The two surviving members of the Doors – Robbie Krieger and John Densmore have given a very rare joint interview to Rick Beato and opened up about what life was like being in a band with Jim Morrison.
It’s now over half a century since the Doors frontman died in Paris and slipped into rock legend. But his life – and his time in the band – continues to fascinate to this day. In a wide ranging chat, Beato manages to tease out some details about the Doors songs from the guitarist and drummer, as well as asking whether, on a day to day basis, their singer was “a fun guy to hang out with.”
"He could be,” Krieger said. “He could be the greatest guy ever to hang out with. And then, sometimes, he could be the worst."
Densmore noted that is was booze that caused the deterioration in relations between Morrison and the rest of the band. Apparently, they even had a name for their frontman’s darker side: "Jimbo, we called the other guy."
"I mean, his real problem was the Oedipus complex. He had the worst Oedipus complex I've ever seen", Krieger added. No surprise really, given the lyrics to The End...
Beato asked whether Morrison was “just a normal guy (they) could hang out with,” to which Krieger replied: "Yeah. More in the beginning. Especially in the beginning. He was great to hang out with, you know?"
"He was provocative,” Densmore chipped in. “He liked pushing buttons. He liked seeing where people's edges were. But, you know, as his self-destruction increased, we kind of backed away."
The band’s last gig was in New Orleans in December 1970, and ended in some chaos. “I had been lobbying to Robbie and Ray to pull the live plug because it's self-destruction,” Densmore explained. “We were so great, and then in New Orleans, he was so drunk, we couldn't even finish the show, and we took a break."
Krieger suggested that by this time nobody could talk sense into the wayward singer, not even keyboard player Ray Manzarek, the eldest member of the band. “As time went on, nobody could talk to him... It was the '60s. We thought, 'Oh, this is how it's supposed to be. It's crazy, everything, everything's cool,' you know?"
To this Densmore added: "And also, we had a hunch we were making some good stuff, and our karma was to have this kamikaze maniac singer, but he had these pipes and these lyrics, and melodies. Oh, my God, this guy's gifted."
"It was worth it. We would've done anything to keep it going", Krieger chimed in.
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