Doors band still ready to light your fire

By Charles Passy, Palm Beach Post Arts Writer
Friday, April 30, 2004
 

For those who thought last year's Doors of the 21st Century tour was an easy way for the surviving members of the '60s rock band to cash in on their former glory, keyboardist Ray Manzarek is quick to respond.

"This is a band committed to performing and recording," he says, speaking by phone during a recent interview. "This is not a 'one-off' tour. This is an ongoing process in which new music will be played and taken on the road along with classic Doors songs."

All of which may explain the fact that the newly reconstituted group, featuring former Cult lead singer Ian Astbury in place of the late, legendary Jim Morrison, is already making its second appearance in South Florida -- at SunFest, 7:30 p.m. Sunday -- following last year's show at Sound Advice Amphitheatre. In addition to Manzarek, the other featured original Doors member is guitarist Robby Krieger.

If the performance proves to be anything like the group's 2003 outing, you can expect to hear most of The Doors' classic hits: Break on Through, Love Me Two Times, Light My Fire, etc. But the real revelation may be how much more potent the songs sound in a live setting, thanks in particular to Manzarek's jazz-based chops.

This was never your average rock group, ripping through one tune after another. It was -- and is -- a jam band.

"It's all improvisation with The Doors," the 65-year-old Manzarek says. "When I sit down and play Light My Fire, I know the chord changes. But how I'm going to play that chord, I don't know. I'm going to invent something more or less on the spot. And that continues night after night."

Although The Doors have been largely inactive since the mid-'70s -- the band tried to continue for a period after Morrison's death in 1971, but the attempt failed -- Manzarek never put away his keyboard, even as he dabbled in a variety of other endeavors, including working as a record producer. The results clearly show.

"I think I play better today than I did back then," he says. "You grow as a musician."

Still, The Doors have always been about the cult of personality -- namely, the shaman-like figure of Morrison, who was part beat poet (he wrote the band's lyrics) and part rock star. Many doubted anyone could step into his shoes. So how did Manzarek and Krieger decide upon Astbury when they started planning a reunion?

The choice came after they performed with the singer on a VH1 special -- a Doors tribute that featured a number of contemporary rock vocalists, including Scott Stapp of Creed and Scott Weiland of Stone Temple Pilots.

"We felt that (Astbury) was the one best able to do the job," says Manzarek. "He shared the same psychic space that Jim Morrison occupied. He's a Buddhist and he's into Native American spiritualism, and that's the same stuff Jim Morrison was into."

But Manzarek and Krieger made it clear to Astbury: They weren't looking for a Morrison impersonator. "We wanted Ian Astbury to interpret the words of Jim Morrison. And by God, that's what we got," Manzarek says.

Not that the tour wasn't steeped in controversy. Many purists balked at the idea of a Morrison-less Doors. And former Doors drummer John Densmore and Morrison's estate sued Manzarek and Krieger over their right to tour using the band's name, resulting in the "Doors of the 21st Century" moniker.

"Things are almost resolved," Manzarek says of the legal battle. (There was also a separate lawsuit involving former Police drummer Stewart Copeland, who was recruited to play with Manzarek and Krieger, then dismissed.)

The legal issues aside, the real challenge for Manzarek and Krieger may be finding ways to continue The Doors' legacy with new material. Manzarek says the songs are starting to flow: When it comes to finding lyrics, the group is working with such poets as Michael McClure and Jim Carroll, who share Morrison's beat sensibility. And the music comes from the same source it always did -- Manzarek and Krieger.

"When I play the keyboard and Robby plays the guitar, guess what? It sounds like Doors songs," Manzarek says.

But even as the group looks to the future, it hasn't forsaken the past. When Manzarek and Krieger stopped in Paris last year as part of their European tour, they paid tribute to Morrison, who died in that same city from a drug-induced heart attack at the age of 27, by visiting his grave on his 60th birthday, Dec. 8.

"It was bittersweet, because I miss my friend dearly," says Manzarek. "We burnt some poems and sent them up to him."

And what would Morrison have to say about Manzarek and Krieger's decision to regroup without him? Manzarek thinks he would be thrilled.

"Jim Morrison is a poet," he says. "Here's an opportunity 30 years later for (his) words to be sung out live. Any poet has got to love that."

charles_passy@pbpost.com