It is undeniable that the influence of jazz left an indelible mark on the music one of the best and most beloved rock bands ever, more specifically The Doors. This brief post will focus on how The Doors became influenced by several jazz legends and what this genre of music meant to the members of the highly-acclaimed classic rock band The Doors. According to keyboardist Raymond ‘Ray’ Daniel Manzarek, the sound of The Doors (and, in particular, his sound) was very influenced by jazz. He was a great fan of pianist Vince Guaraldi. At the same time, during the 1960s, he also liked Cannonball Adderley, Josef ‘Joe’ Zawinul (who was performing with Cannonball Adderley at the time), and John Coltrane. In point of fact, Ray Manzarek envisaged or perceived The Doors as a rock and roll version of the Modern Jazz Quartet.
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Doors drummer John Densmore was also influenced by jazz, more specifically by the drummer in John Coltrane’s band, Elvin Jones. In addition, John Densmore was also influenced by Art Blakey on drums. These fine influences contributed to adding an acid jazz sound in the overall sound of The Doors (which was a fascinating melting pot of flamenco, blues, and pyschedelia).
Robby Krieger, the guitarist of The Doors, was a very talented and technical flamenco guitarist. Thanks to his technical guitar skills as a flamenco guitarist, he went on to develop a hybrid jazz-blues guitar playing style in The Doors, cementing the band’s blues sound that was prevalent early on in their discography as well as later on with L.A. Woman, their last studio album which was released back in 1971. It is also worth mentioning the fact that the Soft Parade, The Doors’ fourth studio album which was released in 1969, has a partial jazz rock or jazz fusion sound as well.
Below you can watch a very interesting talk by Ray Manzarek on the history of The Doors as well as on his own jazz influences:
- Ray Manzarek Opens a New Door: Jazz on www.elmoremagazine.com
- Dr. John & Ray Manzarek: Of Bayous and Beaches on www.elmoremagazine.com
- John Densmore’s official website on www.johndensmore.com
- Robby Krieger: “In the Doors’ music there are a lot of silences. We weren’t the type of band that had to fill up every little gap“ on www.guitarworld.com