Ray Manzarek has been proclaimed to be the “architect of The Doors’ intoxicating sound.” Teamed with the iconic frontman Jim Morrison, guitarist Robbie Krieger and drummer John Densmore; The Doors were certainly one of the quintessential rock bands of the late 60s. For Manzarek, it all began in Chicago.
Manzarek was born and raised on Chicago’s South Side, attending Everett Elementary School (3419 S. Bell) and St. Rita High School (63rd and Claremont). The famed keyboardist initially struggled with piano lessons until he began studying with dance band leader Bruno Michelotti. “He taught me virtually everything I know,” Manzarek said in an interview. “Boogie-woogie is what hooked me. That rolling snake beat in the left hand. That repetitive mantra of hip-swaying rhythm.” The lessons, along with the blues he heard on Chicago’s south side, laid the foundation for Manzarek’s hypnotic Doors’ arrangements.
His education continued at DePaul University where he played piano in the Beta Pi Mu Combo, a fraternity jazz band; graduating from the university in 1960.
After a brief stint in the military, Manzarek headed west, enrolling in UCLA studying cinematography. There, he formed the band Rick and the Ravens with his brothers Rick and Jim, the group releasing three singles on the Posae and Aura labels in 1965. And it was there he met Jim Morrison.
That proved be the launching point for what became The Doors.
Sadly, Jim Morrison died in 1971. From there, Manzarek and Krieger tried to continue, releasing a couple albums with little fanfare.
Post-Doors’ era, Manzarek stepped out with a couple solo albums in the mid-70s, formed Nite City releasing two albums in 1977-78, and recorded a rock adaptation of Carmina Burana in 1983. Moving forward from the mid-80s, Manzarek did various projects and sessions with the likes of Iggy Pop, Echo and the Bunnymen, poets Michael McClure and Michael C. Ford, did a series of spoken word albums Tornado Souvenirs, produced the punk band X, and worked with San Francisco guitarist Roy Rogers.
He also published his memoir Light My Fire: My Life with The Doors (Berkley) in 1998 and co-wrote and directed the film Love Her Madly in 2000.
In the early 2000s, Manzarek moved to the Napa County, California area where he was often seen sitting in with local bands. In 2013, he was diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma, a rare bile duct cancer. He traveled to Germany for experimental treatment but succumbed to the disease while hospitalized there at the age of 74. (by Paul Spurgaitis)
Ray Manzarek
