Arts Preview: Interview with Drummer John Densmore

John Densmore, the renowned drummer and founding member of the legendary rock band The Doors will be talking about his book, The Doors Unhinged (Rev. November 2023) with Andrew Winer at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, on Sunday, January 28, as part of his national book tour. If we are lucky, he may perform as well.

The update of his book from its original publication (April 2013) is due to a recent move by two members of the group. Robby Krieger and the late Ray Manzarek (via his widow, Dorothy) who sold their share of rights without restrictions of The Doors catalog to Larry Mestel Mr. Mestel is former CEO of Virgin Records, and founder of Primary Wave NYC – a company that “purchases the artists’ share of publishing rights and master rights, primarily to monetize their use in TV, film and advertising (synchronization rights to musical works).” Primary Wave Music described this as a monumental acquisition, as they now own the rights to classic hits “Break on Through,” “Light My Fire,” “Hello, I Love You,” “People Are Strange,” “Riders on the Storm,” and “L.A. Woman.” Financial terms of the transaction have not been disclosed.

Lead singer and songwriter Jim Morrison established The Doors as an equal partnership regardless of who wrote the songs, each member having veto power early on. Then came the Buick commercial debacle with Morrison suing Buick for advertising use and telling his band they sold themselves to the devil. He then established the non-commercial use of their music by anyone or entity forever with the band’s lawyer.

A few years later, Morrison again had the band, their lawyers, and management sign a series of contracts to protect against commercial use of The Doors’ catalog, this just prior to his departure for Paris in 1970. Following his death there, the band became split on commercial use when Krieger and Manzarek formed a new band using The Doors logo and name and wanted to sell the songs to advertisers. A series of lawsuits followed between Densmore and the Krieger-Manzarek coalition, in which the judge ruled in Densmore’s favor. Now it seems the issue has returned.

Putting Santa Barbara on the map of his book tour is a direct nod from Densmore to our humble town. He told me in our phone interview of his fond memories of Montecito, his parents staying at the Miramar, and now he likes to hang out with Steppenwolf musician John Kay and Kay’s wife Jutta [Montecito], at the Sacred Space Summerland.

At 78, Densmore remains active – performing, writing, and recording. His philanthropic efforts include the Densmore Scholarship at UCLA for undergrads in African American Studies, his ongoing advocacy of environmental causes, and doing concerts for various charitable causes. On December 20, 2023, he joined rock photographer Henry Diltz at the Morrison Hotel in Los Angeles, where the famous album cover was photographed 54 years ago by Diltz on December 17, 1969. They gave their blessings to the AIDS Healthcare Foundation which purchased the historic 1914 building, saving it from demolition to repurpose for affordable housing. With every fiber of his being, Densmore is committed to uphold Morrison’s wishes and contracts, truly aligned are these two Sagittarius stars. Here’s our in-depth interview notes:

Q. Is there a singular message in your updated book?

A. Yeah, I would say the through line of this book is currency, which comes from the word current. Money is supposed to flow, and the corporate beavers are damming up the flow. Here’s a good soundbite: money is like fertilizer – when hoarded it stinks, when spread around things grow. If you change your lyrics to a jingle, it’s the sound of coins in your pocket and maybe you just sold your audience. Let me elaborate. It’s important that I said in the book, if you’re a new band getting started it is ok do a commercial. I get it, it’s a different time. In our [The Doors] situation, Jim went ballistic over the Buick commercial wanting to use “Light My Fire”; a song he did not write. He cared about the integrity of the WHOLE catalog. He’s dead and now my ancestor. I’m going to honor his wishes till I’m dead, and my kids know what I want too.

And the contract Jim had the band sign…?

Before Jim went to Paris, he insisted on a series of contracts with the band that said no one could do commercials with the music, accountants, lawyers any of our representatives, and us could not do that. We had a contract that said we all own the name of the band together, so there’s no case. And Jim said we’re going to have veto power, and well ok, I became Mr. Veto, but it was all spelled out. So, when you don’t have a case, what do you do? You character assassinate, and they tried to paint me into McCarthyism and anarchist. We were a radical, liberal, beatnik poetry group in Venice, CA. I’m getting on a soapbox here.

So you all signed the contracts Jim wanted. And now Robby and Ray’s family signed their rights to Primary Wave….?

I know, Anne [Jim’s sister] and I are in bed with a corporation, but there’s still veto power. Jim sat on the couch at Robby’s parents’ house at a rehearsal break before we even got a record deal and said, ‘I think we need veto power in case it gets weird.’ And that meant any one of the four us can say ‘no I don’t like this, we’re not doing this,’ and it holds. Each quarter has the power to veto. Primary Wave must honor that. I haven’t met the owner; I don’t know him.” 

In the Afterword of my book I said to Robby when I noticed Springsteen and Dylan getting hundreds of millions of dollars for their publishing, ‘Let’s show these rockers how to do it, let’s sell everything with restrictions, no commercials, and give half the money to charity.’

And in the new book’s Preface I wrote ‘Money is not evil, it’s how you use it.’ 

And then Robby a few months later sells his quarter with no restrictions. I’m like, what is this a comedy skit? He’s thinking his pockets are deepened. I’m thinking what are we doing to Jim’s legacy here? But we’ve got to remember, Joanne; it’s a free country and I’ve got to be careful. I’m not telling people what to do with their money or how much they can make. Robby wrote “Light My Fire,” he deserves whatever karma brings along. So be it. I’m just trying to be an example or mirror of how I feel. I said to Ray and Robby, ok we all have a nice house and a couple of groovy cars, what do you want to buy? Silence. Well, the answer is in that silence, you know.

Time really helps. I miss Ray, he played bass with his left hand, and bass players and drummers are brothers. Ray played a Bach-like intro to “Light My Fire” and the soul intro of “Riders of the Storm” is a masterpiece. I loved playing with him, the two of us would ride that wave. So I’ll never get that again, and the love is growing over time, and Ray’s Achilles heel is shrinking. [jokingly adds] And mine may be enlarging, I don’t know.

Let’s pose a scenario, someone is knocking on your front door and its Jim Morrison… what would you do with that?

[Laughs] I’d say welcome back. What’s it like over there since you’ve broke on through? Oh my God. I’ve been trying to channel you, but now that you’re here give me more info!

Jim is an ancestor, he’s a teacher now, and we’re all on the shoulders of those who went before. Let’s close out our interview with the Tibetan Book of the Dead, as John Lennon believed in the concept of the bardo, when the deceased is in transition to wherever they are supposed to go, and we over here need to pray and sing for them during that time, and after they get to where they are supposed to go, they are our guardian for our lifetime. I like that, it connects us to the other side. The veil is thinner. Musicians make jokes about that big band in the sky that they’re going to jam with, it’s a sweet metaphor. I like to say I believe in the mystery.

Densmore is an inductee into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and is a NY Times Best Selling Author. Signed copies of The Doors Unhinged will be available for sale before and after the talk at the Mary Craig Auditorium (courtesy of Chaucer’s Books) on Sunday, January 28.

411: https://tickets.sbma.net/event-detail/doors-unhinged-2024-01-28/