I really enjoyed Light My Fire.

It centers around the Doors´ early days and has some hilarious dialogue.

-Liberty Records
-The Voxplant
-Generic talk with Mr. Pen
-and in particular the visit by Paul Beaver during Strange Days sessions.

How they started and got it together.

I felt like taking a crashcourse in culture and socialstudies during the late sixties.

Ray has an inspirational view on eastern culture which I also feel locks into his playing: sparsely but vitally
ornamented, not to forget kick ass blues.

Light my Fire also depicts the sad fall of Morrison in a very sweet and caring manner.- That I really loved.
He didn´t sell Jim by the pound.

But the highlight for me is really that Manzarek believed in Morrison as a singer.

This shows a great artistic mind and the understanding of what it means to put forth a human expression.

agreed, great book

great book. I would love to be able to sit around one day, all day, with Ray and have him tell me stories. He's a helluva storyteller

I've had the pleasure of talking to Ray quite a few occasions. The greatest thing is.. what you read in 'Light My Fire'.. what you hear on the 'Myth and Reality' CDs.. that's how Ray is. One of the most entertaining conversationalists I've ever met.
Dave

Ray is awesome storyteller and he have nice voice which is nice to hear

Yes, it is very easy to be 'entranced' by his voice. When I picked up 'Myth & Reality', even my wife sat down and listened to the whole thing with me (she doesn't get the whole Doors thing, which validates my point.)

Ray has a fascinating writing style and a gift for words. Besides Light My Fire this is also evident in The Poet In Exile.

hey bayshore i love your name

I just finished reading the book and I felt that it was a great representation of Ray's perspective. He is a great writer and quite articulate.

I love the comments about society and how we are all responsible for its deterioration - but how WE as a group can change things.

....Get together one more time....

The comments regarding the "Establishment" as the reigning example of hypocrisy expressed by an institution was brilliant.

I was also touched by his love for Jim as an artist and as a friend.

Ray´s book is better than John´s, cause Ray knew Jim more than anyone else.

I thought Light My Fire was an awesome book. I loved how personal it was and how real and close it made me feel. Almost like I was watching everything happen and unfold.
Ray's a great writer without a doubt, his love for the band and the music is evident all the way through.

hi! well, the book ist great - no questions, but i wouldn´t say it´s better than John´s. they are different. completely different. and that´s the point. the genius of the doors is that all band members have an absolutely different personalities but as a whole they are brilliant. the way Ray tells the story is really amasing, really amasing. but what i like in John´s book is the feeling that it´s the real story without covering some things up. or maybe that will be more reasonable explanation if i will simply say that every doors fan wants to know the whole story, so it makes sence to read as much as possible of them to buld up your owm opinion about doors and Jim. Ray is a real artist, the artist till the depth of his soul.he lives the art. that´s why he´s seen Jim with other eyes as everybody else. but i wouldn´t say he knew him better or loved him more than anyone else. he has seen him from his own point of view. and John from his own one. and of course the way Ray´s talking and writing is unique, i would give everything to have a chat with him. and as a musician he is my absolutely favorite one, and out of the doors as well. all his solos are genius, they bring a charme to the doors music!

so, i think the most important thing about the books is that the guys have shared their experience and feelings with us about the things they are gone through and made that possible for us to look inside the doors. is that not not fair enough?

enjoy the doors music

greetings from Belarus,

Wladi

Both John and Ray's books are essential reading for Doors fans and its not a matter of which is better as they are simply the view of each Door from their respective postitions.....both are flawed and thats cool as both men are different characters and that is reflected in the books.......Ray's is most fun to read as the guy is a storyteller supreme whilst John is perhaps far too 'honest' as he bares his soul a bit too much in it.
It's a shame that Ray does not deal with the latter part of The Doors as much as he could have but what he shares about the earliest UCLA days and the birth of The Doors is awesome.......should be read in conjunction with Myth & Reality CD and the special feature section of Ray's LHM film for the complete experience......

maybe my opinion was too rough...they are both Doors fan bibles! excellent reading, ive read Ray´s book twice and John´s once.

I really enjoyed Light My Fire. My favorite part was when Jim had done acid and the creature was following him down the street. I thought that was hilarious.

Yours is cool too. I'm from Bayshore, N.Y so that's how I came up with it.


Michael

Just finished reading Ray's book and it was amazing,kind of a journey back in time...
Thank you Ray! But every time Olliver's movie came up I wondered why Ray never maked a movie of his own,he got the skills AND the RIGHT story... Maybe someday...

Today Hollywood is such a business its not just "who you know" but "who are you". As much as we all love Ray, I'm sure a movie directed by him wouldn't do much more than make a splash on the independent movie scene or "tv movie".

You're right nut just to set things right and give the Stone an answer upon his crap... If the mythe can stay alive why shouldn't we keep on dreaming?? peace man!

You guys do know that The Doors are planning on releasing a full-length documentary in '07, right? It should be The Doors' answer to Stone's movie.
Dave

I was not aware of that...

Here are some quotes from Jeff J, manager of the Doors

• We are working with the band on a feature-length documentary of The Doors – the WHOLE story, as told by the band themselves, which will tell all, reveal all, and give the entire story that no one has ever heard, in its entirety;
• We're in pre-production now, viewing footage, compiling notes, preparing interviews. I've seen two cuts of a "teaser" for the documentary - they are AWESOME!!! The producer, Dick Wolf ("Law & Order") actually BOOKED The Doors when he was in college! And the director is a HUGE Doors fan. He's met with each of the three surviving Doors a couple of times so far.

Dave

Oh wow, that will be great to see. I had no idea they were working on something like that.

Any idea on how something like this would be released? Would it be a dvd release or an actual theatre release?

theater is the word right now, I doubt it'll be a full release (which is usually 3,000 theaters) but select theaters no doubt, especially LA.

Cool !

and europe?? Living in Belgium,you know;of all places...

What great news! Thank you, Dave!

Is that still on schedule? Do you know?
Thanks...

As far as we know, as of now, yes

Great....I can't wait!!! Thanks for the reply!
M-B

I haven't been told anything else. As far as I know, they are working on things as we speak.

Has this book been published in spain?

I did a little research but was unable to come up with anything.
Hmmmm...

Brian

I am going to try to buy the book, Light my Fire. I have another one ordered. so little by little i am getting a collection together of the Doors and the band members.

Welcome to the board and welcome to reading the books on the doors....it's fascinating the history and facts...I'm sure you will ejoy reading the books...I actually go back from time to time and take them all out again one by one and re-read them...you will be surprised at each re-read what I learn or pick -up that I haven't from whaen I first read each respective book......Enjoy!
M-B

it is an amazing book..i read it milion times and each time i read it again it fascinating.. the point of a great book is that you can read it many times and you never get bore with it..RAYS book is one of them..personaly one of my favorite books ever.

I enjoyed the book too. I got mine signed by the Man himself at the recent Chicago D21C show.

Hello,

I read Ray's book in German and got it signed by him personally - so it's now one of my craft objects of highest value!

I liked to read it very, very much, because Ray writes a very clear and picturesk speech. Even in the translation you can get that.

But there is one thing I wonder since I first read it: Ray tells us that you can find out someones grade in the sequence of his incarnations by practising a simple arithmetic formula based on ones date of birth. And this means, that the sequence will end after at most 9 reincarnations.

Well, yesterday I had the very great luck and pleasure to meet one of the most enlighted people on earth, His Holyness the Dalai Lama, who, hardly to believe, took a visit just at the village where I actually live. And you know, every Dalai Lama is to be seen as the reincarnation of the first one, Padhmasambava. So the now living 14th Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso should be at least for the 13th time reicarnated and found by wise lamas somewhere in Tibet and recognized as the next one in the sequence.

So, I'm rather sure that Ray liked to fool his readers a little bit. You cannot find out the range number of incarnations by a very simple mathematical algorhythm.

, so, please let me know what you think about that?

Peace

FreedomMan

Yes......the Dalai Lama is awesome.......higher intelligence is awesome........the truth is awesome.......and you are awesom "FreedomMan"
Peace,
M-B

Me .... ? Awesome ........ ? Mary-Beth, if I should be awesome, what the hell should a beetle or a snail or even a worm than be .... ????


But I agree: the Dalai Lama is awesome. A real living Buddha, and it was very impressing to feel this divine energy so close. He is the only living person I would ever accept as my real leader.

Nice to CU again, M.-B.!

ah FreedomMan......all life is awesome.....that is a quote right from the Dali Lama..........
and the beetle and the snail and even the worm is a magnificent work of art.....divine energy.
Peace and Love......always nice to c u Freedom!

Alright, yes, you are right, my dear sister Mary-Beth. But let me say this to you: not every beings are equal in their awesomeness. I don't know the ranges, nobody knows, I guess (but he doesn't tell us .... ), but I surely know this: nothing on earth is as awesome as a mighty female warrior of the light, like you are, Mary-Beth!


Can you agree? I hope so, 'cause you should never deny the truth ....

Love and peace to you, too, and to all beings!

Shalom

FreedomMan

Namaste', dear brother.....I totally agree...and thank-you for the beautiful compliment.......what a positive post.....I feel honored and privilaged to know such a fine gentleman.
Peace and Love,
M-B

Oh, it's my part to be honoured, my dearest "Big Sister" .... !

But, please, let me correct you in one part: I'm definitely NOT a GENTLEMAN. But a KNIGHT. What we call a RITTER here in good old Germany .... in "God's own Country" .... these days ....

Love & Peace
Yours
"Ritter Fritz"

P.S.: Could you, please, be so kind to explain to me what "Namaste'" means? I've read that word for several times now, always written by women as their nick or so, but do not know it's meaning. Thank you, M.-B.!