In the culture explosion of the 1960s, the Doors were the first LA band to matter. As it has turned out, no LA band has mattered as much. Since then, there have been other LA bands, but none have had the impact of Jim Morrison, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore and  Robby Krieger.

Every other group fronted by a charismatic male singer that sprang forth as an LA band– Van Halen, Guns N’ Roses, X, Black Flag, whatever– all owe a debt to the group of UCLA film students who decided to form a band in 1965. By 1971, six studio albums later, Morrison was dead, in Paris, from the bloat and excess of  success and it was all over. Read the rest of this entry →