New releases, music videos and album news — indie, rap, rock and pop. Always covering Ren, Chris Webby, Sam Tompkins, bbno$, CHINCHILLA, Muse, Yungblud and more.
In 1967, The Doors helped define psychedelia. Their most famous opening owed a debt to Bach
The Doors blended jazz, blues rock and psychedelic influences into a sound that resisted easy categorisation. Ray Manzarek said the famous organ introduction to ‘Light My Fire’ drew on Johann Sebastian Bach, helping the 1967 song begin with a distinctive flourish rather than a simple vamp.
In a 1998 interview, Manzarek described the song’s main structure as a jazz pattern of verses, choruses and an extended solo. The band debated how to open it, and he turned to Bach for inspiration, using a circle of fifths, a chord progression associated with Baroque music. The article also notes the band’s interest in theatrical arrangements, including ‘Alabama Song’ and ‘Touch Me’.
In short
- Ray Manzarek linked ‘Light My Fire’s’ organ intro to Bach.
- He used a circle of fifths to shape the opening.
- The song also draws on jazz, blues and psychedelic sounds.