#29 The Doors

The Doors’ career lasted under a decade, yet they are one of the most popular bands of all time. They formed in 1965 when film student Jim Morrison met keyboardist Ray Manzarek. Morrison impressed Manzarek with his writing ability, so they formed a band along with guitarist Robbie Krieger and drummer John Densmore. The band decided to forgo a bassist. Instead, Manzarek played the basslines on his piano bass.

The band wrote most of their own stuff. Morrison’s lyrics were often dark, cryptic, and poetic. The Doors played the LA Club scene, including the prestigious “Whiskey a Go Go”. They were fired from the Whiskey for a profanity laced version of “The End” which included Morrison’s version of Oedipus Rex.

After landing a record deal, The Doors filmed one of the first music videos for “Break on Through.” Then came “Light My Fire” written by Krieger. This hit #1 and made them superstars. It helped them score a spot on Ed Sullivan. The show asked Jim to change the lyrics because they did not like the drug reference in the line “Girl we couldn’t get much higher.” Jim sang it anyway and the band got banned from Sullivan. When told they could not play Sullivan again, Ray Manzarek countered, “We already did Ed Sullivan.”

After their initial success, the band branched out in their music. However, Jim’s downward spiral had begun. He became an alcoholic which led to riots, drug binges, on stage collapses, arrests, and the infamous Miami incident. Eventually, it caught up to Morrison in Paris. In 1971, he was found dead in a bathtub. Whether he OD’d and was left in the tub or died in the tub is a matter of speculation.

The Doors attempted to continue without Morrison. They eventually broke up in 1973 before reforming in 2002 as “The Doors of the 21st Century” without Densmore and with The Cult’s Ian Astbury on vocals. That lasted until 2007. Densmore got an injunction against Manzarek and Krieger for using the band name while touring. In 2008, the two toured under the moniker, “Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger of The Doors” and in 2009, they were joined by Densmore. They are members of the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame.

Rock n Roll Moment: On March 1, 1969, Jim got busted for whipping it out in Miami.

Essential Doors:

The Doors (1967)
Strange Days (1967)
LA Woman (1971)

Door’s Top 10:

Break on Through
Light My Fire
Love Me Two Times
Hello, I Love You
Touch Me
LA Woman
Roadhouse Blues
Alabama Song
The End
Riders on the Storm