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Soul Kitschin'

Would you buy a used fire from these men? No, it's not the leads from The Lord of the Rings, it's the touring version of The Doors, with Ray Manzarek, Robby Krieger-ho-Tep, and Cult singer Ian Astbury.

A 2002 piece in The Nation by Doors drummer John Densmore spelled out his side in the remaining band member's legal disputes, and he came out as a true keeper of the sixties' flame-- he was keeping his word to Jim Morrison that he (and the band) would never allow the music to be used for commercial purposes. In doing so, he's turned down millions for the others as well, but the sincerity of the guy was obvious.

Well, bad news for John's admirers and fans of the music: the sellout has officially begun. A story at fortwayne.com, of all places, quietly slipped in the news that the three remaining Doors "believe it's time to put their band's legacy (and, ahem, potential profitability) front and center."

Also: "Dick Wolf, the force behind the ubiquitous Law & Order franchises, is producing a full-length documentary on the Doors for theatrical release-- with all three surviving Doors on board as co-producers." It gets worse, with coffee table books, CD retrospectives, and a 40th anniversary blitz for "Light My Fire" and the first album. But the worst is saved for last:

"And talk about strange days, there's even a plan to take the Doors to Vegas in 2008. Jeff Jampol of Doors Music Co. said the surviving members and Morrison's estate are negotiating a deal in the 'tens of millions of dollars' to build a special theater of 800 to 1,200 seats at a Las Vegas casino and tailor-design a standing show."

Great. No announcement of what, exactly, the shows will contain (good news: they don't want anything that would cheapen the band's image). "We're creating something, but we're not sure what it's called," Jampol said.

Maybe they don't, but we do.

Great minds suck alike: Ray Manzarek and George Winston

Posted by Steve Monaco at May 25, 2006 1:20 PM

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