Sunday, October 09, 2005

DOORS, NOT WHORES

We've written before about The Doors and the push by some band members to cash in on memories. Now comes a fresh report from the Times in London, detailing the bad mojo -- definitely not risin' -- between bandmates John Densmore, Robby Krieger and Ray Manzarek.

The latter two wish to sell the rights to some Doors songs to companies that want to use the tunes in advertising. Densmore says "no way."

From the Times:
Densmore has a legal right to veto the use of the band’s music for advertising. And that is exactly what he is doing. He says that he is holding out to honour the memory of the band’s lead singer, Jim Morrison, who died in Paris from a suspected heroin overdose in 1971.

“People lost their virginity to this music, got high for the first time to this music,” Densmore, 60, told the Los Angeles Times in an interview that has astonished an industry more accustomed to performers launching bottled water brands than objecting to the capitalist exploitation of their art.

“I’ve had people say kids died in Vietnam listening to this music. On stage, when we played these songs, they felt mysterious and magic. That’s not for rent,” the drummer said.
Band members inked a contract in 1970, insisting on unanimous approval before any Doors song is licensed.

Apple was willing to pay $4 million for "Light My Fire." Cadillac wanted to fork over $15 million for "Break On Through." Rebuffed by Densmore, Cadillac instead purchased rights to a Led Zeppelin song.

Sounds like much of the disagreement between the aging rockers is over Densmore's life of leisure. Kreiger and Manzarek still play together, in the band D21C (Doors of the 21st Century). But they also have to pay Densmore about $1 million from their gate. Said Manzarek: “He gets an equal share as us, and we were out there working. A free million bucks. That’s a gig I’d like.”

John Densmore is 60. Robby Krieger is 59. Ray Manzarek is 66. Had he lived, Jim Morrison would be 61.

The music is your special friend
Dance on fire as it intends
Music is your only friend
Until the end

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