I’ve taken a break from posting Rockin’ Friday tunes lately,
not for lack of supply of great Rock songs that kids will also like. But
rather, I’ve been stuck on a few songs lately and haven’t exposed the Little
Dude, my primary test audience, to many new tunes lately. But this week is an
exception, for better or worse.
Ray Manzarek died this week at the age of 74. Casual music
fans are probably more familiar with his infinitely more famous bandmate who
died 40+ years ago, Jim Morrison. But it was Manzarek’s revolutionary organ
playing in the late 1960s and early ‘70s that gave The Doors their rhythm and framework
for composition. Though not a “Jam Band”, so to speak, they definitely dabbled
in exploratory music and Ray was the leader of that, in my opinion.
It was hard to pick a song that featured exemplary Ray
Manzarek organ playing, because he was such an integral part of the band. But
after debating options like Riders on the
Storm, where he made his instrument replicate the falling rain, I settled
on Light on Fire. A #1 hit in 1967, Light My Fire, features incredible
Manzarek playing throughout; especially the intro which he said was inspired by
the work of Bach. Clocking in at over 7
minutes long, the song goes through several ups and downs which lead to
incredible crescendos by the whole band. No one did it better on the organ, Ray. You’ll
be missed.
Here’s a version of the classic Light My Fire. RIP, Ray Manzarek.
What's your favorite Doors' tune?
