"Five to One" is the hard-hitting closer of The Doors' 1968 album Waiting for the Sun, a raw, blues-inflected rocker that features Robby Krieger's electric guitar solo as its explosive instrumental climax. Krieger's solo in A minor is fierce and distortion-laden, his playing channeling the song's confrontational energy with aggressive bends, rapid-fire runs, and feedback-tinged sustain. The track's heavy, riff-based structure represented The Doors' most direct, unadorned rock statement to date, its stripped-down power anticipating the heavier sounds that would dominate rock music in the early 1970s. Jim Morrison's defiant vocals establish the combative tone, and Krieger's guitar solo extends that attitude into pure instrumental aggression. Ray Manzarek's bass keyboard lines provide the low-end rumble typically supplied by a bass guitar, while John Densmore's thunderous drumming drives the song forward with barely contained violence. The song's revolutionary lyrical content and raw musical power made it a favorite at The Doors' live performances, where the band often extended the song into lengthy improvisational jams. This studio version captures the essential ferocity of the composition in a focused arrangement that wastes not a single note.
