Robby Krieger
Electric Guitar Solo on
Been Down So Long

About

Robby Krieger's electric guitar solo is the second of two solos on "Been Down So Long" from The Doors' 1971 album L.A. Woman. Krieger takes two-thirds of a chorus of blues in E at 124 BPM with a rock feel, returning after his earlier full-chorus statement for an abbreviated second pass. The truncated chorus length gives this solo a more spontaneous, immediate quality compared to the first solo's complete blues form. Together, the two solos frame the song's vocal sections with instrumental blues improvisation that reinforces the track's deep roots in the blues tradition.

Robby Krieger was 24 to 25 years old at the time.