Discoscene — Morrison

Discoscene, October 1968, is a 15-page print publication edited by Stanley Owens. No major label or large publishing house stands behind it; this is a small-circulation music periodical from the peak of the psychedelic era, and its October 1968 issue contains a feature article on Jim Morrison. No catalog number, ISSN, or identified printer has been confirmed for this run, which is consistent with the underground and semi-professional music press of that period.

Fifteen pages is a slim count even by the standards of the late-1960s music magazine market, and that brevity shapes what collectors should expect physically. Issues of this size and era were typically produced on newsprint or low-grade coated stock, saddle-stitched or simply folded, with offset printing that ranged from clean to noticeably muddy depending on the press run and the pressroom. Color coverage, if present at all in a publication of this scale, was usually limited to the cover, while interior pages ran in black and white. Expect copies in varying conditions, such as browning, brittleness, spine splitting, and ink oxidation, all of which are routine concerns with 56-year-old newsprint; assess the actual copy in hand. What can be said with confidence is that the physical survival rate for small-run periodicals from 1968 is poor. Publications like Discoscene were not archived by libraries, were not bagged and boarded at the point of sale, and were not treated as collectibles at the time of issue. Finding a copy with tight staples, clean margins, and a cover free of creasing is genuinely uncommon. Any copy showing less than significant wear deserves to be sleeved immediately.

The Morrison article is the central reason this issue registers on the collector radar at all. October 1968 sits in a particularly dense and interesting window for Doors documentation. Strange Days had arrived in September 1967, and by the fall of 1968 the band was riding the commercial momentum of "Hello, I Love You" and the Waiting for the Sun LP, while Morrison's public persona was becoming increasingly complicated. Press coverage of him during this period ranges from fawning to genuinely probing, and the small music papers, operating outside the editorial constraints of larger publications, sometimes produced more candid material than the major outlets. Whether Owens conducted a direct interview with Morrison or compiled the piece from secondary sources is not confirmed in the available record, and collectors should not assume either. The article's specific angle, length within the 15-page format, and any photographs accompanying it remain variables that require examination of the physical copy. For comparative reference on how Morrison's image was being handled in the press during this era, Changes magazine offers useful context as another small-circulation periodical covering the band. The audio dimension of that same period is well documented through Live at the Bowl '68, which captures the band's performance from August of that year, and through The Lost Interview Tapes Featuring Jim Morrison Volume Two: The Circus Magazine Interview, which documents another press interaction from the same general period. Cross-referencing those sources alongside the Discoscene piece can help situate whatever claims or characterizations Owens presents. The publication does not appear in standard bibliographic indexes for the period, which reinforces its status as an obscure, low-distribution title rather than a mainstream trade paper.

For collectors, Discoscene October 1968 sits in a category defined less by documented scarcity figures and more by the simple attrition rate of ephemeral print from that era. It is not a household title. It does not appear regularly in dealer stock lists or auction results at the volume that would make it easy to source. If you are building a comprehensive archive of Jim Morrison and Doors print coverage from 1967 to 1971, this issue belongs in that collection, particularly given the richness of the October 1968 cultural moment. Condition will be the controlling factor in any transaction; insist on a full description of staple integrity, spine condition, and any moisture or storage damage before purchasing sight unseen. It is not a crossover piece that will attract general rock memorabilia buyers, but within a focused Doors print archive it carries real documentary weight.