Doors Keyboards

[Peacefrog35]

This is some of my collection. I've seen alot of threads that are old with people asking questions about what Ray played in the studio and live.
For the record, Ray never..NEVER played bass with his feet. He played piano bass on the first album and others bassists such as Larry Knechtel(sp) played and doubled some of the tracks, but not on all of them on that album. On some Ray played all by his lonesome such as on Break on Through, The end, Alabama Song, The Crystal Ship and a few others.

On strange Days, it was all a studio bassist playing bass lines written by Ray except for on When The Music's Oiver..that's all Fender Rhodes Piano Bass again... I wont get into the Carol Kaye argument... All I'll say is I doubt she played at all, Bruce Botnic and the Doors never mention her and she even said that The Doors first album was all Studio Musicians...I mean come on! lol
Ray started on a Vox Continental and then mid 1967, he switched to the Gibson Kalamazoo( also known as the Gibson G101) organ. He played the Fender Rhodes Piano Bass on top of both live....no feet...ever. He never used bass pedals, only a volume pedal.
Ok...here's some of my stuff:

 

[b_carville]

I saw them live a few times in the 60's. Ray ran that Rhodes piano bass through a wall of Acoustic amps that had two fifteens each.By 1969 he was using those and an Acoustic 360or two.

You did not notice a lack of bottom at a Doors show! I was astounded at how punchy the bass was live.

 

[Peacefrog35]

Good eye...I'm a bit of a Doors nerd. Check out that gold mic on my Vox...then go look at the Doors performing Touch Me on the Smothers Bros Comedy Hours.... I also have the Acoustic amp..well not the 360 for the bass,but I do have the acoustic 260 with 261 cab just like he used for the organ and Robby used for his guitar.

 

[Against Will]

Nice setup, I love vintage organs and electric pianos. One day, when I have the scratch maybe I'll get one.

 

[Randall]

How did you ever get a hold of these gems? They look brand new (time machine?)

 

[Peacefrog35]

Thanks alot guys. Well, I search alot and I've found some great deals! Most of it comes to contacting the right people at the right time and scouring the net. I've got gear that goes for alot,but I never paid more than $500 for any one piece and most of the tuff I have will sell for at least $1500 each. Time and patience. I got most of this stuff before I got married so it was easier to have time...it helped not having someone to answer to when I drove an entire day to and from to pick something up.

 

[Basshappi]

Awesome gear!

 

[lowendfriend]

Good eye...I'm a bit of a Doors nerd. Check out that gold mic on my Vox...then go look at the Doors performing Touch Me on the Smothers Bros Comedy Hours.... I also have the Acoustic amp..well not the 360 for the bass,but I do have the acoustic 260 with 261 cab just like he used for the organ and Robby used for his guitar.

+1 on Doors nerd....

Great lyrics for security passphrases....

 

[Peacefrog35]

You are so right... I have often used The Doors lyrics for that.
I've been a Doors fan forever. I just say that my favorite way to listen to them is live. I do love the studio cuts,but when Ray Manzarek is on his Gibson Kalamazoo organ( the green one in my pic) and the Fender Rhodes Piano Bass, it doens't get any better. I love the vox,but the Gibson is the true Doors organ!

 

[ggunn]

Sadly, I watched the Doors break up in real time on stage at A Warehouse in New Orleans. Morrison was so loaded he could barely stand up, and he looked like a homeless person. He had a big bushy beard and he looked like he hadn't washed his hair in a month. I didn't recognize him until he started talking. They were terrible. It still ranks as one of the worst shows I have ever attended.

Morrison left the stage during an instrumental break and didn't come back until he was bodily thrown onto the stage by a stage hand or somebody after the rest of the band had improvised an awkward ending to the song they were playing. When they started the next song, he staggered up to the mic and began trying to sing the lyrics of the previous song. Manzarek kept looking at his watch. Finally Densmore stood up, yelled something I couldn't understand, threw his drumsticks out onto the stage, left the stage, and that was that. There was no encore. It was the last time they ever performed with Morrison. I heard later that they were never again even in the same room together; Morrison left for France shortly thereafter and soon after that he was dead.

I was (am) a Doors fan. I was bitterly disappointed in the show; it was like watching friends get in a car wreck.