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The Doors

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

The Doors were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1965 by singer Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger and drummer John Densmore. The name comes from The Doors of Perception, a book by Aldous Huxley, which in turn quotes a line by William Blake. With long, dark songs and the poetry of Morrison they became an important band of American psychedelic rock.

Music and breakthrough

In 1966 they were the house band at the Whisky a Go Go in Los Angeles and signed with Elektra. The debut album The Doors was released in January 1967. Light My Fire became Elektra's first single to reach number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album closes with The End, almost twelve minutes long. The band had no bassist of its own: live, Manzarek played the bass lines with his left hand on a keyboard bass, alongside his organ. In the studio, session bassists were mostly hired from the second album onwards. Morrison pushed the limits. After a chaotic concert in Miami in 1969 he was convicted of indecent exposure; in 2010 he received a posthumous pardon.

Influence

The last album with Morrison, L.A. Woman, was released in 1971 and closes with Riders on the Storm. In July 1971 Morrison was found dead in Paris, aged 27. He is buried at Père Lachaise. The band has sold more than a hundred million records worldwide and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993. Post-punk singers such as Ian Curtis of Joy Division and Ian McCulloch of Echo & the Bunnymen were later often compared to Morrison.

Listening

Listening tip. In Riders on the Storm, listen to the electric piano sound of Ray Manzarek: a soft, rippling Fender Rhodes, with the bass of Jerry Scheff beneath it. The rain and thunder come from a sound-effects record, and Morrison whispers his lyrics once more over the vocal, like an echo.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

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See also

Sources

  1. Wikipedia (en): The Doors
  2. Wikipedia (en): Riders on the Storm
  3. newstalk.com
  4. uncut.co.uk
Categories: Artists