Robbie Krieger’s fire is still lit [MUSIC PREVIEW]
Robby Krieger, the Doors guitar legend, plays the Hermosa Beach Summer Concerts on August 21. Photo by Jo Lopez
In the late 60s, a four-piece rock band based out of Venice Beach took the world by storm. The Doors, named after Aldous Huxley’s 1954 book “The Doors of Perception,”epitomized the psychedelic-blues-infused rock ‘n’ roll of its time, with charismatic poet-turned-frontman Jim Morrison at the helm of the prolific project. The Doors released eight studio albums in five years, which sold millions of copies domestically and abroad.
While Morrison’s unhinged persona and rapturous stage presence gave the band a cult following, it was his three bandmates — guitarist Robby Krieger, keyboardist Ray Manzarek and drummer John Densmore — that kept him grounded. In particular, Krieger’s silent force is most notable, penning some of the Doors’ most famous songs. The first song Krieger ever wrote was “Light My Fire.”
“Sometimes I would have an idea for a melody and he would look through his poetry books and find something that worked with it,” Krieger recalls over the phone about Morrison. “He always carried his poetry book with him. He was always writing stuff. That’s what was cool about Jim — he’d always go with the flow and try to make it work.”
The only time Morrison ever changed Krieger’s work was on the song “Touch Me.”
“Originally I had it as ‘Hit Me,’” he recalls. “The song was really about playing Blackjack. But he thought ‘Touch Me’ was better.”
The Doors in 1968. Robbie Krieger is on the far right. Courtesy Wikicommons
In 1971, Morrison’s quick downward spiral into alcoholism and death at age 27 forced the the band through an abrupt shift. The remaining trio recorded two more albums, with Krieger and Manzarek taking turns on the mic, before disbanding several years later. Krieger and Densmore formed a new project called Butts Band, but that disbanded as well. The surviving members went their separate ways until 2001, when Krieger partnered with Manzarek to keep the group’s legacy alive for 12 years, performing Doors classics briefly under the name The Doors of the 21st Century, then under Manzarek-Krieger until the keyboardist’s death in 2013.
At 70, Krieger continues to abide by the fire. He has been performing regularly with Robby Krieger’s Jam Kitchen, a group he formed about five years ago with renowned musicians such as bassist Arthur Barrow, drummer Chad Wackerman and keyboardist Tommy Mars (who all played in Frank Zappa’s band). The group played at Saint Rocke in Hermosa Beach, Krieger notes, as well as in Manhattan Beach.
Now with the Doors’ 50 year anniversary just around the corner, Krieger is back on the road channeling the spirit of the original band with his new bandmates — his son Waylon, who sings, longtime collaborator Ty Dennis on drums, renowned Chinese-Jamaican bassist Phil Chen (who has worked with the likes of Jeff Beck and Rod Stewart), and Nathan Wilmarth on keys.
“I’ve played Doors songs over the years instrumentally and I’ve done different things, but now we’re trying to get the music as it was on the record,” says Krieger, who lives in West LA. “This band is very true to the original recordings. Our keyboard player has studied Ray’s parts exactly ever since he was a kid. He even owns a bunch of keyboards that Ray used to use.”
The Doors has been a lifelong commitment for Krieger, who joined the band when he was 18. He grew up in the Pacific Palisades, surfing regularly in Hermosa Beach with his friends. At 15, he began his foray into the guitar with flamenco and folk music.
“Before that, I played the trumpet, but that didn’t pan out too well,” he says matter-of-factly. “But I think I had a talent for the guitar.”
He had just been playing the electric guitar for about a year when Doors drummer John Densmore approached him about auditioning for the band, which had just reformed its identity from Rick and the Ravens based out of Manhattan Beach. At the time, the two played together in a group called the Psychedelic Rangers (“it was really more for fun — we didn’t really play anywhere,” he notes). Soon, Krieger found himself in a little space in the middle of a parking lot in Santa Monica where the Doors rehearsed. He jammed on the song “Moonlight Drive” with the group, and the chemistry was palpable.
“Instantly, we knew we had a band,” he recalls. “That was the first song we played. It was kind of an audition. That was it. I played that one song and everyone said, ‘Wow, this is the guy.’”
Robbie Krieger plays as part of the Hermosa Beach Summer Concerts series this Sunday night. The Shakes open. Music begins at 4:30 p.m.