I Wont Be Alone Anymore / Kansas City

Blue Thumb BTA 252 is a US 7-inch single from 1974, pressing both stereo and mono versions of the same catalog number, featuring John Densmore and Robby Krieger under the Butts Band banner. The A-side carries "I Won't Be Alone Anymore" and the flip is "Kansas City," pulled from the pair's post-Doors collaborative project. This is not a Doors release; it is squarely a Butts Band artifact, and collectors should approach it as such when cataloging.

The physical object is a standard-weight US commercial pressing on the Blue Thumb label, a mid-sized independent that had a recognizable house style during this period. The label itself uses the Blue Thumb color scheme, with the catalog number BTA 252 printed clearly on both sides. The pressing quality you encounter on surviving copies tends to be consistent with other Blue Thumb 45s of this era, though as with most commercial singles from 1974, surface noise varies significantly depending on how the copy was stored and played. There is no picture sleeve documented for this release, meaning the single would have shipped in either a plain company sleeve or a generic distributor sleeve. Collectors hunting a sleeved copy should be cautious about anything presented as original; without documented evidence, any sleeve accompanying this single is likely a later addition. The label design on BTA 252 follows the standard Blue Thumb format, with the song title, artist credit, and label information laid out in a clean, utilitarian manner typical of the label's commercial releases. Both the stereo and mono variants share the same catalog number, which is a detail worth tracking when logging a copy, since the matrix runout will be the only reliable way to distinguish the two pressings. Inspecting the dead wax carefully before purchasing is advisable, particularly if you are trying to complete a variant-specific run. The pressing itself is not heavy-weight and does not display any of the audiophile characteristics collectors associate with, say, original Elektra pressings of the classic Doors catalog.

The Butts Band formed after The Doors effectively concluded as a working unit following Jim Morrison's death in 1971. Densmore and Krieger recruited new vocalists and continued recording under the Butts Band name, releasing the self-titled debut LP on Blue Thumb in 1973. You can read more about that album at the The Butts Band page on this site. "I Won't Be Alone Anymore" is one of the tracks drawn from that period of activity, and its release as a 45 was clearly an attempt by Blue Thumb to generate radio traction for the project. "Kansas City" on the flip is a cover of the classic Leiber and Stoller song, a choice that was not unusual for rock acts in the early 1970s looking to connect with a broader audience. Neither track appeared on a Doors proper release, and neither has been repositioned within the official Doors catalog in any of the major retrospective compilations such as The Best Of The Doors or the Selections From The Forthcoming Box Set, which reinforces that this material sits firmly in solo and post-band territory rather than the Doors canon. On Discogs, the community numbers are thin: 9 copies reported as owned, 11 in want lists. Those figures reflect a single that did not move in enormous quantities and that relatively few collectors have actively pursued. It is not a high-demand piece, but the want-to-have ratio suggests there is slightly more interest than available supply in the current market. For anyone building a comprehensive collection of material connected to former Doors members, this is a logical gap to close. It occupies a niche that sits between pure Doors collecting and the broader post-Morrison solo landscape, and it does not overlap with anything in the main catalog. The stereo and mono variant distinction gives completists two boxes to check from a single catalog number, which is either an opportunity or a minor complication depending on how granular your collecting focus runs.

This is a low-circulation commercial single with modest Discogs community presence, and it is not a piece that commands serious premiums in the current market. For collectors focused specifically on post-Doors member releases or on building out a complete Blue Thumb catalog, BTA 252 is a legitimate and worthwhile addition, particularly in stereo. Casual collectors or those focused strictly on the Doors' Elektra-era output can safely pass; this single sits outside that world. If the Butts Band LP is already on your shelf, the 45 makes a reasonable companion piece.