The Doors Was An American Rock Band Formed In 1965 In Los Angeles,
California By Vocalist Jim Morrison, Keyboardist Ray Manzarek, Drummer John
Densmore, And Guitarist Robby Krieger. They Are Considered A Controversial
And Influential Band, Due Mostly To Morrison’s Cryptic Lyrics And Unpredictable
Stage Persona. After Morrison’s Death On July 3, 1971, The Remaining
Members Continued As A Threesome Until Disbanding In 1973.

Despite A Career That Barely Totaled Eight Years, The Doors Still Enjoy A Huge
Cult Following As Well As Status In The Mainstream Music Industry As Being
Hugely Influential And Original. According To The RIAA, They Have Sold Over
32.5 Million Albums In The US Alone.

The Origins Of The Doors Lie In A Chance Meeting Between Acquaintances And
Fellow UCLA Film School Alumni Jim Morrison And Ray Manzarek On Venice
Beach California In July 1965. Morrison Told Manzarek He Had Been Writing
Songs (Morrison Said “I Was Taking Notes At A Fantastic Rock-N-Roll Concert
Going On In My Head”) And, With Manzarek’s Encouragement, Sang “Moonlight
Drive”. Impressed By Morrison’s Lyrics, Manzarek Suggested They Form A
Band.

Keyboardist Manzarek Was In A Band Called Rick & The Ravens With His
Brothers Rick And Jim Manzarek, While Drummer John Densmore Was Playing
With The Psychedelic Rangers, And Knew Manzarek From Meditation Classes.
In August, Densmore Joined The Group And, Along With Members Of The
Ravens And Bass Player Pat Sullivan (Later Credited Using Her Married Name
Patricia Hansen In The 1997 Box CD Release), Recorded A Six-Song Demo In
September 1965. This Circulated Widely As A Bootleg Recording And Appeared
In Full On The 1997 Doors Box Set.

That Month The Group Recruited Guitarist Robby Krieger, And The Final Lineup
ù Morrison, Manzarek, Krieger And Densmore ù Was Complete. The Band
Took Their Name From The Title Of A Book By Aldous Huxley, The Doors Of
Perception (1954). That Title Was In Turn Taken From A Line In A Poem Entitled
“The Marriage Of Heaven And Hell” By The 18th-Century Artist And Poet
William Blake: “If The Doors Of Perception Were Cleansed, Every Thing Would
Appear To Man As It Is: Infinite”.

The Doors Were Unusual Among Rock Groups Because They Rarely Used A Bass
Guitar When Playing Live. Instead, Manzarek Played The Bass Lines With His Left
Hand On The Newly Invented Fender Rhodes Piano Bass, An Offshoot Of The
Fender Rhodes Electric Piano, Playing Other Keyboards With His Right Hand.
On Their Studio Albums (With The Notable Exception Of Their Eponymous First
Record), The Doors Did Sometimes Use Bass Players, Such As Douglas Lubahn,
Jerry Scheff, Harvey Brooks, Lonnie Mack, Larry Knechtel And Leroy
Vinnegar.

Many Of The Doors’ Original Songs Were Group Compositions, With Morrison Or
Krieger Contributing The Lyrics And An Initial Melody, And The Others Providing
Harmonic And Rhythmic Suggestions, Or Even Entire Sections Of Songs, Such As
Manzarek’s Organ Introduction To “Light My Fire”.

By 1966, The Group Was Playing The London Fog Club And Soon Graduated To
The Prestigious Whisky A Go Go, Where They Were The House Band,
Supporting Acts Including Van Morrison’s Group Them. On Their Last Night
Together The Two Bands Joined Up For “In The Midnight Hour” And A
Twenty-Minute Jam Session Of Them’s “Gloria”.[4] On August 10, They Were
Spotted By Elektra Records President Jac Holzman Who Was Present At The
Recommendation Of Love Singer Arthur Lee, Whose Group Was On Elektra.
After Holzman And Producer Paul A. Rothchild Saw Two Sets Of The Band
Playing At The Whisky A Go Go, They Signed Them To The Elektra Records Label
On August 18ùthe Start Of A Long And Successful Partnership With Rothchild
And Engineer Bruce Botnick.

The Timing Was Fortunate, Because On August 21 The Club Fired The Band After
A Profanity-Filled Performance Of “The End”. In An Incident That Foreshadowed
The Controversy That Later Followed The Group, An Acid-Tripping Morrison
Raucously Recited His Own Version Of The Greek Drama Oedipus Rex, In Which
Oedipus Unknowingly Kills His Father And Has Xxx With His Mother.