relevant for comparison.

This is a widely circulated German compilation with no scarcity, no bonus material, and no meaningful variant-specific content beyond what distinguishes it from its sibling pressings within the MIDI Star Collection series. The no-French-price-code, no-label-code details matter for cataloging purposes, but they do not add collector value. If you need a solid-playing copy of these ten tracks in a presentable German sleeve, it fits the bill. If you are building a serious collection, there is nothing here that demands priority acquisition.