The Lizard King (vol 2)

The Lizard King (Vol 2), released in 1993 on the Australian Apple House Music / Banana label, carries catalog number BAN-011-B and is subtitled Live '67 - '68 (Part Two). This CD sits within the broader 'Unauthorized Recordings' series and is one of several overlapping releases sharing the same or similar track content. Collectors should be precise when identifying this specific variant: it is the BAN-011-B pressing, distinct from the alternate cover version of the same disc that prints 'Unauthorized' across Morrison's photo.

The cover on this pressing centers on a photograph of Jim Morrison, presented without the 'Unauthorized' text overlay that distinguishes its sibling variant. The color palette leans toward warm, slightly faded tones consistent with the era's budget bootleg aesthetic. The title '"The Lizard King" (Vol 2)' appears in straightforward lettering, with minimal graphic design effort evident. The Apple House Music / Banana branding is present, though the overall production values signal this is squarely in the grey-market tier, not a commercial major label release. The disc itself follows the same low-cost manufacturing standard common to Australian unofficial pressings of this period: functional, unremarkable, and without any printed matrix etching worth cataloging. There is no booklet, no liner notes to speak of, and no insert with session or venue documentation. The rear artwork lists the 16 tracks across two columns and provides the catalog number and label details, which is about the extent of the informational content. The absence of any photography credits, recording dates, or venue documentation on the packaging is typical for this type of release. Physically, copies in the market today vary in condition; the jewel case and tray card are prone to the usual cracking and discoloration associated with budget Australian pressings from the early 1990s. Collectors seeking a pristine example will need some patience.

The track content spans 16 cuts drawn from live performances across a range of 1967 and 1968 sources. The venues represented include the Matrix Club, Stockholm, Vancouver, the Smothers Brothers television appearance, and the Jonathan Winters show. That mix of sources, ranging from intimate club recordings to broadcast television audio, means the sonic consistency across the disc is uneven. The Matrix Club recordings have a rawer, denser sound, while the television sources are cleaner but compressed in the way broadcast audio typically sounds when pulled from a secondary source. Nothing here approaches the fidelity of an official live release. 'The End' and 'Light My Fire' are the longest pieces and anchor the disc, but neither is a revelation compared to what's already in wide circulation. The track listing overlaps significantly with what appeared on the alternate cover pressing of this same disc, and more importantly, this exact track listing also appears on The Doors - Touch Me, a separate release on a different label and catalog number that is part of the same unauthorized series. Collectors working through the full series will want to consult the other volumes as well: Vol. 1, Vol. 3, and Vol. 4. On Discogs, 21 collectors report owning this pressing and 6 have it on their want list, figures that reflect its status as a moderately uncommon but not genuinely scarce item. The material itself circulates in various forms across the broader bootleg ecosystem, so the BAN-011-B pressing holds interest primarily as a catalog artifact, not as an exclusive source. For collectors who have already worked through the official live canon, including The Doors Collection box set, this kind of release fills a different function: it documents what the grey market was producing in Australia during the early 1990s, and the multi-source nature of the audio does occasionally surface performances not easily found elsewhere in cleaned-up form.

The BAN-011-B pressing of The Lizard King (Vol 2) is a workmanlike Australian bootleg CD from 1993 with average sound, no supplementary documentation, and a track list duplicated on at least one other unauthorized release. It is not rare and not essential, but it belongs in a complete survey of the Apple House Music / Banana series. Completists and series trackers will want it; casual buyers looking for quality live audio are better served elsewhere.