Between roughly 1965 and 1972, the houses along Laurel Canyon Road, winding up from here, held the densest concentration of musical talent in American history. Laurel Canyon Road winds up through the Santa Monica Mountains from Sunset Strip to the San Fernando Valley, and in the years between roughly 1965 and 1972 the houses along this road and its side streets housed the densest concentration of musical talent in American history. Joni Mitchell wrote Blue in a house above the canyon store.
The Doors lived and rehearsed here. Jim Morrison wrote poetry on a boulder behind his house on Rothdell Trail. Frank Zappa rented a house with a log cabin where members of the Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, and dozens of others gathered constantly.
David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash, and Neil Young all lived within walking distance of each other and began making music together. The canyon's rural feel, its affordability relative to the flatlands, and its remove from the mainstream made it a refuge where musicians could experiment. The canyon store at the bottom, which still operates, was the social center.
Walk up the road a few hundred yards; the houses are expensive now, the bohemians long gone, but the canyon is still beautiful and still surprisingly wild.