Densmore on The Doors: “We’re Great Musical Brothers Forever”

John Densmore was, is, and always will be the drummer for the legendary band, “The Doors.”   After his love and respect for the band led him to file a lawsuit protecting the Door’s integrity, he wrote a  book about the experience, “The Doors: Unhinged.” He recently stopped in to talk to Ron Bennington at the SiriusXM studios in New York City to talk about his book tour, the recent passing of bandmate Robby Krieger, and plans for the future.  Excerpts of the interview appear below.  The full interview can be heard exclusively on SiriuxXM satellite radio.  You can also check out our previous interview with Densmore here.

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John Densmore’s Book Tour 

Ron Bennington: John, you’ve been going around the country – going to a lot of independent stores and stuff, haven’t you?  

John Densmore:  What’s really interesting is that I’ve found this niche. I’m doing a book tour of record stores. And it’s all these independents that hung on through the “Borders” wars and Borders got its karma. And they’ve diversified, and they’ve got vinyl and box sets and posters and books. And I find, all across the country, a sense of community in these stores. Everybody cares about these stores. And it’s a very sweet feeling. So, when I blow into town, they get PR about the store, I sell books and gosh.

Ron Bennington:  But that is the community that you always felt like you were part of pre the corporate record stores, pre the corporate book stores. Funny, because for years I tried to explain to kids how fun those places were. A lot of them got pushed out of the way when we got Borders and giant record stores. But now look, as soon as there is an opening, it starts to come like flowers in the sidewalk.  

John Densmore:  Yeah, very inspiring. I mean the basis of it is that the people love music. The store owners, the people who come. Music lives, even though everything is morphing into some new technology on how you get it. It’s music. It’s about music.

Ron Bennington:  And sometimes that gets forgotten because we talk about charts and legacies and who’s doing well, but the fact of the matter is – it’s really the same emotional response that we all had when we were all listening to hillbilly music or old English music. 

John Densmore:  When you were listening to hillbilly.

Ron Bennington:  Or just drums on a tree in Africa. Whatever it is. 

John Densmore:  Oh, I’m down for that.

Ron Bennington: That feeling, again that it becomes about communal of music. It doesn’t matter what kind of music we’re talking about.

John Densmore:  And same thing with books, I mean they’re morphing into electronic. And I asked my agent – how do you autograph an electronic book? And he couldn’t answer. But, people are still reading, so music and literature will go on.

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John Densmore Talks About The Last Time He Spoke With Ray Manzarek

Ron Bennington: The last time you were in here, we were talking about the trial that you went through. And the fact that you were fighting for that original Doors spirit and doing this against your musical brothers. What we did not know at the time – that Ray Manzarek was very very ill. And I remember, you and I talking about no matter what happens – you wanted to get the chance to talk to him again, now that the trial was over and stuff. Did you get the chance to talk with Ray?  

John Densmore:  I did. And yeah, I guess…how long ago did we…?

Ron Bennington:  I think it was…well, it was right before that we knew that Ray was sick. 

John Densmore:  I didn’t know either. And then, shortly there after, the inner circle sort of got the word that he had cancer, but it didn’t seem that ominous. And meanwhile, I had sent Ray and Robby (Krieger) the last chapter of the book with a note saying – I want to make sure you guys get to this chapter because the first part is a hard pill, but this is the part where I say “I love you” and we’re great musical brothers forever. How could we not be? We created this thing in a garage. And then, when I heard Ray was getting rather critical, I gave him a call and we had a real sweet closing goodbye. I mean I didn’t know it was that ominous. He was going to Germany for alternative cancer (treatment) and I had heard that that was the cutting edge place to go and I said – I was drumming for your health. And give my love to Dorothy and gosh…a few weeks later he was gone.

Ron Bennington:  Do you feel blessed that opportunity to talk to him? 

John Densmore:  Totally. Yeah. And I furthered it even more since I hadn’t talked to him or Robby for…you know, God…well, there were emails, but not talked for years. I said – Robby, let’s play. We haven’t played together in 10 years or more. Let’s play a concert for Ray. Let’s make it a benefit for cancer or something. And so, we’re just talking about….we’re going to do it, but hopefully get it together by February 12th, his birthday. It’s assembling all these folks we hope to get on the same night. We’ll see.

Ron Bennington:  Is it all people that we know or people that you guys have a past with? 

John Densmore:  Yeah, people that we know. Yeah. And depending, it will be the whiskey or it will be a giant concert, I don’t know.

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John Densmore Talks About Following The Muse

Ron Bennington: “The Doors Unhinged” has a lot of your point of view about what this music means. And it’s something that most people don’t even discuss anymore, John, that something could have a worth that did not include money. That it was something besides money to do things with. 

John Densmore:  Right. Careful. There’s this guy I quote…a book called “The Gift”. I can’t think of his name. It’s in there. And he says it’s okay if you pay for your opera ticket or your concert ticket – that doesn’t negate the gift between the artist and the listener. The trap is if you turn the entire work of art into a commodity. Uh-oh. You’re going to lose the gift. So, I like that.

Ron Bennington: The gift is also that shared experience as well. And the intention…you cannot just do things for money and think the intention of art is going to be there. 

John Densmore:  Yeah. The gift is just some kind of humanity thing. What it’s like to be a human or whatever. Music goes right…it’s subliminal. It’s not literal. It just goes. It’s in the air. A painting is on the wall. It’s really direct and magic. If you find the muse. If you get blessed and are thankful that somebody, some mythical woman has come around and showered you with manna.

Ron Bennington: But what is it like to be in that moment? Where here’s these 4 guys, 4 young guys, and knowing that whatever the muse is, has shown up and it’s being captured. What does that feel like? 

John Densmore:  You’re not totally for sure. You’re praying and thanking. It’s the same feeling as if you’re at a concert and just feel at one with the band. I have this thing where I say – if you’re playing live, it doesn’t matter if you’re a duet, 2 people on stage or a 40 piece orchestra. That’s one person. The audience is the other person, at Madison Square Garden or a club. The 2 of you are going to dance tonight. How’s it going to go? And that’s the thrilling thing about live. Is it going to feel like a waltz or a salsa or be “pin drop time” where everybody’s screaming? And that’s what’s so exciting. It’s the moment…it’s not being recorded. It’s the moment.

Ron Bennington: And those things are explained to each other subconsciously. The fact that you’re picking up on the vibe of this audience.

John Densmore:  Precisely. It affects you. It affects your set list. Like whoa, God, they’re so quiet – maybe we should go this way instead or whatever. It’s fun.

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John Densmore Talks About Why People Connect to Drumming

Ron Bennington: The magical thing about music — and I think drumming in particular – is that whole thing of let me explain something to you without words. Let me explain my emotions to you. And it goes back and forth that way. 

John Densmore:  Drumming, in particular Ron?

Ron Bennington: Yeah. I do feel like we have no reason…we have no real understanding why one beat moves us at a certain time. 

John Densmore:  Oh, I’ll tell you why. This is good. I like it. Alright, the first drum beat – we were in the womb. It was our mom. We heard that heartbeat. We felt secure. Meanwhile, we were still in there and we had our own little heartbeat. So already, you’ve got poly-rhythms. You’re already drumming. Okay, so you get out and I think what unites us all and makes people want to dance is if the musicians, the duet or the 40 piece orchestra are really tight like one – you’re back in the womb. You’re feeling that groove. The warmth of mom’s heartbeat. It’s secure. That’s my theory.

Ron Bennington: Well, I love that theory because they also say there’s sometimes that we chase that with our addictions. That heroin will be somewhat of a womb-like feeling. But the naturalness of what you’re talking in music. And I’ll go through this with…I think I could be atheist except for the spiritual feeling of how a crowd will come together. It feels bigger than any one human. 

John Densmore:  Why do all these people start bopping and grooving at the same pulse? Because of the pulse they’re hearing and what they’re hearing if it’s tight…I don’t know. It’s primal. It’s some primal thing. It’s instinctual.

Ron Bennington:  You’ll see toddlers doing that too, like I’ll stop when I’m walking through Central Park, there will be little kids that stop in front of musicians and they’re bouncing the same way that I remember seeing when I was a little kid. 

John Densmore:  Sweet.

Ron Bennington:  That no ones says – here’s how you bounce along to the music. 

John Densmore:  Yeah and then of course, there’s those theories that if you play certain music, that will chill your little newborn. I don’t know about that. (laughs)  Alright, here’s another one. When my son was in utero – I sang outside his mom’s womb. One particular song. A ballad. In the hopes that when he came out and he was like (crying noises), I would just go into that song and he would go – oh, I’m back. Well, it’s good in theory.

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John Densmore Talks About The Unique Sound Of The Doors 

Ron Bennington:  The Doors are so much of the ’60s and yet at the same time, don’t really remind me of anyone else in the ’60s. It’s never like The Doors were part of a certain sound from an area. They always stood alone, but I can’t imagine what other decade they would have been born in. 

John Densmore:  Maybe the lack of a bass player. It was a unique ensemble, that’s for sure. Got to give it to Ray on that. His left hand is the bass. His right hand is the keyboards. Which left more room for me to have a conversation with Jim. My first job is to keep the beat. I have to hold the pocket for everybody to groove to. But gee, “What have they done to the Earth? What have they done to our fair sister?” I stopped the groove and just started talking with Jim. And I don’t know why. And 8 bars later, I picked it up again. After he “wanted the world and wanted it now.” Crash. I go back in the groove. There was a lot of space in The Doors. And we weren’t afraid of silence. We don’t have to fill the sound all the time. I think I learned that from classical music. Because I’ve played in the orchestra. If you have fortissimo and pianissimo, quiet and loud and everything in between and it’s very human like. It’s got a lot of feeling. Rather than loud all the time or soft all the time or whatever. Springsteen’s came up to me when we were inducted into the Rock Hall and said – man, your drumming. You play in “The End”, it’s real quiet and then you hit a bomb of a tom-tom. And I said – I don’t know why I did that. But then later, I analyzed it and I thought – oh, I heightened the tension by doing that. So it was sort of the antithesis of what you think I should have done, but…I love dynamics. I’m not the fastest drummer in the world. My technique is enough. But man, I love dynamics.

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John Densmore Talks About Taking Chances In Music  

Ron Bennington: It always seemed daring because there’s always the opportunity I think, for The Doors to kind of fall apart. And there are things that you’ll see where because of Jim’s lack of professionalism – that he picks being an artist over an entertainer, that the music will sometimes fall apart. And then you guys will, during the course of this, pull it back together again. 

John Densmore:  Alright. I’m going to throw you a curve. So, I’m seeing John Coltrane live as a kid. Many times. And Elvin Jones, his drummer, is my idol. And he is so loose. I thought he was going to fall into his drum set. (laughs)  And that’s what it’s about. It’s just like loose and then tighten it up! And then, let it go again. Like breathing or something. I don’t know. Risky, but exciting.

Ron Bennington:  Well, if you want to find those moments that we were talking about earlier, where the audience and the players somehow come together – I think you do have to risk that. I think you do have to be careful not to be overly professional there. 

John Densmore:  Alright now, so have we been overly blah blahing and should we play music? (laughs)

Ron Bennington: Yeah. Let’s just play music to end this out. It’s “The Doors Unhinged”. It’s always great to hear you come in, man. 

John Densmore:  Excellent to talk to you. 

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You can order The Doors: Unhinged on Amazon.com and follow John Densmore on Twitter @JohnDensmore

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You can hear this interview in its entirety exclusively on SiriusXM satellite radio.  Not yet a subscriber?  Click here for a free trial subscription.

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You can learn more about Ron Bennington’s two interview shows, Unmasked and Ron Bennington Interviews at RonBenningtonInterviews.com.

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