Doors Drummer wins injunction to stop remaining members touring as "The Doors"

[Panamark]

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=56109

[Panamark]

Doors drummer wins lawsuit against mates
09:44 AEST Sun Jul 24 2005
AAP
The former drummer for The Doors has won a permanent injunction preventing his bandmates from using the rock group's name while touring with a revamped version of the legendary 1960s act.

The Los Angeles Superior Court order also requires keyboardist Ray Manzarek and guitarist Robby Krieger, who have been touring as The Doors of the 21st Century, to turn over all the profits earned by the new combo to the original Doors partnership.

The decision represents a major victory for Doors drummer John Densmore, who told Reuters he was concerned that the band's legacy was being tarnished by its reincarnation as an oldies act.

Manzarek and Krieger, along with British singer Ian Astbury subbing for the late Jim Morrison, are touring Canada as headliners of the Strange Days festival, which also features such bands as Steppenwolf, the Yardbirds and Vanilla Fudge.

"They're playing Doors songs and calling themselves the Doors of the 21st Century. I kinda think it's the 19th century, it's looking back," said Densmore, who plays original music with his own band Tribal Jazz.

He teamed up with Morrison's estate - represented by the parents of both Morrison and Morrison's late wife, Pamela Courson - to sue Krieger and Manzarek in early 2003.




Under an agreement struck in 1971, the year Morrison died in Paris, all three surviving members as well as the Morrison estate must sign off on any use of the Doors name and logo.

"I'm very pleased that, in my opinion, the legacy is preserved," added Densmore.

"I never intended for Ray and Robby to stop playing - they're great musicians. I hope Doors fans keep going to see them - it's just the name is owned by me and them and the estate of Jim Morrison, and they kinda ran off with stolen property."

Densmore estimated that Manzarek and Krieger have earned "millions and millions of dollars" on the road in recent years, more than the original band ever made.

The Doors rose to fame in the late 1960s with such songs as Light My Fire and Touch Me. After Morrison, their provocative frontman and self-styled "lizard king", died of a heart attack, the band eventually folded.

Its mythology exploded with the 1980 publication of the Doors biography No One Here Gets Out Alive and then with Oliver Stone's 1991 movie The Doors. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993, with the three members reuniting for a few songs behind Pearl Jam singer Eddie Vedder.

A management representative for Krieger and Manzarek in Los Angeles did not return a call.

[Hardrock69]

That is fucking stupid...what a fucking asshole.

[DrMaddVibe]

Can they play as Peace Frog?

[thome]

Do people expect jim morrison to show up, its funny ha ha.

parts is parts ha ha .

[Terry]

May be wrong, but thought that Densmore was originally supposed to participate in this reunion, then got ousted because of physical maladies that prevented him from taking part.

Plus, 'the Doors' put out a couple of albums after Jimbo kicked it in 1971.......think there was one called Other Voices and the other was Full Circle. Both were released under the name the Doors and neither had the Lizard King on them.

Whatever. Plenty of groups have went out on the road over the years with fractions of original/classic lineups and kept the name.........The Who, Lynard Skynard, KISS..................if people wanna pay money to see it, whatever. Not so sure about it 'tarnishing the legacy', though. The only reason bands like those are able to draw people on the strength of a band name IS the legacy, which is really the music, when you get right down to it. If the music was strong enough to warrant leaving a legacy, then presumably it'll be strong enough to withstand a bands name being drug thorugh the mud,

Although I do agree with Densmore that this current version of the Doors is a sham.

[Rikk]

I'd have less problem if they didn't get a singer that's trying to copy Morrison (look at him on stage...same Morrison hair, clothes, demeanor...it's ridiculous). It would be much better if the dude was more himself and they actually wrote and recorded their own albums and played some classic Doors songs in the set, but mixed in with new songs. I'm fucking sick of nostalgia acts.

That's why I always maintain that as much as I'd like to see VH back together, I'd be about 100 times more excited if they had a new album. I don't like seeing bands that just live off their back catalogue. It bores the piss out of me because it proves that the band isn't current whatsoever.

Densmore did take part in two Doors albums and major tours after Morrison died in the early 70s. But the story about him being too sick to participate was just the press's version of why he wasn't involved. Frankly, I thought they sounded pretty good on the DVD I saw. But it wasn't THE DOORS. And they certainly didn't deserve to be the Doors of a new century.

One more thing: THE WHO has its core members and is working on new music. KISS...well, that's bullshit. They just don't have the guitarist and drummer because they don't want to pay them or let them have any say. Skynyrd: C'mon...two original members? A guitarist and keyboard player? I don't think so. Skynyrd may be my favorite band ever, you know. But Ronnie Van Zant and Allen Collins and Steve Gaines are dead. Let it go.

[Shaun Ponsonby]

I agree with Rikk on one thing-a singer who didn't try and copy Morrison would be better, like with Queen + Paul Rodgers.

The thing is, they are NOT travelling as JUST The Doors, its The Doors of the 21st Century, its a new reincarnation of The Doors. For all we know, the band could be travelling playing old material, getting used to playing together, before going into the studio and writing new material. They HAVE to have "The Doors" in their name somewhere, or people won't know what it is, will they? Its the same with Queen + Paul Rodgers, its not Queen, its a different animal, its a new reincarnation of Queen, if they didn't have "Queen" in their name somewhere, people wouldn't know what it is.

[Shaun Ponsonby]

Actually, regarding Ian Astbury being a Jim Morrison clone this is from The Doors website...

"The search for a new singer took a bit of time, but in the end, Manzarek and Krieger felt that Ian Astbury was the man. Recalls Manzarek, 'We knew that Ian of the English band, The Cult, had always expressed a desire to perform with The Doors, saying that if we ever decided to go back out on the road, he wanted to be a part of it. What I like about Ian, is that he's coming from the same place as Jim, but he has a touch of the shaman about him. Ian is his own man. He's got that sense of danger about him that is so Morrison-esque, without being an imitation of Jim Morrison. We just couldn't resist him.'

Krieger echoes those thoughts: 'Ian was a little apprehensive at first because he didn't want anyone to think he was going to copy Jim Morrison. He's being himself onstage, and it has worked really well. We'll never replace Jim, but that's not the point. Ian brings his own interpretations of our music to the stage while, at the same time, giving off a vibe that is very similar to Jim's. Ian is very confident that he can pull this off, and so are we.'"

[bueno bob]

I don't know. I like Ian personally, have been a fan of his since The Cult days...I didn't have any real personal problem with them billing themselves as The Doors of the 21st Century, I mean, it's not like anybody's going to show up and go "Aw man! Where's Jim? I really thought this was a Doors reunion here!" Nobody was going to be surprised.

Be interesting to see how 'The Doors' (?) react now. Are they going to cancel the tour? Change the name and continue on? Will Ian leave now that he's not going to see anything from it?

Hard telling. It'll be interesting to watch it unfold.

[academic punk]

Ray Manzarek is a fuckin' money-grubbin' prick and deserves to have razor blades stuck underneath his fingernails.

[Rikk]

I agree with AP. For years, Manzarek sold Doors products by glorifying Jim's death and talking about Jim as some sort of deity. Now, suddenly Jim was just a singer and someone else is singing those songs and now he's trying to downplay Jim's important to suit Ray's latest business venture.

Ray is a cunt.

[Shaun Ponsonby]

I wouldn't really call him a cunt, he probably just wants to play to big crowds again, and the only way he is ever going to be able to do that is if he does it under The Doors banner. I don't think he is downplaying Jim's part, he always aknowledges that Jim gave The Doors that something extra, and in truth, The Doors wouldn't have achieved half as much without him.

Plus, its not as if he has rushed out and grabbed the first guy he found straight after he learned of Jim's death, he has waited a good 30 years to play The Doors material again with a new singer.

[DavidLeeNatra]

Originally posted by Terry
Plenty of groups have went out on the road over the years with fractions of original/classic lineups and kept the name.........The Who, Lynard Skynard, KISS..................if people wanna pay money to see it, whatever.

van halen...

[Shaun Ponsonby]

They don't count, though.