Histoire Du Rock

Histoire Du Rock, published by les Éditions Pop Rock out of Canada, is a French-language Rock Encyclopedia series issued in 42 installments. Issue No. 23, dated 1975, is the specific number that carries the Doors feature. This is the French-Canadian edition of a bilingual publication series; an English-language counterpart titled History Of Pop was produced in parallel, making the French issue a distinct regional variant sought by collectors who focus on non-English Doors print ephemera.

The cover of No. 23 is immediately recognizable to anyone familiar with mid-1970s Canadian rock magazine aesthetics. The masthead runs across the top in a bold, stylized font, rendered in warm yellow and orange tones against a dark background, with the subtitle La Première Encyclopédie Du Rock En 42 Numéros printed beneath in smaller white text. Dominating the cover is a color photograph of The Doors, showing all four members posed together in what appears to be a studio or promotional setting. The band is dressed in the kind of dark, slightly rumpled late-1960s clothing typical of their era, and the image has the warm, slightly saturated quality of color photography from that period. Jim Morrison stands among his bandmates, the group arranged in a close cluster. The overall palette of the cover leans dark, with the band photo occupying the central and lower portion of the page. The issue number, No. 23, is printed clearly in the lower right area. Below the photograph, the cover lists the featured articles in white and colored text: Les Doors: Le groupe de Jim Morrison is listed first, followed by references to T. Rex, Gary Glitter, le Rock Glitter, Les Four Tops, and additional pieces on Bud Company, Duane Eddy, and theatre rock. The layout is dense and editorial, consistent with the encyclopedic format the series promised across its full run. The magazine itself is a standard saddle-stitched format, lightweight newsprint stock, the kind of construction common to European and Canadian rock publications of the period. Condition on surviving copies varies considerably given the paper quality and age.

The Doors content in No. 23 runs to three pages and is written entirely in French, giving an overview of the band's story with a mix of color and black-and-white photographs. For collectors building a comprehensive archive of international Doors print coverage, this is exactly the kind of regional artifact that fills gaps left by the major American and British music press. The French-language framing is not a translation of an existing English article in the conventional sense; rather, the parallel existence of the English History Of Rock series means both editions were produced for their respective linguistic markets in Canada, making each its own collectible object rather than simply a translated duplicate. Collectors who want both languages need both magazines. The photo selection within the article is consistent with what les Éditions Pop Rock had access to through standard licensing channels in 1975, so expect familiar promotional images rather than rare candids, but the French captions and text give the feature its own character. The broader issue context is worth noting for completeness: the same number covers T. Rex and Gary Glitter under the Rock Glitter heading, The Four Tops as soul superstars, and shorter pieces on Bud Company, Duane Eddy, and theatre rock. This mix reflects the encyclopedic ambition of the series, which was trying to document rock history comprehensively across genres in bite-sized installments. For those building a broader Doors discography archive alongside their print collection, releases like The Doors Complete Studio Recordings and the Perception box set provide the audio counterpart to the band's story that this article narrates in print. The magazine is not listed in major music databases by design; it lives in the world of print ephemera rather than recorded releases. Supply on the open market is thin but not exceptional; copies surface occasionally through Canadian estate sales and European ephemera dealers. It is not a common find at record fairs outside Canada, which adds a mild regional scarcity to its appeal. Collectors focused on French-language Doors coverage will find this one of the more accessible entry points, given that it is a mass-market publication rather than a limited promotional item.

Histoire Du Rock No. 23 from les Éditions Pop Rock is a solid, if modest, addition to any Doors print collection, particularly for those targeting French-language coverage or Canadian regional variants. It is not rare in the strictest sense, but it is genuinely uncommon outside Canada and fills a specific niche that English-language publications cannot. Collectors building toward a comprehensive international archive, alongside audio benchmarks like The Doors / Strange Days reissues or early pressings, will want a copy. Those who already have the English Story of Pop equivalent should still consider adding this for completeness.